Sunday's Stillpoint

Hello fellow authors and other creative folks! Welcome back to Sunday’s Stillpoint. I trust you’ve had a creative week!

The topic of silence is coming across my path in various forms lately. As I open to write about finding our stillpoint, I find the theme of stillness and silence jumping out of my reading, my music, my poetry. It is very affirming! Silence in the life of an artist is necessary in order to hear and allow our own authenticity coming through. Often to create silence we must exile the inner critic, eliminate the incessant lists of what else needs to be done, and find a way to focus on opening the creative channel.

In his daily e-journal, a favorite artist of mine, Rod MacIver, writes:

“Quiet, quiet is the refuge of the artist. We seek to manifest our own special song, and for that we need to hear it.



I build room for silence in my life so I can listen. I build room for daydreaming. I’ve been on a multi-year plan to remove distraction, to reduce the number of moving parts in my life.
”

Cleemckenzie responded to my initial post last week, with a personal favorite of mine; clearing the mind with time in nature. She writes:

“My silent space comes when I'm not anywhere near my desk--a forest trail, a long and empty beach--those are the best places, but my garden works as well if I can resist digging in the dirt.



What I find is that when I take myself away from what I'm "stuck" on and set my brain on autopilot, I return to my writing with so much to set down on the page--so much that I'm not aware of until I see the words flow across the screen.”

This morning, I would like to focus even more specifically on the body as an avenue for silencing the clutter in our minds, whether it is critical self-talk, or other thoughts that derail our focus on creativity. My mentor, Marion Woodman, taught me at the age of 42 to consciously live in my body. I was living primarily out of my head before – always thinking, planning, judging and missing out on my own experience! Marion Woodman is a Jungian analyst who has uniquely expanded upon Carl Jung’s original psychology, emphasizing the importance of the feminine aspect of consciousness. Responding to the era in which Marion has lived and taught, as well as the necessity to heal herself, Marion has excavated the wisdom of the body as key to psychic wholeness. My work in Psyche’s Journey (www.psychesjourney.org) is dedicated to this wise woman’s life work. I want to provide the wisdom of the feminine to those who seek balance.

Feeling the movement in music, dancing, walking in the woods, or even a quick trip outdoors to breathe in the fresh air and feel the sunshine on my skin allows me to RE-MEMBER. A fresh channel seems to open up in me when I move into my body, a channel that shuts down with all the clutter of too many thoughts. I tell my Obsessive clients the same thing – move into the body and out of your head.

Last week, I asked you to write in about how you move past striving; today, I’d like to think a little more about creating space for silence, for authenticity. I would love to hear your tried and true means for clearing space in your head! So, how do you find stillness, the inner silence, your open channel?

Here is some inspiration for being alone with yourself: I love this!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7X7sZzSXYs

Finally, I send each of you a Soul Valentine.

"I am your moon and your moonlight too, I am your flower garden and your water too. I have come all this way eager for you, without shoes or shawl. I want you to laugh, to kill all your worries, to love you, to nourish you. Oh sweet bitterness, I will soothe you and heal you. I will bring you roses. I too have been covered with thorns"

~Rumi, written in adoration of his God

May we each love our souls this much, that we would cherish and nourish our silence, to allow our creative channels to open.

I look forward to hearing from you! Breathe deeply and be well, Dorica