{"id":1465,"date":"2021-09-08T01:01:55","date_gmt":"2021-09-08T09:01:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/treehousewriters.com\/wp53\/?p=1465"},"modified":"2021-09-07T15:10:53","modified_gmt":"2021-09-07T23:10:53","slug":"zen-yoga-writing-practice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/treehousewriters.com\/wp53\/2021\/09\/08\/zen-yoga-writing-practice\/","title":{"rendered":"Zen Yoga Writing practice?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"A confession: I like to read at bedtime. In this company, that’s nothing unusual. All the sleep hygiene experts say not to, that beds should be used for sleeping and only one other activity. What do they know? I find something deeply comforting about curling up with a good\u2013but not too exciting\u2013book. Perhaps it evokes memories of my mother reading aloud to me, or it’s just “me time.”<\/p>\n

Often I include in my nightly reading a page or two of something that stretches my mind. I don’t mean that in the intellectual sense, for I definitely want to be quieting my thoughts, not forcing myself to think critically. I try to choose books that get inside my brains and stretch them gently in unexpected directions, like mental yoga before settling into my comfort reading.<\/p>\n

An example of this kind of reading is Natalie Goldberg’s LONG QUIET HIGHWAY. Goldberg is a writing teacher, essayist and novelist who is also a long-time student of Zen Buddhism. I was introduced to her work years ago with her WRITING DOWN THE BONES, and had always thought of her as a teacher in the style of Julia Cameron: “Morning pages,” keep the pen moving, let your thoughts flow, that sort of advice. LONG QUIET HIGHWAY is autobiographical rather than instructive. I was deeply moved by how she put together mundane, specific details in ways that brought tears to my eyes. More than that, she has gotten me thinking — or rather, feeling\/sensing — more deeply about the role of writing in my own life. Yes, it’s a pleasure and an obsession; yes, it’s my occupation, how I earn my living.<\/p>\n