Enter the center

I opened my eyes. morning.

Quiet time. meditation.

I relish this moment. Yes, there is still a lot of work to be done. Hard conversation ahead. A pile of work sits on my desk, in my mind. The email to be returned. Design seminar. Do I have time?

Yes. I will take time. I will sit quietly and do nothing. Nothing, just noticed breathing in and out of my body. Thoughts, body consciousness, birds squatting outside my window. All in and out is like breathing.

Wendy Palmer, the teacher of Aikido and leadership, divides the many methods of the practice center into three areas: adherence to practice, ritual practice, and spontaneous practice.

Committed practice

The central practice of commitment is what you do every day, for example:

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  meditation


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  prayer


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  Quiet sitting


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  Yoga, Tai Chi, Qigong


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  Other similar physical and mental exercises

A firm approach is your foundation. When you start a new day in a central way, you will be more likely to return to the center as time passes and challenges occur.

Concentration ceremony

The center ceremony is an activity that you carry out to strengthen the state of the center. For example, I consciously put myself in the center when:

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  Put on my seat belt


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  Stop at the red light


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  I touch the door handle when I enter the house


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  Listen to the first bell of my call


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  Breathing from the center before each meal

People often ask whether sports activities such as running, swimming or aikido are concentrated. If your goal is to strengthen the central state, then they are. For example, when I swim, I consciously stretch my arms and legs - my き [Energy] - Starting from the center, I am practicing the center state.

Spontaneous practice

As long as you find yourself not centered, stop and re-center, spontaneous centering exercises will occur.

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  In a difficult conversation, I noticed that I was going to wait, listening and acknowledging what I heard would be more useful.


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  When I drove, the traffic was heavy and someone drove me away.


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  The customer service representative asked me to wait, waiting for 5 minutes, the call was disconnected.

If you have the habits and rituals you often participate in, you are more likely to concentrate spontaneously.

Enter the center

At the Marin County School in northern California, Aikido is part of the curriculum - they call it "energy time" - and the entire school has strengthened alignment practices. The signs posted above the classroom doors encourage students and teachers:

Enter the center.

Breathe before leaving.

Their mobile YouTube documentary "The Center You Enter" is a vivid example of the possibilities of K-8 Elementary Center training. As Marin County students said:

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  "I think you have to do a lot to do very well."


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  "Yes, you have to practice."

How do you practice centering? Do you strengthen your centrality in a consistent way so that you don't walk in the twists and turns of life?

Life can sometimes be heavy. But now only this moment. Now centered, let this moment extend to everything that needs to be done, and say that until attendance is a gift.

Breathe. smile. Yes.

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