Centering

Photo by Dasha Gaian

"Stay centered, do not over stretch.
Extend from you center, return to your center."
Buddha/Master Mian

Two inches below our belly button, and two inches in, is the center of our body-beings.

Trungpa Rinpoche said, when we are in our neurotic state, women are crazy and men are stupid. Think about it, it's true. I know this is only a dualistic view of gender, I apologize if this leaves anyone not knowing whether you're crazy or stupid. You get to pick. I have found that many women believe our center is in our heart, but it's actually below our belly buttons, hence our craziness. Makes sense right? For right now, given the state of our world, let's all drop into our true center.

This week, fed by our roots from last week, we brought the nourishment through our bodies, and into our centers. And then we moved from here. Our movements began on the floor. We moved slowly and initiated from our center. As our movements grew, we let them come from the center out, so that even our fingertips and toes were moved, connected to this point. We came back to our grounding through our roots, again and again, and let those roots feed our center.  

What I witnessed was a room full of dancing body-beings (some who swore to me they were too shy and unable to dance) moving from center. When we shook to the drums, when we reached up in relevee, when we spun or rolled or walked- it was from center. When we partnered up to celebrate our own and each other's center- we smiled upon each other from a place of such grounding and center, it brought tears to my eyes. It was a beautiful dance.

Throughout my week, I have felt hopeless and disheartened many times. I have watched women I love suffer and beings around the world mourn the destructiveness of the choices in Washington. It's been a hard week. BUT! I usually collapse and lose it. I usually hit a point where I distract with chocolate and Netflix. This week, I did not. I felt my center, a hundred times. I have walked through the grocery store with my hand on my center. I stood in my garage and cried as I surveyed my beloved belongings headed for the trash (black mold disaster,) with my hand on my center. I danced 4 good hard dances this week, with my hand on my center. I have called Senators and Congress members with my hand on my center. All my grief has not magically disappeared. But I have been resourced and available because of this. So, my loves, I invite you to dance/live/celebrate from your center and find your way home in yourself, so we the world can find a home in us.

Here's what the dancers had to say after class:
"I am so glad I made it here today- I had all these to do's, but I actually really needed to get centered. Thank you!"

"I haven't danced for a while, I've missed it. I noticed dance coming from all sorts of places, including my center, and I was inhabiting more of me- and some clarity really came through."

"Throughout the history of humans and my lifetime, there's all the experience that could ever be. And I know how to stand in wind, in pain, in love- and so we've got this!"

"I was feeling my heart that feels like gumby- like it is stretching a lot these days. Sometimes wide open, sometimes shielded, so I was feeling its capacity and how movement and water are so important to help it stay elastic."

 "I'm so grateful that my capacity for handling all of life has grown, knowing I'm resilient. And I couldn't feel that without knowing I have all of you to dance with."

"It was great to be here today and transform my ideas of guilt and shame into gratitude, I found myself thanking the people in my life for all the lessons they've given me, even though it's been so difficult."  

 "I would normally say I function from my heart center, so when you said to come from our lower center- hmmm. I realized functioning from my heart center is often draining and exhausting. I was so happy to re-engage with my "me" center."

Dance Invitation: Come back to center again and again. When life feels hectic, when your energy is coming up and out and or draining out and down, when your kids are screaming or traffic is troubling, when the news makes you want to yell profanities or hide under the covers are cry, find your center. When you exercise, or hike or dance or clean, do it from your center. Don't think center, feel center. Notice where it is in your body-being and breathe there. Be there. And then move forward from there.