Health For Life

Some people grin and bear it. Others smile and change it.                           ~Unknown

Love, friendship, and smiles are like currency. If they are hoarded, no one gets the benefit of them; if they are kept in circulation, everyone benefits, and, again, like money they always accumulate something in transit.                                                                                                       ~Nellie Revell 

Often times I’ll say “slackers smile” and I usually receive a quizzical smile in response. What I mean by this is that it’s actually easier to smile in terms of energy expended than it is to frown or carry a furrowed brow. When we smile we offer an invitation to the world based on a welcoming pretense. So often the world greets you with the face that you bring to it. We all have had enough good old-fashioned trial and error to know that days that are positive are generally based on a positive internal sensibility.  I encourage you to try and smile at everyone you meet for a set period of time. I really enjoy this practice when I’m hiking in the mountains or walking my neighborhood. I make a point to say hi to and smile at every single person I meet. This may not fit your natural temperament but like so many things in life: fake it until you make it happen. Smile at how ridiculous it is to go outside and smile at people. Not a grade-school-picture-day kind of smile but the kind of smile you get when see a litter of puppies or the myriad expressions of a baby’s face.

           I keep images around or references that make me smile. Smiles are like the breathe, an incredibly cost-effective stress-reducing tool that is only a moment of awareness away. I recommend creating an uplifting space in your home that contains resources that connect you to your experience and lighten up the focus of your life. My favorite lately has been a book called Pronoia by visionary astrologer Rob Brezsny. It’s chock full of outrageous humor, thoughts, and insights and should really be read when you’re feeling stuck and disconnected because it will undoubtedly lift your spirits. Following is a short explanation of what pronoia is.

            DEFINITION: Pronoia is the antidote for paranoia. It’s the understanding that the universe is fundamentally friendly. It’s a mode of training your senses and intellect so you’re able to perceive the fact that life always gives you exactly what you need, exactly when you need it.
HYPOTHESES: Evil is boring. Cynicism is idiotic. Fear is a bad habit. Despair is lazy. Joy is fascinating. Love is an act of heroic genius. Pleasure is our birthright.
PROCEDURE: Act as if the universe is a prodigious miracle created for your amusement and illumination. Assume that secret helpers are working behind the scenes to assist you in turning into the gorgeous masterpiece you were born to be. Join the conspiracy to shower all of creation with blessings.