Delighted that Spirituality & Health Magazine has put another one of my articles out into the world! I’ve been asking myself what it takes to be present and fully absorbed in the life we are leading. My questioning led me to come up with several revelations.
“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” – George Bernard Shaw
Whenever I change my environment, I always return home to a revelation about my life. Now that I’ve readjusted to being in New York after visiting with friends in Mykonos (Greece), I realize that I’ve had another epiphany.
We don’t prioritize playtime.
While away, I had time to have fun in the sand with several of my besties. It didn’t matter that the Aegean winds of up to 35 mph seriously messed with our patience, hair and clothing.
With absolutely no structure to our days, my playmates and I gave in to the untamable winds and walked, did cartwheels, and danced on the beach. Playing felt fantastic – we giggled like children!
Play is a creative act. It releases endorphins, the body’s natural “happy” chemicals responsible for making us feel joy.
My social time in Manhattan is often made up of commitments that involve structure – things like meeting friends for meals, drinks, movies, concerts, and lectures. Due to everyone’s career and family responsibilities, there is very little unstructured playtime.
When I was in grade school, my neighborhood pals – Steven, Frank, and Joe – and I would meet each morning during summer break. The first thing we did was determine what game we would play that day.
After a group consensus, we would begin a game of hide-and-seek, spies, or Batman. Using our imaginations, we played out these games for many hours. And we giggled – a lot.
Our capitalistic society values productivity. Unlike childhood play, which is respected, adult play is generally perceived as unproductive unless it is competitive. Therefore, adult play tends to be dismissed.
You can’t place a value on joy.
That’s all from me today. I take my revelations seriously. I’m heading out to meet a friend in one of the best playgrounds in the world. 😉
To book a private session with me in order to uncover the optimal way to integrate play into your lifestyle, please go to ContactMe! on the right sidebar or below (depending on device).
“Gratitude is the Abracadabra of the universe.”
-Adironda, Marilyn Harper
It was crowded on the Canal Street subway platform. I was waiting to take the Q train home after having dinner with a friend. It’s not unusual to find musicians performing in New York City’s subway system. But on this evening, I was greeted by a magician.
The magician performed his magic act in silence, except for an occasional “Abracadabra!” This invocation seemed to create magic. Seemingly out of nowhere, white, pink, and red roses appeared in the palm of his hand.
Watching his performance reminded me that I had been sensing magic, meaning unexpected positive happenings, in my life. While on the ride uptown, amidst the shuffling of people, announcements, and annoying tone alerting riders of the closing doors, I wondered what our “Abracadabra!” is. What creates magic for us?
I had recently been feeling deeply grateful for the opportunity to build my coaching business. Being creative and helping others thrive makes me feel complete. The answer hit me:
Feeling gratitude and no need for anything to be different is your “Abracadabra!”.
In other words, gratitude produces the good vibes that generate abundance. Hence, the ability to manifest welcome happenings in your life is all about how grateful you feel. This revelation is a pretty big deal.
Our conditioning (see March blog post, “Who Am I?”) leads us to chase after how things should be rather than appreciate what is.
I’m as guilty of this lack of presence as any of my clients. It’s a behavior that I’ve consciously worked on and have made some progress with. In my July blog post (see “A Life You Don’t Need To Escape”), I wrote about my experience creating a life I am so present with that I don’t feel the need to break away.
The month of August leaves me feeling profoundly grateful for my family, health, friends, clients, life experiences, and opportunities for growth. That’s not to say that a disappointment or two hasn’t come up. When they occurred, I retreated to the beach for the afternoon. Inhaling the sea spray led me to the realization that there are lessons inherent in every situation. By the end of the day, being in nature helped me to understand what they were.
I moved towards even deeper gratitude.
Afterward, unexpected clients, publishers, friends, and even invitations to savor these final days of summer by the sea appeared.
One of those offers was irresistible. I’ll be away for the next few weeks, disconnected from electromagnetic devices, feet up, taking in a good book, the salt air, and feeling grateful.
Thank you to the magician and every person who has touched my life during the magical moments of the past year.
Abracadabra! 😉
Since ancient times, September has been viewed as the beginning of the spiritual new year by several different cultures. A sense of new beginnings is palpable. To book a private session with me in order to explore what gratitude can begin to manifest for you this fall, please go to Contact Me! on the right sidebar or below (depending on device).