this post is a reminder to myself of something very important that I once knew to be true but keep forgetting:
My life feels much sweeter when I think, speak, and act at the speed of tenderness.
If this sounds familiar, it's because I blogged about it a year and a half ago: http://www.postcards-from-nowhere.com/2011/04/try-little-tenderness.html
I think it could be sufficient as my stand-alone personal guiding principle. It makes that much difference in my quality of life. It's simpler and more powerful for me than meditation, conscious breathing, or any of the many other centering practices that have come to my attention over the past several decades.
I wonder why it's so hard for me to remember to do it? :)
2 comments:
Ok, the speed of tenderness.........
I guess the idea of tenderness can mean many things. For me, after a very brief reflection of course, it would relate less to speed and more to a sense of focus or awareness. For me, speed is directly proportional to routine or habit. The problem arises when we realize that human beings are more comfortable when we have a routine. We often strive for this comfort, we are drawn to it. So, with that in mind, as we become more comfortable, daily activities become more efficient, or "faster" lets say, and we begin to loose the tenderness in our lives. Ok, here's my point, break your routines. Force things to be new, don't be afraid to do things for the first time, because that feeling is what I call tenderness. It can be slow, and sometimes, believe it or not Karen, it can be fast. Instead of opening that drawer slower, try opening a different drawer ;)
thanks for sharing your thoughts, Anonymous. I appreciate the reminder that novelty can also a catalyst for the deepening of awareness. I do hope my post did not come across as a lecture - of course there are as many different experiences of life as there are people, and if you are able to access a feeling of tenderness within speed, that's an awesome thing to know about yourself!
warm regards,
karen
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