Happy Spring!

DSCN3937March 20th is one of my favorite days. It’s not only the beginning of spring, but it is also my daughter’s birthday. Today she celebrates four decades of being here on Earth, an almost surreal passing of time. Each year on her birthday I am reminded of the sweetness of spring blossoms, the feelings of expanded freedom to be alive, the unfolding of new life all around, and the welcome joy and sunshine in each day. The flowering cherry trees that grow in Holmdel Park, near my home in New Jersey, are harbingers that remind me of the beauty and expansive gifts Mother Nature presents us with each spring.

Spring takes us from the stillness and hibernation of winter into brighter and longer days, more hours of warmth and sunshine, and a time of new growth and blossoming. In spring we begin to consider what we want to plant in our gardens. Our lives are like a garden. We need to consider what, when, where, and how we will plant. What part(s) of your life are calling for new growth and blossoming? What seeds will you plant this spring? When and how will you plant them, and how will you nourish them? Like a garden, your life needs water, Light, and tending. How will you nourish yourself and the soil in your life garden? What do you need to add so that your blossoms contain abundant beauty, color, and fragrance?  Don’t forget to add the magical elixir within your heart to your gardens….your personal ”Miracle Gro.”

Self-care practices will bring you home, and cultivate increased awareness about new growth pushing forth from within. There are many practices to choose from: meditation, mindfulness, yoga, Qigong, Tai Chi, dance, music, art, pets, gardening, sports, etc. Each will nurture you physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Become aware of how practices change with each season, especially as spring brings you once again into the warm outdoors.

Take time to consider what you will plant and grow in your life garden as spring begins. How will new growth add meaning and purpose to your life? Cultivate your garden with Self-care practices, clear out the weeds, enjoy watching each new blossom burst forth, and witness what grows when your heart becomes the master gardener.

 

 

Share

Book Release: “The Heart of Healing”

THOH CoverIt is with great joy that I welcome a new “baby” into the world…a book that has been incubating and developing over the past ten to fifteen years. The Heart of Healing: Discovering the Secrets of Self-Care is here and available at Create Space, www.createspace.com/3970183, and at Amazon.com.

Throughout life we witness births and new beginnings in our families, our jobs, our relationships, our careers, etc. Can you remember the ones that stand out for you?

I still remember watching my father breed and raise canaries when my siblings and I were small. I was filled with awe as each baby canary broke through their shell at birth. Their mother patiently stood by, trusting their ability to do this. I loved being present when my father’s stern exterior softened, as he fed each newborn canary with a small eye dropper, until they could eat on their own. His gentleness revealed the very sensitive heart that existed beneath the surface. Births and new beginnings have a way of opening our hearts and enabling them to blossom.

My children, too, had many pets as they grew up…hamsters, gerbils, goldfish, parakeets, the snake my son brought home during summer break from college, and our dog Max. Each pet needed tending and care, as did my father’s canaries. On most days, this occurred without complaints. Looking back I can see how each pet provided companionship and taught us about showing up and being present from our hearts. The greatest lesson our dog Max gave us, over 14 years, was how to give and receive unconditional love. I find it interesting that we often take better care of our pets and cars than we do of ourselves. This has been true during many times in my life, when I was challenged to learn and practically apply Self-care as a way to regain health and balance.

A significant problem we face today is how to live and be healthy in a world filled with constant stress. During the thirty years I have worked with clients in physical therapy, three solutions to this problem continuously became apparent:

  1. increase Self-awareness
  2. use Self-care practices
  3. return home to the heart and authentic Self

It was these experiences with clients that pushed me to write this book about the themes we encounter during healing, and how to maximize well-being through Self-care. The healing journey is challenging, and often brings us into the dark, muddy waters of life….like the waters in which the lotus grows. Healing tools and strategies help us to become empowered and grow through these times. As we come out the other side of healing journeys, we frequently discover what remains beautiful in ourselves and our life. We, too blossom, like the lotus, as we reach up and out of darkness into the Light.

The Heart of Healing will be a valuable resource guide for each reader, one which reminds us of the vast widom that exists in the last place we often look, within ourselves.

Namaste….Gina

 

 

 

 

 

 

Share
© Copyright Regina Rosenthal, PT, LLC - Powered by V12 Marketing