Listening to Sacred Stillness: Finding Stillness in Everyday Life

Finding Stillness in Everyday Life

What? Is this some kind of joke?

My everyday life is already filled with things I need to do, decisions I need to make. It feels like there is always something more to think about, to work out, to understand.

Where is there stillness in everyday life? Who has time to find it every day?

These are some of the responses I get when I talk about stillness in everyday life.  Stillness may be fine for “spiritual’ people, but it seems to be more than normal people can realistically expect.

Everyday life is full of things screaming for our attention. With the demands of work, family, and everything else, how are we supposed to find time for stillness? We get distracted even when we try to relax with entertainment or exercise. There are too many things we would like to be doing to get to them all.

Even when we feel like we probably should be doing something we cannot find the time.

Many of us cannot find the time or a quiet place to listen to stillness. We might try every so often, but certainly not every day.

I experience things differently. Listening to sacred stillness is not one more thing I need to accomplish every day. Finding stillness in everyday life is not something for only super spiritual people to do.

Listening to sacred stillness is what holds every day together for me. Not like a frame or a vise. More like a pattern woven into each day.

Finding stillness in everyday life is not something I do to meet a requirement or follow a program. Listening often does not feel particularly spiritual.

Listening to sacred stillness is not something extra we are supposed to do. It is essential.

Time and Places for Stillness in Everyday Life

I am a recovering workaholic. There was no time or space for stillness in my life. Spiritually, professionally, emotionally, and intellectually, my life was about work.

I tried to look for stillness sometimes, but was not very good at finding it. It was as if something else always needed doing.

I did not make room for listening or stillness in my life. Everyday life was a blur of moving from one task to the next. I did not spend time celebrating when I accomplished goals. There was always more to be done.

I was confident there would be time to listen to sacred stillness after everything else was finished. Once I had all the pieces put together, working well, then I could slow down and listen.

It has taken me time and effort to understand how stillness really works.

Finding stillness in everyday life does not depend on good scheduling or a quiet place. For me, stillness is more about relaxing my grip on things than about organizing them.

My practice has developed and my understanding deepened over time. Some of my most remarkable encounters with sacred stillness have been in busy places.

Finding stillness in everyday life is not about going to a particular place. Some spaces help me pay more attention to stillness, but the sacred stillness is not there.

Sacred stillness surrounds us wherever we are and fills us from within. The stillness within us finds and listens to the sacred stillness in the world around us.

Following a practice may help us listen better, but the stillness is already there.

When we find stillness in our everyday lives we connect to something larger than we are.

Practicing Stillness in Everyday Life

Listening to sacred stillness in everyday life is not about being rigid or following rules.

Yes, we may develop practices and be dedicated to following them. If we decide to set aside 15 or 20 minutes each day to listen to stillness, we want to do that. It is important to remember it is not our practice which creates sacred stillness.

We are looking for ways to open ourselves to sacred stillness, not to control it.

Many people find it helpful to set specific times for listening to sacred stillness. They may prefer to spend time in the morning or in the evening. Some people set aside breaks for listening during their work days. There are groups of people who practice listening together.

Our listening practice can be as simple as sitting and rocking for a set amount of time. We may decide not to talk out loud a certain period of time. It helps some people to visit a museum or a particular website.

As we practice we will discover what most helps us and what distracts us. I find music pretty distracting and prefer to take a walk or sit somewhere I can avoid it.

We do not need a disciplined schedule or an established place. Those may be helpful at first, but can also become challenges later.

It can be helpful to remember we are establishing a relationship to stillness. It is not a subject we are trying to master or an animal we are trying to train or domesticate.

As our relationship grows stronger, sacred stillness draws us into more depth.

Listening to Sacred Stillness in Everyday Life

I believe in the power of sacred stillness. Stillness is a resource we have forgotten.

We can walk or sit and listen to the stillness in the world and within us. Sacred stillness enfolds us, holding us and giving us the opportunity to simply listen.

In the stillness we can release our grip on what we hold so tightly. There is a sense of peace and acceptance in the stillness.

We do not need to struggle or strive, or earn what sacred stillness offers us. All we need is to turn our attention to the stillness.

Everyday life is filled with distractions and expectations, regrets and fears. We pay attention, for a few minutes each day, to sacred stillness.

How are we listening to sacred stillness in everyday life this week?

Where will we find stillness in everyday life today?

[Image by AIM Neutron (On a break)]

Greg Richardson is a spiritual life mentor and leadership coach in Southern California. He is a recovering attorney and university professor, and a lay Oblate with New Camaldoli Hermitage near Big Sur, California. Greg’s website is StrategicMonk.com, and his email address is [email protected].