Wrestling with Restlessness

In my class on Benedictine values, we learned that Fr. Ronald Rohlheiser identified restlessness as an obstacle to developing a sense of contemplation. One definition of restlessness might be “The desire to be someplace other than where we are.” Monastics are not immune to restlessness—for example, it may appear we are praying in our choir stalls at vespers when our minds (and stomachs) are already walking down the hallway to the dining room!

Being present wherever we are is a form of discipline. It helps us avoid the pitfall of judging that this place is better than that place or being with this person is preferable to being with that person. It is an acknowledgment that God is always present, no matter where we may find ourselves or whatever task we may be undertaking.

The following questions asked by Christine Valtners Paintner are worth pondering: “Is there a place for each of us, where we no longer yearn to be elsewhere? Where our work in to simply soften, wait, and pay close attention?” Although initially it may not seem like very consequential work, undertaking the practice of presence is key to bringing wholeness and peace to our fast-paced, fractured, and restless world.