This past week, I found myself muttering a phrase many of us know from Finding Nemo:

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…

When life gets hectic and the to-dos begin to stack up, I’m often tempted to fall back into a “just keep going” mindset. Just keep working, just keep pushing, just keep giving, just a little bit more, a little bit more, a little bit–

And, if I don’t find a practice that offers me some space to breathe, I inevitably crash and find myself feeling adrift and purposeless.

So…the practice is really important.

Casper ter Kuile teaches that practices with the power to deepen our sense of presence, meaning, and experience have three common traits:

• Intention: Recognizing what are we inviting into this moment
• Attention: Being present in this moment
• Repetition: Creating space to come back to this time and time again

A practice that has all three, ter Kuile says, has the power to “make the invisible connections that make life meaningful, visible.”

If you’re interested in creating a practice like this for your own life, I’ll be guiding folks (and myself) through the process at a workshop later this month! More details below.
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Questions

1. What is a practice in your life that invites all three of these common traits? (Do you have one?)
2. In what area of your life do you feel the need for a deeper practice like this?

Resources

• ​The Power of Ritual by Casper ter Kuile (book)
• ​The Nearness (a small group experience, created by ter Kuile)