June Transitions

June is a transition month - the end of spring and the beginning of summer. June’s element is fire, which purifies and gives life. It’s a highly yang time of movement and power, the season of completion, abundance and fulfillment. I have a hope that in summer I will reach the full flowering of myself and my dreams.

June has a different pace, less scheduled though more active. It’s a time for fine-tuning, and for decisive action. June is when I like to energetically climb to the top of a hill, survey the landscape and climb down again, to put myself in context, evaluate my progress, see what I’ve accomplished since January, and make careful adjustments in my goals and priorities. 

My aim this month is to stand still and calm in the center while I am playing, cleaning, writing, socializing, teaching, digging in the garden, swimming, traveling, and painting. 

"Only when there is stillness in movement can the spiritual rhythm appear which pervades heaven and earth." -- Taoist text

Monday is my day to reset for the week and get my ducks in a row - make some plans for health and home, and how I will step up for the Natural Living Challenge.

Agenda this week:

1. Journal query

2. Read "The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning"

3. Zen Care for the Living-room

4. Ray of Sun Meditation

1. Journal query: 

Summer’s question is “What is ideal?”

Today I made a list of idyllic, peaceful, expansive, and exciting things I long to do this summer, including some I loved to do as a child and young adult:

• Go to a creek for a whole day
• See my extended family
• Go to the ocean
• Paint in the garden
• Hike at Three Sisters or Fall Creek
• Summer adventures and pool time with grandsons
• Pick berries
• Have get-togethers outdoors with friends

2. Read "The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning":

I am just reading this book by Margareta Magnusson (2018), subtitled How to free yourself and your family from a lifetime of clutter. This is just what it sounds like, a process for tidying up before you die. The goal is to lessen the chaos for those who are left behind (and also for ourselves right now).

"Life will become more pleasant and comfortable if we get rid of some of the abundance."

She has a couple sections at the front about the importance of organizing, giving each thing a place, and tidying as you clean.

In the section "A Very Good Approach", she talks about the habit of giving gifts to each visitor as a way to clear some of your "beautiful and useful things".

 

Journal: Last week I washed Wade's stack of clothes, and cleared the bedroom closet.

3. Zen Care for the Living-room:

My house care theme for the coming June is Basic Care and Zen Order. This means do the basics each week (sweeping, dusting, etc.) and find a zen balance of order that feels good.

This week my attention will be in our living room:

• Clear the mantle shelf and bookcase and put away spring display; leave bare for a while.
• Empty out the craft cabinet and discern what we will use this summer.
• Gather a few more toys we don't need and drop them at the Giving Tree.

4. Ray of Sun Meditation: 

Today I will sit where I can feel the rays of the sun on my body. I will relax, be still, and soak up the light and heat of the sun. As I sit I will:

• Explore the sun’s inner qualities of warmth, light, clarity, and power. 
• Extend this awareness to all parts of my body, through each cell, my heart, mind, and spirit. 
• Radiate the sun's energy outward into the environment, in all directions. 
• Return to an awareness of my body, thank the Sun, and take this energy with me throughout the day.