Celtic Circle of Life, Wellness and Old Growth Forests

Good Morning, Friends

I hope you are safe and somewhere warm, it is brrrrrr cold here today.

-13C or 5F for our US cousins.

It is a bit too cold to go for a walk this morning but did get me thinking about health and wellness. It seems to be top of mind for us and a number of friends.

Based on the articles written to fill the swath of monthly magazines, blog articles and news reports, it naturally will be on the minds of everyone.

But what do we do when we read something we know we should/could/want to do? 

Wellness starts with peace of mind.

Our minds are incredibly powerful—we can use our thoughts to improve our overall intellect, cognitive performance, and mental and physical well-being. Harnessing these natural resources will give you power over your present, depth and context to your past, and anticipation for the future. ~ Dr. Caroline Leaf

To overcome procrastination, I just decided to do one thing a day to improve my overall health. There were a lot of internal voices saying, “you can’t, don’t bother, you missed the opportunity, you are too old”, etc.

What peace can we hope to find elsewhere if we have none within us? Teresa of Avila

So, I decided to shut down the voices by doing the opposite of what they say and live by the fact that positive thoughts always overpower negative. Light over dark.

John O’Donohue is his beautiful book, Anam Cara states that the Celtic imagination loves the circle. It recognizes how the rhythm of experience, nature and divinity follow a circular fashion.  Connecting the dots I feel to experience wellness one must be connected not only to the physical and the natural but also the spiritual.

Augustine said, “Hope has two beautiful daughters: their names are Anger and Courage. Anger at the way things are, and Courage to see that they do not remain as they are.”

So to improve, I could not accept the status quo, even if it meant starting with one push up, one jumping jack, and one walk down the driveway, every day, I promised myself to add more on daily.

“Little strokes fell great oaks.” - Ben Franklin

No need to list my stats here but my physical health, mental health and general well-being has improved one thousand percent since April of 2018. Thanks to exercise.

It has been a lesson on creating peace of mind, joy and happiness.  Exercise can boost the mood by triggering the release of feel-good hormones and chemicals, like endorphins which can improve brain health.

When one becomes happier the affection for yourself as well as for others is ignited. The world opens to all possibilities and you take on a new perspective, compassion for others and desire to know more and be more.

Health and wellness for oneself is paramount, but so is the health of our planet. 

David Milarch is an arborist from central Michigan. In 1991, Milarch had a near-death experience that inspired a personal quest – to archive the genetics of the world's largest trees before they're gone and to replant global forests to fight climate change. This is the story of David and his efforts to save the redwood champions of Northern California from the ravages of climate change.

The best asset we have for making a contribution to the world is ourselves. If we underinvest in ourselves, and by that, I mean our minds, our bodies, and our spirits, we ignore the very tool we need to make our highest contribution.

But….a reminder to myself is a quote by Salvador Dali, "have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it."

I am curious, is there one thing a day you could do to increase your affection for you?

I hope some of the ideas from the blog over the past month and the sharings resonate with you. Thanks for being here.

If you choose to write in the comment section, thank you, it encourages. You can always reach out to me by hitting reply to this email.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend and a great week ahead.

Listening to a beautiful album, Haydn, Ravel & Stravinsky: Works for String Quartet performed by the Tesla Quartet- Listen Here

With love from Prince Edward Island, 

Sincerely, 

Bruce

ps. 

A police officer pulls over a carload of nuns.

Officer: "Sister, this is a 65 MPH highway -- why are you going so slow?"

Sister: "Sir, I saw a lot of signs that said 22, not 65."

Officer: "Oh sister, that's not the speed limit, that's the name of the highway you're on Highway 22

Sister: "Oh! Silly me! Thanks for letting me know. I'll be more careful."

At this point, the officer looks in the backseat where the other nuns are shaking and trembling.

Officer: "Excuse me, Sister, what's wrong with your friends back there? They're shaking something terrible."

Sister: "Oh, we just got off of highway 119."