Searching, only to be found

This past weekend, I was up in Ards, Donegal. I had a few days of meetings as the Joy farm readies itself to embark on a social farming venture. As well, we all woke for the Dawn Chorus as our declaration of peace. It was inspirational to see some of you rising at 4.45am to log on with myself and James from the Sanctuary and the fellas from the friary. The Sanctuary have begun their Friday afternoon weekly peace walks in Dublin 7, as the friars are launching their peacemaker’s chapel with a church fair on Monday June 1^st. If either of these speak to you, make sure to check them out.

While I was there, I had the good fortunate to be invited for an early morning wander into the mountain fields, listening for the call of the cuckoo- a clear sign of the season turning as we pass through Bealtaine, or the beginnings of summer for my North American friends. The light was warm and golden and the first-light cacophony of  birdsong filled the air, reviving my travel weary spirit.  

As we listened to the soft call of the cuckoo, we spotted two hares in the distance. We decided to try and get a closer look, however, the hares were elusive. We moved deeper into the land hunting for a picture of the pair, stopping every so often to simply take it all in. We were careful to walk quietly and move slowly, only they were no where to be found. That is until we decided to stop looking.

Once we stopped, we curiously explored a few old buildings and casually drank in the landscape. Just as we turned to leave, the most magnificent hare confidently (and maybe even cheekily) crossed our path before disappearing into a tangle of Gaurus. We found this funny. All of our searching, only to be found.

This got me thinking to all of the times that I have pushed too hard or when urgency took over and carried me away from what was already here. The question becomes what have I missed or taken for granted? What if I changed my posture from leaning forward, straining towards the future and stood still. What would it be like to be receptive, instead. What would I notice? How could I listen differently – to my thoughts, my body, my environment? Opportunities, ideas and directions are already present but they can be drowned out by urgency. When the noise settles, they become visible- just like the hare.

So how does this look outside of a field in the Donegal countryside? Well, it looks like pausing before reacting, leaving space in my day, allowing thoughts to pass through without needing to chase every single one of them and resisting the urge to over-decide.

There is less panic and a need to get everything right. I start to see patterns that I missed, conversations land differently and ideas connect in ways that I hadn’t considered. Maybe the point is not to stop searching entirely but to search until you’re quiet enough to notice or to try until trying softens into attention.

One of the best ways that I know how to practice this is through mindfulness and meditation. If you would like to practice with me, why not join the sanctuary’s Tuesday morning community meditation at 10am? I’d love to see you there.

-Jane

Click here to join me at the Sanctuary’s online community meditation on Tuesday mornings at 10am Irish time.

Click below to listen to and practice a Receiving Rather Than Doing meditation: