Excess
of sorrow laughs/ Excess of joy weeps
--William Blake
The
seasons, our relations, and our bodies are all striving for balance; the
vastness of winter brings the miracle of the crocuses, relationships with heat
and passion in the bedroom often include shouting brawls on the street, and
lest we forget the sugar coma. Too much of anything becomes its opposite. Look
around and you'll find that truth over and over again. Accepting the reality of
moderation has made me a more patient, hopeful person and has absolutely given
me my health. If you can bear being called "a geriatric" or "a
snooze", here are some suggestions:
Don't
open it. Keep your computer shut and
your phone locked for at least 15 minutes after rising in the morning (I double
dare you to do it on public transportation too.). We are given the
luxury/damnation of being able to have our worlds be what and how we want it,
and at the exact time we desire it. Remember that Pixar film, WALL-E, and how the humans sailed around on their automated
chairs with their little computers? We're not so far from that. Open your
windows, go out on your fire escapes or porches and simply open your eyes.
Listen to the radio instead of Pandora. Read an actual book instead of
bookmarked websites. It is still a breathtaking world and one that has the
capability of delighting you with its surprises.
Eat
with the seasons. It does not
behoove you to eat salads or drink copious amounts of juice throughout the year
- they are very cooling and subsequently balancing for your body throughout the
warmer months of spring and summer. Fall and winter, however, call for warming
and gathering foods -- like squash, buckwheat, black pepper and cinnamon. It
can be a lot to wrap one's head around with the ever-availability of produce in
grocery stores. A CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) food share is an easy
way to eat seasonally, as you are supplied with locally grown produce that has
been freshly harvested.
Stop
eating three hours prior to sleep.
Right, I know -- how non-European of me. Your digestion simply doesn't work as
well when you are horizontal. That means you don't eliminate (yes, I'm talking
about bowel movements) thoroughly and subsequently hold onto toxins that your
body otherwise wants/needs to get rid of. Going to bed with food in your
stomach or mid-way through your digestive tract means that you don't allow your
organs to rejuvenate as you sleep, thereby not getting total bodied rest. The
word breakfast should be taken
literally – the first food you consume in the morning should be the breaking of
a fast.
Exercise.
Whatever way you want to get the
blood pumping, do it -- biking, going to the gym, buying a tennis racket,
taking a walk uphill. Exercise takes you away from the stresses of your daily
reality and helps to trigger a sense of achievement. The chemicals (endorphins,
serotonin, dopamine and adrenalin) activated and released during exercise can
combat depression, addiction and can help to manage pain. If you are new to
exercise take it slow and listen carefully -- your body is learning a new
language and it is important to respect the process. Consult with a doctor if
you have any health concerns.
Look
for the lesson. Either it's the
actual secret of life or simply a way to cope -- adjusting your perspective to
find the opportunity to learn within a set of circumstances will enrich your
life exponentially. Each of us possess the superpower of choice; electing to
find the silver lining within a moment, like exercise, elicits a feeling of
achievement and can leave peace in its wake. This is a life's work and a habit
that takes time to develop. Start small; acknowledging that a speeding ticket
is a reminder of not being above the law or that getting your heart broken can
help you treat future relationships with more respect and love.
Finally,
the reminder: you receive what you give. Tibetan Buddhist nun, Pema Chodron, wrote
this book, When Things Fall Apart and
it changed me entirely. She writes about a long existing parable in which
a Cherokee elder is requested to "tell a story" by her grandson. She
pauses momentarily and then says:
Within
each spirit there are two wolves. One is big and severe looking, with grey,
matted fur, glistening, cloudy eyes and gnashing teeth. It is the bad wolf; it
represents greed, envy, hatred, ego and it fights dirty. The other one is just
as big but with a clean coat and teeth and considering eyes. It is the good
wolf; it represents forgiveness, patience, graciousness, love and is a gallant
fighter who plays by the rules. They are always within you and they are always,
always in conflict.
The
boy, looking aghast and rather scared, blurts out: "Which one wins??"
She looks at him, smiles gently, and says, "The one you
feed."
Adria Lee has a BFA in Acting from Ithaca College where she learned the importance of accountability of thoughts, actions and work ethic. For the past three years, she has cooked in the kitchen of Macro Mamas in the Fingerlakes region of New York State where she was first introduced to the concept of food energetics (closely related to Traditional Chinese Medicine and Macrobiotics). She heads to Spain this spring to walk the Camino de Santiago where she will collect recipes and stories which you will be able to find on her blog http://kitchenleeway.blogspot.com
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