Tag: philosophy friday (Page 2 of 7)

Waiting

September 19, 2012 / Lindsey / 4 Comments

The energies must really be flying; have you felt the intensity? I’ve had a rough time of it lately; “severely distressed” would not be understating it. I feel awfully uneasy when I begin brushing against the outermost edge of my sanity, feeling trapped on all sides by that which feels utterly hopeless, questions I don’t have answers to, have-to’s I don’t want to face, and complex decisions that need to be made which will have very real ramifications now and in the future.

But it’s a solitary experience that one can only resolve for oneself; nobody else can, or should, do it for you. So outwardly, while I quietly peel apples at the table, inside I feel blown apart amidst the deafening maelstrom.

And my poor Honey, too, is mucking through much, and we both walk around with furrowed brows, preoccupied with what weighs so heavily upon each of us.

Such intensity right now.

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At times it feels like the most that I can muster is to just wait. Wait, and hope that it please just starts feeling lighter.

So whenever I can, I insert into my day that which is as light and life-affirming as possible.

I make applesauce from the apples off our tree. I have tea. I sit outside and put my face in the sun. I go barefoot. I read fluffy magazines (because that’s all I really feel like doing right now anyway, cause I’ve just about been done in otherwise). I cook cool things in my solar oven. I sing to my kitty-cat and attune myself to her zen-like vibe. I hug F, and hug him again. I sit by the garden in the long shadows of the evening.

And slowly, I work through these decisions — pairing purposeful action with sitting peacefully within the unknowing (still practicing), and at the end of the day, simply hoping it’ll all turn out okay.

Slowly, the world feels a tad lighter.

And then the next day, maybe even a little lighter still.

***

Calendula

Solar-powered sun jar

A cup of tea, thoroughly enjoyed.

Apple peeling

Applesauce through food mill, (c) The Herbangardener

Applesauce making

The mice are active in prep for autumn, so Liz too has been active.

Waiting for mice

She caught a moth here near the light, and is waiting in case of another one.

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Philosophy Friday: The Most Valuable Thing You’ll Ever Own

August 17, 2012 / Lindsey / 6 Comments

Yesterday I was telling you about the resting day I had. How often we all need these rest days and don’t take them! What if, when our bodies insisted on them, we actually rearranged our schedule to accommodate?

What if we treated our bodies as if they were the most valuable thing we will ever own? Because, they are!

I think our culture is too mind centered. We think we can heal our bodies with our minds, while simultaneously disrespecting them and driving them into the ground by continuing the frantic pace we set for ourselves. Positivity of thought is part of it, but I believe it’s not the only part; if we just give it a minute, our bodies can heal themselves in near-miraculous ways, without any mental intervention at all. Sleep, as I’ve discovered over and over and over through my life, is the Number One Healer. When we have the flu, we don’t get rid of it by repeating “I’m totally healthy! Totally healthy!” whilst ignoring our body and maintaining our frenzy even though we feel awful. No. We get rid of it by going to bed and sleeping and letting our body do its thing.

Let’s respect our bodies and work with them. They’re not pitted against us. They love us. We just have to learn to listen and heed their message better, I think. They’ll tell us what we need to do. We have to shut off our brains and listen, though!

***

That rest day I took felt so wonderful. To not struggle against my tiredness was a relief. I’m naturally a doer… I don’t sit still very long before I pop back up and am doing something again. There’s so much I love to do and am interested in, that I find it very hard to rest! — partly because resting can feel boring. So if you don’t want to sleep, you might look through a fun magazine (Sunset, Coastal Living, Martha Stewart Living, and Mother Earth News are all faves of mine). Or draw. Or sit on your front porch and watch the world go by. Or read. Or listen to music. Or load an audio book onto your MP3 player if you’re too tired to read. Or close your eyes and just think, and allow your mind to go wherever it wants to (I’m a big fan of this one; maybe that’s a post for another day).

I’m still learning. It can be a tricky mental shift to tune in and work with my body instead of ignoring it in favor of the activities my mind wants to do.

Are you still learning, too?

What are some of your favorite restful activities?

***

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Thought-Word-Action

June 5, 2012 / Lindsey / 1 Comment

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Replace the words “I wish” with “I will.”

Dwell on things you will do and figure out a way to do them.

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Unfortunately I don’t know who said these words, but they are wise indeed.

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Quiet moments

June 1, 2012 / Lindsey / 3 Comments

When life gets too crazy, quiet moments do ground us back to earth. But quiet moments will rarely search us out, I find. They inhabit the shadows; if we’d like to have the grace of their presence, we must intend them. We must initiate them. We must arrange the time and the space…to bring them forth.

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**May you engineer some wonderfully quiet moments for yourself this weekend!!**

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