Health coach, Cheri Timmons is here to help you practice stillness. Remembering to slow down can be hard but it's important to take some time and reflect. Below, Cheri provides strategies of how to be still and how that stillness can benefit you.
From Cheri:
Be Still
Staying busy can seem the norm.
Rushing around can feel familiar.
A day without down time can become a pattern.
“The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear.” Such insightful, wise words from Rumi, the 13th century Persian poet and mystic. He reminds us of something we can easily forget.
What if…you became still?
What if…you grew quiet? Then quieter still.
What if…you realized something about yourself in the process?
Growing quiet, embracing stillness can truly reveal a lot about you. Does the thought of stillness bring up feelings of discomfort, unease or even fear? Or perhaps it sounds like a welcome reprieve from patterns of busyness you typically follow.
From the very thought of becoming still, notice what surfaced for you. Name it. Not to judge yourself or try to change it, but to just get clear about what comes up. To notice.
With intention, moments of stillness can actually serve as a mindfulness practice. If you are willing to be still and tune in.
Ready to get started?
Find a quiet place you can sit for 5 or more minutes. Silence your phone and minimize distractions.
Get comfortable in your seat. Close your eyes. Bring your attention to your breath.
Inhale fully, filling your lungs, then exhale fully. Continue these long, slow breaths to settle in and calm your body and mind.
And then, just notice. Notice how your body feels. Notice if thoughts come up...because they will. Notice if feelings come up…because they will.
Acknowledge any thought or feeling that arises and then let it go. As though you are politely greeting a passerby. Let any thoughts or feelings pass along as you return your attention to your breath.
In its simplest form, this is the practice of being still and growing quiet. You can certainly take this in many directions. You can do it for more than five minutes. You can incorporate other mindfulness or meditative features for a deeper experience.
You can also take time to journal after such a mindfulness session to examine your experience further.
No matter how you choose to proceed, the benefits are always there for you when you choose to get quiet…and listen.
- Cheri
For more tips, personal coaching and more, email cheri@chericoaching.com
Cheri Timmons is a Greensboro Downtown Parks program partner. The work she does with us is critical to providing FREE wellness programming to our park community. As we make our way through these unprecedented times, consider how you might support local Greensboro non-profits like us, as well as local businesses, artists, entrepreneurs like Cheri, makers, and more. We'll continue to bring you free programming through our digital platforms and look forward to having you join us and Cheri back in the parks soon!
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