It’s ironic I injured my hip and it hurts to pivot. My coaching practice is based on actions and thinking to meet the moment, to pivot in real time. Taking change seriously, I commit to thriving as an injury is in process of healing. My pivot ah-ha’s are all about supplementing support and ideas to meet this physical challenge. Change of season, a change of daylight, and some change in our daily lives are all reasons to try a tip or two. Pick one to carry forward this week for your thriving! I’d love to hear what works for you!
supplement: something that is added to something else in order to make it complete. (Merriam-Webster)
Extra Self Care Is My Supplement
Right now, I am supplementing the waning light with a fire in the wood burning stove, candles, and warm fluids. At the end of the day, I have the intentional query of, “What do I need tonight?” I find the answer is soft music, the light of a fire, and quiet mindfulness. I would be a positively boring mom and partner if I chose this every night, so I am mindful to schedule in an action movie too.
Another supplement I have added is slowing down. It takes time to get out of the car well. Healing has been slow. I am giving myself time to orient to what my needs are in the moment. Switch out a hip with the word trust or confidence. It takes time to build trust. I need to move slowly to acknowledge my building of trust or confidence. I’m focused on thoughts and actions that demonstrate growth or healing in (insert trust, confidence, learning something new, unlearning something old). A physical injury is similar to a mental or emotional injury. We might need a little more time to understand what we need in the moment. I am mindful of the steps that I am taking one at a time.
“What you perceive as precious is not time but the one point that is out of time: the Now. That is precious indeed. The more you are focused on time — past and future — the more you miss the Now, the most precious thing there is.”― Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
There is a lot more flexibility and possibility when I focus on what is happening. These are all supplements that add something to the moment to make what is needed, complete. What supplement do you need as the light wanes and the holidays gear up?
Practice Your Practice
What do you practice every day? What we think, say and do is our practice. For well-being and vibrancy, what comes to mind as a regular thing that you do? Practice matters. Our routine can add or subtract from our vitality. When I am tempted by a bowl of chips, I remember, “Chips are not my practice. I practice water and fasting after 6pm.” In the same vein, I push myself to learn because what we practice shows up as our progress. Is there something waiting to begin that adds life, learning and longevity to your day?
Coming to Grips with What Is
In this time of change, my hip is preventing me from walking with my super-fast partners in a way I always have. Coming to grips with what my hip needs is the first step to adjustment. It is hard to ask for change to meet a need, but I asked for a shortened route and a slower pace. They jokingly suggested that I strap myself to the dogs. What is something you can ask for to make your practice possible? What support can you reach out to receive?
Resilience
Remember your resilience. What did you do in a trying time in your life? What sustained you and helped ease the hardship? We can do hard things with resilience and gusto when we draw upon remembering when we have done it before.
Return to Thriving, Bum Hip and All
There are a lot of demands on being human in the world today. It is common to wake and go through the motions of preparing for the day, working, eating, wrapping-up the day and zoning out. The last sentence is not a state of thriving. It outlines the feeling of surviving that the pandemic has contributed to. I’ve heard the phrases, “soul crushing”, “so trapped it makes me nauseous”, “barely surviving”. My personal journey involves a cranky hip that is not waiting patiently for doctoring appointments to reveal what is going on. It has caused me to decline some favorite activities and regular routine practices. Taking time to ponder, “What CAN I do?” has led to this article and a renewed sense of gusto to try. Hold the word thriving as your shiny pebble today and see what opens up!
Take Home Items
Reach out for support. Create weekly calendar items to have supportive conversations, nature, beauty, or a new experience. We need each other in all changes of life. What do you need to further your resilience? I’d love to hear your ideas to share to many. Email me at info@terrasimpla.com.
Namaste,
Laura