“Our soul is like an inner stream of water,
which gives strength, direction, and harmony
to every other element of our life."
— Dallas Willard, Renovation of the Heart
Life is messy sometimes and doing deep inner work is messier. All of us will experience weariness, pain, discouragement, anger, and loneliness along the way from dealing with circumstances that feel beyond our control - the very things that knock us out of flow and plunk us into the very real life spiritual journey.
I started getting serious about soul care when things in my life started to change for the better. With all the deep transformational work I had been doing to heal and over-come my past, it became clear to me that my holistic health and growth would never happen by accident or haphazardly.
I know for myself, I needed a plan for self-care and soul nourishment that was realistic for my personality and season of life. So I looked to create a new rhythm with my life, one that would help me experience the care, and formation that I needed to evolve and come into more alignment with my authentic self - one that would help me find more flow when I was thriving and that would inevitably support me with more grace when I fell into my ebb cycle.
Rhythm is in the very fabric of nature and life. All of life is made up of rhythm. The seasons of the year – summer, fall, winter, and spring. Each 24 hour cycle – day and night. The ocean – high tide and low tide. Our breath – inhale and exhale. With a rhythm that truly honours us, we can find our flow more easily and find our way back into alignment more quickly when life knocks us down.
A Rhythm of Life does not eliminate the mess or the pain of life, leadership, or relationships. But it keeps us anchored when things get chaotic, paying attention to what’s going on beneath the surface of our lives. Growth and the journey towards health, whether that be physical, emotional or even spiritual health, does not always have a clear trajectory, but establishing a new Rhythm with Life can help guide us in the right direction.
The Wellbeing of Your Soul Matters.
Everything in your life emerges from your soul.
These are the practices have become “keystone habits” for my soul care and what I rely on to help me out of my ebb cycle and into flow are:
- My Sabbath - a day devoted to nurturing and giving back to me and only me. Every Monday I go off the grid. I am only available for what it is that I want to do. Whether that be go for a massage, go shopping, lay on the couch and watch Netflix all day, or have a bath in the middle of the afternoon. I don't answer a text message or phone call, or even look at my emails. I stay off social media and give myself permission to do n.o.t.h.i.n.g. My kids also know that I am not available and in case of emergency, dad is their go-to and means to me. Its how I replenish my energy, have some fun, and it helps me ensure that my own needs remain a priority. Self-full first, so that I have more to give from an overfill to others.
- Time in Nature - every day. This can be anything from going for a walk around the lake, sitting up against a tree in my backyard while I read my emails, or in the middle of the ridiculously cold winter's here in Canada, bundling up and spending no less than 15-minutes breathing in fresh air. Prana energy provided to us by nature is so therapeutic for us energy sensitives - when I am feeling in a funk, stopping and smelling the roses can make all the difference.
- Meditation - I am not sure where I would be without it! My daily meditation practice is the very thing that helps me to stay connected, and centered in my life in a more peaceful way. Not to mention it is probably the only time where I can truly experience the 'nothing' I look to create on my sabbath.
Our lives are built on hundreds of tiny habits that we do every day. Whether we even know we’re doing them. Those habits hurt or help us, and our worlds are a direct reflection of them. Sure, they are often so small that you don’t notice the impact right away. But over time they make ALL the difference.
What new habits can you look to create that will care for your soul?