6 responses so far ↓

• 1 Sophie Jun 15, 2007

  True rest is connecting with my true self, that felt sense of self deep within my body, the place from which I write. I’d like to share a poem of mine that I made from out of that place:

  I went deep in the wood
  my body deep in the rhythm of my own blood
  and I did not hear the pine dropping its blue silence
  or the cold shifting itself in the lake, which is its separate darkness,
  or the ticking of leaves in wet snow
  that my breath borrowed, making its own thaw.

  This voice came later
  after the flood had swelled the lake with sorrows
  and there was no more winter
  and the air smelled of drifting smoke
  and the cold had broken over the surface of the water.

  I stood and heard it then –
  the world without me.

  Thank you for inspiring people to seek true rest. I know from my work with myself and others that it is more important than most of us could ever realise…

• 2 Carla (woman at rest) Jun 15, 2007

  Mmmmmm, for me true rest is:

  * Lying in bed wrapped in warm covers imagining myself held by Spirit. I call it snuggle time with God.

  * Remembering I am not in charge. I am not the manager of the Universe. Thy will, not mine, be done. Turning my life and my will over to the care of God on a daily basis. THIS, for me, is the most profound relief there is. Doesn’t relieve me of action — on the contrary, doing the next right indicated thing is paramount — but it does absolve me of worry and outcome.

  * Quiet and silence — extended breaks from the company of others and sound of my own voice. Just today I took a Day of Sacred Solitude at home (learned from you!).

  * Kicking back on the couch reading blogs, looking at Flickr, with Entourage or The Tudors playing on TV in the background

  * When nothing is expected of me — or, when I lower my expectations of myself — such as when I’m on retreat, or when I’m with good friends, or when I’m out in nature.

  * Hearing the magical words “I’ll take care of it for you.” Boy do I love those words!

  * Floating down Swan River in an innertube.

  * Lying in a hammock, anywhere, with or without a book.

  * Choosing the path of no-drama.

  * Living honestly, trusting God, doing right, telling the truth, respecting my limits, practicing acceptance, saying NO when I need to say no and YES when I need to say yes.

  I could go on but it’ll all be in my book. Thanks for linking to my Women at Rest blog!

• 3 Jennifer Boire Jun 17, 2007

  Hmmm, I had a three hour nap today, wrapped in my cloud blue polar fleece blanket (air conditioning makes it cool in the house). Too many parties had made me tired.
  True rest for me is allowing myself to stop thinking.
  to lie on my bed and look out the window at the green leaves, the fluffy clouds, and be amazed at the wonder of it all.
  to float in the pool, weightless.
  to sit in meditation and feel the golden egg of light fill me up from inside.
  to wrap myself around my lover and fall asleep.
  curling up in my comfy chair by the window with an inspiring book of poems, Mary Oliver, or prose by John Donohue (Beauty)
  to travel anywhere and stay in a hotel for a weekend! room service and no cooking required!
  to have my husband cook supper on a Sunday night, like tonight, even if it’s hot dogs with melted cheese
  I need a lot of rest, and I love to nap, but my favourite thing these days is yoga, stretching out in corpse pose on the mat after a good work out, that is true rest.
  we are blessed, we need rest
  jenn/aka musemother

• 4 Eveline Jun 17, 2007

  I posted a bit more on this on my blog, but here is a little of what rest feels like to me:
  * sinking down into the mat in corpse pose after spending an hour stretching my body, and feeling how delicious it is to lay there completely relaxed
  * eating when I feel hungry and not having to cook for anyone
  * a really hot bath, followed by pampering myself with a favorite body lotion
  * listening to music with my eyes closed and letting my mind wander

  The other day I watched my cat, stretched out in a spot of sunshine, and thought “hmm…cats know what true rest is all about”. I could learn something there!

• 5 Jennifer Louden Jun 17, 2007

  We’ve got a theme emerging – still minds, comfortable bodies– loving the soft animal I’d say.

  And permission… I get such a light, expansive, free feeling reading these posts!

  YES!! I’m so inspired, thank everybody and thanks Carla for exploring rest so deeply.

• 6 Cindy La Ferle Jul 17, 2007

  Rest for me is putting aside the need to be productive 24/7, to close the door on my office or studio and do something fun/creative that has nothing to do with my writing projects at hand, or household tasks on my to-do lists. Jennifer, I like to follow your advice (for scheduling time for pleasure) in the Life Organizer, as well as the advice of Julia Cameron who reminds us that we have to mark “Artist Dates” on our calendars or planners. Speaking of your wonderful Life Organizer, I posted on my Web site parts of the review that ran in one of my newspaper columns earlier this year. I’ve already heard from several readers who can’t wait to get started.