Meditative walk.
Fall weekend head to the woods and explore the meditative calm of the forest.
It has been busy. Fellowship interviews, running a busy fellowship program, treating patients in person and virtually. This week was particularly challenging and I had to put an effort into returning my mind to the state of calm. It is quite an unpleasant feeling and not the best state of mind when you scan your work day and realize that perhaps there are not enough hours in a day to fulfill all the tasks and accomplish what needs to be done. To add to that I had an internet connection mishap during a very anticipated lecture with Dr. Brian Williams, whom I was to introduce [and who I interviewed for these pages a few months ago].
Dr. Williams assured me he can start the lecture without me and, as always, he delivered great talk on diversity, race and wellness. I wish I could say I balanced that well and was my usual self right away. This is not what happened. I felt guilty, stressed, but at the same time fortunate to be surrounded by people who helped me get through this hour all right. I had help locally by one of our administrators who recorded the lecture as we planned, then the speaker remained calm and collective and made sure that the lecture experience for house staff was very high level. That encouraged me to be kind to myself and move on to the next task and continue with my work day with a balanced mind.
I am sure I am not isolated with these experiences and challenges. I also know that there are tools that help to reach deep and get back to your best and steady self. It gets easier if you learn a few of these balancing acts and even better if you are not socially isolated and have friends that can help in the time of stress. One of the tools I come to time and time again is meditation.
This past weekend I started with virtual yoga and later on I took an hour long meditative walk in the woods. I inhaled the air smelling pine trees and other forest flavors and aromas that one is so familiar with, and is reproduced in many aromatherapy candles, balms and other body care favorites. Another pleasing aspect of that hike was strolling on the fancy fall foliage carpet and listening to the soothing sounds made with crunchy leaves with each step I took. This crunchiness and beauty of the leaves and their colors inspired me to create an art project (which you can see underneath the video embedded below). The art of meditation to calm your mind, reach to the depths of self to abstract from noise and background chaos is very fulfilling. With practice it remains one of my essential tools to wellness which I promote now even more while chairing Wellness Committee at on of Rhode Island academic institutions training programs.
If you want to find the best what there is in wellness and be kind to yourself do not hesitate and learn to meditate. It may be good to start with a video or an app, but after a while you will realize that there is so many ways to meditate, whether it’s a walk away from busy traffic, closing your eyes at your desk for few minutes, creating an art and getting lost in that project or reading a poem and contemplating its meaning and textures. Go for a walk and listen to the religious service or music. With time it will become such a natural state of being for which you will reach again and again because it feels so good.
Below is the video from my walk in the woods and the art project upon press of the button.
