A prescription of calm
MINDFUL MOMENTS # 133
When my brother moved into his new house a few months back, he showed us how the previous owners had written an inspirational quote on each step of the stairs; I’m not sure it was their favourite feature. Now, I’ve not quite taken it to that level, but I do love a quote and those who know me well will attest to that.
There’s something about a good quote that makes me feel calm, as if all the wisdom of others’ lived experiences has been distilled and is ours to now know and hold.
The same applies for poetry. I love a poem that captures that Sunday feeling; a poem about October - or indeed, as for last week, a poem about turning 30. I find great comfort in knowledge that someone else shares those same thoughts and feelings.
So, today, in lieu of anything more profound, I want to share with you some quotes and poems that I have come across this past week, and which have granted me moments of joy, reflection and calm. I hope you enjoy.
A lovely quote for October that I shared with some friends. In “this fine October”, can you make space to drink coffee and dream? To take your “mind out of its iron cage and let it swim”?
“I will cut adrift—I will sit on pavements and drink coffee—I will dream; I will take my mind out of its iron cage and let it swim—this fine October.”
- Virginia Woolf
2. A poem I read in yoga class last Saturday. It seemed to fit in the current climate of war.
The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
3. I bought a new book from my local Waterstones this week, entitled The Poetry Pharmacy: Tried-and-True Prescriptions for the Heart, Mind and Soul by William Sieghart. This is from that book, intended for the condition of needing reassurance:
Everything is Going to be All Right by Derek Mahon
How should I not be glad to contemplate
the clouds clearing beyond the dormer window
and a high tide reflected on the ceiling?
There will be dying, there will be dying,
but there is no need to go into that.
The poems flow from the hand unbidden
and the hidden source is the watchful heart.
The sun rises in spite of everything
and the far cities are beautiful and bright.
I lie here in a riot of sunlight
watching the day break and the clouds flying.
Everything is going to be all right.
Mindful moment: It is impossible to ignore the sadness and hatred that is going on in the world right now. I hope that this, my own ‘Poetry Pharmacy’ - my own prescription of calm and reflection - can help us see how “the sun rises in spite of everything” and by noticing the “peace of wild things”, we might find our own reflection of that. May you notice daybreak, and the heron and the presence of still water and the clouds flying; may you enjoy this fine October.
YOGA
Mindful Movement with Laura
Join us every Saturday from 11am-12.15 at the Cornerstone Community Centre in Hove for an all-levels vinyasa yoga flow class, meditation and mindfulness (mats provided or bring your own). £6 per class or £24 for 5.
Upcoming classes:
October 21st, 28th
November 4th, 11th, 25th
(no class Nov 18th)
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Welcome to the Community.
I'm Laura, a yoga teacher and NHS doctor. With this weekly newsletter I aim to help you incorporate mindful moments into your week. I want you to feel inspired, empowered and creative. I promise to always be authentic; to only include content that speaks to me and which, therefore, I hope will do the same for you.
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Thank you for reading! Until next time, Laura x