Calm in the Chaos

From my desk in Edinburgh, Scotland

Edinburgh Castle

Hi Friends,

Welcome back to another Calm in the Chaos post. How are you this week? I hope that you are able to find some quiet and calm for yourself during these hectic times.

I am currently in Edinburgh, Scotland, where I landed at the beginning of March. And now it is April! I honestly cannot believe that March has passed by so quickly. It seems to have gone in a blink of an eye. Edinburgh has been a whirlwind of weather: from gorgeously sunny days, with the bluest of skies, to crazy wind and an evening of rain that was a literal deluge - all in one day! I love it here though and the changing weather both keeps me on my toes and life in general interesting (however, getting caught in a soaking rain, that was blowing INTO me, last Friday while running errands unprepared was chilling to the bone). The wonderful souls that inhabit this city, both in physical form and in spiritual (lots of ghosts here in Scotland), are so welcoming and engaging, I can say Edinburgh feels more and more like a home for me.

Spring here finds lots of trees and flowers blooming, everything is stunningly green and the air smells so fresh, especially after the rains. Edinburgh is a completely charming and stunning city in all weather and seasons. I absolutely love being here and just extended my stay in Scotland. I will be moving to a new area, not too far away, on the west coast, right on the sea in mid-April. Stay tuned for more about that in a couple of weeks. For now, I am still here, in Edinburgh proper and soaking up each day, balancing long walks with work projects and socializing with the friends I’ve made.

I have a few calming things to share with you this week. I hope there is something inspiring and/or useful for you here.

Qi Gong (with LuChin):

I continue to really enjoy expanding my Qi Gong practice with LuChin, who has an excellent channel on YouTube. This link is for LuChin’s particular practice for morning stiffness and I have used it both in the morning upon waking and other times in the day when I have been at my laptop too long. Qi Gong is so good for getting what I call ‘fresh energies” in to my body and clearing the fog from my brain. LuChin has a lovely, sunny disposition that makes me smile as well.

Slow Sundays:

When my son was growing up we had a practice on (most) Sundays that included no television or computers (this was in the early aughts so no smart phones existed thankfully) but other kinds of activities that could include: reading; gardening; playing music (Zach); games; cooking and entertaining. We called it Slow Sunday or Sunday Suppers when we would have guests over for a big, progressional dinner. I was so touched when I discovered that my son incorporated this into his later college years when he lived in a house with other theater and arts students. Some of my best memories in life are of these ‘slow Sunday’ activities.

Walks in Murrayfield, Edinburgh

I still enjoy a slow Sunday, no matter where I am. One of the things I’ve been incorporating into my present day slow Sunday is no social media. I’m not always successful but I’m working on it. This past Sunday I took many walks, read my latest book ‘Intermezzo’ by Sally Rooney, made delicious food and sat on the stoop with coffee talking to my (extremely delightful) neighbors and their wonderful children and enjoying the mild, sunny weather. I was inspired by this article that was a “just trust me” in Anne Helen Petersens latest newsletter (which is the best).

Golden Hour - Kacey Musgraves - Top 100 Albums (US-Apple list)

I love to listen to music. My grandmother had a huge wood paneled stereo system and would play albums when I would visit or stay with them. Throughout all of my childhood and up until I was 18, I would stay with my grandparents (and then my grandmother when my grandfather passed when I was 14) many times a month. My grandparents house was as much (or more, to be honest) my home than my parents house. My grandmother loved music and we actively listened to albums together, sometimes singing along or even dancing but just as often sitting in the living room and listening.

Slow Sundays are a perfect time for actively listening to music. This past Sunday’s first album was Golden Hour by Kacey Musgraves. I had actually never listened to this album until summer 2024. I was living in Paris, France for two months and I was staying in a charming, sun-dappled flat with a lovely front room where the sun streamed through the window and the cool summer breezes would waft the curtains just so….one Sunday I was called to find “new music”. The Top 100 Albums of all-time came up and Golden Hour called to me. Not only had I never listened to this album but I didn’t recall ever really listening to Kacey Musgraves. Wow. I was hooked immediately. It is a beautiful album and I loved every song. No skips here.

5-Minute Interaction:

If you don’t know what I mean by this, I have an audio post that covers 5-minute interactions and their benefits here.

I was out running a quick errand one early morning in my neighborhood of Murrayfield, in Edinburgh and needed some bicarbonate of soda (laundry) so took a walk to the only grocery store, a Tesco Express. Now, Tesco Express is not where I do my grocery shopping but is good in a pinch. While I was there for the bicarbonate of soda I decided to grab a few other “essentials”. I was in the dairy section and could suddenly not remember if Scotland has half and half. I looked around and saw a staff member stocking an aisle and went up to ask him about it. When I inquired if they carried half and half, he looked at me silently for a moment and then said “what do you mean?” And I knew that indeed Scotland doesn’t have half and half. But I explained what I was looking for and he said “oh no, we don’t have that.” I said no problem and thanked him while I looked at my milk options. A few seconds later he came back up to me and asked me more about half and half and asked “They have that - half milk and half cream - for sale in the US?” And I said indeed we do! It’s a thing. We started talking for a few minutes about it and I don’t know, this conversation just delighted me. He was genuinely interested and very engaged and so was I. He was super helpful and asked me if I needed anything else or if I did to just come get him. It was a lovely interaction that just brightened my day (and hopefully his).

My highlighted Eckhart Tolle quote for this week (and month and foreseeable future):

“If you can recognize, even occasionally, the thoughts that go through your mind as simply thoughts, if you can witness your own mental-emotional reactive patterns as they happen, then that dimension is already emerging in you as the awareness in which thoughts and emotions happen - the timeless inner space in which the content of your life unfolds.

The stream of thinking has enormous momentum that can easily drag you along with it. Every thought pretends it matters so much. It wants to draw your attention completely.

Here is a new spiritual practice for you: don’t take your thoughts too seriously.”

“Every thought pretends it matters so much.” YES.

Reminding myself daily to not take my thoughts seriously is an effort that is well worth it. Not easy.

That’s what I have today. I hope you find something inspiring or helpful or perhaps just makes you smile.

Sending you all lots of love this week.

Take good care.

Until next time.