From Chaos to Calm {part 1}

I look at the calendar. I look at my to-do list. I look at my bank account. I look at my inbox. I repeat. This time of year more than any other, I feel the pull of the outer world rub distinctly against my desire to slow down, stay inside, and savor this dark, cozy season. 

As I reflect on the familiar feelings of chaos, I realize that what I am seeing is a fractal. A fractal is a never-ending pattern that occurs in nature. While the fractal itself, the pattern, is quite simple, the picture it displays can be one of chaos. 

“A fractal tells a story of the processes that created it.” - FractalFoundation.org

These fractals appear everywhere. In nature, in mathematics, even in Jackson Pollock's paint splatters… and if this is true, if they really are everywhere, might they also be present in the intangible, invisible aspects of our lives? Might they be present in our actions and our feelings?

If we can do the deep work of tracing back through the chaotic feelings to the largest possible branch we can find, we might discover an incredibly simple pattern. A pattern that goes something like - everytime X happens, I respond with Y, which makes me a bit anxious or unhappy. And, then this pattern continues to repeat, creating CHAOS. 

Our meditation practice is the invitation to interrupt this pattern. It invites us to pause in the repetitive choices we make, and it allows us to give ourselves the space to make a new choice. 

Patience and consistency will deliver the results. They always do. So in this most chaotic month, may you breathe deeply and practice more consistently than ever.

See example fractal images here: 

https://fractalfoundation.org/fractivities/WhatIsaFractal-1pager.pdf

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