Weathered Wisdom
Dear ones,
Who would you say are the wisdom figures in your journey… and how do you connect with them, and with their wisdom? Do you have ways of keeping their voices, teachings, stories and experiences present and active in your life? And is their wisdom, resilience and support accessible in times of struggle or prolonged stress?
Today’s self-care strategy weaves together the benefits of connection and relationship, engagement with our values, intergenerational resilience, cultural and spiritual tradition, and the clinical benefits of investing time, energy and attention on thoughts, words, stories and images that give us strength and comfort.
Who we identify as wisdom figures, how we engage with them, and their influence in our journeys may be impacted by many factors, including our cultural, historic, familial, religious or spiritual contexts, our values and beliefs, our lived experiences, and even our genetics and experiences of our ancestors. Some of us think about people we know or have known in our lifetimes – friends, relatives, teachers, mentors; some might call to mind public or historic figures we may or may not have ever met, people who laid the groundwork for our own paths, or ancestors from generations before our own; some might turn to artists, poets, writers and musicians for the wisdom that gets them through. Many of us would name a combination of these and other wisdom figures.
These journey companions can be integral to our self-care practices in more ways than one.
Indigenous practices of rebirthing the ancestors, and Buddhist practices of interbeing with ancestors, center the interconnectedness of beings and energies across generations, the ways that we carry our heritage and ancestry on a cellular and genetic level as well as in our hearts, minds, spirits and stories, and the dynamic potential of that connection to influence or define us to varying degrees. Mindfulness practices such as this one invite us to celebrate and honor the gifts that have been passed down, and transform or heal that which is in need of healing.
Intentionally connecting with teachings or quotes or lyrics or poetry or perspectives of people who inspire us – “calling on the benevolent ancestors,” as one of my instructors named this practice – by writing, reading or visualizing their words, voices, faces or actions can challenge the brain’s negativity bias, bring forward our values and offer invitations and options for committed action, remind us that we are not alone in struggling or surviving (even if our companions are not physical present or personally known), and resource us for resilience in (and maybe transformation through) difficult times. (Some of mine include Mary Oliver, Rumi, India Arie… who are some of yours?)
Writing yourself a letter of compassionate wisdom from a person (real or imagined, or from your own voice of wisdom) whose love, strength and wisdom you value and admire can have multiple impacts on stress and health – from eliciting their voice as they may have spoken to you, to imprinting their wisdom by writing down the words by hand, to having a physical letter to return to and re-read at any time. Ideas for writing love letters to yourself can be found here, here and here – your wisdom counts too! If it’s hard to write just from your own perspective, imagine you are writing this love letter from the perspective and in the voice of one of your wisdom figures. If that person wanted to lift you up and give you support, what might they say to you?
Even the concept and practice of self-care has a history and an ancestry that might provide us with wisdom figures and inspiration to continue our commitment to self-care as an act of resistance and radical love.
Wishing you a wisdom-rich week and the felt presence and active connection with your wisdom figures for comfort and companionship throughout this season of isolation and uncertainty.
Peace,
Glynn
