I’ve been reading Learn to Relax by Mike George at night before I go to bed. This paragraph hit home with me the other day since I can be such a “do-er”, sometimes doing so much that I realize I’m forcing things.
Page 32 – “Many people in modern times believe that the quickest route is best: the faster we can complete one task, the sooner we can begin the next. We resemble not calmly flowing rivers but swirling rapids, sending up angry white foam whenever we meet an obstacle. By the time we reach our goal, we are stale and spent, because we have striven so hard for success.
Daoists believe that humankind’s attempted imposition of order on earth is a case of intellectual vanity at war with nature. The result is stress.
According to the natural order of things, a river, and anything the river carries, will flow toward the sea. To achieve relaxation, we must accept life’s natural flow (we are that flow) and allow ourselves to be borne along – not try to fight the current by swimming upstream, or willing the flow to move faster. If we surrender to the flow of the river, life will carry us where we want to go.
This could take a little longer than we might have expected and the experience may feel strange at first. Yet in time by trusting the flow of the river, we will learn the art of acceptance. If we cease to struggle against the odds, our potential for growth is enlarged.”
I’ve been reading this every morning as I prep for the day to remind me to surrender to the flow. How can you do that this week for yourself? Notice what happens when you do. Happy Monday, Hallie
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