Weave

Weaving

To unite various threads (strands) into a pattern. While often referring to cloth, could refer to wisdom (one group of our mentors is called Wisdom Weavers of the World), or to the stands woven together in ceremonies. Some sacred songs are woven around the listeners. From the imagery of spiders (the master weavers), to Penelope’s loom in The Odyssey, weaving is connected with home and with integration. Again, an activity and a metaphor. A metativity.

As an activity of daily living, weaving combines the movement of the hands with the movement of the feet, and with rhythm. These types of movement synchronizations: large motor movements, incorporating all the limbs, moving across the midline, complexly patterned, are forms of movement meditation. Playing the piano is like this. Qi Gong, and many martial arts are like this. These order, integrate, and stabilize proprioceptive feedback, which is regulating. They develop sensory integration and coordation. They make our bodies smarter. And if you are thinking you get lost, so the feedback is immediate. These kinds of exercises are particularly useful for modern people who, when sitting in stationary meditation, tend to dissociate because the setpoints on their neurology are often already in the shutdown range. If you find that you are spacing out when you meditate, that your mind tends to drift off regularly, its a good indicator that you would benefit from a more embodied mindfulness practice, such as weaving.

When you engage weaving, or any activity, as a restorative practice, really work to bring your full attention to it, and to focus on embodiment and regulation as much as the 'product' you are creating. Think of weaving, through a restorative lens, as a movement meditation with benefits: e.g., Now I have a blanket!