Headache Relief August 21, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Health & Wellness, Life Balance, Meditation, Mindfulness.18 comments
Headaches are HORRID. I can’t seem to accomplish anything when my head is pounding. If you need help ridding your head of unwanted tenants, consider meditation.
At worst, it will be an inexpensive experiment.
The more “antsy” your mind . . . the greater the benefit you may receive from calming it with breathing & meditation practice.
The next time you feel a headache coming on, take 10 minutes out to practice this short meditation to head off the pain:
Find a Relaxing Posture. …
Breathe Deeply. …
Mentally Scan Your Skull for Points of Tension. …
Scan Downward Through the Rest of Your Body. …
Calm Your Mind by Focusing on the Sound of Your Breath.
From: Meditation for Headache Relief | HuffPost
Too complicated? Just close your eyes and B~R~E~A~T~H~E!
Or give a listen to a moving piece of music and go with the flow:
Aah . . . that’s better!
That’s Quirky! August 19, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Happiness, Humor, Life Balance, Travel & Leisure.21 comments
After lunch, we headed down Richmond Road through Sorority Row, pausing long enough to snap a shot of Tri Delt (Delta Delta Delta) . . .
On our way to the Peanut Shop for “provisions,” we turned onto Prince George Street where we ran into a zebra-striped unicorn outside Quirks . . .
The unicorn sported a stellar horn and espoused a sound philosophy . . .
Why fit in when you were born to stand out? ~ Dr. Seuss
Aah . . . that’s better!
Mom’s Passing July 31, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Gratitude, Happiness, Life Balance, Mindfulness.46 comments
Mom passed away this evening at age 87 after a recent and rapid decline.
Bill and I visited her at Doug & Joan’s house at the end of May. At that time, she was still taking regular walks outside, taking her meals upstairs, and enjoying a pleasant flow to her days.
We had a wonderful visit.
The same held true when Betsy, Mike, and Sam visited at the beginning of June.
Since then, her energy levels declined at a rapid rate . . .
A week ago, Hospice let us know that the end was approaching and offered increased assistance to Joan with mom’s care since she could no longer eat, drink, or get out of bed. Fortunately, mom remained comfortable (with pain medication) until she passed away earlier this evening.
Although we are saddened by her passing, we are at peace with the knowledge that she would not have wanted to linger in a semi-conscious state.
She only wanted to live while she could still “live it up” . . .
Plus, she missed my dad.
In a philosophy paper written in college, she summed up her life philosophy:
What are we trying to achieve?
Here, I believe with Plato and Aristotle that the highest good is the full development of our individual potentialities ~ and this is happiness, complete in itself, the intrinsic good.
The individual will know happiness as a state of being, not as a momentary pleasure; it will be the hymn of his life to uplift him and to sing on into the lives of all who know him.
On these points, she agrees, also, with the Dalai Lama . . . we are here to be happy and to make others happy.
Let that be the coda to each of our lives.
Aah . . . that’s better!
A Monkey With A Megaphone July 25, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Happiness, Less IS More, Life Balance, Mindfulness.15 comments
David wrote another fabulous post ~ this one focused on desire:
Three Things We All Need to Know About Desire
My favorite takeaway from the post is the visual imagery David shared when he likened desire to a “monkey with a megaphone.”
Great depiction!
Desires arise constantly.
We can succumb to the monkey as it chatters on and on about its endless ticker tape of desires, much like a toddler in the grocery store check-out line . . .
OR we can train ourselves to filter the constant chattering and clamoring of our monkey minds and discern for ourselves which desires merit fulfillment.
And which should be left on the cutting room floor.
Mindful discernment is not easy, but it’s worth it. After all, our freedom is at stake!
Aah . . . that’s better!
The Power of Pen . . . and Paper! July 19, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Gratitude, Happiness, Life Balance, Mindfulness.31 comments
Journaling on a daily basis helps boost creative thinking.
It allows us to access hidden recesses and expand the boundaries of our minds.
It promotes clarity and fosters insight as we allow our imagination to take flight.
It helps us to assign positive meaning to what life metes out.
It improves our ability to “think outside the box” and come up with creative solutions.
Judy Willis MD, a neurologist, and former classroom teacher explains, “The practice of writing can enhance the brain’s intake, processing, retaining, and retrieving of information… it promotes the brain’s attentive focus … boosts long-term memory, illuminates patterns, gives the brain time for reflection, and when well-guided, is a source of conceptual development and stimulus of the brain’s highest cognition.”
To read more about the benefits of this powerful practice:
Best of all, starting a morning journal practice is simple:
- Find a pen or pencil.
- Grab a notebook or sheet of paper.
- Write, draw, doodle, reflect, reminisce, explore, etc.
It’s your boat to float!
Aah . . . that’s better!
Success & Failure = Inside Jobs July 11, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Happiness, Life Balance, Mindfulness, People.31 comments
Chasing Unicorns posted a thought-provoking “stolen quote” last week.
He lifted it (exercising due care) from J. K. Rowling’s Harvard Commencement Address in 2008 when she reminded the graduates (and other attentive attendees) that we must decide for ourselves what constitutes “failure.”
She’s right.
It’s pointless to measure our success and failure using someone’s else’s yardstick.
No one else knows what we value the most. They only know what they value most . . . since they are looking at the world through their eyes.
Some yardsticks measure power. Others measure money or acclaim or fame.
For some, success lies in approval from others manifested in the form of awards and trophies, accolades and attention, and “likes” on social media.
They tend not to agree with the “less is more” philosophy.
Still others measure success by education or knowledge . . . or by the adrenaline rush of running the rapids or parachuting from a plane or wrestling an alligator.
My preferred yardstick is inner peace and happiness and contentment.
For years, I’ve measured success by how much I am “enjoying the journey” . . . without worrying about reaching some unseen and imaginary “Finish Line.”
If I am happy and peace-filled right here, right now ~> THAT’S SUCCESS!
Aah . . . that’s better!
On with the dance! Let joy be unconfined. ~ Lord Byron
Drink It All In July 5, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Less IS More, Life Balance, Mindfulness.10 comments
When we’re “lost in thought” we tend to “miss the moment.”
To be mindful OF the moment IN the moment, we have to stop thinking and start sensing . . .
We need to see, hear, smell, touch, and taste what’s going on around us.
We need to stop ruminating or the past and rehearsing the future if we want to experience the present and be present for the experience surrounding us right here, right now.
For more on this, read David’s post on Raptitude this week:
The Alternative to Thinking All the Time
Drink it all in!
Aah . . . that’s better!
Press The *PAUSE* Button May 11, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Gratitude, Happiness, Life Balance, Mindfulness.10 comments
The myriad of challenges we face in our lives can create agitation and anxiety in our thoughts, crowding out feelings of peace and happiness.
When we take a few minutes to press the *pause* button, our calm center returns . . . and with it our feelings of love and gratitude for all the drops of good in our lives.
When we remember who we are at the core, our days overflow with peace, kindness, love, and contentment.
And we stop struggling with the current of life and enter its flow.
Want to dive in to the flow of life? Enjoy the calming cadence of Val’s recent post: Haiku – Notice
Aah . . . that’s better!
Following The “What Ifs” . . . April 17, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Happiness, Less IS More, Life Balance, Mindfulness.21 comments
Life is all about following the “what ifs” . . . isn’t it?
What if I moved away from crowds, noise, and congestion toward silence, serenity, and solitude?
What if I moved away from cold cloudy days toward warm tropical breezes under bright blue skies?
What if I moved away from perpetual busyness toward simplicity?
What if I ignored the yipping of border collies trying to keep me in line and steered my own ship following the call of my inner voice?
For some, drifting with the tides holds no appeal. To them, my decision to “go with the flow”~ to rise and fall with the ebb and flow of life ~ sounds dull.
For me, it’s perfect.
Time to pause and reflect, to read and write, to pursue things that interest me without concern about accolades, awards, achievement, or recognition in the eyes of others.
Instead of being nervous or anxious about meeting external expectations, I am relaxed as I flow from one activity to the next.
Instead of acting with deference to the judgments of others, I happily assert my independence.
Instead of settling for societal mandates and consensus, I persist with what matters to me.
Instead of dreading the dawning of the day, I’m excited to be awake and aware of the infinite possibilities around.
Instead of being stuck like a square peg in a round hole, I can enjoy each custom-made niche.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Next up: Thoreau had the write idea when he penned Walden.
Why Slacking Off Pays Off . . . April 15, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Less IS More, Life Balance, Mindfulness, Travel & Leisure.16 comments
I’ve long been a proponent of the phrase “less is more,” which I find applicable in situations too numerous to count.
And now I’ve found a new application for the phrase.
Turns out that LESS work often results in MORE creative output.
Don’t believe me?
Check out this article ~ Darwin Was A Slacker And You Should Be Too
From the article:
Figures as different as Charles Dickens, Henri Poincaré, and Ingmar Bergman, working in disparate fields in different times, all shared a passion for their work, a terrific ambition to succeed, and an almost superhuman capacity to focus.
Yet when you look closely at their daily lives, they only spent a few hours a day doing what we would recognize as their most important work. The rest of the time, they were hiking mountains, taking naps, going on walks with friends, or just sitting and thinking.
Their creativity and productivity, in other words, were not the result of endless hours of toil. Their towering creative achievements result from modest “working” hours.
From writing to research, from science to music, from athletics to art, top performers benefit from deliberate practice followed by deliberate rest and downtime.
World-class performance doesn’t come after 10,000 hours of practice, as Malcolm Gladwell claimed:
“It comes after 10,000 hours of deliberate practice, 12,500 hours of deliberate rest, and 30,000 hours of sleep.”
Aah . . . that’s better!
The cited and linked article is excerpted from Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang
