Nourishment

"When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life." ~ Jean Shinoda Bolen

"To nourish the soul means to become kinder, more compassionate, wiser and more loving, often through the making of difficult choices that foster growth rather than safety. The nourishment and growth of the soul is the very reason for human life." ~ Joan Z Borysenko Dictionary: nour·ish·ment| ˈnəriSHmənt | noun -the food or other substances necessary for growth, health, and good condition Thesaurus: -means of keeping body and soul together I’ve been immersing a lot in “nourishment” without even consciously realizing that that is what I was doing and practicing. With introspection, and in retrospect, I realize I have taken this past year to deeply nourish myself. I knew I was feeling supported in taking a step back and finding balance in my life…I knew I was healing and growing from life’s challenges and offering myself compassion and patience in those regards…I knew I was meeting the challenge of isolation by taking walks and hikes in my neighborhood trails and forests…I knew I was feeling more alive, more grounded and more connected with my weekly meditation class and my own personal practice…I knew that taking dance and conditioning classes that I looked forward to with great joy and excitement, that I felt more motivation, energy and a general, all around good feeling and sense of accomplishment and stronger technique and mind and body…I knew that increasing my water intake felt right and getting good sleep proved beneficial. I knew that creating boundaries about my own needs for my well-being had majorly positive benefits… All of these things and more, nourished and supported me when I needed it most. They also nourished me on a daily basis, week after week…and helped me to thrive and grow even more deeply healthy, mentally and physically, as a human being living in this world. That nourishment I gave myself was then transferred and transmitted to others in my realms, both personally and professionally…And also a general sense of more calm, less stress, less “doing”, less worry/anxiety, more acceptance and more all around well-being, encompassed my life and continues to do so. I believe I have developed habits now that will sustain and stay with me for the rest of my life…and I keep gathering more as I go. It’s really beautiful. And with all of this nourishment and processing...comes gratitude. I feel completely grateful for the opportunity and space available to me in regards to being in a position to be able to nourish myself. Personally, for me, I have found that a very large part of my well-being and nourishment comes from nature. Nature feeds me, it helps ground me and it nourishes me… and in turn, I bring that transference back into my practice. As I do this, I find more balance and a more nourishing routine - creating a cycle that allows me to give and also be more creative… "The diversity of the phenomena of nature is so great, and the treasures hidden in the heavens so rich, precisely in order that the human mind shall never be lacking in fresh nourishment." ~ Johannes Kepler A thought for you: Nourishment where do you get it…? What truly feeds you…? And how can bring more of it into your life…?