“If light is in your heart, you will find your way home.” – Rumi
“You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.” – Mahatma Gandhi
Today is the darkest day of the year – the Winter Solstice – the longest night and the shortest day. This is such an interesting time of year, sometimes full of joy and celebration, sometimes full of loneliness or hunger, sometimes full of wanting to surprise children with gifts but not having the means, sometimes full of kindness and generosity. And right now, it is sadly a time of political war. There is so much anger and hatred and fear. I know I am deeply sad and concerned about our planet, about human and animal rights, about too many who are suffering, about justice and our democracy.
And yet, tomorrow our days get longer and our nights shorter! The light is returning, as it always does.
When the darkness comes, whether it is cold and gray days or a feeling of discouragement or despair, I remember the wisdom from songs and movies. I am thinking of the Disney movie Frozen (I have not seen Frozen 2 yet!), where Elsa’s fear of her power froze her village – and her sister’s heart. What healed it? LOVE! Love heals a frozen heart!
Another Disney movie, A Wrinkle in Time, has the same message. Children travel to a planet that possesses all of the evil in the universe to rescue their father. What overcame the evil Dark Thing, IT? Love!
If you are needing some support during this dark time of year, here are a few things that help me:
Get Grateful!! I was working with a client the other day, and we were talking about gratitude. She was saying she ran out of things to be grateful for. I suggested that gratitude is not about checking things off of a list. We can be grateful for the same things over and over. I wake up, and while I am using Reiki on myself, I am grateful for my bed, my home, warmth, my health, etc. Every day!
Practice Kindness & Generosity: I love to smile at people, give compliments, help those less fortunate. This year, Jim and I “adopted a family” – we bought gifts and certificates for food. We don’t know these people, and we will not meet them. We were so happy and moved, often teary and open hearted, to be able to help a family that had very little.
Move Your Body – One of the best things we can do when we are feeling down is to move – a short walk, some stretching, some dancing, whatever you can do to get your energy moving.
Listen to Music – Listen to music that is uplifting for you – sing along and dance!!
Drink Plenty of Water & Eat Well – Yes, it is the sugar time of year. It’s all about balance!
Breathe into Your Heart – Here’s some wonderful information about breathing into your heart to feel better.
EFT / Tapping – When I am feeling off center, I often tap. And I keep going until I feel a shift.