Njuta (pronounced “nyutah”), which means “enjoy” or “delight in,” is the Swedish art of savoring the moment. Focused on finding happiness in even the smallest things, njuta can be applied to every area of life.
(back cover, Njuta by Niki Brantmark)
I love being in the woods. As a kid I would go outside immediately after school and stay out until it was too dark to see. I climbed trees, carried rocks, whistled acorn tops, picked leeks, touched moss 🤩 (that emoji is the autopredict suggestion whenever I type moss; it’s delightfully accurate).
My soul comes alive in contact with soil.
I’ve noticed that the woods can feel empty when you’re on the move. You think everything is asleep. But try this: Go into the woods and sit still. It only takes a few minutes. You’ll begin to notice chipmunks scurrying, insects whirring, ants working, birds twittering, glistening cobwebs dancing.
It just takes a moment of stillness to see life return.
My default setting is Go. Shifting from going to slowing is hard, heavy work.
I’m encouraged by a recent paradigm shift that moves me from frustration to gratitude when the light turns red or my grocery queue moves slowly. I see the forced delay as a chance for my heart to catch up to my body – and boy, does my heart have a lot of catching up to do.
I’m reminded of the oft-quoted verse found in Psalm 46: Be still, and know that I am God. When was the last time you read the whole chapter? It speaks of big, scary stuff: mountains quaking and falling into the sea, oceans foaming and roaring – life quite literally falling apart. And in the midst of that, God says:
Be still. Recognize Me in the moment. Take a break from doing, and settle into being.
Njuta.
Some things are hard.
The endless cycle of idea and action,
Endless invention, endless experiment,
Brings knowledge of motion, but not of stillness;
Knowledge of speech, but not of silence,
Knowledge of words, and ignorance of the Word. …
Where is the Life we have lost in living? Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?
(T.S. Eliot, “Choruses from The Rock“)
It just takes a moment of stillness to see life return.
Conversations on El Camino 