Week Eight - Loafing

I am not a dog person.

And yet, somehow I have a little pup. Lil' Michelle "Mo" Obama has been a lot of work, and with each day I see how much having a dog has changed my life. Despite her possible grass allergy, Mo loves to play fetch. 

My daily loafing is sitting in my home, ball or toy "stick" in my hand, playing fetch with Mo. She can only play for 10min tops, but within those minutes, time really does seem to slow down. I can feel my energy change. There is no stress and I don't think about anything else. I feel at ease and am filled with joy when I see how happy this pup is when doing the same thing over and over again.

As a practitioner to be, it is my job to help my patients have moments in their days where they can just stop and breathe. To let the constant "To Do" list stop for a second, and for them to take time for themselves. Whenever this is possible, their energy will shift. Their qi will begin to flow in a different wave. In these moments of calm, I believe we can change our energy and self heal.

I completely understand that sometimes 10min is not possible for everyone. This is why it is important to provide this for others when we can.
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I stopped by a local shop a few doors down from ACCHS. There, I was talking to a group of black women and they were telling me of an event that happens annual called something along the lines of Black Women Dreaming. It is a project in which black women go to an airbnb, and they are are able to sleep for 2 hours or over night uninterrupted. Their pillows are blessed by indigenous people. They are asked how they would like to be awaken, they are asked if they want food, if they want hot tea, etc.  It is a minimum of 2 hours of peace and calm. It is a time that they can take for themselves in order to be catered to instead of having to cater to others.

One women at the event admitted that they haven't been awaken in such a peaceful way in over 10 years. Usually it is a child crying them awake, or a husband shaking them up. A calm, gentle touch in order to wake up was something they had not experienced.

My other loafing is waking up when I want on the weekends. Yes, sometimes I have to wake up at a certain time. However, on days that there is not a strict schedule, I wake up with no alarm. No feeling rushed. Just a slow and relaxed.

Talking to these women is a reminder that I must be aware of the luxuries I have, and to hopefully more events like this one in order to help others have a moment to themselves, a time for self healing with no interruptions.