The Power Of Pause

The Power of Pause

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”– Viktor Frankl

This weekend we drove to Canterbury and Dover. (Think Canterbury Tales and White Cliffs.) The Canterbury Cathedral is an important medieval pilgrimage site. In 1170 Thomas Becket was murdered in the church by four knights of King Henry II while he prayed. Pilgrims came there to pray and miracles were attributed to Becket. There was a wedding in the church and the men wore top hats and formal morning coats and the ladies wore interesting hats. The cliffs in Dover are made of limestone and chalk-thus they really are white. The Dover Castle was built on these cliffs and has a two thousand year history of protecting the English coast. From the top of the cliffs France can be seen across the English Channel. It was a cold, sunny weekend-great for climbing and hiking.

Today I began Tara Branch’s Radical Compassion Challenge. Tara interviewed Maria Shriver and they spoke about compassion. Maria shifted the conversation to her need to cultivate self-compassion. As we all focus on self-compassion the pause is an important tool. Instead of knee-jerk reactions, negative messages, judgment, anger we can simply pause, take a breath and consider options. The pause shifts focus from the external to the internal. This is huge empowerment. The pause also helps to anchor us in the present when the past is bleeding into
the moment.

Recently I was reminded by my daughter to practice the pause. I shot off an email in frustration and as soon as I pressed send I regretted it. ( I’ll work on that! )

Check out the Radical Compassion Challenge; it”s ten days with great speakers.
Do something nice for yourself.

“A thought transfixed me: for the first time in my life, I saw the truth as it is set into song by so many poets, proclaimed as the final wisdom by so many thinkers. The truth- that love is the ultimate and highest goal to which man can aspire.”- Viktor Frankl

Sending with Blessings
Camille