“Transitions”

“Transitions”, the last Awareness Through Movement(R) series I taught, shared a perspective that included agency. The idea for the theme came to me because I was going through a significant transition. And it would be interesting to teach what I wanted to explore.

Following a short vacation and time away from work, I continued to go deeper into the transition – watching, listening, and wondering, what’s the next step? I wanted to take a break from deadlines and the feeling of having to stay on the same track that I had been on. I explored doing less, noticing how that felt, noticing what thoughts and feelings surfaced and wondered how would I figure out what is next?

Little by little, the light dawned; some old beliefs got cleared and while working with coaches, friends and colleagues, a vision began to form.

Change

In the midst of my own transition, we in the US voted for a new president and therefore, a political change. We continue to be in political, economic, environmental, educational, cultural, and international transitions. Has that ever not been the case? I wonder.

I wonder what does it actually take to change the system(s) for the better? How do we do that? And to what purpose and to what extent? Of course we can only guess and hypothesize. As systems get more complex, there is less predictability.

With less predictability what can we/do we rely on? That for me is the inherent question. 

Self Use

How do we use ourselves? How do we use our energy, our time, our resources? Where do we fall short? What can be learned? What do we have agency over?

There is no end to answering these questions, or even asking them. And I of course only have my experience, my opinions, my desires, my wishes. 

For some, these musings will be like a light, airy cloud floating by…of no particular substance – fine to be ignored. For others, it will ask them to think for themselves, to consider, to reflect, to wonder. 

Actions

For me, I believe our highest order, our highest calling is to be clear in our actions, our expressions, our thoughts and our beliefs in the service of doing our part in making the places we live safer, allowing for a sense of security, of belonging, of caring for. 

How do we do that? One way is through learning. Learning how we do what we do and how we can improve what it is that we think we are doing; to be able to do what we want, and learning how we can make it more satisfying, not just for ourselves, but for our neighbors, no matter how far or how close. 

I like to think of Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the moon, as he famously said, “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” How does that fit into this time and place? What meaning does it offer? Does it still have relevance?