[Disclaimer: This is probably the most woo-woo post I’ve ever done, but I was inspired by the sweet silence I experienced in one 30 minute period yesterday afternoon. I had to share it with you, since I know many of you need it as much as I did.]
White Space Is My Final Frontier. My Epic Quest.
As a young child I’d often lay in the grass outside our home in the woods face up to the sky and listen to the sounds of silence. The trees moving back and forth. The wind on my face. The clouds silently flowing by.
I consider myself lucky. I was able to find the quiet in a very loud, unstable, often fear-filled home I grew up in. Nothing dramatic happened. This is not a story of abuse or neglect, but there was always a little bit of worry surrounding our little family. I took much of that worry on myself. I wanted to be the little warrior. And, without fail, the worry & sense of responsibility worked its way into my psyche, no matter how hard I tried to keep it out.
I know that’s why I was always seeking solace in music, in nature, at my friend’s houses, in books. I wanted peace. I wanted escape too, probably.
I remember thinking. Just do well in school. Be good. Get Out.
But it was easier then.
I could find a quiet spot and not be disturbed for hours.
Now if that happens, it’s a luxury.
I start to worry if it’s too quiet for too long.
I’m back to embracing and looking for that peace I once found so easily, to seeking clarity in those quiet moments, to searching out people that inspire me rather than drain me, and finding projects that ignite a hunger to work on them with immediate passion.
My needs are different now and there’s (still) no volatile home environment, so it’s a hard to demand the quiet, the space. I am happy that I don’t have to escape, but I can feel the stirring for more time, more room, more clarity, more focus, more freedom, and more white space.
I know I still need it.
I bet you do too.
Find out what I'm upto…and how you can give yourself the gift of white space.