New Year’s Wellness
With every New Year come renewed intentions and resolutions in many forms; most are about improved health and wellness. Humorously, while there is a surge in the purchase of workout equipment from barbells to elliptical machines, there is a significant percentage that by June will either be relegated to the garage or returned to the store!
Intentions and resolutions not only come because of the New Year, they are also connected to the Winter Solstice, a yearly cycle in our Earth’s orbit when the sun begins to make its journey northward and the days become longer. Ancient people knew these cycles very well, and its deeper affect to our consciousness. This time of year became emphasized for new beginnings, letting go of the old and the return of the Sun, our inner light that guides us to new levels of wellness.
Like many, we are beings of habit. Many spiritual teachers speak of changing our habits and our life must then change. Mahatma Gandhi said: “We must be the change we see in the world.” It is persistence and continuity that pays off. That is why maintaining our health and wellness is a process, not a one-time event but an ongoing focus of attention. Where your attention goes, your energy follows.
It’s not that we cannot hold our resolutions: the intention to improve ourselves is always there. It is, however, sometimes a challenge to change our habits. It has been said that if we repeat something a number of times daily, the repetition will be ingrained, changing the habit. That is why many times it is a good idea to make such resolutions with a partner to encourage each other to continue on and not to lose momentum.
From the integral (mind-body-spirit) wellness standpoint, a resolution can be termed a “re-soul-you- shown” where we consciously decide on a deep level to command each moment mindfully and master the ability to make good decisions in those moments. And that is because we’ve only power in the moment, not in the future or the past, though we often dwell a lot on both!
Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens, the great American humorist) said: “Quitting smoking is easy! I’ve done it thousands of times!” But what he is really saying is that you can choose in the moment, then choose again, and again. It is not how many times you choose the right thing; it is that you choose the right thing again and again, in the moment.
Make good conscious choices in your resolutions this New Year and commit to those choices. Be persistent. It is said that a saint is a sinner who didn’t give up. Don’t worry if you slip a little: command the moment and make the good choice again! To repeat, it is only in the moment where your power exists! That way, you are not a prisoner of your past choices.
Commit to your holistic wellness: mind, body and spirit. All are important for balance.
Blessings,
Dr. Richard Jelusich, Ph.D.
www.bamboogardenwellness.com
www.lightnews.org
