No matter how fabulous our lives can be we experience times of doubt , uncertainty, even fear that we are on the wrong track! How to respond?
The first thing I do is check in with how my body feels. Usually I have a sinking feeling in my sacral space ( the area just below the navel). I make an effort to just stay with the feeling and not attach a "story"to it (this takes practice!). Just stay with the feeling and breathe.
Then I ask myself when did I first feel this feeling? Usually something has happened when I have given my power away and allowed someone else to affect my sense of well being or I have tried to control something I have no control over.
What is the feeling? Anxiety, dread, sadness....? Of course, there are times when I have eaten something that disagrees with me or I need to eat , or I need a dance break or a nap! Really being present to my body gives me clarity about my discomfort and the source of it. No stories- just the feeling!
Once I have clarity about what I am feeling , I can ask my body to tell me what would feel better. I know this sounds crazy if you are not in the habit of dialoging with your body! After some practice, though, it is amazing how clear the answers are . Not only are they clear, if I implement them I feel better fast!
So today I had some anxiety about a discussion with a family member. The discussion resulted in my giving my power away and feeling a sense of abandonment (I had abandoned myself!). I was also overdue for breakfast... My body wanted to be fed and to have a sense of well-being and a warm hug.
Here is where the Appreciation comes in! I begin to make a delicious breakfast - being thankful for all the lovely ingredients at my disposal. Also I arranged my Italian painted tray with a lovely place setting and the food beautifully arranged. I took my tray out to my secret garden and sat on the edge of the water lily pool in the warm sunshine. There is nothing like warm sunshine enveloping my body to give me a sense of well-being and a warm hug! The extra surprise to send my feeling of well-being soaring was an adorable frog who sat next to me on the edge of the pool and an aerial dance by many beautiful blue dragonflies to entertain me as I enjoyed my breakfast.
As if that were not enough to appreciate, as I basked in the sunshine replete with my delicious (and rather large!) breakfast several of the blue dragonflies began to land in my hair and on my hands! They played with me for quite sometime. I enjoyed admiring how wonderfully made they are as well as how beautiful and blue!
Do you agree that you have the power to feel better in times of doubt, uncertainty, even fear? Do you have favorite practices to feel better that involve appreciation for what is good right now in the moment ? Have you had surprises like dragonflies dancing for you in the air when you become present in the moment appreciating what is good right now?
I would love to share more thoughts on this topic. Please leave a comment below or on Facebook!
2 comments:
Hello Colleen, thank you so much for coming to visit me today. I really appreciated your comment, and you are quite right I should wear those dresses, and maybe I will!
How lucky you were to share those few moments with the dragonflies and frog. Your secret garden sounds idyllic by the way.
My way of coping with stress or worry is to walk. I can’t begin to imagine the miles I’ve walked over the years, but I always feel so much better when I return home. I’m lucky to live in the country so my walks are usually accompanied by birds and rabbits and just last week I came upon a sleeping fox! The wind was blowing away from the fox and towards me, so he didn’t pick up my scent, and had no idea of my presence until I was very close. I felt a little afraid when he opened his eyes and looked at me but there was really nothing to fear as he slowly rose to his feet, did a sort of circle on the spot and disappeared under the hedge! I am quite sure he was a gift intended just for me.
Hi Barbara!
I have been following you for awhile.Today I was finally brave enough to comment. I can hardly wait to see you in one of your favorite vintage dresses. I am inspired to make some videos wearing some of mine. I have a lovely ancient Laura Ashley...I still have the hat I bought at Biba...
I was once a bookseller as well! I have been a collector of books since I was a child. I love your blog!I have re-collected so many of my childhood favorites as well as many more.
Please share your story about the fox on your blog! People will LOVE it! Have you always had an affinity for foxes? I live in the country as well. I had to give up my grape arbor because the foxes would come and eat the grapes- they even brought their cubs. I wish i had taken a photo.
Now that we are acquainted, I will comment more often.
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