First, I want you to know that I see you and I honor you.
The past 2 months have been “heavy” to say the least. The impact of the recent natural disasters has been far-reaching, and even if you don’t have direct connections to folks and places that have been impacted, we still feel it collectively. My family is from Puerto Rico – both sets of grandparents came to Chicago to raise their families and make a living that supported their future generations (including me I still have family and friends on the island and the shit show that’s happening over there is devastating for so many, and incredibly frustrating to watch from afar… unable truly help in the way that I would like but attempting to support them in the ways that I can.
Then there’s the recent Las Vegas shooting and the fires that are currently decimating parts of California including homes and businesses, and so many other catastrophes that just bring us to our knees. And that’s not even including the personal “hurricanes” that we may be experiencing in our individual lives.
As we navigate this thing called life, and the tumultuous waves of change engulfing our experience and breath, it’s even THAT much more important that we (1) radically nourish ourselves so we can be fully present and able to do our part, and (2) fiercely support inclusion – inclusion of ALL people, ideas, stories, beings…
Radical self-nourishment
Yea yea, here’s the self-care talk again, right? Well, yes. I can’t stress how imperative it is to nourish ourselves NO MATTER THE CIRCUMSTANCES. Of course, this is going to look different depending on what is going on in your life… i.e. if you don’t have power or water and are in survival mode, if you’ve lost your home or a loved one, then self-nourishment is going to look different than when you were experiencing less arduous times. I’m not talking about “spa days” or other out-of-reach luxuries. What the heck does radical self-nourishment look like when you’re dealing with life-altering circumstances or pain-staking challenges?
It looks like…
…taking 2 minutes to take deep cleansing breaths
…appreciating the beauty within the hardship – there is always beauty
…holding your child a minute longer
…hydrating and bathing your body and cells regularly with filtered or spring water
…allow the tears to flow and release your pain
…honoring all beings & the earth by choosing consciously grown and raised food when possible
…sending prayers, donations, money, waves of support to those who need them more than you do
…smell and take in the perfection of a flower or herb medicine
…telling your family and friends that you love them
…face yourself in the mirror and tell yourself that you love YOU
Everything is temporary, and there are no guarantees in life. But as long as you are on this Earth walk, one constant is your need for nourishment for your body, mind, and soul. No exceptions.
Fiercely support Inclusion
In a recent Akashic Record monthly circle I’m apart of, we talked about the concept and essence of inclusion, which came about as a theme.
Inclusion is a revolutionary concept in and of itself these days… think about it – how many of our systems and structures are based on exclusion and exclusivity? We can see this obviously with wealth distribution in the US, where the richest 1% own more wealth than the bottom 90%. At least 11% of the global population is hungry – excluded from access to food, despite there being more than enough (and so much waste). I could go on.
The point, however, is that inclusion is an ancient remedy for restoring health to the whole – on the personal and community level. It’s a way of “re-membering” ourselves and all our relations to restore whole-ness.
That’s what tribal living was all about – and excommunication (i.e. exclusion from the tribe and community) was essentially a death sentence. Our biology and cellular memory, then, tells us that exclusion = death, and inclusion = health and wholeness.
I’ve been thinking a lot about these 2 concepts, and working on ways to incorporate these into my life and business model in a sustaining, and life-affirming way. I encourage you to take these ideas into your life and health plan, and I’d love to hear the different ways radical self-nourishment and fierce inclusion show up in your experience and how they make a difference for you and others.
