Summer Solstice: A Pause in Time

How much of your hopelessness and despair are tied to urgency, the feeling that something has to happen right now, and if it doesn’t happen right now then it will never happen or can never happen? — Michael J. Morris

There is such urgency in the multitude of crises we face, it can make it hard to remember that in fact it is urgency thinking (urgent constant unsustainable growth) that got us to this point, and that our potential success lies in doing deep, slow, intentional work. — @adriennemareebrown

It’s often said that a fish doesn’t know the water in which it swims. Humans are no different. The human system adapts to its environment.

Urgency is the environment in which we live; it’s so prevalent that we often don’t even recognize it.

Urgency is a Trauma Response

What is the impact of living in a world where everything is urgent, all the time?

We might believe that a sense of urgency will drive us to take action, to pursue our goals with greater vigor. This might even appear to be true for a while.

But it’s worth noting that urgency is a trauma response.

In a state of urgency, the body activates its fight or flight response. When this response is engaged all the time without breaks, it pulls the body out of equilibrium. Muscles become chronically activated and tight. They contract and resist. They pull the bones out of alignment, which pinches nerves, leading to pain.

At the opposite extreme, the constant overwhelm and confusion of urgency can shut down the body’s systems entirely, leading to “freeze” mode. In this state, we don’t take action at all. The brain, flooded with distress, can’t activate higher level functioning to have clear thoughts and make decisions. Paralysis leads to procrastination.

Of course, some things are truly urgent. But when we can no longer differentiate between the truly urgent and the manufactured urgency, we perpetuate the hopelessness and despair that are the hallmark of so much of modern existence.

The Ironic Urgency of Summer

Summer ironically can feel like the most urgent time.

Summer brings an abundance of options and activities. When we try to squeeze it all in, life can feel harried and hectic.

Even though the days are longer there’s a feeling of urgency to take advantage of the longer days.

It is normal to experience feelings of confusion, anxiety, overload, frustration, fatigue.

All. The. Things.

And when we can’t fit it all in, we can feel shame at our deficiency.

Summer Solstice: The Antitdote to Urgency

We don’t have to fall into the pattern of chaos. We can prevent ourselves from spiraling in overwhelm by pausing to realign with our purpose, our deepest values and true desires.

The Summer Solstice is a reminder that the best antidote to urgency is to pause. At the Solstice, even the Earth pauses briefly in its revolution around the Sun. It appears that the Sun pauses in the sky before pivoting direction.

The Solstice reminds us that time is not only measured in days, hours, and minutes. It is also measured in the longer cycles of the seasons and the planets.

The Solstice is a turning point in the year and a connection with the deeper temporal cycles. It’s an invitation to pause, linger, and take in the nectar of life: what do we miss when we’re caught up in urgency?

It takes more than one day to undo the trauma of urgency, of course. Let this be a start. Each time we pause or slow down, we strengthen the muscles of creating a regulated nervous system response to life.

We reinforce our humanity. We take another step on the path home to ourselves.

As we reconnect with ourselves and the pace of nature, a doorway to hope and opportunity arise. We might see that time is not running out on us at all; it is inviting us to stay.

Further Reading: 3 Ways to Work With the Energy of the Summer Solstice