the art of stillness…

… which I’m yet to master!

I’m listening to Pico Iyer’s TED talk on the importance of taking time for stillness. I agree with everything he says and yet seem unable to stop what I’m doing and be still. Just be. This is something that doesn’t come naturally to me.

My grandmother used to say that your hands could always be busy with something. She never just sat watching TV, no. There was always something to do, to sew, to knit, to mend. She would sit with us in front of the TV alright, but her hands would not stop working. And this seemed normal to me.

The only time my hands stop is when I’m reading. I can be still then, but does that count as taking time for stillness? I have my doubts. I can cope with it though, the stillness through reading, the busy hands, it’s who I am and how I know how to be. Stillness for me is peace of mind and rest, even when my hands are moving. The thing that drew me to that talk was something else.

The digital era. When am I (are we) ever still? I check emails on my phone quite frequently, whatsapp (I love it!) always on, instagram because you never know how many beautiful photos may have been uploaded since I last checked it 5 minutes ago. And I’m never still. My mind does not wonder through the stories and worlds of books, nor does it relax in that repetitive and soothing movement that knitting brings, nor is it creating things from plain pieces of fabric… nope, none of that stillness from the immediate for me.

As I listened to the talk, I felt this urge to stop, to pause, to sit on the sofa and let Olivia on my lap. Look through the window and let my hands rest on her. Mind still. Be still.