The Bamboo Dance

I’ll be blunt.  If you don’t develop flexibility, you are in for a rocky road.  There is more change coming at us faster than we’ve ever known and it is not going away anytime soon.

Consider the bamboo reed – whipping about in the wind, bending so far at times as to touch the ground before springing back up – but it doesn’t break.  Bamboo is the very definition of flexibility – ready and able to change so as to adapt to different circumstances.

Flexibility is a practice in trust.  Trust that I can let go of my need to be in control.  Trust that I can keep moving forward without knowing all the answers.  Trust that a situation will result in the best outcome for all, even if it’s not an outcome I have imagined or planned for.

Being flexible does not mean giving up, sacrificing, or selling out.  It does mean opening up, breathing, and creating a sense of spaciousness for the creative spirit to enter.

Flexibility yields more creativity.  You will have more time, more ideas, more fun and more opportunities to meet the marvel of synchronicity. (Since you won’t be spending all of it attempting to control for every outcome or plan for every contingency.)

If you want spaciousness, enjoyment, and spontaneity in your life, play with being more flexible – emphasis on play.

Practice

Find a photo of bamboo and put it somewhere prominent to serve as a visual reminder – desk or dashboard are good options.

The next time you’re in a conversation, reacting to email, in traffic, and feel yourself tensing up or digging in your heels remember the image. Take a deep breath, relax and think of yourself as the bamboo reed – bending easily without breaking.  Do the Bamboo Dance – move your body like a bamboo reed.  Undulating around the room or sitting in your chair, sway your shoulders, arms and hips; bending low and returning to full height.  Ah, c’mon, no one’s watching…

Feel the sway, baby!    See how much spaciousness you can create in the situation.

Optional chant while swaying in the breeze – “I’m flexible, woo hoo!”