Stillness Speaks

“True intelligence operates silently. Stillness is where creativity and solutions to problems are found.”

~Eckhart Tolle

Along the shores of Lake Erie and Lake Washington this summer I have observed herons—these graceful, slightly awkward birds.  They have such a talent for stillness, for waiting patiently, for listening, for detecting the tiniest stirs in their environment.  Nothing gets past them.   I have also been watching myself and others around me and how we fill pockets of time by whipping out our “smart phones” for a quick check of email or Facebook.  We are addicted to interruptions.  Ironically, we complain about how we have no time and how overwhelmed we are, yet it seems we scamper away from stillness.    I have been experimenting with being in stillness this summer.  Like the heron, it’s a deliberate and purposeful stillness.  Like the heron, my life force depends on it.

Take a breath; inhale.   On your exhale, relax your jaw and your shoulders.  Inhale again.  And ask yourself, what would it be like if there were just a little more stillness in my being right now?  Listen to your body’s response.