GiG : 02. Sensing our boundaries
Grounding in Grace series
This week we are going to explore and experiment with the physicality of our personal space. You will need a ball of yarn or string and a pillow.
Have your string or yarn in your hands and sit in the center of your healing space. Breathe in and out slowly, feeling your sit bones sink into the floor. Look around your space and create a circle around you with the string or yarn. Place your pillow right outside the boundary of the circle you created.
You can either have this pillow represent a specific person or not, that is your choice, however think of it as a person, anonymous or not. Breathe in and out and feel the presence of this "person". What is happening in your body: what is your heart doing, your lungs? How are your legs, arms and neck feeling? Based on the sensations in your body, can you determine if the "person" is too close? If so, move the pillow and make the circle of string larger. Again place the pillow on the outer edge, breathe in, release. Tune into your body sensations. Is the "person" still too close? If so, repeat expanding your circle. If the "person" feels too far away, try to make the circle slightly smaller. What is vitally important is that you listen to your body sense and physically feel what is a comfortable distance.
Repeat adjusting the size of the circle and the location of the "person" until you find the distance to be "just right" for you, right now based on how your body is responding - slow steady heart rate and breathing, muscles not tensed.
This space represents your personal space in this moment. This distance changes over time and with people. What is important in this exercise is not the distance of the "person" from you, rather that you feel yourself relax when the "person" is at the right distance.
You can also practice this exercise with an actual person, asking them to move closer and further way, sensing your body. You can also position the person or pillow at different angles - in front, to the side, behind you, and see what you notice.
Grounding in Grace was an online program I offered in 2013 (!!). I have chosen some of the content from this program to share here and have edited and modified as appropriate or necessary.
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