Soundings: Recent Episodes
Diana M Smith
Hello, dear reader.
Due to a technical snafu, this missive is a bit behind. Thank you for your patience. In the grander landscape of time that holds us all, I hope this missive is magically for you arriving right on time.
This is a special week: it’s a 5th week.
Some years ago, a friend pointed out that four times every year we’re gifted with a month that has five weeks in it. I’d never put the calendar together in my mind like that, and I suddenly thought, what a wonderful way to create a rhythm of rest throughout the year: to downshift every fifth week, whether it was an official vacation week or not.
Ever since, during 5th weeks I aim to make the days as restful as possible. I might take a mini-sabbatical, or clear my calendar of meetings if I can. Most 5th weeks, I prioritize the work that feels the most restorative, creative, and life-giving to do—and then do it as comfortably and full of good coffee as possible.
This week, try an experiment with me, and practice a little rest.
A few ideas:
This big, little word — rest — has for most of us become a big, unreachable Thing, as if resting will take as much effort as work. But restoration tends to be much simpler.
Rest is simply that moment when our body, heart, and mind can all breathe easy, all at the same time.
So rest can come in many forms:
… in an act of kindness (especially the unexpected kind)
… a moment of recognition when someone sincerely says, Thank You (in a way that tells us our offering has been seen and accepted)
… saying Thank you to someone who has helped us out
… a walk in the park. Without your phone
… reading a book (for fun)
… taking a nap
… finally getting to the piano / easel / notebook / dance floor / hiking trail / _________.
… finally getting quiet, inside and out.
Some of the most powerful meetings I’ve had with my clients have happened on the days they arrive to our meeting ready to go (pen in hand, notebook at the ready), but when I notice something is almost visibly hanging on their shoulders and ask about it, they say (almost like in a confessional booth): I am so tired / sad / afraid / angry. In the simple act of being honest, a huge weight lifts off their face and shoulders, and we can finally get somewhere in our conversation—and usually somewhere very good, because there’s room to breathe.
Being honest is also restful.
What would it look like to do this week a bit more restfully?
Here are some tips to consider:
Rest is usually something other than what we normally do. (If you normally move at the speed of light, rest may look like slowing down; if you’re a slow-and-steady type, try picking up the pace.)
We feel more at rest when we mark our time of repose with a clear beginning (e.g., “An alert at Monday at high noon,”) and, a clear ending (“Friday at 4pm”)
Rest is best tended in silence—not the absence of sound, but the absence of noise and distraction. You probably know what creates noise for you and how to turn it off already. Answering #2 will help turning it off feel less terrifying.
A 5th Week Planning Prompt:
What would help make this week a little more restful? How can you restfully put those things into place? What might ‘laying it down’ look like?
If a short pause helps you, today’s reading is John O’Donohue’s blessing For One Who is Exhausted. Listen anytime you need a note of care for the week.
Enjoy,
—Diana
P.S. To infuse our work with meaning and express our gifts more fully is a powerful remedy to exhaustion. In the Core Essentials Course, explore what rest looks like for you, and discover how it comes together with your gifts to form a foundation of work that’s practical, life-giving, purposeful, and anchored in joy. Learn more and register by this Saturday, April 20, 2022.
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Wishing Good Morning to you and to a new year.
As we begin a new year—or any beginning— this month’s meditation holds open an ethos and offers good company for new possibilities, offers kindness to the “whispers of sameness,” and an invitation to wandering and to wonder. With guest appearance by the rain.
Share the word or phrase from your own meditation below if you feel inspired. This style of reading was originally designed for listening with others in community, and we can do that here together. Or, hit reply and share in an email.
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Listen now (9 min) | Welcome to Soundings. For a few moments, lay down your week with this creative meditation.
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