Yesterday one of my qi gong students came early to class.
She sat in my waiting room until I came down with a bowl of raspberries and my dog Belle. Belle sat down by the bench, and then my client and I shared my raspberries and talked about what she had been doing most of the day.
This is a photo of my waiting room.
The bench was actually a gift from the Atlanta Pet Rescue. Someone had donated two benches to the pet rescue, but there was no use for them, so the pet rescue passed them along to me. I put one of them here next to the fountain and flowers outside my studio. My very excellent painter Dan Stone recommended that I paint them this wonderful mix of brown and black, so all of a sudden the ordinary wooden benches are not only comfortable, they have this feeling of solidity, solemnity and peacefulness.
Most waiting rooms are full of old boring magazines, sofas that should have been reupholstered about ten years ago and stale air from all the people holding their breath as they wait for the doctor, dentist or next meeting.
This is my waiting room.
You get to sit by the fountain and stare out at the trees and my apple blossom double begonias. The lot across the street is owned by the city. It’s a forest and will never be developed.
If you are lucky, maybe I come down with Belle and share my snack of fresh raspberries with you and we chat until it’s time for your session.
Nowhere to go, nothing to prove, just hanging out and eating raspberries, shooting the breeze.
Recently, I was at a seminar in California. The seminar leader, Lisa Nichols, said, “Most of you out there are in the top 10 percent, which means you are super busy all the time, right?” About 99 percent of the people in the audience raised their hands, and some people even raised both hands. But not me.
I am not busy every moment.
I do not have my days jam packed. I do not own a nine-pound daytimer stuffed with to-do lists. I used to own a nine-pound daytimer, but I gave that up years ago.
I realize that this is not a popular viewpoint, as most people are pushing and shoving their way through life, versus allowing.
I am making this point very subtly. You might want to read that sentence again if you have time to slow down and ponder what I am saying.
This morning I was watching from my porch as the leaves fell.
Don’t even think for one moment that this was an accident. This is my choice.
And if you come early to your appointment, maybe you can share that energy in my waiting room.
