Game On! Let’s Play.
When taking life too seriously, it can help to play a game. I am one of the many who have chosen pickleball. I like playing outside even during the winter in Bellingham, weather permitting. It gives me social interaction and exercise at the same time. I find myself using my meditation techniques when I play, and I discovered that a spiritual view of the game ties into other life experiences. This is what I observed on the courts recently while playing with a group of women.
Grounding is key—an energy connection that I create as spirit between my body and the earth. Grounding helps my body feel safe and gives me a way to release things that come up for me during the game, like foreign energy. For example, I noticed that some of my shots were not landing where I intended. I know it’s a matter of practice, and I appreciate the merit of skill-building drills; however, it was the tension in my neck and shoulder that was affecting how I hit the ball. I began to use my spiritual techniques, like grounding, to release the discomfort.
Grounding helps me to be more present in my body. I like to focus on being in the present moment when I play and allow my intuition to guide me instead of overthinking it. I play better when I respond to what is happening in the moment and let go of the outcome. People say I have quick hands. Grounding and centering increase my self-awareness. At one point, I became aware that I was relying a bit on my partner and decided to up my game and trust in my ability to make it happen. I made the next point, and our game improved.
Partners reconfigured, and our new opponents were two people who play a lot and play well. I observed that my new partner and I believed they were better players (which they may be), but we are also adept at the game. I used my grounding to deal with the competition and focus on being amused about being pickled, a term for losing with zero points. It helped me to have even an inkling of a spiritual perspective about the situation and to remember that I am neither the game nor my ego. I am spirit, and the game is a learning experience. There is much to be learned from a loss that could make way for a win. I saw the belief that we were not “good enough” as the main reason we lost with such an uneven score. I can let go of this belief and change my reality. Some lessons take longer than others to learn. This time, I noticed a change in my next game.
We mixed up the pairs and played again. My new partner and I were down three points to their nine; however, we dug in and hung onto the belief that it was still possible for us to do better. Belief makes things attainable. I began making points for us and joked about riding a wave. I jumped up to hit a high ball right between our opponents, and that was the crest of a wave crashing down to end the game. We had made a comeback.
What struck me about this experience was how fun it was to operate as spirit in my body and ride the wave. The takeaway is that I was amused and in the present moment. My idea is to remember this when dealing with the more seemingly consequential games in life, like those times when we wonder about our ability to navigate a wave of change. When dealing with fear of the unknown, there is always the choice to dig in, ground, and believe in yourself.
To learn simple, powerful meditation techniques, I highly recommend these books.
