Yea, though I walk through the valley of social media, I will fear no evil for thou art with me.
Okay, so maybe that’s a little sacrilegious and a lot dramatic, but it’s pretty much how I feel as I learn this language of tweets and retweets, Instagram and pushing. My journey has looked nothing like a walk in the woods. I am by no means a technophobe, but I stepped out of the technology world when we left Seattle. Now, there is much to catch up on, and let me tell you, there is more than a little panic as I tried to navigate through some of that catch up. I may or may not routinely send over-the-edge texts to my friends and fellow creatives.
In the midst of those frenetic texts, I realize that my heart is in my throat, my mind is whirling, and I am in no way still. I have to stop and laugh at myself. It’s in those times that I remember…the production meetings, the asset reviews, the push to publish on time…all the adrenaline boosting activities I was involved in just five years ago before I stepped out of the corporate world (that I actually loved so very much). Easy to forget the crazy. And so easy to slip back into.
As I wipe away (sometimes) laughter-induced tears, I reflect on what it actually takes to be still in the moment. It takes a noticing, an inward look. It takes catching the ramped-up heart rate, the mile-a-minute words, the rushing of the mind from one thought to another. And it takes a firm foot on the brake. But most of all, it takes a laying down of whatever it is that seems so important it takes over this body and turns it into a living, breathing whirlwind.
Some people are really good at hiding that “up” feeling. And there really is a way to harness the whirlwind, sometimes. But when I truly pause, notice how my heart, mind, body are moving, and gently but firmly pull the emergency brake, I find that I am able to think more clearly, breathe more deeply, smile more easily. Interestingly, I’m more effective, too…when the deadline or the goal or the project is no longer God.
Amy Carmichael once said, “"Blessed are the single-hearted, for they shall enjoy much peace. If you refuse to be hurried and pressed, if you stay your soul on God, nothing can keep you from that clearness of spirit which is life and peace. In that stillness you will know what His will is."
Take a breath with me, today? And maybe a walk? Yeah, a walk. Definitely a walk.