While I love the amazing complexity of our bodies and how responsive they can be when they are nurtured, we are so much more than just our physical selves…
For our lives to be enriched, we need to be full participants in life. We need to embrace the lessons life challenges present us with – but to do that, we need skills; a mindset that enables clarity, actions that help us de-stress, capacity to find objectivity, and willingness to learn new ways of looking at the world and our place in it.
To put this in even simpler terms, we need to look after ourselves physically – nurturing the body we have with good nutrition, appropriate exercise, adequate rest, and less stress.
We need to look after ourselves emotionally – learning to “feel” our feelings rather than burying or dismissing them. We need to use strategies to release negativity and experience positivity, to discover ways to express ourselves that don’t do damage (to ourselves or others), and to become accepting of who we are in each moment so that we can be honest and true to ourselves and with others.
We need to look after ourselves mentally – finding stimulating and creative ways to use our brains, seeking ways to maintain healthy cognition and function into old age.
We need to look after ourselves spiritually – whether we have a belief system or not, there is an aspect of ourselves that desires and seeks uplifting experiences, that feels awe when taking in the night sky or the vast ocean, or viewing closely the perfection in a tiny flower.
When you have all these aspects of self in balance, your life experiences become enriching. You feel gratitude on a daily basis. You truly live your life. And when challenges come (as they will – I know – I experience them too), you have the tools to meet them.
We need to nurture our relationships too – but that is a topic for another article…
This is my personal philosophy for living life to the fullest and becoming the best person I can be.
What’s your approach to living, loving, and being the best “you” that you can be?