My Favorite Things
The things we love tend to change as we grow and learn more about ourselves. Some things remain the same. Here is a list of some of the things that have been favorites of mine throughout my life.
Tea: I have been a tea drinker for as long as I can remember. I love coffee too, but there is just something about tea. Rainy days and hot summer days, cold winter nights or the traditional afternoon tea. Anytime is a great time for tea. Nourishing, refreshing, and hydrating, I prefer my tea of the herbal variety. You can make tea with just about anything! Today, I am sipping a liver and kidney detox tea of dandelion and red raspberry leaf from my back yard along with dried nettle leaf from the park behind my house and peppermint from last year’s garden. My all time favorite tea is one that is a bit more difficult to find. Tulsi Sweet Rose by Organic Indian has become an obsession of mine. The box states that it is Stress Relieving and Magical. Beyond that the taste and scent is quite heavenly and so incredibly comforting to me. I love to collect, dry, and blend my own teas and Tulsi Sweet Rose is my treat for those evenings (or anytime really) when I just want to feel pampered.
Journaling: Journaling did not come naturally to me as a young girl. Although I enjoy writing, I always felt strange writing about my crushes or arguments with my mom. Since early childhood I have been a very active dreamer. Vivid dreams with complex storylines and symbolic meanings fill my nights. In my early 20s I began to write them down. This is when journaling really came to life for me. After writing my dreams I would then be able to come back and review them days, weeks, months, and even years later. It was, and still is, astounding to me how many of my dreams are actually precognitive of events that are upcoming, insight into situations and people I am involved with, and/or symbolic of a lesson I am working through. Any blank notebook can work for a journal and yet, I I like to make it a beautiful ritual so having a beautiful leather bound or homemade paper journal makes this time with myself extra special.
Planning: I know, how boring!! Here is the thing about planning: it can be really fun when you are not attached to the plan actually materializing. You may ask, well what about goals and benchmarks? Ugh.To me, planning is way more about dreaming and imagination than about setting goals, making deadlines, or reaching benchmarks. Not unlike dream journaling. Having a dedicated planner helps me keep track of what I was shooting for last week, last, month, and last year. Yes, a planner can help keep you on task today! I find it even more useful in reflecting on how I am changing and growing. There are many great planners out there and they all have pros (and cons). Recently, my favorite planner is the Oak Journal. The Oak Journal combines all of the above with plenty of space for reflection, dreaming, drawing, or journaling. So this really combines my number 2 and 3 into one gorgeous hand written document.
Yoga Yoga and Meditation: The truth is you need nothing special to do yoga or meditate. You don’t need any special clothing, cushion, or music. There is no set time you must set aside to do yoga or to meditate. You actually can not do it wrong. The most important thing in yoga and meditation is the intention. The intention to connect, first and foremost to yourself. If you are in touch with youyour body, you will know when a pose is too much for you and when to push a bit further. One of my favorite types of meditation is walking meditation. In walking meditation, I just notice what is happening around me: the birds I can hear, the wind on my face, the trees or flowers I see. This is a peaceful, relaxing, and simple practice. My mind will inevitably begin to wander and obsess about some topic or another. In those moments, I notice that too, accept it, find compassion for all of my worries, and then bring myself back to right here and right now. You can walk barefoot in the grass, if you like. Or you can go further and make it into an exercise by walking a few miles. I have found my favorite shoes for this are Brooks running shoes. They are so comfortable, versatile, and hold up for a long time. I usually replace them every 2 years.
Reading: I read a lot. I love to read. I have a ritual of reading before bed. Mostly because it slows my brain down and helps me to fall asleep. Fiction or nonfiction, I love it all. I am not a book hoarder, though sometimes I fantasize about having a huge home library, in reality I like to be mobile and am fairly minimalistic. My favorite genre of fiction is fantasy, specifically high fantasy. Think Lord of the Rings: high fantasy. Speaking of Lord of the Rings, when is the last time you read the trilogy? I finished it for the um-teenth time in March of this year. If you have not read it recently or ever, I highly recommend it! Every time I read these books I learn something new about the story and also about myself. A different part of the narrative jumps out at me or I see a different perspective of the same old wonderful story or character. I guess this brings us full circle: as we grow and change some things remain the same and some we get to see through a brand new lens.
