Imagine waking up to a loud bang. As you exhale you can see your breath in the air.
You get up out of bed to check the thermostat and realize that it’s only 20 degrees in your house because the heat isn’t kicking on.
It’s not on because you are out of gas. You call the gas company.
They tell you that they didn’t deliver gas because it was delayed do to a blizzard that you’ll get later tonight. They won’t be able to deliver any gas to you until next week (unless you want to pay the extra couple of hundred dollars for the privledge of having it today).
You hang up after agreeing to pay the extra couple of hundred – you have four children that you need to keep warm). They were there within the hour, but now you’ve also realized that your furnace isn’t working. The technician that comes out only confirms that not only does your furnace not work and needs completely replaced, but your pipes busted and now need replaced.
You look at your bank account, you barely have enough to cover it, but thank goodness you do.
Oh, and that original bang that woke you up.. it was the bedroom window broken after an icy snowball went through it.
Then you realize what today is… it’s your birthday.
Yup.. I think I just heard your head completely explode! This really happened to me.
One of my dearest friends said to me that day.. “I don’t know how you do it, but you always seem so calm! How?!”
Believe it or not.. practicing grounding and centering every day really makes a difference!!
What happens is that it keeps our emotions balanced so that we can feel at ease when life stresses come at us.
Emotions are like water. When they are balanced they are like a calm river on a warm day. But when your emotions are activated and there are storms near by, the waves will rise so high and come crashing down on water is in its way. It’s hard to live next to that kind of turbulence. This is why grounding is sooooo important!
So how do you practice grounding?
1. Find a quiet place to sit. Bed is a wonderful place in the morning. Outside is another wonederful place. It doesn’t matter as long as you are comfortable and can do so without distraction.
2. Close your eyes and breathe in and out slowly. Concentrate only on your breath. Feel how it goes in and out. Do this for a few cycles.
3. Feel yourself stretch into the ground. Even if you are in a 12th floor high rise, feel the ground beneath your building. Begin to feel that connection to the air space around you.
4. With each breath, feel your energy push out to touch the walls around you, and then notice how it feels as you pull it back into you.
5. Sit with this feeling for about 3 minutes. Longer if you want. But only as much as you want. Feel the peace come upon you. Realize that in truth, we are observers and everything is happening around us, but we are at peace in this moment and space.
6. When you are finished, Feel your breath again, and come back to yourself. Feel your body. Open your eyes and sit with that peaceful feeling for a moment.
Hope you enjoy this practice. It really helps to train and neutralize your emotional energy field so it stays calm, no matter what’s going on around you.
Namaste,
