Natural Time is another very powerful Nia White Belt Principle for me.  It is based on the belief that there are natural cycles (both internal and external) that we can either follow or resist. Over time, our bodies have adapted to our demands for achievement and accomplishment, often at the expense of these natural cycles. Re-discovering the natural cycles of life (like breath, birth and death, moon and tides) and learning to honor them is like paddling a canoe with the current rather than against it.

More than any other Nia principle, Natural Time has healed my body and my mind.  Learning to honor and live my life in my body’s Natural Time has taught me to slow down, do less, and be more.  I realize now that the level of activity that may work for others does not work for me. I have greatly reduced my level of busyness to balance doing with being.  I have also learned how to let go of needing things to happen on my timing vs. the Universe’s timing. (Have you ever noticed that the Universe has a different schedule than you do?)  I have taken pressure off of myself to learn it “right” the first time, to push to “make it happen,” and have learned to create a space and ALLOW things to happen on their own time.

In doing so, I have seen that there is a far greater intelligence at work than mine, and I am in awe of that and learning to trust it’s sense of timing. I have seen that my timing is not always the best for everyone involved, including me.

When I lose the sense of Natural Time in my life, as I have recently, I find myself eating to comfort myself, feeling rushed, and being impatient. Here are some of the things I do to re-connect to it: