Such timely words for me. I completely relate to being bored with myself, my routine. You reminded me that, yes, routines change and I will eventually grieve the routines I now find tiring. And, I can take heart that something new is likely around the bend. Thank you!
Fantastic post and fantastic film recommendation. My spouse and I watched _Perfect Days_ last night and it was just beautiful. I also loved how even when Hirayama was pulled out of his routine, he simply bent with the current and never broke, and eventually slid back into it. It shows the subtle (and sometimes counterintuitive) nature of routine: that when the unexpected does occur and pull us from it, if we've established the discipline of routine itself, we have the capacity to let the disruption happen and then return to the usual ... the beauty in it. The final scene was a triumph.
Thanks for the movie recommendation, I’ll have to see if it’s currently showing here in Aotearoa New Zealand :)
Love your post. I wrote this week on my page about spotting glimmers in the darkness of autistic perimenopause. This is similar! Especially when the old routines and rituals fall apart in midlife, leaving us feel overwhelmed and distressed. Yet we aren’t sure what we need to create in order to move forward. Looking for glimmers is a great thing to do.
(I somehow deleted my earlier comment, thus the rewrite here. Oops!)
Yes, I totally agree! I have just written a piece about autistic glimmers and this sounds very much in line with looking at the sparkles amongst the mundane. I’ll have to see if the movie is currently showing here in Aotearoa New Zealand. Thanks for the recommendation :)
This is such a beautiful post! As a dog owner myself, I COMPLETELY understand how their routine little quirks (how they pee, etc.) can make you feel such joy! I also love how you point out that our routines will always change, even if it's just a little bit. I'm a creature of habit and often feel anxiety that I'm too stuck in my rituals, but your post made me reflect, and I realized, actually, that my morning routine is a bit different now than it was a year ago! This made me feel so reassured that I won't get stuck in some kind of years-long cycle of the same thing every day, and that things do change, even if it's just where I walk my dog each morning! So thank you for this. 🧡
Thanks for that - your words set off a train of thought…
There is a type of chair massage which uses an unchanging set routine of movements called the ‘kata’ - I expect that word might be familiar for many already, but for those that haven’t heard it, it’s based on the idea of a set routine of movements used in Japanese martial arts. (A bit like ‘wax on, wax off’ from the film The Karate Kid’).
I trained with this type of routine as a chair massage therapist; according to this training, internalising the movements and techniques of a kata, it can be performed on auto-pilot, without conscious thought.
Though this could be perceived as a mindless and impersonal, one-fits-all, cookie-cutter massage routine, it is actually the opposite.
It allows you to not to be distracted by your own body position, fears or thoughts. You are free from getting stuck in your intellectual brain trying to consciously formulate strokes and ‘appropriate reactions’ as you go along.
Instead of the focus on your own internal reactions, you are instead empty, in a zen-like state, aware and open to the ever-changing topography of the client’s body beneath your hands, able to respond automatically yet creatively, without conscious thought - much in the way we can sometimes drive in a car from one place to the other without quite remembering specifically what we did and how we got there, but we did get there.
There’s something wonderful and powerful about a ritual; whether it’s a ‘kata’ routine in chair massage, watching the doggies’ toilet routine, or sitting in the same cafe, in the same spot, drinking the same drink every day.
I’m sure the benefits of rituals are many; for me, I feel glued to the sacred and how wonderful is that to be doing a job where you can be in a meditative state for most of the day. Jeff Bezos eat your heart out! 😛
Oo, a new film to watch. Thank you, it sounds brilliant. Love the newsletter, my life tends to be very predictable and full of routine, and sometimes I get frustrated with it and bored, this has helped re-centre me.
I’m excited to watch “Perfect Days” now! And reminded of the joy in the simplicity of repeated routines, and more importantly, to pay attention to that joy.
The beauty of simplicity and ordinariness. Thank you for reminding me. I love your stunning word!! It's phantasmagorical amazemopharicol (made up that last one 😄) 🙏💖
How I agree. The word futility popped into my head to replace predictability. Thanks again for challenging me this calmer, wispy cloudier but still blue sky morning.
Such timely words for me. I completely relate to being bored with myself, my routine. You reminded me that, yes, routines change and I will eventually grieve the routines I now find tiring. And, I can take heart that something new is likely around the bend. Thank you!
P.S. Our male dog does the exact same thing. 😂
Fantastic post and fantastic film recommendation. My spouse and I watched _Perfect Days_ last night and it was just beautiful. I also loved how even when Hirayama was pulled out of his routine, he simply bent with the current and never broke, and eventually slid back into it. It shows the subtle (and sometimes counterintuitive) nature of routine: that when the unexpected does occur and pull us from it, if we've established the discipline of routine itself, we have the capacity to let the disruption happen and then return to the usual ... the beauty in it. The final scene was a triumph.
Beautifully written. And that movie sounds wonderful!
Seeing the beauty in the mundane is the skill of a master.
I saw the preview for this film last week, I absolutely want to see it :)
Thanks for the movie recommendation, I’ll have to see if it’s currently showing here in Aotearoa New Zealand :)
Love your post. I wrote this week on my page about spotting glimmers in the darkness of autistic perimenopause. This is similar! Especially when the old routines and rituals fall apart in midlife, leaving us feel overwhelmed and distressed. Yet we aren’t sure what we need to create in order to move forward. Looking for glimmers is a great thing to do.
(I somehow deleted my earlier comment, thus the rewrite here. Oops!)
Yes, I totally agree! I have just written a piece about autistic glimmers and this sounds very much in line with looking at the sparkles amongst the mundane. I’ll have to see if the movie is currently showing here in Aotearoa New Zealand. Thanks for the recommendation :)
This spoke to me: "One of the things that struck me about the film was the deep comfort Hirayama took from his routines."
This is such a beautiful post! As a dog owner myself, I COMPLETELY understand how their routine little quirks (how they pee, etc.) can make you feel such joy! I also love how you point out that our routines will always change, even if it's just a little bit. I'm a creature of habit and often feel anxiety that I'm too stuck in my rituals, but your post made me reflect, and I realized, actually, that my morning routine is a bit different now than it was a year ago! This made me feel so reassured that I won't get stuck in some kind of years-long cycle of the same thing every day, and that things do change, even if it's just where I walk my dog each morning! So thank you for this. 🧡
So happy the universe peed on your self improvement urges. What a sweet homecoming. Thank you for sharing.
Hello Satya,
Thanks for that - your words set off a train of thought…
There is a type of chair massage which uses an unchanging set routine of movements called the ‘kata’ - I expect that word might be familiar for many already, but for those that haven’t heard it, it’s based on the idea of a set routine of movements used in Japanese martial arts. (A bit like ‘wax on, wax off’ from the film The Karate Kid’).
I trained with this type of routine as a chair massage therapist; according to this training, internalising the movements and techniques of a kata, it can be performed on auto-pilot, without conscious thought.
Though this could be perceived as a mindless and impersonal, one-fits-all, cookie-cutter massage routine, it is actually the opposite.
It allows you to not to be distracted by your own body position, fears or thoughts. You are free from getting stuck in your intellectual brain trying to consciously formulate strokes and ‘appropriate reactions’ as you go along.
Instead of the focus on your own internal reactions, you are instead empty, in a zen-like state, aware and open to the ever-changing topography of the client’s body beneath your hands, able to respond automatically yet creatively, without conscious thought - much in the way we can sometimes drive in a car from one place to the other without quite remembering specifically what we did and how we got there, but we did get there.
There’s something wonderful and powerful about a ritual; whether it’s a ‘kata’ routine in chair massage, watching the doggies’ toilet routine, or sitting in the same cafe, in the same spot, drinking the same drink every day.
I’m sure the benefits of rituals are many; for me, I feel glued to the sacred and how wonderful is that to be doing a job where you can be in a meditative state for most of the day. Jeff Bezos eat your heart out! 😛
Thank you for recommending that film ❤️
Oo, a new film to watch. Thank you, it sounds brilliant. Love the newsletter, my life tends to be very predictable and full of routine, and sometimes I get frustrated with it and bored, this has helped re-centre me.
I’m excited to watch “Perfect Days” now! And reminded of the joy in the simplicity of repeated routines, and more importantly, to pay attention to that joy.
Ah Satya, this is beautiful... Thank you ♥️
The beauty of simplicity and ordinariness. Thank you for reminding me. I love your stunning word!! It's phantasmagorical amazemopharicol (made up that last one 😄) 🙏💖
How I agree. The word futility popped into my head to replace predictability. Thanks again for challenging me this calmer, wispy cloudier but still blue sky morning.