Today’s Reflection: The Sacred Pause

Michael Singer says, “The real spiritual work is to stop pushing uncomfortable experiences down—thus creating blockages—and instead let both new and old energy pass through, so the heart and mind can return to their natural state of peace.”

Whew. That one met me where I live.

I grew up around what we proudly called strong women. Women who pushed through disappointment, heartbreak, confusion—women who got things done. There was no room for feelings, no space for crying, no time for sitting with anything tender. You sorted it out and you moved on. Full stop.

So of course, I became a strong woman too—by that definition. And for a long time, it worked. Or at least, I thought it did.

Until it didn’t.

There came a moment when life sat me down—hard. A moment when I couldn’t push through, couldn’t outrun the discomfort, couldn’t “figure it out” with my usual efficiency. I had to feel. I had to face the change. I had to sit in the messiness of my own emotions.

And let me tell you, it flattened me.

I kept asking myself:

Why can’t I just get to the other side quickly?

Why can’t I skip the uncomfortable parts?

Why, even when I know the solution, do I still feel like there’s something more to fix, more to achieve, more to sort out?

What I’ve learned—slowly, stubbornly, and with a lot of grace—is this:

Face it.

Feel it.

Accept it.

Then move.

The sacred pause exists for a reason.

When we refuse to feel, the feelings don’t disappear. They simply wait. They show up in our bodies, in our relationships, in our work, in the quiet corners of our lives. They start demanding attention through experiences we can no longer ignore.

At some point, the only real solution is to stop.

To be still.

To feel what is asking to be felt.

And to say thank you for the revelation.

Because when we acknowledge and accept what’s moving through us, we return—slowly, gently—to a place of peace. Not the peace of avoidance, but the peace of truth.

And that peace is worth the pause.

Peace and Blessings

Where in my life am I still trying to “push through” instead of feel through?

Notice the places where you default to strength-as-speed, strength-as-solution, strength-as-silence.