A friend once said to me in her warm Virginia drawl, “You know Jacqueline, there is a whole other world on the other side of STOP.” I found out how correct she was when a severe back injury forced me to stop my hectic, stress-filled schedule. It was a tough way to learn a valuable lesson, but I wouldn’t change those pain-filled days given what they taught me about the importance of getting off the merry-go-round of activities that I thought I had to do.
On Friday, those in the Stanford community will be given a glimpse of that world on the other side of STOP without injury, by participating in the Carillon Concert and Quiet Contemplation. Everyone on campus is invited to gather at 11:30 AM for a Carillion Bell concert, a chance to relax, do some tai chai, win some raffle prizes, and most of all STOP and contemplate. Attendees are encouraged to bring a mat and a desire to “take a chill pill” as my children would say.
And for our far-away readers: You, too, are encouraged to, in the words of the event organizers, "pause, reflect and take time to unwind."
Jacqueline Genovese is assistant director of the Arts, Humanities, and Medicine Program within the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics.
