Savoring in the Face of It all

Mar 15, 2011

Can you feel it?

I know you can.

The world is pressing on you – the suffering, the uneasiness, the restless “get me out of here, make it safe again” feeling.

People are worried, edgy, afraid. For good reason.

How do you savor life in the midst of all of this?

Here is what I and the gals at the Savor & Serve Cafe are doing:

  • Knowing that not only does small count, small acts of services is all we can do – because we are not gods and goddesses – yet.
  • Massage our faces and necks and feet and hands and say “I am here” – being with our essential aliveness is so important right now
  • Remind ourselves it serves no one to not savor life because others are suffering
  • Forgiving ourselves for the hundred times a day when we don’t savor our lives – not letting it become an perfectionist goal
  • Make small gestures of connection like taking a meal to a local Japanese family to lighting a candle at here to giving a dollar to Philanthroper
  • Not telling ourselves stories that our writing and meditation and projects are insignificant – practicing self-full service by attending to our heart’s desires
  • Practicing being aware that there is no security – and finding comfort in that knowing
  • Validating the significance of these events because it connects us to each other and letting that ache be the connection
  • Looking for – and creating – stories of compassion, connection, resiliency– rather than the sky is falling or I can’t do anything so I might as well eat Ben&Jerry’s and watch America’s Top Models
  • It helps too – hugely – to recognize that you may be in a crappy, fearful, snappy mood and to name it to someone you trust. We do that a lot at the Cafe and even on Twitter. Name what it is. Drop your story about the feeling and feel the feelings.

I noticed today I am skipping my meditation and yoga practice today – wanting to run away from feeling, from being with these feelings. I’m having mercy with myself but also knowing that each step I take away from being present with what is – in all it’s unfathomable vastness – is a step toward shutting down, toward living in a box – and that is less and less appealing.

So far what I’ve learned about savoring in the almost one month of this experiment: it’s a deeply spiritual practice. It is not for wimps.

What helps you savor in the face of this loss? I would love to know.

 


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