While Working With the Ebb
We love the flow of life when all is in movement and ‘up and running’. We exchange metaphors of movement in our conversation which represent a sense of aliveness. “Let’s get moving” is an expression for encouragement as is “make it happen” or “just do it”! These words motivate action and accomplishment.
Move on
Keep at it
Keep it going
“All motion is cyclic. It circulates to the limits of its possibilities and then returns to its starting point.” (Robert Collier)
On the other hand, when we hear phrases such as, “Hang in there,” “Wait and See”, “Be patient”, “See where it goes”, Ride it out”
During the time of the ebb is not as comfortable for some as it is being in the flow. It may be a simple ‘introvert’/extrovert’ distinction. A true extrovert would find it challenging to wait for the flow to return. What to DO with all this time? How to just BE?
Looking for the smallest opening of time to love Feeling each emotion in the present moment
TEN TIMES in the Ebb: ideas for purposely passing this time more productively, positively, and patiently:
ONE
Clean and organize your closets. Getting rid of old things that are cluttering up your space, allows you to feel a new sense of clarity and freshness both internally and externally. Making a bag of throw-aways and give-aways brings an ethical awareness of sharing with others in more need and also letting go of a scarcity mentality that lurks in the back of our mind telling us to save every little thing.
TWO
Practicing Mindfulness by becoming the observer of your life. This helps to de-escalate over-powering emotions like fear, dissolution, discouragement, or insecurity that creep into the ebb times and take over the space. Mindfulness offers a breathwork technique that anchors us in the present moment. It keeps our mind centered so as not to carry us away in negativity.
The space in the ebb can be a home to beautiful creations or old historic debris.
THREE
Learn to bake with health consciousness. Baking is a nurturing act of creating a hearth of warmth and nutrition. While in the ebb, learn about your own self-healing. Learn the foods that your body needs for its optimal nourishment. So often, food is taken in while on the run. We grab and go, rarely noticing what we are eating. We miss the sensory experience of eating and feeding ourselves with foods that our bodies are craving for health.
Baking also involves the hands. The hands are an extension of our hearts. Taking time to knead and blend brings the ingredient of love into our food. We become intimately involved in our nurturing process.
FOUR
Write… Journal. Period. Take a special notebook or a napkin and write whatever comes to mind for 15 minutes each day. Try to do this at the same time so that it becomes a way of life. Writing creates mental movement and brings about the change of tides in a timelier manner. Avoid correcting your writing. Keep the ‘stream of consciousness’ in motion. Write until the time is up or go on longer. Keep the movement of pen to paper of fingertips to keys.
FIVE
Make jam. This is a sticky, hot, messy, yet precise process. One must be focused on each step and time each step accurately. Again, we are forced by the nature of the task to stay in the present moment. We learn to work with our own sticky situations, with our own messiness. How do we clean up our messy situations? Working in the ebb brings up the sticky spots in our lives where we may need to do some clean up. Detail by detail, step by step, we complete the process and enjoy the benefits of the sweetness in life. We capture the ‘sweetspot’ in each jar of jam and celebrate the beautiful sound of the ‘ting’ as each jar securely seals and setts. Then, we can breathe, relax and admire the success of creating sweetness. Where else in our lives can we clean up a mess and contain our sweetness?
SIX
Discover a new hobby.
SEVEN
Learning a new dance or expression.
EIGHT
Do Yoga.
NINE
Watch new or old movies.
TEN
Spend time in nature.
These activities are of course inspiring, motivating, and healing in themselves and can be done at any time. When going from the ebb to the flow, the activities will follow you right into the changing tides. The ebb is making the time and space for integration to take place. Once internalized, the activities move naturally into the flow and become a result of your BEING instead of DOING from a panicked urgency to try to BE or become something you are not.
The ebb allows us to get comfortable with ourselves like curling up in a big cozy chair with a soft blanket. We return to that feeling of being swaddled and protected.
