Imbolc

Imbolc. For three mornings now this word has been drifting in and out of my mind. (Probably starting with this post.) Imbolc is translated as “in the belly” and that seems to be exactly where the stirring sits. Inside. Embodied. Changing. Shifting.

Last week Sunrise Sister asked, “Has an old person moved into your body?” Some days it feels like one has as my knees creak and my body stiffens. But there is a very young person inside saying, “Make room for me. I have much to do and life to live!”

For many years I had a great discipline of walking several miles most days of the week as well as exercising on a regular basis. Somewhere along the way those disciplines drifted away. While still active, I realize that I now spend more time sitting, writing, and reading. I have not been sleeping as well at night and my head often pounds in the morning when I awaken. Again, I here the voice that says, “Take care of yourself. There is too much to do…to create…to see…to live!”

And so in this way of listening, I happened upon my Lenten practice for the year. It will be a time to take care of my body. Not in a “boot camp” sort of way, but gently and intentionally. Today is Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, which announces the beginning of Lent. Lent traditionally means a time of fasting which can in itself ring of deprivation and another start to already failed New Year’s resolutions. That is not what I am feeling for this season. Again, it is gentler, kinder and more being mindful of how I am treating my body. What I am putting in it. How I will keep it moving. Where I will find rest. It honestly reminds me of being pregnant. Thinking of a seed sprouting from inside. New birth. Growth. Taking care of my body as if it were pregnant, because (figuratively speaking) it is!

Germinating new moments & creations. Moving toward life. What is stirring in your belly as we enter this season of Lent?