Walking meditation

On our MBSR Intensive retreat one of the most memorable and outstanding experiences for me (and there were many) was a walking meditation we did outside, walking barefoot in the grass. Firstly we had to cross a stony drive and it was quite a different practice of mindfulness to be aware of the sharpness of the stones, yet if one walked carefully they did not hurt the feet. In walking slowly and carefully it was like being a toddler again, learning how to walk for the first time, being unsteady, unsure, losing balance.
And the experience on the grass was sublime. I found myself totally engrossed with the meeting of bare foot against warm yet damp grass, looking only at the grass I was stepping onto. At one moment I stopped and looked up, surprised to find a whole landscape of hills and fields before me, they had gone completely out of my consciousness whilst concentrating on the feet on the grass. It was one of those moments that will always connect me with that retreat, that centre, that landscape.

And here is the poem that came out of those reflections -

I am feet

I am feet
only feet
bare feet
meeting soft and yielding,
cushiony grass.
I have no body
only feet,
meeting warm and welcoming,
inviting grass.
Treading carefully
to avoid worms, insects and flying creatures.
Each separate footfall
a new moment,
a remarkable meeting of
feet and grass coming together.
Each footstep
lasting a lifetime,
a moment,
an infinity.
I am here,
in my feet,
on this grass,
with the grass,
soft and yielding,
cushiony grass.

Only feet and grass.

© 26 September 2013