The restorative effects of beauty are far-reaching.

Beauty in any form is regenerative, healing, and fortifying. I was reminded of that this morning when my husband and I took our three dogs for a walk at 5:30 am. In that not-quite-awake stupor, we ambled down our windy, mountain road, the crunching of the gravel beneath our feet seemed deafening in the quiet stillness of the morning. In that sleepy, theta-brainwave peacefulness, the beauty of the moment seemed amplified. My mind’s drill sergeant, the one who barks all kinds of orders at me to organize my work day as productively as possible, wasn’t awake yet. The quiet walk was meditative, and the beauty brought me right there. 

Trusting the Process.

A common issue that nips at my clients’ heels like a bossy terrier, is that they never seem to be satisfied with their level of meditation. I used to struggle with this as well. I’m not doing it right… This is not what the masters of enlightenment had in mind… It’s not working… I’m flawed… what the hell is wrong with me… The barrage of self-criticism can seem never-ending, the result of which is increased frustration, not deliverance from it.

I have come to believe that our form of meditation picks us. It finds us naturally, settling in comfortably and non-invasively if our minds will only allow it. I have learned to simply step aside and see what’s happening in my moments of restorative stillness. (I’m a contemplative, much more so than a meditator, and I’ve come to accept that.) What I found was that rather than agonize through Vipassana or some other form of mind-stilling meditation, I could simply sit with the birds in the morning, which is something I instinctively do. When I wake up with the birds, I completely disappear into my landscape. Formless and free, I empty my mind. No wrestling required. My mind peacefully submits to the avian backdrop. For others, Vipassana may be their perfect instinct.

The Priority. 

One of my favorite authors is psychosynthesis psychotherapist, Piero Ferrucci. He writes in his excellent book, What We May Be:

“We have a choice. Seeking beauty becomes in great part our responsibility. We can be exposed to what [Transpersonal psychologist] Roberto Assagioli called psychic smog – the prevailing mass of free-floating psychological poisons- or turn instead to the healing influence of beautiful sights and sounds.”

I was reminded of this as I strolled down my windy road at the quiet crack of dawn. Untethering my mind to find the beauty in my day has to be my priority. No forcing is required. My spirit knows what I need. I just need to trust that. 

Thank you for being here, contemplating the beauty of life and focusing on the magic of spiritual growth.

Much Love,

Kristy

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