Find Your Feet

Thanksgiving Day offered time for Sierra, the dogs, and me to take a hike at one of our favorite parks near our home. We had also gone the day before and so on this day, Sierra wanted to take a different trail, one that was a bit longer than we normally go. Met with enthusiasm and the exhilaration of exploring something new, Sierra and I vigorously set off. We chatted about how beautiful nature was, enchanted by all the rich, earthy smells of the forest and glimpses of the snow-capped mountains across the way, while also wondering out loud if we would encounter any bears that weren't quite yet in their winter slumber.

The views and chatty conversations sustained our physical exertion for a while until Sierra began to tire. It was on our last small stretch where overwhelm began to set in for her. Her mind was fixated on the desire to be back at the parking lot instead of still walking. "My legs hurt", "I want more water" and so on, became her repetitive mantra. Her mind now distracted by discomfort could no longer take in the beauty surrounding her. So, I told her, "Find your feet."

I shared with her that I understood she was feeling overwhelmed, but that if she kept thinking and saying out loud how hard walking was, she would only make it harder. Because that's what happens when we feel overwhelmed, we allow the mind to race off in a million different directions and grow tenfold in misery from the stories the mind begins to weave.

In telling my daughter to find her feet, what I was really saying was to come back to the present moment. It was a way to circumvent her spiraling thoughts so they could slow down, and she could focus.

I instructed her that once she found her feet, to now feel her feet. Feel every sensation of the boots connected to her feet. To notice and feel the ground beneath her, the steady ground offering her stability with each step she took. Next, I told her to feel the muscles in her legs. To feel how strong they were, supporting her and carrying her forward, one step at a time. Now keep doing that dear daughter I said, "Keep your mind connected to the sensations of your feet as you continue to walk towards the car. Stay with it."

It wasn't long before we arrived. Was she tired? Yes. But instead of complaining, she arrived with a sense of accomplishment and gratefulness that she was able to finish.

The holiday seasons are busy no doubt. We are constantly bombarded with all the things we are told we need to buy, all the goodies we should make, all the parties we're supposed to attend - it's no wonder our minds become overwhelmed. Instead of slowing down and savoring the quietness that nature does in winter, we are catapulted towards noise and constant movement.

So, it is here that I say to you, find your feet.

At any moment you feel overwhelmed, and no matter where you are - whether it be standing in a long line at the store or sitting to make sense of your never-ending to-do list, find your feet. Feel the sensations of your feet, then ground them. Root them down into what is beneath them and feel the strength that comes from that. Feel whatever is connected to your feet, notice every aspect of this and breathe with it. This will anchor not just your body, but your mind back to the present. And if the mind and overwhelm keeps pulling you away, repeat, again and again and again.

If you're a yogi, you might recognize the similarity of this to tadasana, mountain pose. One of the most fundamental and foundational of all the yoga postures and one of the reasons why it is taught first before any other standing pose. It is a gateway, or connector to complete awareness and presence, and the teacher of how to organize our body from the feet up. Interesting that it is called mountain pose, as it is only from the very top of the mountain, where we have a clear view, where everything below is revealed.

Slow down, my friends. Life goes by way too fast, and in trying to do more, we often end up doing less. It is my hope that each of us can savor more of this precious gift we have of life and to find more joy in doing so.