Preserving time for calm

September 19, 2019

It’s hard, in a houseful of people, to find space and time for yourself. There’s always a chore to do, always something to clean up, always a form to sign or a meal to prepare. People clamor for attention. Work clamors for attention.

There is, in short, a lot of clamoring.

I don’t have the luxury of retreating into a space by myself every time the mood strikes. To be honest, I wouldn’t want to. I love the people and the things that need my attention, and I don’t begrudge them that time.

When I do need a little time and space though, I’ve been sitting down to play the piano. I'm not exactly a virtuoso - I really only remember a handful songs from the lessons I took as a kid. But the motion of my fingers over the keys is soothing and repetitive, deeply familiar. The music fills the house with something other than noise. And a little extra bonus: no one can bug me when I’m in the middle of playing.

I might sit at the piano for a few minutes, or a half-hour. When I get up, something has been lifted from me. I can go about the rest of my day with new, better energy. What’s your piano? What do you do to create a little moment of calm in your life? Those moments, after all, give us the space to create, to explore, and to become.

- Page
Farmer and Cultivator

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