A couple of weeks ago I was listening to a podcast on the Greater Good Magazine. Krista Tippet, creator of the On Being show on NPR, is one of the guest speakers on the podcast. The podcast is titled Krista Tippet on Being Grounded in Your Body. In it she describes her experience with the body scan meditation.
The body scan meditation is something I learned many years ago in therapy, but had forgotten about. Yes, I still struggle at times with panic attacks, but lately my frustration has been with not being able to fall to sleep at night. Amazingly, going through my body and focusing on relaxing each part from toe to head has actually been working!
One of the things that stood out to me when Krista describes her experience is this:
You feel heavy but it is not like feeling held down.
It is like being held.
What a wonderful explanation. I might add that some might resist that heavy feeling like they are falling down too. But the description of being held is perfect!
I have always thought of getting one of these parachute fabric hammocks and my order arrived in the mail today. When you lay in one, that is exactly what you feel like–being held. I think I have found a new prayer space this summer. Even when I am not laying there, I can remember that feeling of being held. There is a letting go and a trust involved in that too. There are many times I need to let God hold me, and need a reminder to do so!
As with any meditation practice, the key is practice. Just as with prayer, practice is important for communication with God as well. (Though I am uncertain if I even want to draw a line between prayer and mediation as I consider mediation a form of prayer when that is the intent.)
Besides the hammock that came in the mail from Amazon today, I also received a new book titled Bead by Bead by Suzanne Henley that my friend, Kristen Olsen Vincent of Prayerworks Studio, brought to my attention. In the back of the book, my prayer bedes website is listed as a source. I am humbled and honored!
