Every year as spring occurs and we move towards summer weather, I find myself yearning for dry roads and moderate temperatures so that I can ride my bike, both alone and with others, outdoors. Bike riding brings me joy for several reasons—benefits of physical activity, connecting with others, enjoying nature. Around the end of May, we had a few rainy and wet days. Then we had some unusually hot days. I found myself yearning for days without rain and for fair weather so that I could be outside comfortably. Now that it is mid-June and in this part of the country, we are in a drought watch, I am revisiting my attitudes of yearning and striving. I’m using mindful awareness practice to examine the impacts of yearning and exploring what mindfulness tells us about striving. Currently, any rain is welcome!
Non-striving is one of the attitudes that we explore and attend to in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction programming. Non-striving is that attitude of pausing and accepting things as they are without seeking to change present moment states. The invitation is to hold what is occurring with an open kindness and curiosity. My practice of non-striving is about pausing and not wishing for things to be different or desiring to be elsewhere, rather about being with the here and now without anticipation of any future outcomes. This doesn’t mean that I don’t hope for things and set goals and intentions for the future. I certainly do. It means that I have a sense of freedom as I engage in the present moment because I can practice stepping back from getting caught up in the way I think things should be and I can choose how to engage with how things actually are in the present in a skillful manner.
Currently, in my formal meditation practice, I am working with just being rather than trying to achieve a certain outcome. This mindful awareness exploration of what’s actually here and accepting what is present for me also helps me to plan for change, engage skillfully with things that I cannot change and show up with a more resilient mindset.
Danna Faulds’ poems often resonate with me. Her poem entitled Allow is especially meaningful when I meditate on non-striving. I’ve provided some links below that might be helpful in further investigating patterns around striving and options for engaging in non-striving through your own mindfulness practice. The first link is a story about a farmer and how he chooses to engage in a non-striving attitude. The second and third link both normalize our striving attitudes and provide information on the benefits of non-striving as well as how to engage in a practice of non-striving. You can also find the poem, Allow, within them.
If you’re interested in practicing non-striving in community, look for the Monthly Mindfulness Practice on the events page this website and RSVP for July 2nd.
Wishing you well as you practice stepping out of doing and into just being,
Karen
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