The Bee's Knees

I am mesmerized by what nature has to offer to us, what is there around us and sometimes we forget to appreciate or are too busy to notice. The good news is that it can be right in front of your house or just around the corner from it.

Every year my lavender plant and the Matilda poppy come to life around late May and the dance of the bees makes its grand entrance in June. How much I love to stop and see these bees, and butterflies and moths flying around and taking the precious nectar that represents their survival, and our survival too! They come and no matter how hard the wind can be blowing, they keep trying to get the nectar again and again. I took the video on this post in the past few days. Can you see how amazing this bee's legs are? They collect so much nectar there!

Back in the 1800s the expression "the bee's knees" was referred to describe something small or irrelevant. In the 1920s its meaning switched to refer to something of great excellence. Yes, of course what they do for us is nothing short of a miracle. Put in perspective that bees contribute to the pollination of about 75% of the plants that produce 90% of the food we eat. Wow! a 90% sounds like a lot to me when are are talking about over 7.5 billion people on this beautiful place called Earth. What message does this send? Absolutely! We need to take care of our bees.

Now, there is another aspect I want to share with you related to the video. When I saw the bee trying so hard to get back to the flower I could only think of how our lives are sometimes just like that moment: we face an obstacle, we are truly pushing agains high headwinds. This is when we have to try hard and even get out of our comfort zone. Perhaps we even have to try harder than we thought we could. There are times when we face a challenge and we feel discouraged or fearful. After all we are just coming out of a scary time in recent history and we might be a little extra cautious than usual. However, whenever we desire something with all of our heart, we will find the strength to achieve it. We need to set our mind in the right state and let nothing, absolutely nothing, stop us from getting it. Plot a route and go for it!

Accomplishing something that is bigger than ourselves can come from any areas of our lives. It does not have to be only professionally. How about that desire to learn how to dance or paint? How about reading long memoirs? How about changing your hair style? Even more, how about ending a friendship because it does not serve you anymore? The challenge can be in one or more areas of your life. By starting slowly and working on one at a time, you will get there and shape the life you truly want to live. I am right here to lend you a hand!

Go out there and be brave! I know you can do it!

What big and small roadblocks have you encountered in your life and how did you surmount them? I would love to hear from you.

Having enough

Many times in life we wonder why others seem to have it easier than us. Our minds race over what we can do about it. Sometimes we might even feel a little jealous about it. Other times, wanting more becomes a trap: a bigger car, a bigger house, longer and more expensive vacations. Reality is, having enough is a mind set. The conviction of having enough comes with the training of the mind and awareness. No way around it.

The sense of not enough permeates all areas of our lives. Do we have enough money? Do we have enough time? Do we have enough fun? Do we have enough friends? The list can be very long.

We seem to live in the era of "more is better." But, wait a minute, is more always better?

Do we need that fourth pair of new shoes this year? Do we really need a fifth pair of boots? Or, is it absolutely necessary to get those $300 jeans? Do we want to pay for and collect things we never use and end up giving away for pennies at a garage sale or donating it? Do we even want all that clutter?

Awareness is the first step toward realizing that we have enough. We will always have enough as long as we structure our lives around what we have built and what we have and can afford.

At a financial level, it might mean keeping a watchful eye on all purchases we make. It is easy to forget that unless we pay the credit card balance in full every month, carrying a balance incurs a very high financial cost via monthly interest. If we are instead referring to not having enough fun, we might want to consider what truly makes us feel happy. Is it a quiet walk in the mountains? Having friends over for dinner? By the way, having friends over for dinner does not mean you have to spend a lot of money and stress over it. A simple dinner together will do. Even buying take out might do. What matters is the time spent together and the intention.

How about not enough down time or free time? Cutting minutes here and there will help. Perhaps watching less TV or spending less time on electronic devices will provide more time to decompress and recharge. Sometimes saying no to events we are invited to is the best way to get centered and find that so treasured free time. We live in days when we seem to always be on the go and when nobody wants to be seen as the slow poke.

However, it is important to always put yourself first when it comes to rest and finding quiet time to release stress. Whenever one member of the family is stressed out and all over the place, surely everybody else in the family will notice it and likely be affected negatively.

Not enough peace of mind? Find a hobby, yoga or meditation class where you can empty your mind out. Take a couple of breaths and try again! It might start slowly, but the transformative power of mindful practices and activities has been documented by many studies.

Having enough is finding meaning in life. Finding the true meaning in the simple things in life. Think of a warm hug, a photo of your significant other, child, grandchild or pet. Spending more quality time with loved ones, keeping things simple and pondering if we really need to make that next purchase will help us walk in life a little more lightly and with less and less baggage over time.

Yoga Poses to Cope with the Holiday Craze

It happens every year! No matter how much we prepare mentally ahead of time and have an entire time-and-event plan set, it always hit us right in the head. The holiday season is a beautiful time of the year. So much joy, so much to share, time with family and friends, decadent meals, dessert galore, travel and so and so forth.

All these joys from the holiday season come along with the anticipation the season per se creates and this is what causes so much stress. We look forward to the season, but many times do not make the time seize it. We buy and wrap presents, sit down countless hours in front of the computer to buy more presents or gift cards, we rush to the post office, go out for dinner with friends, attend work holiday parties and end up exhausted!

Over the years, about 30 to be exact, reading and studying about health, yoga, nutrition fitness and wellness in general, I have created my own recharge and recover routine when I am feeling a little, or not so little, on the edge.

Here is a short, about 7 minutes long, yoga routine to do those times when you need to gather yourself and just be. You will feel rejuvenated and ready to go. Unfurl that yoga mat and do it!

Sequence:

Mountain pose - Tadasana

Alternate nostril breathing - Nadi Sodhana. (Two rounds. 1 full breath between rounds)

Child's pose - Balasana

Garland Pose - Malasana

Cobra pose - Bhujangasana

Supine spinal twist - Supta Jathara Parivartanasana

Legs up the wall - Viparia Karani

Reclining bound angle pose - Supta Baddha Konasana

Let me know in the comments how it went!