Perception Exercise - What Do You See?

Yay! It’s Monday again! Welcome back!

Have you had a joyful, fun week?

Over time in this blog so far I have talked a bit about different types of stress, with “Perceived stress” being a pivotal factor in a happy, healthy life. I want to revisit perception this week, from a different vantage point.

But first. Look at the image below. What do you see? J

What was the part that really caught and held your focus?

1.       The black dot?

2.       The white space around the dot?

99% of people will only see the black dot on that paper. The tiny imperfection present. Isn’t that fascinating?!

By the way, did you know that 67.53876% of statistics are made up?

Yep, I made both these statistics up, but I’m more confident in the first one than this second one J

Ehem…. Back on topic. So the vast majority of people will only see that black dot. Why, might you wonder? Now, the following discussion is my own personal theory and musing, but yeah, it makes sense to me!

My theory is that we notice the flaw, the contrast, primarily because of two reasons.

1.       Instinct

2.       Training/programming

Instinct. We are natural hunters – our eyes point forward (like raptors)! Through our evolution we have learnt to spot anything out of place in the long grass. ‘Might that be dinner hiding in the grass over there?’ ‘Ooh, that plant is edible!’

Humans have survived and evolved by having a keen sense of sight. We needed to be able to spot catchable game animals, and we needed to be able to forage and find special roots, nuts and vegetables to nourish ourselves. Thanks to this, our eyes feel naturally drawn to the contrast in a situation.

Training also has a big part to play in our daily perceptions. We’ve been taught to have the same beliefs and expectations from life as those who educated us.  If you had a loved one following you around constantly dusting that stray hair off your shoulder or smoothing your clothing, you become very aware of outward appearance after a while. And because you are so self-conscious of your own presentation, you may inadvertently become aware of the presentation of others around you.

So putting together these two factors of instinct and education, suddenly seeing just the black dot is quite logical. But let’s challenge the paradigm now.

If stress is getting caught in a perception of something that is not serving for your greatest happiness, how can you change your focus away from that perceived black dot?

We can do it by stepping back and looking at the bigger picture. Of that picture above, how much of the space is actually taken up by that black dot? Less than 1%? That means that more than 99% of that image is happy, wide open, white space.

But let’s not pick on that beautiful little black dot. Thanks to that black dot, the white space becomes more meaningful and interesting, because we have contrast. If everything is exactly the same there is nothing of interest. The same goes for life.

So out of this fun little rant I have had this week, my GEM is this: Life is fun BECAUSE of the contrast. We know we love to holiday because we work. We know we love to work because we holiday. J

We know we love to be with others because of time alone. Likewise, we love to be alone because of time we spend with others.

And stress is a wonderful contrast in life too. Or rather, the original thing that caused the perceived stress is. Seeing it for what it is, appreciating it for what it is and accepting it without needing to feel stressed is the happiest route.

And now, take a deep breath in……. and out….. and smile!

And get up and do a spazzy fun dance – it’s Monday!

And just because I love fractals so much, and we're having such a beautiful winter down in Australia, here is a snowflake, just for you!

And with that little bit of mischief, and lots of love – have a delightful, fun week.

In love and light, be peaceful.

Annalise

Appreciation. Looking to the lighter side

Hello!!!!!! 

How are you going? I trust you’ve had a beautiful, joyful week?

Many moons ago I posted a topic called “Want to stretch your mind? Start with you toes!”

This week I want to revisit the paradigm of foot reading, but in the intention of shifting your perspective to a more positive slant.

8 years ago, while sitting all day in a cold Canberran house studying for my final exams at university, I developed the most incredible set of chilblains. I had numerous chilblains on every single one of my toes… Oops!

Of course, I had no idea what they were, what was causing them, or what was happening to me, so I eventually went to a Doctor. The doc just looked at my toes, looked at me and said “have you ever heard of chilblains? Go buy some more socks!”  ROFL!!! Very helpful.

What I was also led to believe at the time, was that once you’ve had chilblains, the tissue is slightly scarred, so you keep getting them easily thereafter. And I did. I’ve had them every winter since, without fail.

But! This year, with the new knowledge I have in how my feet talk to me, and taking it further, how my body talks to me, I see things quite differently.

Instead of just seeing a chilblain appear and go “Ugh! How did this happen, I’ve been keeping my feet warm!?”

I’m now like “Ooh, that’s on my ‘past feelings’ toe. I’ve been working through emotional stuff lately, awesome! My beautiful toes are helping me let it go by bringing it to the surface for healing!”

Now, our beautiful, intelligent bodies (not just our feet!) are helping us out all the time. The question is how observant we are to this help, and how appreciative we are. The diagram below roughly sketches out how the vertical zones work on our feet. These same 5 zones exist as horizontal zones across the feet as well, but for now, let’s focus on the vertical zones. J

For those of you familiar with Chakra, they work in much the same way.

Our big toes (purple) represent the top 3 chakra (Crown, Third Eye, Throat). This toe can represent ‘Knowledge and thought patterns’.

Our second toes (green) represent our Heart Chakra: representing ‘Feelings’.

The third toe (yellow) is our Solar Plexus Chakra: it’s all about ‘action and our sense of worth’.

The fourth toe (orange) matches with our Sacral Chakra, and is all about ‘communication’.

Our beautiful little toes (red) resonate with our Root Chakra and thus can represent our relationships to ‘family and society’.

There is also meaning to one side of the body to the other. 

The Left side of our body represents the “Present” (the Now), and can also represent our inner feminine nature.

The Right side of our body represent the “Past”, and also our inner masculine nature.

I’ve been doing a lot of emotional and spiritual development work lately, and nearly every time I’ve had a big epiphany regarding my healing, my body has given me a parallel physical experience. For instance, I’ve had waves of chilblains this year – amusingly – as my feet have been kept the warmest they’ve been in years of late. But they haven’t been caused by the cold this time. And hey, even if they had, they’ve given me even more excuses (though I don’t need them), to soak my feet in delicious, therapeutic aromatherapy baths!

Just to clarify though, these are my specific experiences in my personal journey. Not everyone has physical manifestations on their bodies when there is stuff coming and going from their emotional lives, but I believe this information is worth knowing. Any tool we can provide ourselves with to look for the positive side to something we would normally complain about is only ever going to help us out.

It’s like looking for the silver lining of those clouds. Though to be fair to clouds, they are so beautiful in their own right they don’t need any more silver lining than they naturally have!

So my GEM for you this week – look for the silver lining. I’ve covered this gem in different posts before, but its so beautiful and important that here it is again. Plus, ‘tis the season to forget how much our body loves us, and how it is always working to keep us in a state of delightful wellness.

·       *   If you catch a cold – be grateful for the rest your body is encouraging you to take. Be grateful for the opportunity to snot out whatever it is your body wants out! XD Be grateful for the further opportunity to strengthen your immune system!

·        *  If you get chilblains – do as I do. Look where they are located and be grateful for them helping you release some old block you’re ready to let go of.

·        *  If you stub your toe – which toe was it? Are you getting in your own way somehow? Or going in a direction you’re not actually comfortable with?

Recognise the brilliance of your body, and learn to love and appreciate it, just a little bit more than you already do!

And hey, if my perspective above on looking for meaning in body parts is a bit far-out for you, I totally respect and encourage that! To run parallel for you, just remember that positive delusion is one of the best kept secrets for successful people, in life and business. Think about what you want. Believe it. Truly believe it is already yours. And all of a sudden, easily, it’s yours!

In love and light, have a peaceful, joyful week.

Annalise

Reflexology 101: Neck and Shoulders!

Hello again my dear friends!

How have you been keeping this week? And how are you going at being kind to yourselves, and increasing the value and importance you place on your own happiness?

I know valuing your own happiness can feel strangely ‘selfish’ if you’re not used to it – but it’s worth it in the long run, because you’ll be happier and healthier, with all of that to share!

But do remember, doing things that make you feel ‘good’ won’t truly feel good, if what you’re doing is hurting someone else in the process. There is always a happy medium – lots of happy mediums, in fact! So much freedom and choice!

This week I want to change it up a bit! This blog has been so deep in my own spiritual journey lately that I want to bring it all back to the tangible for a bit. So! How about another reflexology lesson, just for you?!

Last time I did a lesson on this I taught the hand reflexes for our Central Nervous System (back/spine and brain reflexes), cause that is just so gosh darned important. As well as my favourite gentle pinch and pull of the finger webbing to pump that lymphatic fluid around our bodies, keeping us fresh and healthy. Have you been remembering to do this every so often? Its super good for you, and feels great!

This week I’ll pick up another group of reflexes that are super important and relevant – particularly to people working and/or living in stressful environments.

Do your neck and shoulders carry a lot of tension? There was a period in my life when I was so tense that I was seeing a masseur weekly just to function, and I’d be in pain again within 24 of the massage. But no more!  Anytime I start to feel that tension building again, I get straight onto these reflexes and then it’s happy, easy moving days again!

And where are these incredible reflexes, you ask?

Why, here of course! J

Ahahaha, don’t you love my classy drawings?

All these descriptions below are relevant for BOTH hands

Firstly, acquaint yourselves with the whole pad of your hand below the fingers (area circled in Green). Gently massage this whole area regularly – it contains all the reflexes for your shoulder muscles and shoulder joint and just feels fabulous to massage!

It’s a great habit when massaging your hands to gently work up along bones. All the Orange lines on this sketch are recommending you gently work up the sides and centres (not drawn) of each finger. Our fingers hold reflexes for our head and neck, and again, a gentle rub regularly along your fingers will help keep your neck nice and comfortable.

I’ve put lots of Orange lines all over the thumb because the whole surface of the thumb is super awesome and important, and has reflexes for the whole head and neck – so give it lots of gentle love!

I also want to share a little secret reflex with you this week; you’re just so special to me. This is one of my favourites. The blue star at the base of the index finger is a reflex to a very important muscle – the trapezius. For me personally this one is where most of my tension settled. And after some exploration, I have found a great spot at the base of my index finger that gets a little knot under the skin. Gently working this area does wonders for my whole shoulder region. By relaxing this muscle!

Gently!

There are enough sources of pain in the world without deliberately inflicting physical pain upon ourselves!

 You may have noticed I used the word “Gently” a lot in my descriptions above. I’m serious about this. Reflexology does NOT need to hurt to work really well. Gently massaging and rubbing your hands is an awesome thing to do. Deliberately picking a spot and drilling it until it hurts or beyond will certainly not help you, and I strongly suggest you do not attempt it.

As always, please just be kind to your beautiful self, and your beautiful hands. If it hurts, don’t keep doing it. And even if you don’t know what you’re doing, or where you’re working, a gentle hand massage with some cream or oil is blissful and beneficial.

We handle our lives with our hands, so handle life, and your hands with love!

J

If you have any questions about these reflexes, or another part of the body you would like to learn about the reflexes for, message me below, on Facebook or via email and I’ll see what I can do. I’d love to hear how you are going with all the various GEMS I have described so far. Has anything in particular resonated with you? Do you have a question forming that I may be able to help answer? I love questions, so don’t be shy!

And with that, have a delightful, joy filled, relaxed week!

In love and light, be peaceful

Annalise

Abundance: Puzzling it out

Hello everyone! Welcome back!

I want to touch lightly on the concept of abundance this week, and whether we encourage or discourage an abundant mindset.

A lot of stress these days comes from feelings of unworthiness, and lack of something we think we need to be less stressed and happier.

I’ll say something really blunt about this – it’s all perception.

So many examples have been made where homeless people are actually happier and more generous than busy, middle-class professionals. How can that possibly be if our priorities really need to be in the order that society tells us?

Now I’m not by any means suggesting that only through becoming homeless can we feel less stress and more happiness. Many people living less affluent lifestyles suffer quite terribly.

But here is where “Perception” comes into play. And it affects people of all classes and social standings.

We have as much, or as little, as we give ourselves credit for.

What we are grateful for.

I recently stumbled across a beautiful example on abundance, and how we sabotage ourselves without realising, into a feeling of ;'lacking'…

During lunch hour recently I sat down with the local newspaper – something I never do. Out of random amusement I decided to have a go at the word puzzle “Letter Scramble” – a box with 9 cells containing alphabet letters, where you have to find as many words as possible, all the way up to the 9 letter word that the box actually contains.

Now, I’ve always been more of a logical thinker than a lateral thinker, so puzzles are not my strength. Glancing down at this puzzle, the FIRST word I spotted was the 9 letter word!!! The first I’ve found on my own in one of these in a looooong time.

In excitement, I started making a list on my hand of all the words I could see. Everything was going so well – words were just popping out everywhere! It felt awesome!

So I started thinking, I’m going so well I should start writing down all my answers as I’m starting to forget some.

As soon as I started making the list, I had forgotten most of the words I'd found, and for the life of me couldn’t find them again… I struggled and struggled for more words to save my suddenly fractured dignity, and couldn’t find a thing!

Scoring myself against the checklist of how other people perform in these puzzles, I suddenly felt very disappointed – I actually hadn’t even rated in their poorest category in my determined attempt.

It took me a couple of weeks after doing this puzzle to understand the lesson I’d been taught.

When I was doing it freely and in fun, I felt so abundant I couldn’t keep track of it all.

As soon as my ego kicked in and I wanted to keep score so I could compare and compete with others, I failed miserably. See where this is leading?

I’ve been exploring the Law of Attraction and Abundance a lot lately. All teachings speak about allowing yourself the feeling of abundance, even if it hasn’t physically arrived yet. It’s all about your own inner feelings. As soon as you start comparing yourself to others, asking other people’s opinions, or externalising that feeling at all, everything will likely implode.

So my current, personal experiment is to just enjoy each moment. Find joy and abundance everywhere I can, avoid focusing my attention on things I don’t like to know about, and let go of the need to keep score.

Paraphrasing Abraham (through Esther Hicks), ‘this beautiful, abundant world is full of contrast. How we choose to look at things, and what we therefore focus our attention on, will determine what we attract to ourselves. Until we are so strong in ourselves to stay in the place of joy in spite of contrast, why constantly and deliberately expose ourselves to things we know will pull us down, away from joy?’

Last week I reminded us all that we are all free. My GEM for this week follows the same vein. Choose what you focus your attention on. If something upsetting is on the television, turn it off. If you’re suddenly involved in a conversation that is making you angry, or frustrated, or sad, or stressed, excuse yourself from the conversation – even if you need to use a toilet break as the most subtle escape route!

What better form of abundance is there in the world than joy?

Our world is full of joy – why not look to see that instead?

Some people may criticise this philosophy as sticking one’s head in the sand, and they are free to think that - but I don’t look at it like that. I simply choose to look on the “bright side of life”. *insert the whistling solo from Monty Python here*

And on that bright note, I wish you a joyful, peaceful week.

Until next Monday, in love and light – be peaceful

Annalise