Observing your patterns

Lighten Up (and do something different)

Taken from Comfortable with Uncertainty by Pema Chodron (one of my favorite books of the moment)

Being able to lighten up is the key to feeling at home with your body, mind, and emotions, to feeling worthy to live on this planet.

For example, you can hear the slogan “Always maintain only a joyful mind” and start beating yourself over the head for never being joyful.  That kind of witness is a bit heavy.

This earnestness, this seriousness about everything in our lives-this goal-oriented,

we’re-going-to-do-it-or-else attitude, is the world’ greatest killjoy.  There’s no sense of appreciation because we’re so solemn about everything.  In contrast, a joyful mind is very ordinary and relaxed. So lighten up.  Don’t make such a big deal.

When you’re aspiration is to lighten up, you begin to have a sense of humor.  Your serious state of mind keeps getting popped.  In addition to a sense of humor, a basic support for a joyful mind is curiosity, paying attention, taking interest in the world around you.  Happiness is not required, but being curious without a heavy judgmental attitude helps. If you are judgmental, you can even be curious about that.

Curiosity encourages cheering up.  So does simply remembering to do something different.  We are so locked into this sense of burden---Big Deal Joy and Big Deal Unhappiness—that’s it’s sometimes helpful just to change the pattern.  Anything out of the ordinary will help.  You can go to the window and look at the sky, you can splash cold water on your face, you can sing in the shower, you can go jogging---anything that’s against your usual pattern.  That’s how things start to lighten up.

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A friend of mine's symbol for lightening up is the Camel.  Travel lightly.  Less seriousness, more awareness and joy.  If our bodies, emotions and thoughts are bound up in patterns, good and bad- probably mostly old and useless, then observing ourselves, we can begin to lighten.  Wow, if that's a sentence at all it certainly is long!!!  (one of my patterns I enjoy is writing run on sentences!)

Notice your body, notice your thoughts, notice your emotions.

This week:

What patterns of sitting, walking, talking, driving did you notice and shift?

Could you add some nice deep breathing while listening to a friend or even just notice what muscles you’re tensing while listening?  Do you tense different muscles when you’re with different people/different situations?  What can you let go of?

Could you stop and notice the feeling that preceded an action? (an action like snacking) 

Let me know your observations.

 

Green Juices and Chia Seeds

I made this video a few weeks ago. I've been pretty committed to green juices, even making them last weekend when we were out of town. The green juice I'm having today starts with water, a pinch of sea salt, handful of walnuts, blueberries, raspberries, colander full of lettuces, parsley, chives, peaches, green tea that I brewed yesterday and a splash of balsamic vinegar!!!!

The goal is to add as many veggies as possible: so good for you but I'm not a super fan. Mike used to (notice the past tense) say I was really good at buying vegetables. Notice that's the end point!!!!!!!!! So by making this juice every day I'm adding 2 veggie servings and 1 fruit. And I don't have to chew so much!

In the video I mention Chia Seeds. I used all the ones I had and haven't re-purchased. I really liked them though. They are high in antioxicants, fiber, omega-3s, protein, lipids. Low in sodium and fewer net carbs than other grains. Most interesting of all: Chia Seeds were the survival food of Aztec warriors. Eat your seeds and bring that peaceful warrior spirit into your heart!

It's easy to grow your own greens!!!!

Have you noticed how many more front yard gardens there are?

The Michelle Obama's White House garden has already produced 90 lbs of vegetables.

The Ball Jar Company (think canning) has so far this year sold 30% more jars and it isn't even canning time yet!

Alternate Nostril Breathing

Here is an article that I received in the most recent Rejuvantion Lounge Newsletter about Alternate Nostril Breathing.  If you've been in one of my hypno-meditation classes, I've no doubt had you do this specific breathwork.  So if you've forgotten all the amazing benefits for less than 5 minutes of breathwork check this out. 

She also mentions a book I'm going to hunt down, Tao of Natural Breathing.

Of all the e-newsletters that I subscribe to, this is the one that I consistently read.  Excellent content, minimal advertising.

Snowflakes, snowballs and snowmen

I'm watching the snow gently fall and am reminded that I've been meaning to write about my classes in hypno-meditation. 

I talk about gently falling snow as a metaphor for our thoughts.  Thoughts are the nature of mind.  They're always going to float through, appear and melt, appear and melt.  What affects (or is it effects?) our health and happiness is when we attach to thought which is our nature as well.  Attaching to thought, we create snowballs and snowballs if we don't gently melt them turn into snowmen.  You have taken yourself out of the present moment to create future scenarios based on information from your past.

Here are some typical snowmen:

• judging others
• judging ourselves
• creating future catastrophes
• wanting
• wishing
• wondering why

In our bodies, these thought patterns manifest as shallow breathing, heart racing, muscle tension, stress hormone production.

In our emotional state, these thought patterns manifest as grumpiness, frustration, anger, boredom, anxiousness.

In our spirit, these thought patterns take us away.  Take us away from the here where life is good.  When we're somewhere else, we can't give the people we love all of our love.  We can't give ourselves all our love and gratitude for the miracle that we are here at all.

This lovely picture that I drew for you is to remind you to more and more watch the drifting of thought (snowflakes).  See the sun (your spirit) and let it gently melt the snowmen (attachment to thought).  And remember to see the gift (flower) that each snowman gives you which is you are not your thoughts.

Love and light to you today.