In my retreat ministry, I travel all over the country. Frequently, I’m in airports. A few years ago, I began to notice something unusu-al in airports: rocking chairs! Not just one or two, but dozens of rockers all over the place. Many were white, others were a natural wood color, and some were even painted a rainbow of bright colors.
I’ve seen rocking chairs in airports in Philadelphia, Charlotte, Harrisburg, Boston, Miami, and Dallas. In fact, over a hundred airports all over the world now have 
rocking chairs. Why?
For one thing, airports are not conducive to rest and relaxation. They tend to be crowded and noisy places—with people and electric carts scurrying hither and yon. A rocking chair, as someone has said, can be “a pause button in a hectic environment.” It’s an island of peace amid a sea of bustle. Traveling these days can cause severe anxiety. But sitting for a few minutes in a rocking chair can help calm the most anxious traveler.
My retreat ministry also takes me to retreat centers all over the country. I’ve noticed that most of these places have rocking chairs too. I’ve seen rocking chairs in bedrooms, by fireplaces, in chapels, on porches, on decks, and on docks overlooking a pond or lake. People who operate retreat centers must know that rocking chairs are conducive to prayer and contemplation. It’s easy to understand why this is so.
Many of us were probably rocked as infants. The gentle back and forth rhythm of the rocker imitated the rhythm we experienced in our mother’s womb: the beating of her heart, the movements of her body, the pattern of her waking and sleeping. As infants, being held and rocked reassured us that we were not alone, that someone was taking care of us. Perhaps rocking in a rocking chair as an adult helps us to reconnect with this “blessed assurance.”
When we rock in a rocker, our body is occupied. Our feet are making the rocker “go.” This means we are less likely to fidget. At the same time, our minds are set free to explore, to ponder. When we rock back and forth, says poet Hilton L. Anderson, we are in touch with “The gentle flow of time / Measured in each rocking creak.” She adds, we relax “in the metered now.” For some of us, the gentle back-and-forth motion of the rocking chair can become an invitation to talk with God. Here is a prayer I found myself saying as I rocked gently back and forth in a rocking chair.
A Rocking Chair Prayer
Back and forth… back and forth… back and forth I go…
While staying in one place, I am moving still…
I am letting go.
In my rocking chair I am at one with the basic rhythms of life:
back and forth… up and down… in and out… around and around.
I feel the thumping of my heart…
I sense my breathing in and out…
And effortlessly I find myself praying:
O God of All Time, I am often anxious and worried about many things…
calm me… calm me…
Reassure me I am not alone…
Let me feel your presence… your arms enfolding me…
Give me a deep sense of your care for me…
and remind me of your promises:
“Everything’s going to be okay.”
Amid the rush of daily living,
when I feel splintered into little pieces,
call me back to my rocking chair…
where back and forth… back and forth…
I rest in your timeless love. Amen.
For Reflection
What has been your experience with rocking chairs? Does anything stand out for you in this reflection?
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Excerpted from Sunflower Seeds of Hope, by Melannie Svoboda, SND. ©2024 by Melannie Svoboda, SND. Published by Twenty-Third Publications. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
