Sunday, July 17, 2011

Sometimes Stopping is Moving Forward

In a dance, movement is, of course, paramount.  However, stopping is just as important.  You can use energy to propel yourself into a leap or a turn, but sometimes the choreography calls for you to just stop and be still.  If you are stopping after an energetic movement, you really have to contract your core muscles to achieve stillness.  This entails transferring the energy of momentum into the power of stillness. 
 
Sometimes in our lives we need to stop a behavior that is no longer serving us.  A habitual behavior has a lot of momentum behind it and it takes all our inner (core) strength to just stop it already! 
 
When dancing to stillness, we can see in our mind’s eye what that looks and feels like. We can then contract our core muscles and achieve it, but it might take a few rehearsals to really accomplish.
 
It is the same in life.  You have a vision of what you want to achieve and you may have to rehearse stillness (or NOT acting in your accustomed manner) before you successfully end the behavior. 
 
Allow your inner strength to guide you but don’t be hard on yourself—it always takes some rehearsal to stop the momentum.

1 comment:

  1. Short, too the point, and SO true, Susie..., especially the part about recognizing that "...it always takes some rehearsal to stop the momentum." And it feels oh so good when you catch yourself "stopping" at just the right moment! xxoo

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