A smile...

A smile is a light
in the window of the soul
indicating that
the heart is at home

Meditation: the most important thing you can do...

Do you meditate?

Yes? No?

Allow me to do this once:
Meditation is the most important thing you can
do for yourself and the world.

Honestly, if you are looking for one thing that
will make you sleep better, stress less, feel better
and live better; this is it.

And guess what?

You don’t have to be an advanced yogi to be able to benefit.

Yes, there are varying levels of meditation and only you
can determine which level you will experience.

But not meditating because you believe you need to be
experienced or highly spiritual is not a good enough excuse.

That’s like saying ,
“There are cars in the world and I know
a lot of people use them but I am not a Formula 1 driver
and therefore I will never be able to drive a car”

Sounds silly, doesn’t it?

Who said we needed to excel at
something before we can do it?

Ask any professional and they’ll tell you that
they weren’t 100% confident the first time,
but every time they did it, it became a little easier
and felt more comfortable until eventually they
became excellent at what they were doing.

Same goes for meditation.

Meditation is simply focusing on one thing rather
than allowing our thoughts to run free.
It means allowing our minds and bodies to be still
and then focusing on more important things rather
than the day-to-day madness in our minds.

When you meditate, you become calm,
can focus more clearly, feel 100% less stressed
and bogged down with the trivialities of the physical world.

Not to mention the peace you feel
towards other people and yourself.

Now, when you start meditating there are
certain things you need to know:

1. You need to sit up straight.
The energy cannot flow at its optimum
when you are hunched. You can sit with your back
against a wall, a couch, a bed- anything that keeps
your spine straight from top to bottom.

2.Do not lie down.
We associate this with sleeping and tiredness
will only serve as a distraction.

3. Ground yourself afterwards.
When you meditate, your energy flows and expands.
If you do not ground yourself before you get up,
you will feel light-headed and disconnected.

There are many ways to ground but I do 2 things:

In your mind’s eye imagine roots growing
out from the floor and “rooting” you to the spot.
Secondly, I rub my palms together for about 10 seconds,
then taking a deep breath in, I place my palms over my eyes,
and then exhale slowly.

Ideally, I combine the two.

Sometimes you will become interrupted during a session
and might not have time to do the above.

Simply walk over to a tap.
Place your fingertips together with your palms apart.
Run water through the gap in your hands.
This grounds immediately.

Stamping your feet also grounds efficiently.

How to start?

Just as there are many models of cars,
so there are many ways to meditate.

Try this one first and see how you feel:

Sit comfortably somewhere where you
will not be disturbed for 5 minutes.

Have your hands palms up in your lap.

Now place your right hand in your left
and allow the thumbs to touch.
This completes the circuit and will allow
energy to move more efficiently.

Close your eyes.

Take a slow deep breath in-
allowing the air to fill your stomach,
your ribcage and the area behind the collarbones.

Exhale slowly for a count of 10,
allowing all the stale air to be released.

Continue to count to 10 on your inhalation and exhalation.

Allow the breath to be comfortable and never feel strained.

If 10 is a strain, try 8 or 9 until you can
comfortably stretch to 10.

Remember, anything that tenses muscles,
makes the body work and counteracts
what you are trying to do.

Be gentle with yourself.

Repeat this for the duration of your meditation.
Focus on your breath and the counting.
Nothing else.
If any thoughts come in, just allow them to sail right on by.

You have more than enough time in the other
23 hours and 55 minutes to think of them.

When you have had enough,
ground yourself and open your eyes.

Once you have reached the point of relaxation
and focus it is a very very nice place to be.

Sometimes I have to force myself to open my eyes
because I can sit in that blissful state for ages.

This state can sometimes be quite emotional- do not worry.
It is usually a state of true happiness mixed with tears a
rising from us recognising our higher self.

When you have done this a few times and gotten used
to the idea and sensations, there are many exercises to try.
Not every thing works for everyone but you are bound to
find some sublime meditation for yourself.

Go on: try it, be gentle and have fun!

Breathing to Reduce Stress

Do you realise how important your breathing is?
I mean, apart from the fact that it keeps you alive?

Do you know that your manner of breathing directly affects your stress levels?

Would you like to learn how to use your breath to calm, focus or invigorate you?

Your breath moves the air in and out of our body.
If you do not inhale completely, the necessary oxygen
does not reach the necessary organs.
If you do not exhale properly, the stale air stays in the body
and affects your breathing, your concentration and your health.

I want you to do a simple test:

Place your left hand palm down over your belly button.
Now place your right hand on your chest.
Take a deep breath in…and out…
Focus on your hands.

What moved?
Did your left hand move when you inhaled?
Did it move in our out?

If your stomach moves inwards when you inhale,
you are not breathing as your body intended.

If your stomach inflates when you inhale,
you are breathing correctly.

Your right hand is not supposed to move.
Your chest should only move minimally if at all.

It is easily remembered if you visualise a balloon in your tummy.
When you inhale, inflate the balloon
When you exhale, deflate the balloon.

As babies we breathe like this and then somewhere along the line
someone tells us to pull our stomachs in when we inhale.

Now we need to unlearn a pattern that has formed over many years.

Practise breathing properly whenever you are stressed
or want to relax (before bed is good).

Inhale and make your belly as round as you can.
I call this my Buddha belly ;)
Then exhale using your stomach muscles to push the air out
End by having your stomach drawn in and abs tight

Practise this breathing for 3 minutes a day and within
weeks your subconscious will start to adopt the new habit.

I guarantee your stress will be easier to manage
and your mind more clear to focus on what you need to.

The only limit...

The only limit to our realization of tomorrow,
Will be
The doubts of today

- Franklin D. Roosevelt

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Natural Beauty tips ~ Audrey Hepburn

The following was written by
Audrey Hepburn regarding "Natural Beauty Tips"

For attractive lips ~ Speak words of kindness
For lovely eyes ~ Seek out the good in people
For a slim figure ~ Share your food with the hungry
For beautiful hair ~ Let a child run their fingers through it once a day
For poise ~ Walk with the knowledge that you'll never walk alone

People, even more than things,
have to be restored, renewer, revived, reclaimed and redeemed;
Never throw out anybody

Remember, if you ever need a helping hand,
you'll find one at the end of your arm.
As you grow older, you'll discover
that you have two hands;
one for helping yourself,
the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothers she wears,
the figure that she carries,
or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes,
because that is the doorway to her heart,
the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mode
but the true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.
It is the caring that she lovingly gives~
the passion that she shows.

Don't quit!

When things go wrong
as they sometimes will...
When the road you're trudging
seems alll uphill...
When the funds are low
and the debts are high...
And you want to smile
but you have to sigh...
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must,
but don't you quit.

Success is failure inside out
The silver tint of the clouds are doubt
And you never can tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems afar
so stick to the fight
when you're hardest hit,

It's when things seem worst
that you MUSN'T QUIT

Author unknown

When stress makes you feel low- remember this...

When the stress in your life feels too much to handle,
when 24 hours in a day are not enough,
when the world seems really BIG
and you feel really small
remember the mayonnaise jar and the coffee:

A professor stood before his philosophy class
and had some items in front on him.

When the class began, wordlessly,
he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full.
They agreed it was.

So then the professor then picked up a box of pebbles
and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.

The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.
He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

Read the rest of this remarkable story...