Actually, yes I can - and I do. I am reasonably flexible, so I can cross one leg over the other and reach my soles. Reflexology is brilliant for refreshing one's sole - and other parts too!
However, it's not the only way I relax. I paint in watercolour, write fiction and also meditate. All three take me away from the stresses of this world, which yes, of course, I encounter. These practices help me deal with them.
Meditation teaches me to take a step back, to watch my own thoughts and realise that they are indeed just that, thoughts. Be they good or bad, they will pass - and thoughts do not define the real me. By taking a step back, I do get to see the wood for the trees - and that helps me to plan a strategy for coping with life's little surprises. Finding a way through the wood, past the trees, if you will.
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| Is there a way through? You betcha! |
Painting allows me to create a world of my own. I like to paint things which attract me, they are usually things that make me smile, and some are filled with light.
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| Delicious! I can taste it all over again. |
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| Crystal glass, so enchanting. Chocolate and fruit too. It's all good! |
In my fiction, again I create a world. It has twists and turns and the odd 'misguided' character; but on the whole, my world faces the sun, being bathed in light.
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| My own created world. |
However, in all these things that I love, you'll notice that there is no balance. Everything I love is sedentary. Back in May, I wrote about finding the balance. So now there is activity. I walk my dog, and now that she is older and not able to do the long walks, I speed walk a minimum of a mile a day. (That's fast walking to me, not the type where you throw your hips out and walk heel to toe.) It is surprising how well that clears the cobwebs from your mind, especially when you do not allow any one type of thought sway. I've stopped and seen some beauty in my surroundings while this was happening.
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| You walk, I'll snooze! |
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| Just waiting for me to discover |
These are my way of relaxing, refreshing and restoring my own equilibrium. They are not the only way. You'll find ones specific to you. I'd love to hear all about them!
Time - or more correctly, lack of time - is the reason I hear for most people not doing similar. The accountant in me says audit your time. Write down what you want to do, where your time goes and see where you can find the time to relax and refresh. Most of all, find the balance. Otherwise you may find yourself visiting me in a professional capacity. Which is quite a journey, for some of you!
That brings me to my last point: laughter. Humour. It neutralises a lot of angst. Make use of that fact. Laugh frequently.
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| Laugh. Got it! |
