breathing
It Just Happened
Too often people justify their poor judgment and bad choices with feeble excuses like, “It just happened.” But we all know that this is seldom the truth. The reality is that every step in our life is a choice. Whether we step forward, sideways, backwards, or stand still, it is a choice. And we should take personal responsibility for our life choices.
In everyday life we do not think much about where our steps may be leading us. We are typically just walking automatically in some direction. Many people simply live by trial and error.
However, when things go bad for us, it is usually because we have subconsciously, or even consciously, made the choice to move in a certain direction – a direction that we intuitively knew was not serving our highest good. And sadly, many times these bad choices also severely affect others.
For example, a friend of mine, who has only been married for one year, currently remains geographically separated from her husband, until she gets her immigration paperwork to be able to join him legally in his country. They had a beautiful wedding, and made the usual promises: to love and cherish, be faithful, in sickness and health, until death do them part.
Despite their long-distance marriage, they were doing everything right during the waiting period – or so it seemed. They called each other daily on the phone, and also talked on video chat. They constantly texted loving messages. He was originally also able to come and visit her here in Canada, but she could not cross the border to see him. However, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit, he was also denied entry. They had no further choice but to wait it out.
Reconnecting With Source In Uncertain Times
In uncertain times, it sometimes feels as though it is difficult simply to put one foot in front of the other, in order to get through each day. With so many stressors and concerns on the horizon, the hours can be consumed with worry and fear.
Although it is absolutely necessary for our survival to think ahead, plan and develop contingencies where necessary, it is also equally as important to carve out some time to meditate, dream or create, even if it is only for just a few minutes each day.
It can be truly rejuvenating to withdraw for a few moments into a serene state, where anything is possible and order prevails. If you can get out into nature to do this, all the better! If not, then use the mind’s beautiful power of visualization to surround yourself with the idyllic scenery of your choosing.
To get started, practice deep breathing to calm your thinking and relax your body. Do not worry if your mind becomes distracted. Just bring your focus back to your breathing, and enjoy the environment that you have created. If you are not in the habit of daily meditation, it might seem as though your mind never remains still, but the ability to stay focused for a little longer during each session will come in time.
When you have achieved a sense of relative peace and tranquility, call on your healing Angels and Guides. Ask them to quiet your mind and heal your body. Ask them to show you the full scope of your issues and help you find the answers that will work best for you, and everyone else concerned. Ask them to guide, guard and protect your friends, family members, neighbors and co-workers, to reduce their worry and help them to make wise decisions.
Honor Your Most Magnificent Self
Taking time to experience the wonder of the final days of summer truly is medicine for the soul. My favorite summer activities include dipping my toes in a nearby lake or ocean, feeling the healing energy of the natural quartz sand against my skin, and finding renewal in the essence of the season.
Too often we move through our days and weeks completely engulfed in work, and the chatter of the bustling world. Our lives tend to be caught up in the motion of the world, with little time for self-care and centering.
Many of us awake in the mornings to the national news that often leaves us drained even before our day begins. We shower, have breakfast, down a cup of coffee, and anxiously show up for our families and our careers.
Many hours later, we return to our homes, where we are met with even more news via network and cable outlets, competing with their own spin on identical breaking stories. We reach for our smart phones or laptops and headlines scroll across our screens. When is enough truly enough?
In light of the endless social and environmental concerns permeating our planet, our species is globally experiencing stress like never before. But surely the Divine Presence within our amazing Universe would not leave us stranded on Planet Earth without the tools to transcend stress and what seems like utter chaos.
The Healing Energy Of Plants
Now that so many of us are spending more time in our homes, it has become even more important to consider the principles of Feng Shui.
The energy flow in our home affects us in many ways, including our psychical well-being and mental health. One of the easiest, fastest, least expensive and most efficient ways of improving the energy of our home, is the use of plants. Plants add oxygen to the atmosphere and filter toxins from the air, making breathing easier and our environment much more pleasant and healthy.
Plants also have a healing energy that most people can sense. The color green resonates with the heart chakra energy center and it promotes calm serenity and healing, peaceful energy. Adding plants is an easy, affordable way to invite peace and tranquility into your daily life.
The life force in plants will raise the energetic vibration of any room. Plants in the bedroom can improve sleep, for example, while plants in the living room and kitchen can help to absorb radiation from electronic devices. Plants are a quick, inexpensive way of improving the energy in your home and balancing the Feng Shui.
How To Be Patient In Times Of Crisis
Just about every day, we face some sort of obstacle, delay in communication, or a situation that doesn’t go our way. And in times of an unexpected crisis, our first response is too assume the worst, or panic.
Negative feelings can creep up and overtake the mind, sending us into fits of rage, sadness or disillusionment, due to the lack of patience in surrendering our control and allowing those emotions to pass with total acceptance.
When we become impatient, our entire being is out of balance and the auric energy field becomes muddy and chaotic. Agitation and strain then become the primary motivator, and there is a loss of self-awareness within.
Impatience never makes things happen faster, or better, and the worst way this can manifest is when we try to force an issue, or get a person to instantly say yes, or go along with our vision.
Whenever impatience or uncomfortable feelings arise, it’s vital to make a conscious effort to redirect that negativity and nip it in the bud, so you can stay calm during the toughest times. Here are some strategies to help alleviate impatience when your feeling triggered.
Breathing
Take several deep breaths from your stomach and exhale out the stress, focusing on your third eye as you release your breath. Think of something funny or inspirational so you don’t unleash unnecessary aggression.
Review The Day For Better Sleep
Many of us are having trouble getting enough sleep these days. Even if we are currently not going many places and meeting a lot of people during the Covid-19 pandemic, we are still experiencing a lot of stress and disruption, which upsets our minds and unsettles our bodies.
In more normal circumstances walking outside might be a great way to relax in the evening, but even that might not be enough as to allow our body-mind to reach a fully natural balance.
There are also many medical resources for better sleep, of which the most common is the use of various sleeping tablets and herbal remedies. But sleep medications and even medicinal herbs require some caution and care, as they are not always harmless, and the side-effects may differ from person to person.
Some Yoga breathing exercises and meditations may also be useful, as they help balance the blood-flow and deepen the breathing. This is not a visualization technique, nor it is a ritual, but a simple process that may aid your sleep.
There are also shamanic techniques that include breathing, but the core idea remains the same: there is energy locked in stressful or painful events of the day, and the way to release it, is to remember them with a calm mind and a healing intention, maybe even a healing prayer, mantra or meditation.
Recapitulation, as technique taught by Deepak Chopra, is the process of reviewing your day, from beginning to end, every night before you go to sleep. It means to go through the events of the day, and digest mentally what has happened, instead of suppressing your thoughts and feelings. If we try to distract ourselves continuously, we might find we feel tired, but we remain restless.
Finding Hope In A Scary World
The recent events worldwide are terrifying and daunting for most of us. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic our world is not well, and we are all in need of courage, hope and healing.
We cannot control the entire world, or every aspect of our future, but we surely can choose how we react to what is happening to us, and to the world.
Although the world is scary right now, know that there are opportunities for personal and spiritual growth for all of us during this time. Consider the following to make the most of the current circumstances.
Mindfulness
Take a deep breath. Hold it. The release, and repeat. Cultivating a calm, hopeful approach to the challenges we will encounter over the next several months, will bring you peace as you navigate through this time.
Take some time every day to find your calm place within, where you can focus on hope and inner peace. Meditate and calm your fears. Spend some time in your ‘happy place.’