Resting through a Calgary winter
Short days, dry cold, and a chinook that can turn an afternoon around. Notes on resting with the season instead of against it.
Notice2 min read
How it goes
- 01
Stop at the door 15″
Before the key goes in, stop. Put the bag down if you can. Feel your feet on the ground.
- 02
Drop the shoulders 20″
Roll the shoulders back once and let them fall. Unclench the jaw and the hands.
- 03
Three slow breaths 45″
In through the nose, out slowly and a little longer. On each out-breath, set something down: a meeting, a message, a tone of voice.
- 04
Say where you are 20″
Quietly, to yourself: I am home. Notice one smell or sound that belongs to this place.
- 05
Cross the threshold 20″
Open the door and go in slowly. Take your shoes off before you put anything else down.
This is the first passage of the class, Arrive, moved to your own front door. In the room, the hour begins before the practice does: the phone goes quiet and out of sight, shoes come off, someone gives you a warm cup. At home nobody does that for you, so the door has to.
Two minutes is enough. What matters is that the day stays outside for three breaths, and that you notice the moment you cross over. If you live with other people, it also tells them, without a word, that you have arrived.
You don’t need to make it a ceremony. Standing at the door and breathing a little more slowly than usual is the whole practice.
Take care. Practise only where you feel safe. If the doorstep is not safe or quiet, do it just inside the door. Never practise while driving.
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