Theme/Mantra: “All I know so far is enough”
Reading:
Wild Geese by Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting
over and over announcing your place
Meditation:
When you are in your meditative position, think about what it means for you to give yourself permission to NOT be perfect. Ask yourself why perfection is so important to you? How that striving for perfection drives you to a self-criticism that hurts your health, and perhaps even stunts your ability to shine in the beauty that is true about you. Then sit with possibilities of acceptance. Yes strive to continue to improve yourself. But also give yourself grace to be exactly who and what you are in the present moment.
Physical Movement:
Tree Pose
Stand erect, eyes focused on a single point on the ground in front of you about 5 feet.
Shift your weight from one leg to the other until you feel balanced and then come back to both legs.
Now shift your weight to one leg and lift your other foot to rest on the inside thigh of the leg on which you are standing.
If your leg/foot slips, feel free to hold your foot with your one hand.
Once balanced, hold your arms either above your head, or straight out to the side, or with your hands clasped in prayer position at the center of your chest.
Count slowly to 12. Repeat on the other side.
Reflection:
There are so many pressures in our culture to be perfect. To do everything right. To perform and produce and constantly prove ourselves. This is exhausting work, impossible to live up to the expectations of the world. What I like about Mary Oliver’s poem is the permission to not be perfect. We need to pause and remember that we have that permission. What I love about the Pink's song here- is the inspiration- that we are accountable for what we know in the here and now. Part of that knowledge is that tomorrow what I know in that here and now may be different from what I know today. But each day I can be aware and assured that what I know in the here and now is enough. It is what I know so far, and it is enough.
Song: That’s All I Know So Far by Pink
Lyrics:
Haven't always been this way
I wasn't born a renegade
I felt alone, still feel afraid
I stumble through it anyway
I wish someone would have told me that this life is ours to choose
No one's handing you the keys or a book with all the rules
The little that I know I'll tell to you
When they dress you up in lies and you're left naked with the truth
You throw your head back, and you spit in the wind
Let the walls crack, 'cause it lets the light in
Let 'em drag you through hell
They can't tell you to change who you are
That's all I know so far
And when the storm's out, you run in the rain
Put your sword down, dive right into the pain
Stay unfiltered and loud, you'll be proud of that skin full of scars
That's all I know so far
That's all I know so far
So you might give yourself away, yeah
And pay full price for each mistake
But when the candy-coating hides the razor blade
You can cut yourself loose and use that rage
I wish someone would have told me that this darkness comes and goes
People will pretend but baby girl, nobody knows
And even I can't teach you how to fly
But I can show you how to live like your life is on the line
You throw your head back, and you spit in the wind
Let the walls crack, 'cause it lets the light in
Let 'em drag you through hell
They can't tell you to change who you are
That's all I know so far
And when the storm's out, you run in the rain
Put your sword down, dive right into the pain
Stay unfiltered and loud, you'll be proud of that skin full of scars
That's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
I will be with you 'til the world blows up, yes
Up, and down, and through 'til the world blows up
Yeah
When it's right, or it's all fucked up 'til the world blows up
'Til the world blows up
And we will be enough
And until the world blows up
Just throw your head back, and spit in the wind
Let the walls crack, 'cause it lets the light in
Let 'em drag you through hell
They can't tell you to change who you are
And when the storm's out, you run in the rain
Put your sword down, dive right into the pain
Stay unfiltered and loud, you'll be proud of that skin full of scars
That's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
That's all I know, that's all I know so far
I will be with you 'til the world blows up, hm
Until tomorrow- Peace