Dear Community and Friends,
Before reading further take a moment to pause and check in with your present tense experience. Scan your whole being. Notice your breath and physical posture. Sense and feel the currents of emotion and thought. Check in with your heart. Your mind. Your life. As local meditation teacher, Mark Nunberg, says "What does a wise, responsive heart look and feel like in the midst of all this uncertainty?"
My heart sure feels the difference a day can make, let alone a week, in light of the potential risk of the coronavirus and our responsibility as individuals and community members to lessen it's impact and severity. Information seems to change hourly, asking us to reassess and potentially redirect course altogether. In light of all of that's happening, I ask for your understanding as I navigate these unknown waters with as much wisdom and compassion as I can.
Just last week I spoke to dancing in the time of coronavirus, sharing precautionary measures and requests for personal/collective wellness: guidelines for a no touch space, hand washing, etc. The prospective of continuing to drop deep into our practice to resource and renew felt both emotional and extraordinary...like an opportunity to show up differently and re-create our lives in alignment with collective grace and awareness.
A mere 24 hours later everything shifted and changed. There was no question that avoiding public gatherings was in the individual and collective interest in slowing the spread of COVID-19. I, along with many others across the globe and here in Minneapolis, chose to postpone all group offerings until further notice.
All around me people are making hard moment-by-moment decisions. The year long Contemplative Dance group I am a part of was canceled for March. The Open Floor Lab in April that I was to assist was postponed until the fall. Schools, studios and countless classes across the globe have come to a halt. Through all this rapid change I saw the best of us rising. Folks were considering the impact on the collective. I saw creative attempts to cover childcare for healthcare providers. Witnessed strangers share last items on store shelves. Saw Dance Church DJs creating live streamed dances, studio owners actively switching to online programing, friends reaching out for support and receiving it. The best in us was rising...and I felt myself singing, dancing and contemplating the deeper lessons and possibilities of these times.
But today I hit a breaking point. I began to waver, vacillating so frequently I couldn't find my ground. My son in Portugal has been recovering from fever, far from home and out of my reach. His brother and father, who were visiting him abroad, have just begun a two week self-quarantine. Friends and family, near and far, have been becoming ill quicker than I imagined possible. In the course of a few days I've been confronted by a very different reality than the one I'd been attuning to. I began to crack. If ever I have felt the true meaning of NOT KNOWING, this was it.
But somewhere between store shelves and bulk bins cleared out, crowds of people, and levels of anxiety that made me feel on edge, a point of connection cut through my fog. It came through a text from a friend. His reaching out opened a doorway to be seen by another person in the midst of what felt overwhelming and crazy. His noticing allowed me to recognize an underlying anxiety that I myself hadn’t allowed myself to share. He helped me realize I wasn’t alone.
It is these points of connection with others, as well as the dance and time in nature that pierce through the layers of my own discomfort and overwhelm...that help me see what’s really happening underneath...that ultimately support me in finding new ways of looking and responding to difficult situations.
I'm sure we'll each experience some level of loss and upheaval in the months ahead. Illness, income loss, and social isolation will likely touch us all and leave its mark, not to mention on those living on the margins or those who contract the virus and their families.
Though we will certainly experience moments of stress in these times, we can turn toward our practices to help us find our way. We can turn to one another to have faith in our inter- connectedness,to trust the heart’s ceaseless capacity to care and respond.
We can ask the question, "What would YOUR wise, responsive heart look and feel like in the midst of all of this uncertainty?"
GOING FORWARD
If you are a member of Moon Rising, I will be reaching out to you separately to discuss Zoom gatherings for our final 3 weeks. Let's use technology for what it's for...to stay connected!
If you are a Soul-based Coaching client, all sessions will resume as normal via Zoom. This platform can be used for 1:1 movement coaching sessions, as well, so let me know if this would be supportive. Through April I am offering all coaching session on a sliding scale: no questions asked...$30-$120/hr.
If you are looking forward to our next Dancing Freedom class, our March session has been postponed. Stay tuned for our April date(s)! My decisions on when/how to resume group classes will be based upon the recommendations of the WHO and Minnesota Department of Health.
Remember...this is a temporary postponement. Nobody knows what the world will look like in a few weeks. And although this too shall pass, it may be while, so for now...and going forward:
Be part of the social fabric!
Disasters can bring out the best and the worst in all of us. Be aware that many fear responses are being activated right now. To the degree that you can:
Turn toward the practices that support you in staying calm, grounded and gentle hearted...toward yourself and others. This may look like creating a space in your home or outdoors to keep dancing! Turn to the dance to ground and center regularly, to check in with your body, and listen to it's cues. Allow your dance to tend and mend, understanding that all feelings, thoughts and sensations are normal, and need room to move.
Remember that every person's experience is unique to them. Watch where you cast judgment, blame or shame. Both personally and systemically, we will have better outcomes if we orient toward respect and good citizenship.
At this point in time, social distancing is important. Stay connected virtually. Reach out to friends/peers especially those who may be isolated or in need of support. Do your best to engage activities that are nurturing, creative and hopefully generative in the long-term. Help others ground emotionally and prepare physically. Never underestimate the power of sunshine and fresh air!
Understand that not everyone can socially isolate. There are people working to keep our infrastructure (grocery, pharmacy, energy, distribution, etc.) going. Please hold these industries and people with the utmost respect and love.
If you believe prayer helps, pray.
If you believe dancing helps, dance.
If you believe singing helps, sing.
I give gratitude to each and every one of you for the level of presence and consideration you are giving to your choices right now. With love and respect for the moment we all find ourselves in. We are all in this together.
Love, Teresa
3.15.20
