Time opens up when our SPACE is clear.
When there is excess stuff in our space, we lose time.
Are you impacted by your environment? Do you feel heavy? Stuck? Like you need a new perspective on life? After a few months of being pregnant with Miles it became clear I had a new mantra, a new affirmation and anchor statement for my life.
My mantra became, “make space for baby.”
That took on many different roles in my daily living. My yoga practice shifted to one of creating more space with hip openers and stepping my feet further apart. My twisting practice was in opposition to the classic variation of many of the poses where binding and rinsing and cleansing the internal organs were once considered important. For me it was all about “making space” and not just on my yoga mat, but off. I got rid of a lot of “things”, “STUFF” that no longer served me as I began to imagine sharing a home with another Being.
All of it was fun and exciting, in anticipation of our new family member and at the same time a daunting task, as I bumped up against feeling like I “should” keep certain things out of obligation to it being a gift, or passed along in my family, or made by a friend, etc. And my husband, stood by supporting me and from time to time rolling his eyes, as I discarded extra loaf pans from the kitchen or sweaters I hadn’t worn in 5 years. We agreed it was important.
A year after Miles was born, the book “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up” by Marie Kondo came out. This was for me. And while it became a mainstream conversation in peer groups and the brunt of plenty of jokes, it was an affirmation of the practices I had integrated, but at another level. So, I began to pull all like items together, sort, discard and share using her principles. And while I had moments of rolling my eyes about emptying my purse every day or how my socks needing a rest, I did my best to apply the principles. I probably dropped off a truck full of “stuff” at the thrift store every Monday for 3 months and it felt GREAT.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been distracted by clutter. I would have to clean my room/home before I could write papers or clean the kitchen before prepping a meal. I consider my home a sanctuary. For those of you into astrology, I suppose this is characteristic of a cancer, but to me my surroundings and outer environment are a direct reflection of my inner life.
This past year I made major changes in my life (inside and out). One of the obvious ones is, I left a career of 18 years. That wasn’t something I decided on the fly. As I reflect on the steps I took to prepare myself for what felt like such a BIG leap, it’s so clear to me that I had been creating the space for “what’s next” all along. Even though I was a new mom, I had fewer things to “tend” to. My attention wasn’t distilled by unnecessary housekeeping and picking up “stuff”. I started to experience a lightness around what I owned and how on an energetic level what we own, also owns us.
In hindsight I’m convinced that as I let go of more “stuff”, it made space for my life to open up in surprising and exciting ways. It’s really shifted the perspective I have of my life and it’s trajectory. So, I’ve continued to refine my tidying up practices and I’ve moved on to what feels like the hardest layer for me – photos. I’ve cornered every box of photos I have in my garage, so it’s the next step, I’ll let you know how it goes.
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Rachel Peters is a yoga teacher, yoga health coach, lifestyle and habits expert, easeful living advocate, and lover of wild places. She leads others towards Embodying Ease through a yearlong wellness & lifestyle journey to dissolve perfectionism, embody daily habits that promote mental clarity, overall ease, and deeper connection to life on this wild ride of modern living. Learn MORE today!