Late in the evening, over an herb crusted salmon dinner, I began to read Bruce Lipton’s book “The Biology of Belief.” It has been on the market over ten years, but as the saying goes timing is everything. Candles flickered on the table. Robin Miller’s “Dreams of Heaven” played softly in the background.
There in my own little piece of paradise I came to an entirely new appreciation of the miracle that lives inside my own body. I fell madly in love with my cells.
If cells were souls, I later learned each of us would house at least the population of 4000 earths! 30 trillion cells is a conservative estimate. Many are saying we have more now. Each one is like a little person. It has a “skin.” It digests, excretes, and metabolizes. It reproduces. It moves towards what nourishes itself and away from what doesn’t. Sound familiar? The only thing cells don’t do is make unhealthy choices or hang onto suffering! They’re programmed to stay alive and well. We, on the other hand, have free will.
I marveled at the kingdoms within our own body! The kingdom of the lungs takes in air, sends it to the kingdom of circulation which brings it to vitalize each cell and releases what is not useful. The kingdom of digestion takes in the outside world, filters what is useful and releases what is not. The kingdom of our skin takes in what is useful and filters out what is not. As above so below. Each system in the body is open to life, but designed to allow in what it can use to be healthy and filter out what doesn’t serve.
We’re that way too. We’re designed, not to shut ourselves down to life, people, and ideologies, but rather to remain open to all of the above and simply discern or filter out what doesn’t serve us.
Shutting down to life hurts. I’ve done it. Every time I’ve shut down, stuffed my feelings, wanted to clam up and close down, I’ve created illness. When I breathe life in, allow myself my own my feelings, and simply discern / filter or let go of what doesn’t work, then I feel fantastic.
We don’t stay healthy by closing ourselves down to life and one another. We stay healthy and happy by knowing who we are enough to discern and filter life – What gets let in and what gets released?
Indiscriminately shutting ourselves down leads to disease, pain, suffering, and ultimately death as surely as if we decided not to eat at all because we didn’t like certain foods.
Learning to open up to life and discern leads to vitality, joy, and a life as long as our soul has planned. People don’t die of old age. They die of being “tired of life and shutting down to its life-giving flow.”
I intend to keep opening up to the flow of life, allowing it to nourish me, heal me, and bring me new joyous opportunities. You can too!
Here are some pointers this week to stay open to life this week while keeping only what you want in your experience:
1. Learn to discern
If something feels right to you now, it is right, right now. If it doesn’t feel right, right now, it isn’t right now. It is important to note that discernment is about “now.” Today I may crave vegetables. Tomorrow I may want meat. Today I may want nothing to do with a person who has been unkind. Years later perhaps we both will grow. Today I don’t feel like watching the news. Some days, suddenly I do. There is purpose to everything.
If you listen to your own heart and your own feelings you will always know what is right for you, right now.
2. Unclarity means “No, not now.”
If you are unsure what to do, or unsure whether or not something is good for you, wait for further guidance.
For example, you might want to run errands but you don’t feel like moving right now. Five minutes later the cloud lifts and you feel like going. You may just have avoided an accident by waiting for clarity.
I was unsure about a house that I liked, even though it wasn’t perfect. I couldn’t decide if I should put an offer on it and try to afford it. Instead, I waited and got the home I love now.
Better to miss an opportunity than to jump into one that doesn’t feel clearly right. In the words of a dear client, with a delightful southern accent, “Oh! It’s either a ‘hail’ yes or a ‘hail’ no!”
3. If you make a choice you regret, start to fix it immediately by getting back in the present. What feels right, right now?
It is easy to hang onto the past, even if it is a choice you made yesterday. There is far greater power and joy in getting present once again, allowing life to flow into you and seeing what feel right now.
For example, I purchased an online class that looked wonderful. I loved the instructor. It felt right. After watching a few segments I realized I didn’t need it. My old patterns would have had me shut down, take the loss, and beat myself up – all things that close us down to the flow. Instead I sat and breathed, remembered I could get a refund. I quickly applied for one. It was in my account the next day, no harm done.
In high school I got a job that sounded fun, but after the first day I was in tears. I realized very quickly it wasn’t for me. I went home, told my parents I needed a new job and quit. A better job opened up soon after.
A dear friend who had a contracting job signed a contract to get her kitchen remodelled. She was layed off the next day. Cancelling her kitchen remodel didn’t feel right even though it made sense, so she waited. Three days later she had a new job!
Never bind yourself to an unloving choice. Just breathe in new life, release the old as you exhale and see what feels right now.
I hope you have a beautiful week, breathing in life, and releasing all that doesn’t serve with each exhale.
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