Whole Living Today

When I started this blog in November (I have some posts from an old blog I never did anything with), I never realized how intoxicating blogging could become. I’m really looking forward to the new year when I have the time to really become part of the blogging community (this is my busiest time of year right now for my natural products business).

One common theme running through many of my posts is passion.

So many times I have been told by others and my students that they aren’t passionate about anything… how sad!

pas-sion n. 1. any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling.  2. strong affection; love  3. strong sexual desire; lust.  4. an instance or experience of this.  5. a person toward whom one feels strong love or sexual desire.  6. a strong or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm, or desire for anything; a passion for music.  7. the object of, such a fondness or desire. … (the list goes on but these are the definitions that I refer to).  The Random House College Dictionary

My life is based upon passion and sensuality. Sorry, I’m not talking about this in a sexual way (but that applies as well). But truly enjoying what you do, being totally absorbed. This is when life becomes fun. Pay attention to Now.

Maybe I repeat myself in different ways because I know that sometimes I hear the same thing over and over but sometimes when it’s said a little different… I think this is why some of us read and try to take in as much as we can.  We can accept what resonates with our beliefs or maybe we can find an idea that challenges a part of who we are.

“Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction.”  ~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand and Stars, 1939

This is an article I wrote several years ago that has appeared on many websites as well as printed publications. Decided to add the full article to my blog as well.  Enjoy!

“Work like you don’t need the money, love like you’ve never been hurt, and dance like no one is watching.” 
— Satchel Paige

What a great philosophy to travel through life’s journey with! It was interesting to receive this quote in an email as I have told many people “you just need to dance as though no one is watching.” This statement can be taken literally - go out dancing and just let your spirit soar, enjoy yourself, have fun - or, figuratively - dance through life and just let your spirit soar, enjoy yourself, have fun … does it really matter what other’s think? I’m not talking about throwing away all responsibilities (we do live in a real world), but rather about taking time to be or explore who we are. Work on finding a balance. Be true to yourself, don’t live your life to please others. Live to please yourself and others will be pleased. Emotions are infectious; why not spread happiness, joy and love?

Take the time to watch a seagull in flight. Some days, depending on the weather, they appear to just float, soar and really enjoy themselves. Watch again on a windy day, they have to work a little harder to get where they’re going. Notice how when the weather gets stormy, they land and just hang out for a while. Here’s a quote from “Jonathan Livingston Seagull” by Richard Bach: ”Seagulls, as you know, never falter, never stall. To stall in the air is for them disgrace and it is dishonor. But Jonathan Livingston Seagull, unashamed, stretching his wings again in the trembling hard curve - slowing, slowing, and stalling once more - was no ordinary bird.” Next time you get to a stormy day, read this book again as an adult. Everyday brings something new; learn to notice something new each day. Life will always be filled with challenges, make the best of them. Enjoy life, be happy. Go with the flow.

As we learn to “work like you don’t need money”, our jobs become less of a burden or struggle. Isn’t life more pleasurable when you are doing something you enjoy rather than something you “have to”? Look upon work as something rewarding. Money isn’t everything. Take pride in your tasks, be the best you can at what you do. Smile more. Try this for a couple of days; watch your job transform into something more enjoyable. Chances are, more money will also come your way. Just imagine the difference in tips for a waiter/waitress who smiles and makes their job more enjoyable compared to the person that really doesn’t want to be there. Or the possible job promotions when you put your best foot forward. 

Now, the tough part - “love like you’ve never been hurt”. Everyone is unique, every relationship is unique. Give that person every opportunity; don’t compare them or limit the relationship because of fears from the past. Learn from the past. Release yourself from the past. Live the present moment. Don’t look back and don’t look forward. What you have is right now. It’s guaranteed that if you expect to be hurt, you’ll find it. Openness, understanding and honesty are important aspects to any relationship; they reduce expectations and allow us to “see it as it is”. People change, they grow. Love involves allowing the other to grow, to be who they are - to accept the possibility that you don’t walk the same path anymore. Love may not last forever but if you enjoy every minute you have of it and can look back without regrets … we are all here to live life to it’s fullest, to learn from it’s lessons. Everyone has something to share, be it good or bad. It is up to us to determine how fully we experience living.

So, now let’s tie this philosophy to a health column. By living our lives more in tune with our natural spirit, we add more balance into our lives, our bodies are more at ease - not dis-ease. Stress levels reduce. With a reduction of stress, blood pressures reduce, sleep routines become more restful, digestion problems subside, tension headaches disappear; anxiety, nervousness, and depression reduce … the possibilities are endless. Take the time to enjoy life.

Time waits for no one …

“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured and far away.” - Henry David Thoreau

If I cannot forgive myself
For all the blunders
That I have made
Over the years,
Then how can I proceed?
How can I ever
Dream perfection-dreams?
Move, I must, forward.
Fly, I must, upward.
Dive, I must, inward,
To be once more
What I truly am
And shall forever remain.

- Sri Chinmoy

With our hectic lives and times of increasing stress, it becomes easier and easier to loose sight of the beauty that surrounds us everywhere. Do you take the time to really notice the ’small things’ in your life?

It doesn’t take much, just an open eye to see with and an open heart to feel with. Now, find something to look at. Anything; a photo in a magazine, a flower, a rock, a leaf, a cup of coffee, even your hand. Take a few minutes to really observe your object, see it with a new set of eyes, become that object.  Notice all the different colors and shades of the same color. Notice the texture. Notice what it feels like (if it’s a photo, feel what it would feel like to actually be there). Just lose yourself for a few minutes and become totally absorbed in feeling and observing.

Guess what.  Your blood pressure dropped in those few minutes. Your stress level dropped. You relaxed.  You didn’t have a choice, you were totally present in what you were doing. No other thoughts could enter into your mind. This is a simple exercise that can be practiced anytime, anywhere and with anything.