Lavender Spritz

Makes a great air freshener as well and is a wonderful alternative to the toxic-laden commercial air fresheners that permeate the market and our lives. I use the lavender spritz on carpets, curtains, upholstered furniture, the car’s interior, my closet, and even the litter box, to instantly perk up and revive tired and stuffy feeling spaces. The uses of the spritz, like lavender oil itself, really are endless.

Add water to a spray bottle and add lavender (ratio of about 10 drops to a cup).

Depending on your mood and the season, you can make also make a spritz with rosemary, lemon, bergamot, sandalwood, ylang ylang, jasmine, cinnamon, clove, frankincense, myrrh, or just about any essential oil you find pleasing. If someone in the house is coming down with a cold, try adding eucalyptus, peppermint, thyme, or tea tree oil to help ease congestion and open up the nasal passages.

Now simply sit (or lay) back and get ready to breathe in the goodness!

This post was written by Holly K. for HealingLifestyles.com.

Santa Monica Pier- Relaxation Video

24-hr Silent Retreat

Step 1: Choose your day

Plan ahead and choose a day that you don’t have to be at the office, or available ‘on call.’ A weekend or regular day off works best.

Step 2: Let others know

Post it on your Facebook page, record a special voicemail message, and setup a vacation email response letting friends, family and colleagues know that you’re unavailable to talk during this time. Make arrangements with your household, particularly your partner and children, so that everyone understands and respects your choice.

Step 3: Set up guidelines for the day

We suggest forgoing media - email, television, texting, etc. for the entire period of your silent retreat. Will you write notes? How will you deal with emergencies? Are gestures or sign language okay? Make a list of your own guidelines for the day and share it with your family so everyone is on board.

Step 4: Consider how you’ll spend the time

Mindful activities like yoga, meditation and journaling are natural choices during a day of silence. Spending time outdoors, or doing a beloved creative activity are also excellent ideas. Will you venture out in public? Or try to stay in solitude? Thinking and planning ahead will make the experience go more smoothly.

Step 5: Reflect

What did you learn about yourself while in silence? What was challenging? What surprised you? Spend the last hour of your day contemplating the experience.



This post was taken from HealingLifestyles.com.

5 Steps to Happiness

Be grateful

Insofar as our actions and state of mind help shape our own reality, make the choice to identify and celebrate the love and blessings in your life, whether that’s your health, your home, or your neighbor’s child who smiles at you every time you meet.

Consider your surroundings

Sometimes, our lives seem so hectic and out of control that choosing to be happy is an overwhelming prospect. It’s liberating to know and accept that your response to any life challenge is yours, completely, to choose. This includes distancing, or removing yourself completely, from negative people. And while we’re mentioning movement, remember all those studies that have shown the positive effects of exercise on improving mood. Instead of sitting at home worrying or feeling sorry for yourself, take yourself outside for a long walk.

Keep it simple

Happiness isn’t really such a complicated thing. When savored, simple moments—a bowl of hot soup on a cold winter day, listening to music that lifts your spirits on the way to work, a perfect cup of tea before bed—can help shape your outlook. Wealth can purchase a lot of stuff, but happiness really isn’t one of them. 

Put things in perspective

Find a spot where you can look up at the sky. Picture the beautiful blue Earth, suspended in the universe, spinning slowly around the Sun, surrounded by billions of stars and other planets. Suddenly, the argument you had with your sister, or the mean clerk at the market, lose momentum and importance, and are scaled back to what they really are: small blips in the day that have no lasting importance, isolated moments in a world so vast and astounding, that they’re easy to let go of. Which brings us, once again, to consciously making the choice to be happy. It’s up to you. 

Step outside your own drama

Doing something for someone else can be an instant mood-improver. Help a neighbor shovel snow from their driveway, or offer to shop for someone who has a hard time getting around. There are countless opportunities to help others in every community, and the effort doesn’t have to be monumental in its proportions. Simple acts of kindness are often the most rewarding.

This post was written by Debra Bokur.  To read the entire post, click here: HealingLifestyles.com.

6 Easy Ways to Work Healthier

Reduce stress, tension and toxins at work

Most of us spend a third of our lives at work! Make it a place that’s good for you. From improving your ergonomics to reducing eye strain and releasing stress fast, these six tips and solutions can make your corner of the office a healthier place to be.


1. Sit up straight
... on the Balance Ball®, designed by a chiropractor to coax your spine into perfect alignment. Also encourages “active sitting,” meaning you’ll tone core muscles and burn more calories just sitting there! Talk about multi-tasking!


2. See the light 
... and reduce eye strain with proper lighting.  Try an energy saving bulb and a light that swivels to put light right where you need it.


3. Clear the air
... and outsmart allergies, asthma, colds and flu.  Try an air purifier to remove the pollution particles that are most harmful to your health such as bacteria, dust, dander, pollen, smoke, mold and fungus spores.


4. Hydrate often
Adorn your desk with a gleaming, planet-smart style statement and you’ll never go back to plastic. A Stainless Steel Water Bottle lasts nearly forever and won’t absorb tastes or odors. 


5. Unkink your neck and back
... in a flash with stretches and breathing exercises you can do right at your desk.


6. Remain calm
... even when things get crazy.  Try some breathing and focusing exercises to help you reboot quickly.


The original post was written by Arielle Ford.  To read the complete post, click here: blog.gaiam.com.  

Villa Beach, Peru- Relaxation Video

Cleaning as Meditation: How to Transform Your Chores

Rules for Mindful Housekeeping

Elisha Goldstein, coauthor of "A Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Workbook," tells us how to make peace with cleaning.

1. Imagine you're doing this chore for the first time. In your mind, it's just a sinkful of dirty dishes. Look for the bubbles instead.

2. Use your five senses, focusing on one at a time. Appreciate the warmth of the water, the scent of the lemon cleanser.

3. Consider it a neural workout. Incorporating mindfulness-based techniques into everyday life can make you calmer and your brain more adaptive.

4. Don't think of housework as punishment. Goldstein says, "You're cultivating kindness toward yourself."




These are additional excerpts to ponder from this article.  Click here to read the entire article: WholeLiving.com. 


What if I Could Slow Down?

I'm thinking of that Zen proverb: "Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water." The idea is that we should find meaning in ordinary tasks, because true clarity is fleeting enough -- and when it's over, somebody still has to clean the crisper.

Cleaning Out Your Soul

"When your physical surroundings are cluttered, your emotional and spiritual self is cluttered. If your space is clean, then your mind is open and you can let God in."

Work as Prayer

For the Benedictines, work and prayer are one and the same. "I think one of the reasons the order is still here after 1,500 years is that no one is excused from kitchen duty," Norris says. "They try to honor work as part of just being human." She tells me about one young novice she met who made a meditative practice out of running the commercial cleaner, again and again, in circles over the hallway's hardwood floors.

On a More Earthly Plane...

Floor cleaning is the therapy of choice for Alexis Stewart, Martha's daughter and cohost of "Whatever" on Martha Stewart Living Radio. "You don't have to do it," she says. "But the result is fun. I never liked cleaning out the chicken coop when I was a kid, but I sure liked the result." (I bet her crisper is spotless.)

This is the kind of old-fashioned pragmatism that women adopted in the days when we were better at wringing meaning out of chores. Take"The American Woman's Home,"written in 1869 by Harriet Beecher Stowe and her sister Catharine E. Beecher. It's a complete compendium of how a woman should manage her household's physical and spiritual ecosystem, from prayers to healthy beverages, dusting to moral foundations. There are three chapters on how to ventilate the house: Homemaking is not about managing the moisture emitted by your furnace; it's about putting the very air in your family's lungs.

The Magic Soap

"When we expect things to be more than they are, or when we value them as less than they are, that keeps us at arm's length from our own life," Miller says. "We think we're supposed to follow our bliss, but when we're really present in every moment, even when we're vacuuming, we can begin to chip away at the feeling of inadequacy. And little by little, our lives are transformed." 

Miller thinks the way we work can tell us something about who we are -- the way we tenderly fold our children's clean pajamas or rage over our husband's towels in dank trails on the floor -- and so it is a spiritual practice of sorts. Plus, "the rituals of daily work just enfold your day in dignity. They make life tasty." Uh-huh........

"Well, here's the magic soap," she says. "Your own attention is what spiritualizes things. Attention to the meal you cook, the clothes you wash. Attention is love. And that's transformative."

My Life as a Bathroom Sink

Kathleen Norris was right about life as repetition. Am I the only person who keeps having the same disagreements, the same gripes, the same bad habits? I was in that slough of despond where it wasn't the bathroom sink but my life that was covered in toothpaste sludge and someone else's beard hair. I set out to clean the thing with attention and enfold my day in dignity.

At first all I noticed was the usual simmering irritation. Then I saw the thin layer of funk on my drain (not much dignity there). But as I worked the cloth around the spigots -- focusing on the doing, not the getting done -- it started to feel pleasantly personal, like giving someone a bath. Not the newborn Buddha, but some cranky elderly relative. Because the sink had been entrusted to me, and because it deserved to be clean, and because I was the one to do it. I scrubbed at that film of filth on the drain, which I'd never noticed all the times I'd spit into it, and there actually was a shiny circle underneath.

Making Things New

The cleaning seemed different when I wasn't doing it for the guy with the clipboard anymore. That guy had been me anyway. In some way, I was starting over again. What was that quote from the Bible that my mother kept on our spotless refrigerator? Behold, I make all things new.

I'll never love it, but I can say this: Cleaning changes things. So much in life is uncertain -- you take vitamins and get sick, love people who disappoint you, pour your heart into a job and lose it at the end of the fiscal year. But if you take a rag to a piece of soap scum, it will go away. From that point of view -- the pure continuum of cause and effect -- cleaning stops seeming futile. It starts to look like the only thing worth doing.

Less Is More

While there’s a lot of talk these days about decreasing our environmental footprint, it might be time to recalibrate our lives in general. There’s a lot to suggest that for a bigger and more fulfilling life, what we really need to do is live smaller. 

Material World

For most of us, having lots of stuff—whether or not we need it—feels familiar and comfortable, and is even an active social objective. As members of a generally affluent Western culture, we tend to collect belongings, even hording them, as tangible evidence of our success or social standing. Perhaps what we’re really doing, at least some of the time, is filling up spaces in our lives that might otherwise be uncomfortably bare, whether in career satisfaction, spirituality, connection to the natural world, or our personal relationships.

Long before the entire nation became concerned about failures within our economic and eco systems, a movement called Simple Living took hold. Launched decades ago by author, educator, and lecturer Duane Elgin, the tenets of simple living include a strong focus on an authentic way of life that honors and values deep, personal relationships between other people and the natural world, rather than on glitter and material trappings.

A highly respected leader in the area of consciousness research and ecology, Elgin is the author of a several books including Promise Ahead: A Vision of Hope and Action for Humanity’s Future (2000), Voluntary Simplicity: Toward a Way of Life that is Outwardly Simple, Inwardly Rich (HarperCollins, 2009, now in its 3rd edition), and, with Joseph Campbell, Awakening Earth: Exploring the Evolution of Human Culture and Consciousness (William Morrow, 1993). Elgin’s work urges us to examine our own lives, and to devote our energy to what’s truly important.

“Happiness is largely a networked social phenomenon once a sustaining level of material well-being is reached,” explains Elgin. “Worrying less about the material appearances and more about the soulful connections with others, we could put our life-energy into creating the most robust, healthy, and rewarding relationships that we can. The more we learn about the ‘science of happiness,’ the more we see that focusing on material acquisition and status is not serving us well and that it would be enormously helpful to redefine progress.”

Dealing with economic crisis, both on a national and personal scale, requires not only spending adjustments, but an adjustment in outlook and expectations as well. Mel Schwartz, L.C.S.W, is a psychotherapist, professional speaker and educator, and the founder of the Emergent Thinking® process, an approach to personal evolution. He is the author of The Art of Intimacy, The Pleasure of Passion (Quantum Press, 1999), and is currently at work on a new book, titled A Shift of Mind: Rethinking the Way We Live.

“Our worldview is ridden with material consumption as a false pathway toward happiness,” says Schwartz. “We need only look at the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and general malaise to understand that it’s not working. I fervently believe that all crisis presents opportunity. The opportunity in this economic crisis is to reconsider where we look for meaning and purpose, to free ourselves from the mindless pursuit of bigger and more, and open to the contemplation of a more authentic way of being. A recession is an opportunity to come out of the habitual groove of consuming, and still ourselves in a more mindful way.”

Creating Community

Somewhere along the way, we’ve become not only a culture of consumers, but also a society that has almost completely lost touch with the source of our goods. We buy a wool blanket at a chain department store, but have no concept—or real interest—where the wool came from, who cared for the animals, or how those animals were cared for. This disconnect can be a dangerous thing, separating us from the natural rhythms of the planet and our place in the ecosystem. Getting in touch with these aspects of consumerism encourages us to embrace the concept of living our lives on a smaller scale, and helps us to understand that lives all around the planet are inextricably connected.

If you live in a city environment—or in a very small town—you may already appreciate the value and satisfaction of doing business with familiar shopkeepers. Chances are you know one another by name, or even share a common history based within the neighborhoods that surround you. For much of the country, though, it’s necessary to drive to a retail center to shop for groceries and purchase goods, or to get to school, work, or other obligations. So, while the old model of shops centered around a village green, within easy access of residents, is a rarity these days, you can still take steps to build a sense of community with those with whom you do business and encounter socially.

Schwartz’s Emergent Thinking® approach, founded on the discoveries of various emerging sciences, is an approach to life that mirrors the messages of an inseparable, flowing and participatory universe. “From this perspective,” he adds, “our lives unfold in meaning and with purpose, and we are no longer manipulated to consume, but free to create and experience life from wholeness.”

Redefine Shopping

Green and eco are popular buzzwords today, and an increasing number of people are expressing a deep and personal interest in contributing in the healing of the planet. With limited disposable income as a factor, it’s the perfect time to get very choosy about where you spend your money. If you live in a place where meandering to the local shops isn’t an option, and the nearest retail choice is a mall complex with chain mega stores selling mass-produced products, you can still make wise choices that connect you—often quite affordably—to sustainably produced goods.

“Now may not be the time to get that fancy new hybrid, but there are still plenty of things you can do to live more sustainably—which has never been easier,” offers Mark Spellun, publisher of the former print version of Plenty Magazine, which helped guide consumers to ecologically viable and sustainably produced goods, services, and lifestyles. “Even if you shop mostly at the big box stores like Walmart and Target,” says Spellun, “there are more and more sustainable options. The trick is that you have to look for them. They aren’t all in one section. Ask the store staff where [to find] the new organic clothing lines, or what locally grown produce they can suggest.”

How can getting in touch with these aspects of consumerism encourage us to embrace the concept of living our lives on a smaller scale? According to Elgin, we can accomplish this by coming to what he defines as “an ecology of mind.”

“This type of ecology,” he explains, “literally sees through the prism of wholeness as opposed to the fragmented parts of Newton’s worldview. When we learn to see in wholeness, it becomes quite natural to see the origins and flow of process, not simply the end product. The rupturing of wholeness removes us from nature, and has us only as manipulators of nature as we utilize it to our own ends. Shifting how we think and see, resisting the tendency to fragment, can restore our ability to see ourselves as an inseparable co-participant in and with nature. When we accomplish this, larger is no longer better, and more is no longer preferable.”

Downscaling our lives might even be the catalyst for finally achieving that elusive state of balance we all long for, where we can realign our goals and energies to properly reflect both our physical beings, and our true, spiritual selves.

Practical Tactics

There are a number of effective strategies for living smaller that we can take immediately in our own homes and lives. “There’s a simple idea to keep in mind: Think less,” advises Mark Spellun, former publisher of Plenty Magazine (now a website). “What if you turned down the thermostat a degree or two, or took shorter showers? Eating less meat can lower your carbon and your water footprint. Try to save leftovers, and either eat them later or compost what you can. Even if you can’t use the compost yourself, a local farmer’s market will probably happily take it from you.”

Live smaller and bigger at the same time by trying some of these other approaches: Read all the latest bestsellers. Remember the library? If you love to read, but hesitate to indulge in new books because of the cost, treat yourself to a library card. And don’t forget great neighborhood used bookstores, where you can stock your own private library for a fraction of the cost of new books.

Go on vacation. The world is a wide and wild place, filled with fascinating cultures and landscapes—making it easy to forget that old jewel about happiness being in our own backyards. If your budget doesn’t currently include India, why not stay in the comfort of your own home, and make day trips to all of the nearby places you haven’t ever had the time to explore? Map out routes for area botanical gardens, museums, parks, and galleries, and enjoy becoming familiar with them.

Have a gourmet meal. One you cook yourself, that is. Dust off all those cookbooks you’ve collected, and spend some quality time in your own kitchen experimenting with your favorite comfort foods. Invite neighbors or friends to share the results with you, and you’ll begin to redefine your home as a true sanctuary filled with joyful companionship.

Free fitness membership. Getting and staying fit doesn’t require a membership to a fancy gym. You can walk, hike, and skate for free by stepping outside your front door. Prefer a kickboxing class or tai chi session? Buy a DVD, trade one you don’t use for one you find more interesting, or borrow one from the library. The bonus? No crowded shower room.

Trade it. Need a dogsitter or cat watcher while you’re away on business, but worry about the expense? Make friends with a dog-owning neighbor, and arrange to trade pet-sitting services with him or her when it’s their turn to travel. You can do the same thing with babysitting, snow shoveling, gardening, and any number of things.



This post was written by Debra Bokur for HealingLifestyles.com.

How to Conquer Clutter Around the House

3 tips to reduce household messes

Our lives can be busy and chaotic and, often times, our house or apartment is the casualty of this fast-paced lifestyle. Things pile up, and messes are created. Your desk is a disaster, and your bedroom looks like a fashion war zone, not to mention that the garage is so full that you need to park your car on the street. You want to have the perfect Martha Stewart home, but keeping out the clutter is difficult. In order to help you help yourself manage your cluttered home, here are some tips from Good Housekeeping writer M.P. Dunleavey on how to conquer the clutter around the house.

Step 1: Don’t try to conquer the clutter alone

Many people get overwhelmed with the amount of work that needs to be done, and this can be especially true when it comes to removing clutter. You don't have to do it alone. Recruit a friend or your family to help you. Everyone who lives in the home should be a part of the organizational process. If you do it alone, all the systems will be made with your brain and your logic, which means that others may have trouble following them. If you recruit friends and family to assist you, they can then help maintain the new systems and lighten your workload.

Step 2: Keep, store and toss

Go through everything. Even if you think it’s all stuff you need to keep, you might find that you don’t need to keep it in such an accessible place. Sometimes the attic or the basement would be a more suitable storage place. As you are sorting, make three piles: a keep pile, a store pile, and a toss pile. Remember, though, toss doesn’t have to mean throw away. You can always have a garage sale and sell things you don’t need anymore or donate them to a local charity. By purging yourself of things you don’t use, you'll have a leg up on clutter, create more space and feel better. If you don’t need an item on a daily basis, put it in storage. Holiday decorations are only used once a year, so they should go deep into storage: on the top shelf of a closet, in the back corner of the attic or far under the bed.

Step 3: Create a place for everything

Give everything a home. Don’t just stick things in places to get them out of the way. Designate a spot for each item so that a week or a month down the road you will know both where to find it and where to put it back. To organize the clothes in your closet, make a system of grouping, either by color or style, and then stick to it. Having a system will help you later know where clothes are, where to put them back and help keep the scene of that fashion war zone out of your bedroom. When dealing with children's toys, be sure their most favorite toys are easily accessible so they have no trouble getting them out or putting them away.

Getting organized may seem an intimidating task, but the benefits of conquering clutter far outweigh the work it may take to get it done. Coming home to a well-organized and clutter-free house will bring you a sense of relaxation you'd never get when returning to a cluttered home.

This post was written by E.C. LaMeaux for blog.gaiam.com.

Give Thanks

Gratitude. Unlike eating leafy greens or practicing yoga, it’s not something we usually consider “good for us.” Yet a recent study by psychologists at the University of California-Davis and the University of Miami shows that giving thanks is indeed beneficial for our psychological well-being.

Conducting “gratitude interventions” with such varied groups as college students and adults with neuromuscular disease, researchers Robert A. Emmons and Michael E. McCullough found that individuals practicing gratitude on a regular (daily or weekly) basis displayed a more positive general outlook, greater optimism, and less stress and depression. Other benefits found were higher levels of alertness, energy, enthusiasm, and determination as well as a greater likelihood of being generous, empathetic, and aware of one’s interconnectedness with others.

Though we may say “thanks” countless times each day, really practicing gratitude requires reflection and open-hearted sincerity. Mark Nasralla, former ayurvedic clinician and current therapist manager at The Crossings in Austin, Texas, notes, “Being grateful intellectually isn’t enough. Gratitude is an emotional, psychosomatic experience. You feel grateful, so you have to put your attention inward and seek out the source of that feeling.”

Similarly, the subjects in the study were not merely thanking others in passing, they were actively engaged in contemplating what and whom they were thankful for by making lists, participating in self-guided exercises, and keeping journals. Not surprisingly, Emmons and McCullough found that the religious and spiritual were more apt at cultivating gratitude, often through the practices of prayer and meditation. But becoming more grateful doesn’t require joining a church, it can be as basic as counting your blessings before bed—a practice anyone can do.

“The simplest way to become more grateful,” Nasralla explains, “is to make lists, every day. This allows you to revisit all the things you are thankful for. As you continue, gratitude becomes a habit.” Not a list-maker? Prayer or a moment of silence before a meal is one way of honoring the food and the person who prepared it. In his book Bless This Food (New World Library, 2007), author Adrian Butash has compiled 160 mealtime blessings from cultures and religions throughout the world, making it easy and educational to say grace. Finally, if you meditate, incorporate gratitude into each session by visualizing one person, place, or thing you truly appreciate.

The more you practice gratitude, the easier it becomes. “It follows the law of attraction—like attracts like,” says Nasralla. “What you [focus] your attention on grows stronger.” To bring more thankfulness into your daily experience, Nasralla offers three steps. One, have a clear intention. Two, take action by meditating, journaling, or speaking. And finally, consciously look for opportunities to feel gratitude during small, everyday events.

Though there is no magic spell to keep stress, troubles, and the bumps of life from happening, there is evidence that bolstering feelings of gratitude can change the way you experience those events. By helping you navigate life’s storms with greater ease, more general happiness, and a brighter sense of optimism, giving thanks can become something to be thankful for.

This post was written by Tanya M. Williams for HealingLifestyles.com.

Lift Your Mood

You spill a cup of coffee all over your desk. How do you react? If you're chatting on the phone with a new love interest, you shrug and chalk it up to giddy distraction. If it's right before an important meeting, you feel annoyed, even angry with yourself. Why the difference? In one scenario, it's just an accident. In the other, it goes to prove your day is doomed.

There's a reason for this: We view the world through mood-colored glasses, interpreting events according to how we feel at the time. But while we may swear that the guy who cuts us off in traffic ruined our morning, it's the way we respond that creates our experience. Life's little annoyances themselves don't sour a day; they serve as a reflection of the mood we're already in. "When you focus on negative thoughts or memories, you begin to interpret events around you through that lens, which generates more negative thoughts," says cognitive psychologist John Selby, coauthor of "Take Charge of Your Mind." It's a vicious cycle -- and one that can cause even the best of moods to plummet.

Research in cognitive psychology shows that our thoughts determine the quality of our emotions, moods, actions, and life experiences. "So nothing is more urgent or more important than learning how to take charge of our thinking," says Selby. He created a technique to break "thought addiction," or an inability to let go of past regrets and future worries in order to enjoy the present moment. The approach uses "cognitive shifting," which helps you move between states of mind and optimize your mental performance. In pairing that mental shift with specific phrases you say to yourself, you build a powerful habit that can overcome the tendency to "read" events in a negative way. In short: You stop letting little things upend entire days.

Although his sequence of exercises is deceptively simple, like any good skill, it requires practice. "You'll feel the effects right away, but if you continue to do it for two or three weeks, you will experience even more powerful results," he says. Then those flat tires, missed appointments, insensitive emails, and torn hems won't rankle you as they once did.




Click here to read the entire article written by Terri Trespicio for WholeLiving.com.

What's Your Spiritual Type?

What comes to mind when you think of a "spiritual" person? Maybe it's someone who never passes up a dharma talk, sings in the choir, or spends every weekend volunteering. Maybe she says prayers before each and every meal.

No matter what the outward signs, if you don't happen to share those habits, you might feel lacking in the divine department. Not so, says Jonathan Ellerby, Ph.D., spiritual program director at Canyon Ranch and author of "Return to the Sacred." "Spirituality is an essential dimension of being human, and as much a part of us as our bodies and minds. It's not a matter of whether or not you're spiritual, but of what kind of spiritual personality you have."

Indeed, one person's brand of spirituality might look entirely different from another's. Chances are good that your interest in certain types of work, play, and other activities may be reflected or balanced by what engages you spiritually. The key, says Ellerby, lies in discovering your unique style so that you can optimize your spiritual tendencies and talents.

To that end, he has identified four distinct spiritual types: body, mind, heart, and soul. While we all embody some characteristics of each, chances are you lean more strongly in one direction or another. Read on to find the right expression of your sacred nature and connect with a sense of the divine in a way that really works for, inspires, and energizes you.

Body-Centered Seekers
If you gravitate toward physical activity and even derive satisfaction from physical chores, this is you. "The body is just as wise a teacher as the mind or the heart because spirituality is more than an idea," says Ellerby. "It's an experience." What's working for you in the spirituality department is that you appreciate the joy of being fully and physically present -- and that's vital to a strong spiritual practice.

Your Challenge Because you're athletic, you get competitive in practices such as yoga. This attitude can take you out of the more grounded, peaceful mind-set. And when pride and ego take hold, you may miss the spiritual aspect of a practice altogether.

Explore  See yoga, tai chi, qigong, or any other mind-body movement classes as a vehicle to spirituality, not just a sweaty workout. Incorporate movement into your own spiritual practice, even if it means doing a walking meditation every day along your favorite path. "By setting an intention as you begin any of these types of practices," says Ellerby, "you'll give your movement focus, changing the nature of the activity and gain a greater sense of connectedness and joy."

Mind-Centered Seekers
For you, intellect and knowledge lie at the heart of spirituality. You may be a philosophy or an English major, a deep thinker, a lover of books and brainy discussions. Life for you begins and ends in consciousness, in your ability to study and analyze ideas.

Your Challenge You've been accused of overthinking things, not to mention living entirely in your head. Sometimes this can cause you to get stuck -- mentally and spiritually.

Explore Use your intellect as a vehicle for spiritual growth, as opposed to an end in itself. That might mean diving into more spiritual fare (say, the Bible). Consider forming a spiritual book group to add a new dimension to your study. You'll engage your intellect while connecting with like-minded folks.

Heart-Centered Seekers
Your sense of satisfaction rests on your feeling emotionally connected and invested. Relationships are your interface with the world, whether that means with others, with the divine, or with yourself. More intellectual pursuits (like studying spiritual texts) may leave you cold, unless they facilitate connection with similar souls. In other words, you may enjoy reading Eckhart Tolle, but not as much as you would talking about it with others.

Your Challenge Because you value connection so much, you risk being overly dependent on others. You may lose yourself in someone else's spiritual path rather than shaping your own.

Explore  Capitalize on your emotional intelligence and knack for cultivating relationships. Find nourishment in volunteer work or other forms of service to your community (helping out at church or dedicating your time to a charity event). These people-centered activities naturally engender a sense of connection to others. If you've felt spiritually at sea in the past, you might benefit from working with a spiritual mentor, such as a life coach, rabbi, priest, or yoga teacher.

Soul-Centered Seekers
You possesses a deep and intense awareness of spirituality. You devour stories of saints, fantasize about traveling through India, and wonder about the monastic life. What you want most is to take your spiritual experience to the limit.

Your Challenge A hyperawareness of the transcendent may make you vulnerable in some ways. You risk going to extremes, using spirituality as a form of escapism.

Explore Maintain a healthy, realistic mind-set and consider where you're at mentally before you take on soul-centered challenges (e.g., starting an intense fast on the heels of a bad breakup). Mentorship is important, too. Plenty of organizations provide support and supervision to safely explore the kind of experiences you crave, says Ellerby. 

Look to balance larger-than-life adventures -- such as pilgrimages to spiritual sites, wilderness expeditions, solitary retreats -- with more moderate ones. Rather than a 40-day vision quest in the woods, "try two days of isolation, just in your apartment, for instance," says Ellerby. Or take a digital fast, shutting off the phone, TV, and Internet. Don't discount your capacity to access the deep spiritual experience in the everyday. 

This post was written by Terri Trespicio for WholeLiving.com.

Peace

This post was inspired and taken from my friend Shelby's post entitled Quiet Time.  

Check out her blog, Eat, Drink and Be Married.

Another Fast & Flavorful Vegetarian Meal

Vegetarian meals can be fast & full of flavor.  This is a photo of what my son & I ate for lunch today.  It took approximately 12 minutes to make from start to finish, and it tasted great too.

Creamy Butternut Squash Soup

Fresh Salad with Roma Tomatoes, Croutons, Balsamic Vinaigrette & Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Veggie Burger topped with Swiss Cheese, Mushrooms, & Onions on a Sesame Seed Bun

The weekend is a great time to explore new recipes.  Try a new fruit or vegetable this weekend, then come back to tell us about it. To find your local Farmer's Market or Wholesale Grocer click here: www.localharvest.org

6 Ways to Create a More Peaceful Workspace

To get to my desk, I have to step over a pile of clothes I’ve been meaning to put away, clear boxes of books slated for charity and dodge an “in” tray that rivals the height of my five-year-old. On my windowsill sits a forlorn fern in its final death droop. I sigh. My office is decidedly NOT Zen-like.

But oh, how I long for it to be. A desk free of clutter, with healthy plants, a place for everything and everything in its place. Those who’ve achieved it say I can expect a boost in productivity and enjoyment in work, and a decrease in stress.

Gina Mazza Hillier promises me nothing less than “greater joy” if I can see my way clear — literally. Hillier is author of Everything Matters, Nothing Matters: For Women Who Dare to Live with Exquisite Calm, Euphoric Creativity and Divine Clarity and someone who has created her own Zen-like office space in her home.

She makes it seem so easy.

When she decided to work from home, Hillier removed everything from the space that would become her office. Then, she says, everything she put into that empty space — from the paint on the walls to the fresh flowers to the whimsical artwork — was placed there with intention.

And that seems to be the key, say the experts. Creating a space that nurtures your soul, boosts creativity and productivity, and encourages success is a product of consideration. Serenity is no accident.

And don’t confuse serenity with being laissez-faire, say the experts. A serene office will help us get more work done with less stress, leading to a fatter paycheck and increased well-being. I’m convinced. So where do I start?

1. Wipe the slate clean to get serene

Like Hillier, personal organizer Betsy Simmons – dubbed the “Queen of Serene” by her clients – suggests a clean slate, whether working from home or in an office tower. “Start from scratch and designate or zone this space within it for a specific purpose,” she recommends. “Remove everything. A fresh coat of paint is a good place to start.” Steer clear of red, orange or yellow, which Simmons calls fast colors, noting that they’re usually the colors of choice for fast-food restaurants. Instead, she recommends blues, greens and lavenders…but with a bit of punch to keep you calm but moving forward.

Starting with a fresh slate, promises Simmons, means that you create an environment that will work for you.

Then determine what you need in this location. A desk is generally a given, but choose a style that suits your needs without compromising. It’s too important a piece to try and simply make do, believes Hillier. Hillier also subscribes — “lightly,” she says — in the principles of feng shui. Simmons recommends the desk be placed facing a door and without a window to your back. “Open space draws energy from you and you want strength behind you,” she explains. Get a comfortable chair that keeps your posture erect but relaxed. “Or use a ball,” suggests Simmons. “It’s great for your posture.”

2. Work the system

Create a system and work it until it’s second nature, says Regina Leeds, known as The Zen Organizer and the author of six books including the New York Times bestseller One Year to an Organized Life and One Year to an Organized Work Life (January 2009). “Another word for system in this context,” she explains, “might be ritual, habit or routine. If your day is run by the whims of others, you won’t get much done.”

Simmons agrees. “The more you can control and maintain the space, the more time you have to catch the curve balls that keep coming.” With that in mind, create zones in your office that reflect the different aspects of your work life — a priority zone, which is usually what you’re working on, a reference zone, and so on. Choose a system of organization — alphabetical, color-coded, by date or topic — that works best for you. Then stick with it, always returning things to their rightful zone.

Simmons also suggests that those of us seeking office serenity start each day with a plan. “Each minute of planning can save one hour of execution.” Then spend a few minutes at the end of the day on cleanup. “Do not pass it on until tomorrow!” she insists. “What a horrible way to start a day…by finishing up yesterday.”

3. Clear the clutter

While every magazine promises us the key to curing our lives of clutter, why do so few of us succeed? “Getting organized is a skill,” reminds Leeds. If it’s not something that we learned from parents or that comes naturally, it’s something we not only need to learn now, we need to take action to implement. With that in mind, clear anything out of your office that isn’t directly related to your work or to helping you work. That means kids’ toys (gulp), family photos (double gulp) and any extraneous stuff that isn’t currently relevant to your work or to creating a peaceful space.

4. Green and light are a go!

Bring in live plants. Not only do they help clean indoor air, they’re a positive life force. And by all means, light candles that lend an air of calm. Ensure that they’re nontoxic. Artwork that inspires is a great addition to any office space. And don’t just think of your walls. A beautiful rug can be art for your floors. Hillier includes fresh flowers in her office space. “They add to my energy,” she says.

5. Use the zone concept to get more done

Keeping in mind your office zones, tackle work in the same way. Group together tasks, such as phone calls or errands, blocking out more time than you think you’ll need to ensure that you complete tasks and complete them well. Leeds reminds us that “Time is a commodity. It can be wasted but never recovered.”

6. Work to live, don't live to work

Our work should complement our lives, giving us greater meaning, greater joy and greater balance. An office space that soothes our soul while it stokes our energy will be a place we’ll look forward to entering. It will lead naturally to a career that enriches not only our wallets, but our beings.

This post was written by Leslie Garrett for blog.gaiam.com.

4 Ways to Express Gratitude Every Day

Learn how giving thanks can keep you feeling happy 

When newspaper headlines are screaming financial disaster and your nightly news station broadcasts war and devastation, it’s not hard to get swept up in the pessimistic world view that things are bad—and getting worse. Now, stop and think about whether or not that’s really true. If the world were so bad, would that person at the grocery store have let you cut in line when you were buying one item? How about the card your next door neighbor's child made you for Christmas? We often focus on all the problems we're having and forget about life’s small blessings.

That’s exactly the mentality Sonja Lyubomirsky, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside, and author of "The How of Happiness," is using her 5-year, $1 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to explore. She has done vast research on the topic of long-term personal happiness and found that, among other things, expressing gratitude regularly contributes to it in a big way.

Here are four ideas on how to express gratitude every day.

Keep a gratitude journal

We often feel gratitude in the moment that kindness or generosity is bestowed upon us. The problem is that we soon forget about these moments and, during a dark time, we begin to feel they never come. A gratitude journal is where you can write down the things you are grateful for each day. And when the going gets tough, you have something to remind you there is hope.

Write a gratitude letter

Sometimes we need to take time to think about the people in our lives and how they contribute to our happiness and well-being. Instead of just tossing the idea around in our brain, write a friend a note telling her what you appreciate about her presence in your life. It’s not even important that you give her this letter; just the act of writing it out will solidify your feelings of gratitude for her.

Make a gratitude creation

Exercise your artistic side by creating something that represents what you are thankful for. A collage; a sketch; or, if you're a more adventurous artist, try a sculpture. By incorporating elements that represent things you are thankful for, you will have a visual reminder that life isn’t all that bad.

Make a gratitude appointment

Set a specific time to be grateful each day: when you wake up, when you go to sleep or before a meal. By setting this specific time, you will find yourself thinking all day of what you are grateful for, so at your “gratitude appointment,” you won’t be caught empty handed.

This post was written by E.C. LaMeaux for blog.gaiam.com.

10-Minute Meditations to Beat the Stress

We all know stress is bad for our health. And whether it's the news headlines, the morning school-prep rush, that looming deadline at work, or discovering an empty refrigerator at 6pm, working moms often have more than the average number of stress triggers. But what can we do about it? Especially if we don't have time for hour-long yoga classes, long candle-lit baths, or weekends at the spa - some of the usual stress-management recommendations? Current medical research is very clear—techniques that fall into the category of 'mindfulness-based stress-reduction' (MBSR) are the most effective. These are techniques that reverse our body’s stress response, and instead trigger its natural relaxation response. When we are stressed, levels of certain chemicals such as adrenaline and cortisol elevate in our blood, we take shorter breaths, and our muscles tense. When we are relaxed, the opposite occurs. The value of MBSR techniques is that they can halt the momentum of our body’s physiological response to stress, and elicit some or all of its relaxation response. So what exactly is MBSR? Meditation. Not the sit-and-gaze-at-your-navel kind of meditation, but the take-a-moment-to-breathe kind—in short, the kind any of us can do, anywhere. Below are ten brief MBSR techniques you can do, for just a minute at a time, to help stop your stress response in its tracks. 1. Belly Breathing: Place your hands over your belly, and take 5-10 deep breaths, taking special care to expand your belly with each inhalation instead of your chest. This forces your diaphragm down, allowing your lungs to take in more air - a powerful method for immediately calming your body. 2. Progressive Muscle Relaxation: Close your eyes and focus your attention on your facial muscles. Take a deep breath, and as you exhale, imagine all these muscles relaxing. Then move your attention down to your neck and shoulder muscles, take another breath, and imagine the tension releasing from that area. Continue scanning down your entire body, breath by breath. In addition to being a stress-buster, this particular technique is excellent for helping you fall asleep quickly after a busy day. 3. Visualization Vacation: Visualizing a soothing scene is a great way to halt the stress response, and using a memory of an actual scene from your past is particularly effective, because many of the neurotransmitters triggered during the original experience are also triggered when you remember it in detail. Pick a favorite vacation moment – sitting on a beach at sunset, for example – and try and reconstruct what you saw, heard, smelled, and felt. 4. Favorite Word: Word repetition is another great MBSR technique. Simply pick a word that represents the opposite of whatever difficult emotion is related to your stress. Feeling angry? Try ‘peace’. Depressed? Try ‘joy’. Discouraged? Try ‘optimistic’. Just repeat your word to yourself 10-20 times under your breathe. 5. Heat of the Sun: Nature has a soothing effect, but you probably can’t wander a forest or the beach in the middle of your workday. Instead, try stepping outside for just a minute, and focus your attention on the feeling of the sun as it hits some part of your body. Imagine the heat of the sun melting away your tension. 6. Breeze of Insight: Another effective natural element you can focus on during brief excursions outdoors is the wind, or breeze. Face away from it for a moment and imagine it is blowing away your stress. Then face into it, and imagine it is blowing in relaxation. 7. Take a Hike: Walking meditations are particularly effective, because the movement helps take the edge of the restless feeling that often accompanies tension. A quick walk around the parking lot at work, or even down the hall, can help, if you make an effort to shift your mind away from the source of your stress. Try paying special attention to each of your senses in turn – note everything you see in great detail, and then everything you hear, then smell, and so on. 8. Find the Love: Sometimes just reminding yourself of your emotional support structure can help calm your nerves. Close your eyes and visualize someone dear to you (children are great) in an affectionate moment. Hold that thought as you take a few deep breaths. 9. Gratitude: Another emotional shifter is gratitude. In the midst of a crises, taking a few moments out to remind yourself of all the good elements in your life can help you re-center. Make a mental list of all the people, things, and experiences you are grateful for. 10. Self-Distancing: A little more abstract, this technique is often used in anger management programs. When you start to feel angry, take a moment and mentally ask the question ‘Who is it that is feeling angry?’ The idea is to begin to separate yourself from your own angry emotion, strengthening your self-awareness and impulse control. Over time, you can refine your ability to choose which emotions you want to draw upon, and which you want to let recede. Regardless of what technique you choose, the important thing is not to turn your stress-busters into stress-creators! In other words, don’t judge your efforts, and don’t get caught up in trying to find the perfect setting or time. Bathrooms stalls, parked cars, or even your office chair, are all you need to practice most of these techniques. Just set aside one minute, pick your method, and let yourself relax. 

This post was written by Lisa Erickson for WorkingMother.com.