Sometimes I get overwhelmed. With noise, with crowds, with situations, with other people's attitudes. That's when I start to hum. To focus, reset, clear my mind, and settle back to a peaceful place.
Normally, I would choose a walk in the woods, a paddle on the bay. But those options are not always available.
This mantra came to me over the Easter holiday weekend when we were traveling to Boston. It came during a turbulent early morning flight. I snuggled down, eyes closed, and here is what arrived:
I am
a pebble in a pond
a pebble who hums
a pebble in a pond
who hums
I inhaled, expanding my lungs, and thought,
I am
Then, on the long slow exhale, I began a low monotone hum, too quiet for others to hear, but enough for me to feel the vibrations inside, and chanted in my mind:
a pebble in a pond
a pebble who hums
a pebble in a pond
who hums
I used this hum on the plane, then on the Silver Line and the Red Line, loud, busy metro trains filled with people and noise and voices. I let it all wash over me, because I was humming under the pond where lilies lined the surface.
My mind calmed. My spirit gentled.
I've used it ever since, often several times a day, to settle my mind, or reset after frustration or an uncomfortable situation. Sometimes, after a few chants, I just hum.
The long slow exhaled hum is best, I've found, while looking at natural beauty--the blossoms of trees, the surprise of flowers, the dash of birds.
Like listening to a ringing bowl, the hum grounds me, puts me back together.
Once again, I feel like the me I know I truly am.
