11_03_2021

Tapping Into Your Core

                I’ve always thought of the reference to the “importance of your core strength” as having to do with my physical strength. But recently I learned a new way to think of my core. If you have read selections from my Blog in the past, you might recall that I am finding great nourishment and sustenance from the work of David Whyte.

                Whyte actually lives in the United States presently, but I continue to think of him as an Irish Poet given his roots. He has a lengthy list of published resources, including multiple books and CD collections. Currently he is offering a series of Zoom broadcasts on Sunday afternoons. I’ve completed three of his offerings in recent months. I’ll share the titles of the  explorations to give you a chance to understand the dimensions of his reflective poetry:

• What to Remember When Waking: The Disciplines of An Everyday Life
• Deepening Our Conversations
• Taking the Inward Road

His next series, Still Possible, begins on Sunday, November 7^th. His reflections and his poetry are rich in golden nuggets of nourishment. I benefit from spending time reflecting on his words, as they open new windows of insight for me. His words provide a powerful resource that we can access when we feel ourselves blown adrift.

In the last class of his most recent session, he talked about how easy it is to become untethered from our center core as we are blown about by all of the chaotic energy that can find its way into our lives. He shared a poem he’d written that captured the sense of loss and disorientation we can experience when we travel too far from our cores.

He shared the following poem with us, and the combination of his own description of how he had lost his way with the beauty of the words from the following  poem, moved me to new levels of insight:

A Song for the Salmon by David Whyte

For too many days now I have not written of the sea,

nor the rivers, nor the shifting currents
we find between the islands.

For too many nights now I have not imagined the salmon
threading the dark streams of reflected stars,
nor have I dreamt of his longing
nor the lithe swing of his tail toward dawn.

I have not given myself to the depth to which he goes,
to the cargoes of crystal water, cold with salt,
nor the enormous plains of ocean swaying beneath the moon.

I have not felt the lifted arms of the ocean
opening its white hands on the seashore,
nor the salted wind, whole and healthy
filling the chest with living air.

I have not heard those waves
fallen out of heaven onto earth,
nor the tumult of sound and the satisfaction
of a thousand miles of ocean
giving up its strength on the sand.

But now I have spoken of that great sea,
the ocean of longing shifts through me,
the blessed inner star of navigation
moves in the dark sky above
and I am ready like the young salmon
to leave his river, blessed with hunger
for a great journey on the drawing tide.

                Whyte described that when he realized that he had spent too many days away from the sea that always provided him with a peace-filled sense of grounding, it dawned on him that he needed to return frequently to his sources of core strength.

                His words awakened in me that I needed to remind myself to work from my inner core outward, and not the other way around. Too many people in our lives attempt to define our lives from their external views of us. Their views may include how they think we should live our lives, or how they perceive us. Many around us thrive on living in drama and chaos as a way of avoiding the lessons that we can learn in silent reflection.

                I am grateful to Whyte for giving me the gift of remembering when I’m feeling spun around and off center to get back in touch with where I live in that center. Reminding ourselves of the intentions and values that live in our cores is an effective way to re-ground ourselves in these chaotic times.

                Revisiting and reconnecting with my core intentions doesn’t mean that I don’t see spaces where I can improve my life. I have become much more comfortable accepting my humanness and imperfections as I age. But I am also gaining confidence in claiming my voice and how I am making choices about how I live my life.

                Now I am equally conscious of the importance of attending to the core strength of my soul. When someone is trying to define me either by their words, stated or unstated expectations, or their actions, I pay attention to what I feel in my body. It’s astounding how the right combination of events can combine to start one on a downward spiral.

                A key to our overall wellbeing is learning how to be friends with ourselves. Find a place within you of extra-ordinary rightness, and working outward from that place,  reach out to help make positive changes in the world.