A Meditation on the Elements

When the terrain is tough, mindfulness steps in to provide sure footing.

- REBECCA PACHECO

The way I see it, the mind is a landscape. Practicing yoga or meditation teaches us to explore our inner environments. Over time, we learn to negotiate the terrain: the psyche's rolling hills and shadowy corners. We learn how to find where light dapples through the trees or recognize where the footing is precarious and we might need a hand to hold, or sturdier boots. With so little certainty in our lives right now, it's important to have internal reinforcements when we need them. Finding this steadier ground is the work of mindfulness.

Our outer world changed dramatically in the spring of 2020; internally, we have been struggling to hang on ever since. I remember a conversation with a Buddhist friend in the early days of lockdown. "It's like everyone is suddenly on a meditation retreat we didn't sign up for," she joked. And we both laughed because we needed to. Sunshine through the trees.

But a retreat is a controlled environment lovingly wrapped inquietude. Lowered voices. Serene smiles. No fretting about what's for dinner. Somewhere: meditation bells. And, yes, retreats can also be challenging. But I'll take caffeine and social media withdrawal over an unrelenting plague any day.

Finding Alternate Points of Entry