Congratulations! We’ve reached the last day of our 21 day journey into mindfulness during our work day! The last suggestion from Dr. Sakorelli is:
“Try changing out of work clothes when you get home. This simple act might help you to make a smoother transition into your next “role” — much of the time, you can probably “spare” 5 minutes to do this. Say hello to each of your family members or to the people you live with. Take a moment to look into their eyes. If possible, make the time to take 5-10 minutes to be quiet and still. If you live alone, feel what it is like to enter the quietness of your home, the feeling of entering your own environment.”
I already consider this activity a daily ritual and so do my dogs. Their barking, pouncing, drooling enthusiasm, when they see me slip on my “backyard” coat and shoes, helps me honor it as an almost sacred time. My dogs read the cues in my behavior that tell them playtime is about to begin. Outdoors, I read the cues in my backyard that tell me to slow down and pay attention to Life.
Almost every day, between 4 and 5 o’clock, I have the opportunity to be in nature and to feel one with the familiar landscape I’ve inhabited for the past 20 years. Our home sits on an acre of land in a country-like suburb. There are chickens and horses across the street. One neighbor occasionally takes his two llamas for a walk past our house. And, there is an endless stream of dogs trotting past, tugging on their leashes, while their owners try to keep up with them.
As I move about in my yard, throwing tennis balls for my dogs, I greet my familiar neighbors and take in all that has changed in the past 24 hours, as well as all that has remained the same. Did branches blow down in the wind last night? Are there squirrels chattering from the trees because we’ve invaded their territory? Has the snow back in the “glacier field” melted some more? Are there flowers beginning to poke through near the front stairs?
While I toss the ball for the dogs, I often sit directly on the ground, even in winter, letting the damp earth soak through my jeans. As I sit, I almost always drift back to my childhood in my mind…noticing the same sensations now as I did then…the wind lifting my hair or stinging my skin. The sun warming my shoulders or making me squint my eyes. Outdoors, I feel I belong to Life, just like I felt as a child. The smallness of my day, my individual worries and personality fade to background and I become part of the larger landscape of Life.
As a child, I always yearned to be outside. When I was outside, I felt all things were possible and exciting. I couldn’t wait for the next day to begin. As an adult, outside in my yard with my dogs each day, I am in touch again with a more primal, universal force. Outdoors, I become aware of both continuity and change and I feel I belong to Life.
Laurel directs the Resource Center at www.veterinarywisdomprofessionals.com She co-founded and developed the Argus Institute at the Colorado State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
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