Sunday Soul: Loving Containment

I heard this phrase twice this week. It started last week in a yoga class. My teacher was referring to the transverse abdominis, the abdominal muscles underneath the "six pack." She was encouraging students in the class to gently engage those muscles, to create a kind of corset to stabilize the core of the body before extending out, a kind of contraction to proceed a flourishing.

The second reference was in a fascinating conversation between Dr. Erynne Gilpin, a Canadian - indigenous activist and academic and the former host of the Pacific Rim College Radio podcast Todd Howard. In the conversation Dr. Gilpin described how our communities can provide a kind of "loving containment," particularly in sacred moments like birth, death, and illness.

The phrase has me considering what forms of loving containment are right for this moment - in what ways do we need to contract so that we are prepared for more stable action? In a political situation where there is an active effort to destabilize longstanding institutions like universities, social security, medicaid, and the network of alliances that have long supported economic growth and security in our country, how can we stabilize ourselves? How can we build communities that support us through these turbulent waters?

I know that each of us will come to our own answer to these questions. Many have the privilege of already being a member of strong networks and will continue to find solace there. Others will need to build new communities that better meet their needs. Sunday is a great day to give a little thought to the loving containment that you and the ones you love need in this moment.

How can you draw inward and activate your inner resources before taking action?