Radically Resting: The story of a semi-sabbatical
I’ve been reflecting lots lately on the concept of and need for rest. I’m curious - what does rest mean to you? Do you see it as stopping? As slowing down? Do you see it as a decrease in effort? An increase in pleasure? Do you focus more on what is being turned down or what is being turned up?
I began to reflect on this in a real way when I came across a practice that I recently shared on Instagram. It went something like “Take a moment to reflect on the things you needed the most in 2020. Now, ask yourself how you can give them to yourself in 2021.” (I can’t remember where I saw this, but if you know, please let me know!)
What I landed on, was the decision to move forward with my very first semi-sabbatical. What this means is that for 2021 I’ll continue to work on my existing and ongoing commitments, but I won’t be adding anything new to my schedule - a first in my 16 years of teaching, which feels radically out of my comfort zone. My intention is to create more space for my own practice, for study and for turning inward. So while I turn one dial down, I get to turn a different one up! I’m so excited for the process, however “boring” or bumpy or blissful it may feel.
With that, I’ve outlined some of the ways we can continue to practice together in the near future below. And below that are a few of the things inspiring me to embrace more rest. May it be the same for you!
OFFERINGS
Online retreats offer a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in intensive meditation practice from the comfort of your home, helping you seamlessly weave practice and home life together.
Giving and Receiving: Generosity in our Practice with Yong Oh
Saturday March 13 - Sunday March 14
*No registration fees for Black and Indigenous folks
Given my slowing down/scaling back/adjusting the dials, a large extent of my regular public offerings this winter will be my twice weekly Beditation.
Beditation on Instagram Live
Tuesdays and Thursdays 7:30 AM ET
A 15-minute guided meditation from my bed to yours!
TNI BIPOC Group
Mondays 7:15-8:15 PM ET
*Although this sangha gathers weekly, I’m leading on Monday Feb 22
AUDIO PROGRAMS
Refresh or restart your meditation practice with one my audio meditation programs below.
DAWNED ON ME/YOU/US
As a verb, dawn can mean "become clear" or “enter one's consciousness or emotions.” For example “It suddenly dawned on me that I was lost.”
It’s in this spirit that I share with you some of the things that help me get clear in various ways. May it be the same for you, too.
Read.
5 Healthy Ways to Immediately Slow Down Your Life
The pandemic may have disrupted daily life but it sped up our brains. Read how to reset your pace.
Watch.
Slow Map TV
If you haven’t heard of Slow TV before, it is a genre of long-form television originating from the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation’s broadcast of an uninterrupted 7-hour train journey in 2009. Slow TV Map maps these types of videos on a map so you can discover virtual journeys in an interactive way, and it can also be used as a form of active meditation. Here is a 1-hour long, Slow TV video of an 105-year old ship sailing the Denmark Coastline set to acoustic guitar.
Try.
An experiment to drastically shrink your workday
Prioritize your day by pretending you only have a few hours. Look at your day today. Now imagine it was much, much shorter. Imagine you lost your electric power, your Internet connection, your phone. Imagine that by, say, 10:30 this morning, it was all going to go away. How much could you get done? What would you tackle first?
Do.
99 Free (Or Affordable) Self-Care Ideas For Your Wellness Routine
We’re all carrying something more tender than what we share on the stage of social media, but the performance of face masks and bubble baths won’t heal those deeper heartaches. We need real self-care.
