In fact, there is a wonderful meditation I like to do with my Dance for Parkinson’s clients at the beginning of each class, but it is a meditation that can be shared, enjoyed and valued by all. So you may like to try this at home.

Firstly find a comfy chair and sit with your feet connecting strongly with the floor and your hands resting on your lap, making sure you feel comfortable with good back support and that you are nice and warm. Then simply breathe in and out really deeply, feeling all the goodness of the world pouring into you as you breathe in…….1, 2, 3 and then let all the worries and concerns you currently have leave you as you breathe out…..1, 2,3.

Repeat this action over and over.

And as you do this imagine you are a tree.  But not just any tree. A strong,  proud, formidable, powerful tree, that has been in this forest for a very long time. Your body is your trunk  - standing tall and proud, your arms are your branches, reaching out to the light and swaying gently in the breeze. And most importantly – you can feel the energy, the sunlight from above, pulsing down through your body or tree trunk from head to toe – top to bottom. Lighting you up from within and sending energy right along your trunk and branches and down into the root structure you have set up over the years.  When this energy reaches down to your feet – imagine it going out through the soles of your feet and into the floor like tree roots – anchoring you to the earth and providing a conduit for sustenance and life. Breathe in all the goodness of the world. Breathe out any negativity and let a wonderful calm come over you. Simply bask in the sunlight and breathe in all the goodness that surrounds you.

This is a wonderful meditation to ground you at the beginning of each day, or to use if you suddenly feel overwhelmed or unsettled during your day. Stay with it for 10  - 15 minutes if you can and really settle into that grounded feeling and imagine the sunlight on your leaves [ arms] and the stability you feel through your feet making such strong contact with the floor. Sending those tree roots [your life force and energy ] out into the world to keep you grounded and centred.

Why does this meditation work so well? I think it is perhaps that there are so many elements that are relatable when you see yourself as that tree.

Firstly, as human beings we all like to take root somewhere and create a sense of stability in our lives. Sending out our energy into the world, grounded through the earth, gives us a sense of belonging and these tree roots also represent what bring us sustenance. The roots we send out into our communities represent all the connections we make through different social groups, family, friends, and the like. They feed us what we need as humans – love, compassion, friendship, guidance, human interactions and a sense of belonging.

Then we have our body and our sense of self – our tree trunk. And much like a real tree it needs to be at all times both strong and centred, but also flexible to sway with the changes and winds of life.

Then we have our branches and leaves. To me these represent the seasons of our life. Sometimes in full bloom and then at other times shedding all our leaves, to cast off the old and make room for the new. The new shoots. The new leaves. The new way of being and doing. A simple and repetitive cycle that is seamless, effortless and unavoidable. It is just “how it is”. A constant cycle of casting off, resting and then rebirth.

So imagine you are just like a huge and glorious tree.

You take root, ground yourself and rejoice in your very existence. Planting roots in all directions that on one hand ground you to yourself, the earth, the forest around you and your life experience here and now. But also these very same roots feed you, nurture you with everything you need to grow, flower, expand, contract, weather the storms and sway with the winds of change.You rest in the Winter, flower in the Spring, bask in the glory of Summer, allow your leaves to fall in the Autumn, and then continue your cycle of rest and rebirth and fulfil the true potentiality of your existence.

Magical in its simplicity and design.

As this glorious tree, you breathe in all the good and release all the negativity. Constantly cycling through the positive and negative energies that surround you. Keeping all that is good and releasing back to the Earth all that is not productive or nurturing for your particular tree. You feel strong and proud and naturally able to cope with all seasons and all times. You go with the weather and all it brings easily and effortlessly. And most importantly, you have taken root and assured yourself a constant and reliable support system and root structure that runs deep to support you through it all, supplying you with constant nutrients and a physical connectedness and centred-ness to all that is.

So welcome to your very own Tree of Life.

Enjoy it.

Love it.

Feel it.

Send out your roots in whatever direction will bring you the most stability and joy.

Allow your trunk to weather all storms and bend with the winds of change that can sometimes push you around.

Produce the flowers and blossoms that best show off your unique nature.

Bask in the glory of your summer. Rest in Winter. Enjoy the frivolity of Spring. Allow Autumn it’s time and place…….being open to fully experiencing all Seasons of your life.

For through it all – you shall remain constant, grounded, swaying in the breeze and taking in all the sunlight, rain and nutrients that comes your way to give you all you need to survive and flourish and grow.

#Discover You. #Love You. #Be You

Christine

As someone who also finds it difficult to “hold her tongue” so to speak, and as someone who has an opinion on nearly everything, it does strike me as quite ironic though, that these three little words hold such a dear place in my heart.

As with many proverbs, the origin of this phrase is obscured by the passing of time, though there are reports of it dating back to as far as Ancient Egypt. The first example of it in English is said to be from the poet Thomas Carlyle, who translated the phrase from German in Sartor Resartus , 1831, in which a character expounds at length on the virtues of silence.

There is also reference to this proverb being used in relation to women in the 16^th Century with Silence being described as a “ woman’s finest garment”. As you can imagine, this third reference would not be one that I would be promoting in any way shape or form – but there it is regardless to taunt me in the writing of this article. I can only be grateful that I was not around in the 16^th Century to marvel at this type of thinking, as I do not think it would have ended well at all, to say the least.

But now, to the proverb itself and the importance or value I feel we can garner from it in the 21^st Century.

First and foremost, I feel that perhaps these wonderful three words can guide us to look inward for counsel, and encourage us to seek wisdom in the depths of our own silence. With the constant “buzzing” of our modern world coming at us from all angles and in all guises  – constantly and consistently – perhaps these three tiny words hold the key to our salvation in a world of madness and noise and confusion. Perhaps these three little words can pack a powerful punch if we take them at face value and literally and truly appreciate a little Silent Time each day.

Perhaps it is through this silence that we can hear our most treasured secrets and innate wisdom. And perhaps we have to take the time to stop and really listen. Perhaps we need to pause, and make room for the silence to expand and engulf us, to really soak up it’s true benefits. Perhaps we need to let the Silence speak to us. We need to give it time to breathe and be. We need to give it time to elaborate upon its nothingness, in order for it to show us the complete intricacies of it’s ‘everything-ness’?

This Silence is not something to be rushed, for it is in its expansion and timelessness that its true virtue can be found.

Perhaps in this space and time we need to recognize that this Silence is truly Golden.

A Golden Promise leading to our true selves.

A Golden Light shining in the darkness of our man made delusions and confusions.

A Golden Treasure waiting to be found and cultivated.

I encourage all of you to seek out this Silence and enjoy its full possibilities and promise.

In fact – take a moment right now to just sit in this Silence.

This beautiful, resounding, all encompassing Silence.

Let it eat you up and consume you. Let it take you away to another world – your Inner World. A world of peace and quiet and possibility and presence.

When you are ready – open your eyes –  regroup – reconnect -  and continue onward.

Now consider making that a regular and special part of your day.

The other aspect of this proverb that really speaks to me, is in relation to our interactions with other people.

So often, when in a conversation, we are listening to the other person speaking, but not hearing them at all. We are too busy thinking about our response. Too busy formulating our answer. Too busy figuring a way to sway the other person to our way of thinking. Too busy coming up with a witty comment to display our fabulous intellect or a way to Segway to a topic of our expertise.

But again we forget.

Silence is Golden.

If we can just silence our minds from our inward chitter chatter and silence ourselves from having to speak – perhaps we may find out something fascinating and intriguing about the other person that we did not know.

Perhaps, in giving them the time and space to speak and hold the floor, we may truly hear them and our interactions may be all the richer for the genuine attention and presence we have given to the other person in the conversation.

As I say these things however – do not think for a minute that I am an expert in reigning in of my own chatter. I am notorious for “not listening” to people and drifting off to some other place when others are speaking.  Unfortunately for me, my face is quite expressive and it is not too difficult for people to tell that I have no idea what they have just said when this occurs.

As with most of us – this distraction seems to reveal itself mainly when I am conversing with family.

Why I do not know?

With friends, acquaintances and clients I am known for being the exact opposite. 100% fully engaged and committed to the conversation. But put me with family and I can suddenly drift off into another time and place, looking blankly at a pillow or a wall.

So the point here is that we all, most likely, have some times, places and people with whom we can exercise this proverb and activate our own silence to the betterment of the situation at hand.

For our betterment and introspection when engaging with ourselves and our Inner World.

For the betterment of those around us to allow them to be fully heard when they are trying to communicate and share themselves with us.

In the end, I think perhaps that much can be learned about ourselves and about all those around us from taking on the role of Observer.

Silent Observer.

Silent Listener.

Silent Seeker of this Golden Treasure.

So once again – I invite you to take this concept and run with it in your own life.

See if it works for you.

Be aware of You and how You are in the world and in Your space.

Wishing you lots of nothing-ness and everything-ness.

Discover. Love. Be.

- Christine -