Healing
I did not go to China with the intention of “healing.” I did not “have” anything that I needed to be healed of. Then I went on this China journey. I had many experiences. There was healing involved.
Dictionary.com provides these definitions of “heal:”
In past weeks, I talked about my first two healing “ahas!”: water and qigong.
Today, the third “aha!” - UNPLUG. Celebrate non-attachment.
Oh, it is so hard to leave behind past concerns, things undone, regrets, “could’ve, should’ve, would’ves”. It is equally hard to let go of worries about future plans, people, and to do lists. We consciously chose to have an international plan on only one of our phones....my husband’s. As a result, my contact with my work, my volunteer projects and town business were limited to occasionally functioning WIFI. No TV watching, as when we had TV, it was all in Chinese. We did use We Chat to communicate amongst members of our group, but I left that to my husband.
Being unplugged gave me time to savor each moment, reflect on it, talk about it with my husband and journal about it. All I could do was trust in the process, and believe that my absence, both physical and virtual, was an opportunity for the folks back home to grow in their responsibility and their response-ability. It was awesome to experience our journey without worry, without attachment to those projects during my absence. The weight of the world was lifted from my shoulders, and the thousand pecking ducks were kept at bay.
I also practiced non-attachment with respect to the journey itself. As Roger, our leader so often advised us, I did not have expectations about food or lodging or experiences. I welcomed it all with the iconic theatrical “Yes, please!” As a result, the new was awesome, the different was intriguing and the challenges were merely situations. Of course, this does not mean that I was “complaint free” - but I was able to examine the situations, learn the lesson and let it go much more readily than before.
(To be continued. In the meantime, enjoy these photos and this practice which will help you discover qi.)
PRACTICE: Forest Bathing: Sēnlínyù
Forest bathing is taking time to unwind and connect with nature to improve your health. Simply put: Forest bathing is retreating to nature to immerse in the forest atmosphere. Like a long hot soak in a bubble bath, we are relaxed, we make gentle, floating movements very slowly and we are focused on fully experiencing the nature around us.
The Chinese have always believed in the power of nature to heal. Friluftsliv or “free air life” is the Norwegian version of forest bathing which began in 1850s. Modern practice began in Japan in the late 1980’s and was coined by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries as “Shinrin-yoku,” which roughly translated means “forest bathing.”
Forest bathing has many benefits, including:
· Decreased risk of heart attack.
· Protection against obesity and diabetes.
· More energy and better sleep.
· Mood-boosting effects.
· Decreased inflammation.
· Clearer, more comfortable skin.
· Soothing relief for sore muscles.
· Anti-inflammatory terpenes.
· Reduce the hormone cortisol - the stress-inducing hormone
· Improve the human body’s autoimmune response to infection or sickness
· Increase attention span
· Lower blood pressure
How to take a forest bath
1. Go outside.
2. Find a calm place, free of distractions.
3. Use Qigong movements to leave the world behind.
4. Engage your 5 senses.
5. Be still, take off your shoes.
6. Be in silence. (10 – 20 -30 minutes).
7. As you slowly begin to emerge from your forest bath, find the lesson and store it in your heart.
OR Take a 40-minute brisk walk through a green canopy landscape.
I did not go to China with the intention of “healing.” I did not “have” anything that I needed to be healed of. Then I went on this China journey. I had many experiences. There was healing involved.
Dictionary.com provides these definitions of “heal:”
- to make healthy, whole, or sound; restore to health; free from ailment.
- to bring to an end or conclusion, as conflicts between people or groups, usually with the strong implication of restoring former amity; settle; reconcile:
- to free from evil; cleanse; purify: -to heal the soul.
In past weeks, I talked about my first two healing “ahas!”: water and qigong.
Today, the third “aha!” - UNPLUG. Celebrate non-attachment.
Oh, it is so hard to leave behind past concerns, things undone, regrets, “could’ve, should’ve, would’ves”. It is equally hard to let go of worries about future plans, people, and to do lists. We consciously chose to have an international plan on only one of our phones....my husband’s. As a result, my contact with my work, my volunteer projects and town business were limited to occasionally functioning WIFI. No TV watching, as when we had TV, it was all in Chinese. We did use We Chat to communicate amongst members of our group, but I left that to my husband.
Being unplugged gave me time to savor each moment, reflect on it, talk about it with my husband and journal about it. All I could do was trust in the process, and believe that my absence, both physical and virtual, was an opportunity for the folks back home to grow in their responsibility and their response-ability. It was awesome to experience our journey without worry, without attachment to those projects during my absence. The weight of the world was lifted from my shoulders, and the thousand pecking ducks were kept at bay.
I also practiced non-attachment with respect to the journey itself. As Roger, our leader so often advised us, I did not have expectations about food or lodging or experiences. I welcomed it all with the iconic theatrical “Yes, please!” As a result, the new was awesome, the different was intriguing and the challenges were merely situations. Of course, this does not mean that I was “complaint free” - but I was able to examine the situations, learn the lesson and let it go much more readily than before.
(To be continued. In the meantime, enjoy these photos and this practice which will help you discover qi.)
PRACTICE: Forest Bathing: Sēnlínyù
Forest bathing is taking time to unwind and connect with nature to improve your health. Simply put: Forest bathing is retreating to nature to immerse in the forest atmosphere. Like a long hot soak in a bubble bath, we are relaxed, we make gentle, floating movements very slowly and we are focused on fully experiencing the nature around us.
The Chinese have always believed in the power of nature to heal. Friluftsliv or “free air life” is the Norwegian version of forest bathing which began in 1850s. Modern practice began in Japan in the late 1980’s and was coined by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries as “Shinrin-yoku,” which roughly translated means “forest bathing.”
Forest bathing has many benefits, including:
· Decreased risk of heart attack.
· Protection against obesity and diabetes.
· More energy and better sleep.
· Mood-boosting effects.
· Decreased inflammation.
· Clearer, more comfortable skin.
· Soothing relief for sore muscles.
· Anti-inflammatory terpenes.
· Reduce the hormone cortisol - the stress-inducing hormone
· Improve the human body’s autoimmune response to infection or sickness
· Increase attention span
· Lower blood pressure
How to take a forest bath
1. Go outside.
2. Find a calm place, free of distractions.
3. Use Qigong movements to leave the world behind.
4. Engage your 5 senses.
5. Be still, take off your shoes.
6. Be in silence. (10 – 20 -30 minutes).
7. As you slowly begin to emerge from your forest bath, find the lesson and store it in your heart.
OR Take a 40-minute brisk walk through a green canopy landscape.