photo courtesy Pexels
This work of transformational change is hard. Stepping in, stepping up, over time, can be draining – physically, intellectually, emotionally, psychically, spiritually. How do you recharge, restore, take care of yourself, rekindle your fire?
“I spend time with good friends. We laugh, we go to the movies, we take in art exhibits, concerts, we dine all over the place. I read… I belong to an online book club that reads social justice books. I craft and create things with my hands. I write love letters to strangers as part of The World Needs More Love Letters.” –Babz Rawls Ivy (Cohort 1) Interview
“There are those moments that I don’t turn on the computer, I don’t answer my phone, I abandon social media and do nothing. Sometimes, we must learn that doing ‘nothing’ is actually doing ‘something.’ Problem is too many of us don’t know how to do ‘nothing;’ by actually doing it, we are doing something – it’s called self-care.” –Steve Driffin (Cohort 12) Interview
“…the conflict that we see on the outside, is simply the manifestation of what’s going on inside… we learn to practice. And by practice I mean to pause, to breathe, to settle down, to observe what’s going on inside out and outside in… By practicing being in the moment, one moment after another, we are guided. We are guided into true freedom, unconditional love and real happiness…” –Dr. Home H.C. Nguyen, Recharge post
“…I’ve tried to take care of myself spiritually. I started doing one-on-one spiritual direction, which is kind of like therapy for the soul. I do Lectio Divina, a scriptural reflection, every morning… one of the great glories of working at home is that there are always dogs around. Usually the needier one is lying on my foot or somehow touching me as I work. That’s enormously comforting. All day long I get a tactile message: You are loved.” –Colleen Shaddox (Cohort 1) Interview
“…In very practical terms, I get my body worked on by those who bring those gifts… we pick up a tremendous amount of stuff from the systems in which we work. Whether we categorize this “stuff” as emotional, mental, physical or spiritual, the bottom line is that there is build-up and it causes blockages that need to be released and our energy recharged… we must take this seriously…” –Niyonu Spann (Cohort 15) Interview
“…Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest honorably. He may be clearing you out for some new delight…” –Rumi “The Guest House” Recharge post
“…I go sit by the river and cry out all the pain I have been holding. I go the woods and listen, watch, walk, play and wonder. I pray alone and with others. I keep making choices that include the big questions of life. I dance and act silly. I sit and read a book for fun. I hold precious the notion that my life has purpose and meaning sometimes separately from what I can do for others…” –Enroue Awo Onigbonna Halfkenny (Cohort 10) Interview
“…Long walks with Dulce (our dog:) around Lighthouse Point Park (one of New Haven’s gems)… two years ago I bought a kayak – best therapy in the world… Listening to piano jazz and classical guitar on a daily basis is incredibly soothing and inspiring… I also joined an LGBTQ softball team last month… we’re playing ball, having fun and building community, what more could we ask for?” –Janis Astor del Valle (Cohort 10) Interview
“…Learning to pause is the first step in the practice of Radical Acceptance. A pause is a suspension of activity, a time of temporary disengagement when we are no longer moving towards any goal…. we don’t know what will happen next. But by disrupting our habitual behaviors, we open to the possibility of new and creative ways of responding to our wants and fears…” –Tara Brach in Fahd Vahidy (Cohort 7) Recharge post
“…For me and I mean this deeply, the search for the external salve and visual-auditory-touch-sight-taste sense stimulation is a futile quest. To remain calm in the eye of the storm is the key regardless of where your mortal body is located on the planet and regardless of whether it is awake, asleep, conscious or ‘unconscious.’ Cultivation of the Prana is the key.” –Thomas Robert Ficklin, Jr. (Cohort 13) Interview
“…When I have lost joy or faith in myself, I look for it in the people around me. This is one of the many reasons I love New Haven. There are so many inspiring people around each and every corner… That being said, sometimes I just have to let the hard stuff be hard… I know now that without those days, those challenges, I wouldn’t be centering joy the way I am trying to now.” –Elizabeth Nearing (Cohort 20) Interview
“…the water rushes over the rocks reminding us of the lessons to be learned about letting things move and flow like the river. We stand at the waters edge and speak words of gratitude, pain, joy, and healing into the rushing noise of the river water…” –Tagan Engel (Cohort 12) & Enroue Halfkenny (Cohort 10) Recharge post
“I make friends with my naturopathic doctors. What respect I have for their way of teaching, being, and knowing. I learned from one something about myself that was so transformational… like a bee driven to flit and land on different flowers for the nectars they offer… Rekindling for me, these days, means tending to my mind so that I am more loving and generous to myself. It means believing I am doing the best that I can. Rekindling shows up in some gardening, ukulele, reiki…” –Brandon Hutchinson (Cohort 17) Interview
“…In my office are a few plaques on the wall, none more important than the one right above my computer. It contains the words from Isaiah 6:8, offering direct and special inspiration: “I heard the Lord saying WHOM SHALL I SEND WHO WILL GO FOR ME? And I answered HERE AM I SEND ME!”… a reminder that I responded to both a question and conviction… When things go awry, I lower my head and pray or look up for guidance. When I am tired, I need to rest. As an introvert, I need time and space to recharge my battery…” –Rev. Bonita Grubbs (Cohort 2) Interview
“Spending quality time with my family is always a great way to take off the work hat. Traveling with my family and friends through the country. I also try to read often to detach and recharge. I like to read about history, mental health and entrepreneurship.” –Landon Osborn (Cohort 20) Interview
“…What ranks first is solitude and quiet; I get some recharge from introspection and being alone, doing mindless tasks that allow the mind to wander. But it has this tension with actually taking people walking around the neighborhood. There’s an energy that comes from sharing with people this place where I live, that I love, and my belief in the importance of community to contextualize anything that we try to do individually…” –Lee Cruz (Cohort 7) Recharge Interview
“When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.” -Haruki Murakami in E. Lindsey Ruminski (Cohort 10) Recharge post
“In a world where there are thousands of distractions everywhere we turn, the thought of dying always seems to be the thing that makes us slow down enough to let the noise in the background remain there. In my case, it also made me truly cherish precious time with a loved one… I am here, writing this, to share the most beautiful experience I recently had with death. It was with someone I loved dearly; I share it in the hope that it can inspire how we are with each other and how we can help each other make the transition when the end ‘on this side’ is near…” –Jolyn Walker (Cohort 9) post in The Current
“…There are four basic things in meditation: mindfulness, concentration, kindness, and compassion for ourselves… Because meditation helps us be calmer it reduces stress. This in turn reduces blood pressure, strengthens the immune system, and allows the body to function more efficiently… The ability to redirect your mind is a really key development that will serve you in your life and work. If you keep at it, you will feel a sense of settling down, of calmness.” –Jerry Silbert (Cohort 1) Recharge Interview
“I recharge by pressing the stop button, taking inventory and asking myself: Am I present? Am I taking the steps needed to keep my body (my temple) healthy? Am I listening to the voice of my Creator? What is He saying to me? Am I connected to Him and is He reflected in all I do? By reflecting on these questions, I am able to continue my walk.” –Elvin Melendez (Cohort 21) Interview
“When it is we who do the stepping, it’s hard to see the steps. But look where you are…”–Mark Nepo “Upstream” Recharge post
Curated by The Circle’s Creative Director & Editor, Lara Herscovitch (Cohort 10). To reach Lara directly: thecircle@clpnewhaven.org or Lara@LaraHerscovitch.com