Yesterday I indulged in a political rant here at my blog and I need to do that every once in awhile to blow the carbon out of the pipes. Yes being positive is the happiest way of being, but there are times I get fed up with things and if I don’t let it out then I tighten up. Being uptight is now the way to be when the world is spinning at a rate that has us humans running around like chickens with their heads cut off. These times call for flexibility of the mind, body and emotions.
It is difficult at times to break through your old thinking patterns. A rigid mind means you are unable to expand into new ways of thinking or understanding. When you think you already know and don’t question as you go, then you develop huge blind spots. With blind spots you will find life will sneak up on you like a 2x4 to the side of the head. Closed minds create suffering.
Flexible minds bend and expand as the need arises. If you are able to grow then you are able to live life more and more fully. When you come upon a challenge the flexing mind is able to adapt, to explore and to innovate in search of solutions.
Emotions that are protected and fear-based shrink from life. The closing down of the heart leaves people feeling disconnected and isolated. If feelings are pushed down they eventually will erupt in the form of a volcano of expression or turn into a health disruptive machine.
Expressed emotions make you feel alive and robust. When you let yourself and the people around you know how you feel you liberate yourself to live fully in the moment. Your heart is the emotional center of the feeling body. A feeling heart is full of compassion, caring, love and a true joy to experience. Even the most difficult feelings, when allowed to be felt, will come and go with out too much effort.
The rigid body breaks down under the pressure of life. Those who have lost flexibility eventual loose their ability to play, to dance, and to move about lightly and freely. A tight body feels wound up and unable to have fun doing anything. If uptight, the body’s immune system is compromised and illness begins to linger at the door.
The flexible body moves freely and easily. If you keep your body loose you will bend with the ups and downs of life, feel grounded, and weather the storms of difficult change. A body in motion can be a dance of expression, the grace of an athlete, the playfulness of the child within, or the weekend warrior trying to out fox your competition. A healthy body feels like real freedom.
Practices that greatly enhance your flexibility include: yoga, tai chi, stretching, mindfulness, meditation, acts of kindness, exploring new ideas, looking at life from other points of view, feeling your emotions without judgment, letting your heart express with courage, and sometimes just being in silence and with an openness to seeing yourself and the world with the joy of an explorer.