I had a last minute invitation to spend a night at a friend’s lake house with her and two other dear friends. It’s a beautiful spot and I could not resist.
Water is healing. British novels always have the ailing protagonist traveling to the seaside for rest and rejuvenation. An article by Elizabeth Bernstein in “The Wall Street Journal” touts the power of water to reduce anxiety and relieve stress. Take a look at the photos from that story and feel yourself relaxing.
“Water meditates us by taking away all the noise,” says Wallace J. Nichols, a marine scientist. “All we have to do is show up.” Yes.
So I showed up and I got meditated this weekend.
A lake doesn’t have the same sound factor as ocean waves and waterfalls. No, it produces a quieter soundscape, lapping against the shore, rocking the dock and boats. And whether you’re in the water or not, just gazing at the soft, rippling movement is meditative.
I wish I had photos from the quiet cove I kayaked to this morning. No docks, no houses, just the green growing things, stands of trees, a soft shoreline, and the occasional turtle plopping from a stump into the water. Birdsong and the quiet lapping of water in the early morning ease one into wakefulness.
Without a phone or camera, I followed my sister’s soft practice of taking mental pictures. Looking. Being mindful. Remembering.
One should never refuse the offer of time by the water, I feel (though I have done it before and recently, too). Creek, river, lake, sea, bathtub, swimming pool, rainfall, they’re all water and all healing. We should all partake as often as possible.
“A recent study found that it takes about two hours a week near water to improve our well-being . . . ” – Elizabeth Bernstein
“Water does not resist. Water flows. When you plunge your hand into it, all you feel is a caress. Water is not a solid wall, it will not stop you. But water always goes where it wants to go, and nothing in the end can stand against it. Water is patient. Dripping water wears away a stone. Remember that, my child. Remember you are half water. If you can’t go through an obstacle, go around it. Water does.” ― Margaret Atwood, The Penelopiad
“They both listened silently to the water, which to them was not just water, but the voice of life, the voice of Being, the voice of perpetual Becoming.” ― Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha
| If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here. Thanks for listening, Kay P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.” |
