Rule of Life for Your Everyday PilgrimageTM

Except for survivors of the Spanish Flu of 1918-20, none of us still alive have experienced any worldwide crisis such as this COVID-19 pandemic. This crisis is a truly universal human experience that spans socio-economic classes, cultures, and political boundaries. It sadly also spotlights the experiential gap between how the haves and have-nots are experiencing this crisis. It is easy for all of us to allow fear to rob us of the capacity to deepen our compassion for the suffering of our neighbors near and far.

How do we grow in compassion for our neighbor and keep our sense of fear and overwhelm at bay?

In my own micro-identification with the refugee experience, I found myself caught between my longing to remain in Spain and my compulsion to return to the U.S. It was as if my inner life had already caught COVID-19 and was dying! I discovered my inner life was in desperate need of “greenhousing”: it needed light, water, good soil and a consistent temperature. In the monastic tradition, this greenhouse is known as a “rule of life,” a rhythm of life to maintain the connection between oneself and God throughout the day.  This “rule” was designed by trial and error during my pilgrimage in Spain, prototyped during the announcement of WHO “pandemic” declaration of 2020 and brought online during Spain’s “emergency alert” lockdown. It has crossed successfully into “production” stateside and is designed especially for business owners, CEO’s and others responsible for the economic, social and physical well-being of others.

Please experiment with this tool, share it with others and suggest ways to improve it. If you prefer a PDF version, that’s available below for downloading.

Rule of Life for Your Everyday PilgrimageTM

Under Shelter-in-Place. . . And Beyond

  1. Maintain morning wake-up routines (personal care! exercise! coffee!)
  2. Read spiritually grounding materials out loud. Read aloud gets more of your senses involved (helpful resources include the Center for Action and Contemplation Daily Meditations, Pray as You Go  )
  3. Take time for individual prayer / contemplative “sit”
  4. If you have a partner, practice gratitude and intercessory prayer or a mindfulness-holding practice together with them.
  5. Create an “arc of the day”: an intention of what your day should be focused on
    • Consider this arc like the charcoal sketch on the canvas before painting
    • Courageously simplify your arc! Don’t over plan!
    • Focus on key relationships to build, “holy” interruptions from family
    • Share this with your partner or colleague
  6. Go about the day staying focused in the present. Guard your heart from being overly driven by objectives or schedules or interruptions or distractions/demotivators or information overload.
  7. Continually recalibrate your arc based on questions like “Am I staying mostly in the True, the Good, the Beautiful during whatever I’m doing?” OR “Am I acting with greater concern about how others will perceive me, with focusing solely on my own goals, or with being jerked about by my own impulses?”
  8. Perhaps once an hour, get up, walk about. Reconnect with your body. Connect with nature somehow. Reflect, recalibrate, and give thanks.
  9. End work on time and kick back! (Especially you CEO’s!)
  10. Close your day with a contemplative sit (or like me, as you drift off to sleep)

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