Be Still My Soul, a Poem about Slowing Down & Living Deeply
When you stop rushing so much, you can feel your life as you live it. If more wonder and flow sound good to you this week, read this poem. It'll remind you... to be still, my soul. To honor the beauty that others don't even notice. This isn't a race, after all: this is your *life* and it's meant to be felt, lived, fully.
Unplug. Look without labeling. Listen without dissecting. Get comfortable with not needing to know everything, not needing all the answers. Feel how wondrous it truly is, just to be here.
Be Still My Soul
Don’t speak just yet.
Sink into this place.
Sit in your heart.
Close your eyes if you must,
Breathe in,
Breathe out,
Feel the beating of your heart.
When the mind is quiet,
You will understand
That sweet, deep awareness
Opens the gates
To another kind of land.
There’s no way to
Hold peace
In the palm of your hand;
It’s a mind-body-spirit state
Where everything
Holds
Abundance and magic—
Even a tiny grain of sand.
Be still my soul.
Hear the winds speak, and
Watch how the leaves on the branches
Blow to and fro.
There can be
Thunder and rain,
Pleasure or pain,
But here you are still,
And that is enough.
Stop, look and listen:
See how wonderful it is.
But don’t think just yet.
For thoughts can be
Beautiful pathways,
But they can make you
Forget
The truth of your Self—
How you were born
Of your own star stuff.
Be still.
Look, and
Listen.
Even a mind must rest
To create its best.
So, do not worry,
Dear heart, head, and hands—
You will have your season
To work and to play,
And there is
Time enough for all,
Every single day.
There is time to make no plans.
And what of the mysteries?
How to piece the puzzle together?
Must you always struggle
To know the unknown better?
No, you must be sure.
The silence
You scurry away from
Is misunderstood.
It is not nothing;
It is everything,
Like the color
White
Or the other side
Of the world,
At night.
If you stop and see
What is here to see,
And if you listen only to
What your ears hear,
You will feel your Self,
Dear Soul,
Melt into the moment, and
Peace will be near.
Even in the
Middle of the night,
The light of Life
Is right here.
In this space, always
This space, is
All you could ever hold dear.
Be still, old soul.
Feel yourself—
Alive—
Right here.
Stop waiting to
Start living;
Stop time, and
Be lived.
Hear the sweet melody of
Your stillness, and the
Music that it
Gives.
. . .
Tell me:
Which part of this poem did you need to read today?
Tell me in the comments. I read every single one, and I'd love to know!
With love,
Jen
P.S. Clear away distraction so you can get to the heart of what you want your life to feel like. Get my book Sleep Rituals for 100 at-home practices that are all about you. And the present moment. And the life you really want.
Comments on this post (14)
This is beautiful. I will be speaking on slowing down and am searching for poems that reflect this idea. Your poem is beautiful…
— Maureen
“Be still.
I’d been watching this slow motion video I took with my daughter, son~in~law, and my first granddaughter who will be two this month, I’ve watched it over and over. I’ve been struggling with convictions of not being in the moment and worrying about the next, I’ve been searching “ be still” and your beautifully constructed words were made available for me, Thankyou, I felt like you wrote it for me. I’m hoping to remember and reference it often. Many blessings to you and yours, and all the unknown souls you’ve touched. Thankyou.Look, and
Listen.
Even a mind must rest
To create its best.
So, do not worry,
Dear heart, head, and hands—
You will have your season
To work and to play,
And there is
Time enough for all,
Every single day.
There is time to make no plans.”
— Jessica
Hear the sweet melody of
Your stillness, and the
Music that it
Gives.
This is exactly what happened to me today. The music was made of the sea, wind and sun externally but also internally..as in the elements earth water fire air and space.. I love these words as they describe the moment so beautifully. Thank you
— Janet McGregor
Jo ❤️
— Jennifer Williamson
It’s not helpful to say ‘all of it’, but that was my initial thought. As well as the words, it was your pace… more so your pace. You helped me breathe tonight, thank you x
— Jo
Liam, thank you for writing this. It’s so much a cultural thing to go go go, to not stop to enjoy what we have and have accomplished or gained, to always look on to the next best thing. It’s not always so easy to spot that tendency in ourselves too. It’s just part of life to an extent. And learning to slow down, to savor, to enjoy and to really live the moment, the life, the radiance and the earth beneath our own two feet – it’s a way of life. It can change everything. Wishing you peace and acceptance and the joy of being alive. One breath at a time. :)
— Jennifer Williamson
I needed all of it. I checked in with myself during this pandemic today with the need to connect with more like minds. I was curious to connect and experience better mental health and talk about topics i was becoming very into with others and not just myself. I couldn’t what i was really looking forward, i think it was getting numbing in a way and so when i journalled i received “Ground yourself” Something i have been feeling pretty intimidated by, purely due to trauma and wanting things to happen quicker than they can, letting go and have what happens, happen. i was rushing, when i had no idea i was really rushing, i was just doing things out of curiousity or what i think i felt was curiousity, i felt i needed to get to somewhere fast i suppose. But it wasn’t really leading to a positive space, it was and wasn’t, mostly wasn’t. So, i asked myself through journalling what in terms of creativity do i need and got music, mainly folk and slowing down and being with it and feeling whatever i needed to. Both a frightening and wondeful endeavour which invoked upon my thirst for how i find music in different areas that could be considered deep or perhaps psychedelic, intoxicating. This lead me to connect with this poem, beautiful by the way and literally felt my soul telling me i was in need of peace and slowing down for at least one week of slowing down and see where things go from there. Thankyou for this poem, it helped.
— Liam Maloney
Susannah, THANK YOU.
Daniel – I am honored. Thank you for this <3
— Jennifer Williamson
At this first hour of the day
there is peace & silent reflection
Then from nowhere you appear
sharing words i need to hear
with one stroke of your pen
comes the poetry that reveals what my
my unfocused mind has been missing.
“Be Still My Soul, a Poem about Slowing Down & Living Deeply”
Thank you,
DWB
— Daniel Wayne Button
Jenifer – this is a stunningly beautiful poem. Thank you.
— Susannah Healy
Lauren, thank you for sharing this! I’m honored you shared my words and the group got something of value from them. Wishing you health and peace in these strange times <3
— Jennifer Williamson
Than you Jennifer. I think you were channeling this situation in which we’ve all landed. What a lovely reminder of the beauty we can choose to see if we are only open to looking. I shared this with a group today (I had googled ‘poems about slowing down’) and they were so thankful for the reminder to revel in, and learn from, the slowing. Hope you are safe and well.
— Lauren Weinberg
Thank you, Lisa! <3
— Jennifer Williamson
Absolutely gorgeous
— Lisa Haniff