Yesterday was World Peace Day and it got me thinking about how we could apply this also to our health and well-being. The question from the official video (link at bottom of blog), “who will you make peace with?” triggered the immediate intuitive response inside of me saying, “ourselves.” How much of our day to day conflict is self-imposed? What can we do right in the here-and-now to create more peace in the world by making our OWN energy more peaceful? Here were some thoughts that came to mind:
The scale. That number has the power to elicit an emotional response in us. Why not try this week to make peace with whatever number shows up, reminding yourself that that number also contains the weight of your heart pumping your blood; the lungs breathing the oxygen you are currently inhaling; the weight of your eyes that allow you to see your child or a flower or a beautiful sunset; the weight of your arms that can embrace someone you love; the weight of your hands able to grasp another in a sign of respect, high-five a friend, or create beautiful works of art.Food. So often we associate food with guilt or deprivation but it is something to be cherished for the nutrients it provides our body! This week, practice mindfulness with your food. There is a type of zen that comes with eating leafy greens or a juicy piece of fresh fruit 🙂
Workouts. This is not punishment. This is training your body to be more efficient and getting you to a healthier state! This is a chance to appreciate moving your body and all that it can do! Your body is in it’s highest glory when it is moving joyfully!!
Our bodies. How much are you appreciating your body and truly loving yourself? I wrote a blog on this recently to explain how much of a critical role this plays in our journey and progress:
Work. Make peace with looking at how we get to SERVE. If you’re someone who desires to help people, you can do this no matter what your job is. Here are some ways I have trained myself to APPRECIATE what I GET to do rather than viewing it as a “should do” or a “have to do” dreaded obligation (this applies to workouts too):
Other people. Sometimes this may be an apology or a conversation to work things out. Sometimes this may be setting boundaries or expectations. Sometimes it may be letting go of relationships that no longer serve us or being more intentional with who we spend our time around. It can also be making peace with other people in our own soul. If the other person is not ready or willing, a conversation or resolution may not be possible. But hanging on to resentment, uneasiness, unforgiveness, guilt, hard feelings, or general bad vibes does not serve us. It causes stress and reinforcement of the negative patterns and contributes to the overall negativity in the world. Working on forgiving the other person and ourselves for any wrongdoing, having compassion for how the other person might be feeling, recognizing that we don’t know their full story or what pain and fear might have been driving them to act the way they did, recognizing that any wrongdoing to us has nothing to do with us and everything to do with their pain, accepting and forgiving ourselves for any hurt we may have caused and learning from it moving forward, mentally releasing toxic energy, and sending love and blessings to that person can literally CHANGE YOUR LIFE!! We cannot control other people, but we do have power over our own thoughts, emotions, actions and reactions as well as the energy that surrounds the situation. Instead of feeding the situation onward with negative energy, let it resolve with your own peace and love about it. Say a prayer of gratitude for any tough situations like this, recognizing that even seemingly unwanted situations like this are all for our greater good, growth, and expansion.
Gratitude for the tough stuff: http://katelynlesk.blogspot.com/2015/09/gratitude-for-tough-stuff.html
Our time. Let’s make peace with time knowing we only have so much time in a day and be gentle with ourselves, doing what we can, surrendering to the universe what we can’t. Let’s ease our minds with the mantra: time expands, life is long.
Our life. This has a LOT to do with what I described in the video above: accepting what is and recognizing that the “wanted” stuff and the “unwanted” is all working for our greater good.
Not to mention, we have a TON of things in our lives to be grateful for! No matter how bad things might be right now, I know you have at least SOME things to be grateful for! For example, right now, I know you have fresh air to breath, you woke up this morning, you have electricity and internet access, and you have at least one person who cares about you and your happiness and is rooting for you (me!). Start with those little things if that’s all you can muster! And build up to the AMAZING things that completely surround us with beauty and wonder in this world!!
How to create a gratitude practice:
Ourselves. What are you not forgiving yourself for? What resistance could you let go of? In what ways could you be a little more gentle with yourself? In what ways could you be a little more accepting of yourself, flaws and all? In what ways could you take a little more of a chance on yourself? We can at times be our own worst enemy and critic. Make the world a little more peaceful by starting with yourself!! In doing this, you also give others permission to the same!! How can you be a little more authentically YOU today??
World peace day official video: