smile, breathe, and go slowly

As I sit here at work today, grateful to be in a casual work environment yet still privy to those old familiar feelings of stress (what I call paralyzing perfectionism - of which many Westerners seem to suffer, culturally), I discovered a beautiful site that offers 14 ways to calm yourself, anywhere.

The piece begins with a quote from Zen Buddhist Thich Nhat Hanh - "Smile, breathe, and go slowly." I enjoy Thich Nhat Hanh and find him very inspiring. He has a beautiful piece of literature entitled True Love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart, recommended originally by my friend Chris (thanks, Chris!) It is such a great read - short, simple, sweet, and addresses the art of loving, everyone, and the importance of such. You can read it in one sitting, and it really helps to foster a more permanently loving spirit.

And what words to live by! "Smile, breathe, and go slowly" - such wise words remind us to be gentle on ourselves, on others, and to move through life gently and deliberately, striving for conscious and full lovingkindness in and toward each moment.

The 14 techniques recommended by the aforementioned site's author are straightforward: smile, allow yourself to relax, immerse yourself in silence, repeat a calming mantra, take a mental health break, self-massage (or self-reiki!), rest your eyes, and so on. The author provides several helpful links for the 14 techniques, that really warrant perusal! My favorites on this list include: hug well and hug often, adjust your breathing, and cancel - clear - delete your energy drains. To begin, hug. The power of the human touch is no stranger to us - it always feels good to lend a comforting hand and to receive a comforting hand. This is why Reiki is so beautiful, so moving, so effective! Well-intended human touch is powerfully healing. I love that the author says "hug well." Every hug is better than no hug, but it just reminds me of my wonderful Aunt (who I love very much!), who hugs very lightly and with very little touch involved. Haha, and I always bring her in closer for a bear hug! So, hug well! Next, adjust your breathing. A simple one-minute breathing exercise mid-day can effect positive change in that moment and each moment for the rest of the day. It's so calming - just breathing - focusing only on your breath. Oftentimes I stop and focus on my breathing, only to realize that I haven't been fully breathing! It makes such a difference. Lastly, cancel, clear, and delete your energy drains. I appreciate this suggestion. Avoid going to places or surrounding yourself with people who you know to drain your energy. This can be especially pertinent for empaths or those with energetic boundary issues in this lifetime. Whenever you feel anxious about this, visually surround yourself with gold and allow blue healing light to circulate your body from crown to root. Thank you to my friend Janet Wright for showing me the light (literally! :)) with this visualization.

There's always enough time for a relaxation technique such as the ones suggested above. Why? Because your peace of mind, body, and soul are more important than anything else, as they contribute to your present moment - how you react to it, your level of conscious awareness, and your outlook on the rest of your day and life. Here's hoping you and I remember this in honor of our bodies, souls, and minds. Nurture yourselves. :)