Cyclone Alfred is bearing down on Brisbane, and while the wind hasn’t arrived in full force, the storm is already here in another way—the collective anxiety, the urgent updates, the conversations looping in escalating concern. It’s easy to get swept up in it. The fear. The ‘what ifs.’ The endless scrolling through news updates that add little but tension.
But I can’t help but feel that the cyclone is slowing down for a reason. A lesson, perhaps, in sitting with discomfort.
When I teach meditation, I often speak about learning to get comfortable in the uncomfortable. It’s one thing to sit in stillness when life is calm, but real practice happens when the storm is swirling—inside and out. And here we are, forced into a kind of collective waiting, uncertain and restless.
This moment is also a reminder of how quickly things outside of our control can change. Just days ago, I was buzzing with excitement for the opening round of the AFL season—footy, socialising, and a weekend of fun. I had tickets for the Gabba, plans to watch another game down the coast, and friends and family coming up from Victoria. And now?
All of it has been thrown to the wayside. I found myself wondering if the universe was nudging me to rest instead. Whatever the reason, it doesn’t change the reality: it’s out of my hands.
This is an opportunity to notice the thought patterns that arise in discomfort. Are you catastrophizing? Seeking control in small, frantic actions? Resisting the stillness by filling the space with noise?
There are echoes of the early days of COVID in all of this. The feeling of impending upheaval. The helplessness of knowing we can only prepare so much. The tension of waiting for something to arrive, unsure of what it will bring. If you’re feeling more anxious than seems reasonable, perhaps you’re feeling that old wound reopen.
So how do we hold steady in the storm?
Keep the news to a minimum—enough to stay informed, but not so much that it consumes you. Hysteria is contagious, but so is calm. Prepare as best you can, and then practice being with what is.
And, if you can, enjoy the quiet. The enforced stillness. The way nature insists, in its unpredictable way, that we pause.
There is nothing to do now but wait. And in the waiting, there is something to learn.
Stay safe. Stay steady. And remember—you are the eye of the storm.
If learning more about sitting in the uncomfortable is of interest to you, please join me for the Introduction to Mindfulness and Meditation. I am offering my community 10% discount using Community10 register through the links below.
Yeronga - 4-Week Course
Every Tuesday from 18th March - 8th April
Wellington Point - 4-Week Course
Every Wednesday from 14th May - 4th June
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