Honor Your Body Temple

How do you honor your body? Do you treat it like the temple that it is? Do you appreciate its curves, its power, its softness, its flexibility or its vulnerabilty? Do you compare it and contrast it against other bodies? Do you cherish its uniqueness and how it serves you?

Bodies come in all shapes and sizes and yet we hold to a standard set by society that only a small percentage can fit within. What does that mean to the rest of the bodies? That they fall short, have less value, should not be loved, or appreciated? Hardly!

Each body is a temple! Your body longs to share its gifts with you. The better your relationship with your body, the better the conversation! Every day messages are shared by your body ... are you listening? It will tell you what it needs. It will celebrate with you. It will challenge you. It will offer encouragement. It will state when it needs rest, fuel, movement, or a change. The better you develop your listening skills with your body, the better you will be able to honor it for all it offers you.

In our busy lives we often put our bodies last. Work, commitments, children, partners, and more comes first. Yet, it is undeniable that the better we tend to our own needs the better we can serve others. An important fact not meant to be ignored.

Your body is a sacred gift to be honored and valued in this lifetime. The more you take it for granted, the more likely you will miss important messages. The more you abuse it, the more likely it will suffer. And the more you understand it, accept it, adore it, the more likely you will find it helps you feel powerful, shine brightly, serve others better and live healthier.

Oh, the conversation about loving our bodies has been shared around the world. But the biggest piece of this whole conversation is how to stop the madness that serves as the bookends around this discussion. This madness is created by industries that want you to feel you will never be good enough, thin enough, curvy enough, busty enough, blonde enough, young enough...because you won't by their standards! None of us will. It is time to remove these voices and images from our conversation and begin honoring our body temple. They are only there to make their money and to suck you into the black hole of dissatisfaction, dishonor and comparison of your body. Instead, let's discuss how we can share a conversation about how we can celebrate our bodies, see the beauty of each other, how to empower with our words, images and thoughts, how we can see the beauty in ALL bodies. Regardless of our shape, our size, our measurement, our number on the label or the scale...regardless of our cup size, our hair color, the shape of our eyes, the length of our nails....regardless of all this and more let's have the conversation that will exclude no one from recognizing that they are beautiful in every way that they are!

To take part in this conversation join Robin Rice and I as we challenge the standards, initiate these types of discussions, celebrate all bodies and honor the body temple at the Awesome Woman Hub in a year of Celebrating Women & The Body Beautiful.

Blessings, Lisa

The Natural Response

Life has its cycles; historical, rhythmical, and natural. I have noticed so do I. The cycle that I have been honoring of late is the way in which my life and my body mirrors the cycles of Nature. 

Nature serves me as a mirror, reflecting to me patterns and actions that resonate within me. As we move through the transition month of November I feel myself moving into my preparations for the winter months ahead. I notice my time and energies are focused on wrapping up projects that were begun this autumn. I bring them into a place of closure, most complete. Those that need the respite of winter to lay dormant and percolate in the slower months of pause will be resurrected in the spring to see what will be birthed.

I feel my body transitioning as well. I notice shifts in my sleep cycle as I retire earlier and awaken before the sun, hot cup of tea in hand and energies at a slower but steady pace. I feel a longing to hunker down, to not be among the crowds, but rather walking in the snow, listening to the trees creaking and swaying or sitting before the fire meditating with the flames. My fuel choices for my body shift with the seasonal availability as well. No longer will the fresh greens from the farmers market be available, but instead I will turn to the root vegetables and stored seeds and grains. Dig deep the roots remind me.

Dig deep and use this time to do some inner work, because now is the time. I will visit the goddess Inana and do down to the depths to return with the freedom found and the treasures to welcome to the awakening of spring. I will sit with Hestia, goddess of the hearth and spend time with family building the inner relations that memories are made from as we celebrate the many holidays and family birthdays of the winter months.

It feels as though my body and soul have a natural response to the changing seasons that surround me. I use them as reminders, mirrors and guides. I feel the cycles weave through my days and months and years. I recall the seasonal changes of my life over time and find comfort in the rhythmic flow that is there.  

Using Nature as a map to guide and direct me feels like a natural tool. Her consistency brings direction. Her wisdom brings assurance. Her beauty brings wonder. As winter in New England begins to present itself, I look forward to the practices and the patterns that will surely come as well as the wonder and delight that will be found as I go to my inner cave to just Be.

Blessings, Lisa  

Is There A Duty To Serve?

Often there is great pride to be found in doing our duty, in answering the call and bringing our best self to the duty for others. But sometimes people have a different response to being told it is their duty. For some it feels forced, not authentic or genuine. 

To be in service to others and to have it be a a beautiful and intention filled gift, one's heart needs to be in it. The energy behind our service or duty to others is the primary gift. The results will be far more impacting, inspiring, supportive and beautiful if this energy comes from a place of fullness and joy. For it to be a gift to others, the genuine intention held with desire and love needs to be present.  Anything less, the purpose is lost.

So how can we be sure that our service to others is a heart filled duty? Perhaps it comes down to giving ourselves permission to gracefully say no.  Putting ourselves first sometimes feels uncomfortable for some. But we must be sure to tend to our own needs with as much love and intention as what we bring to others. When our heart is full, our body is whole and our soul's messages are heard, we come from a place of fullness and are able to give without conditions. We respond with the most beautiful Yes.

Pearl S. Buck once said, "To serve is beautiful, but only if it is done with joy and a whole heart." Understanding that it is an act of self-love to look after our needs before we take on those of others is an important part of giving and being in service. It is not a selfish act.

Serving with intention and integrity will insure that the bringing of our devotion to our service will be delivered with love and positivity to all that receive it. Being in service to others needs to be fluid and gentle, filled with our passion and our grace and hold the best of our energies and insights.

Blessings, Lisa

Ready, Set, GO!

I know that the Universe is ready to support my energies, my dreams, and my visions that excite me. There are times when we feel a bit alone in our work. Our path seems to hold little company. Our days require effort and focus and we often can only rely on our own energies and our connection to Source. Being able to count on the fact that this support is constant and that I can tap into it any time that I need is a provision that I rely upon regularly. It has kept me going when the going was tough, it has kept me positive when things looked hopeless and it has inspired me when I felt empty.

There are energies waiting for me to engage in. The Universe has set into motion a beautiful story for me to take part in. My Soul is ready to receive, respond and partake. I have gained insight and inspiration from my spiritual connection, now it is up to me to bring action to these possibilities. This is the part that is up to me.

It seems as though once I put into motion my energies with those surrounding me, things begin to fall into place. And not always is it problem free. But often within those problems are amazing insights, gifts and alternatives. Who am I to judge how these gifts come my way. The Universe, Spirit, my guides...they know where I am heading, what I need, what I don't...so I trust.

It has become a beautiful way to flow through my days. The path is always there to follow, the support is always there to be received and I simply need to remember to be aware that I am the one who sets my dreams and visions into motion. When I respond to the beauty that is around me, when I listen closely to the call from Spirit I begin to feel the urgings to begin. And so I take one step at a time, I check in often, I listen closely and I explore with optimism, trusting that the possibilities will present themselves and I will be guided and held in all the ways I need to be, whether I know it or not.

Blessings, Lisa