Last night I sat in a group meditation and had the unbelievable desire to roll around on the floor laughing. In my heartful imagination I was, in fact, rolling around on the floor, laughing. My mind took over, though, believing this was wholly unpleasant for all the others gathered stoically on the floor so peacefully.
I held my laughter in my smile and in my mind, probably not being the perfect meditator sitting with my mind and heart wide open like…
Yet my mind is wide awake and open when I roll on the ground laughing “hysterically” isn’t it?
I sit at my desk and laugh a bit to see how it really feels to laugh even jovially.
(My free writing genie says “How many ways are there to laugh? How many ways are there to describe a ‘brand’ of laughter? Good prompt, dear one, good prompt!)
When I laugh my core gets a workout, automatically. I don’t have to think about it and today, I think to put my hands on my belly not to hold it but to almost worship it? Dare I worship my own (the culture I swim in says too round) belly?
I think I’ll try that again. How about you try it with me.
Hands on belly and…. Giggle, laugh, chuckle.
I notice when I “try” to laugh, the top of my belly shakes a bit but when I am suddenly caught with a memory that turns the laughter toward truth, more of my body is involved. I throw my head back and my hair tickles my shoulders. I can smell the perfume I grazed my skin with after I curlved my hair. I can feel the shaking in my thigh and down my shoulders to my elbows and my hands atop my belly accept the ride like my children did as babies when we played, “I had a little pony and his name was Jack” and they mimicked horse riding in my lap which almost always lead to celebrations of laughter.
After our group meditation I told Lindsay, our leader, there was one point I had a near overwhelming desire to roll around the floor laughing.
Her response, wide eyed and smiling, “That would have been great!”
Remembering the words of William Stafford “A Ritual to Read to Each Other” that inspired this writing today.
“For it is important awake people be awake,
Or a breaking line may discourage them back to sleep:
The signals we give – yes or no, maybe –
Should be clear: the darkness around us is deep.”
Your prompt:
Today I choose to be more awake to….. write for 5 minutes without editing, judgment or forethought. Simply write, let your words float across the page. And if you feel like laughing uncontrollably at any point, permission is always granted here. There are no rights or wrongs, there is just writing.
Here I am writing by the graveside of Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women – a highly successful book that hasn’t been out of print for more than 100 years.
Julie Jordan Scott inspires people to experience artistic rebirth via her programs, playshops, books, performances and simply being herself out in the world. She is a writer, creative life coach, speaker, performance poet, Mommy-extraordinaire and mixed-media artist whose Writing Camps and Writing Playgrounds permanently transform people’s creative lives. Watch for the announcement of new programs coming in soon!
To contact Julie to schedule a Writing or Creative Life Coaching Session, call or text her at 661.444.2735.
