Relationships

Relationships are perhaps the best outward sign of health, or lack thereof. In fact, the way you view others is often how you feel about yourself — projected onto others — which is why you might coach/criticize a loved one until they “improve”.

So, how we treat our bodies is a sign of how much we love ourselves and our existence here on Earth. How we speak to ourselves — or our internal dialogue — is a sign of our mind health. And if we love ourselves, we know to fill our own love tanks first; only then will we overflow with an endless supply of love.

If you notice there’s tension in your home, repeated patterns of frustration, anger, or sadness, please consider this a sign of poor health. Look inside first, understanding what may be causing tension from your side alone. Recognize you are all-powerful — never the victim — and blame yourself; it’s the only way to get your power back and fix the problem.

When you step back, how are your friendships? If they, too, aren’t doing as well as normal, go into yourself. Think about what it feels like inside your gut, heart, and throat. Name a color that represents this feeling and put it in front of you in a bubble, or balloon. Now, step into this color and describe the feeling. After you recognize this is what you’re communicating to your friends — on an emotional level — change the color. Make it some combination of blue, green, and yellow, for example. Let the brightness emanate, and then visualize putting the balloon back into your body.

How about food? Do you eat for pleasure, nourishment, or both? Is eating about shared experience and communication? Or is meal-time a bit more chaotic and involves less connection?

Consider food is a form of energy, and this is the main reason we are eating it. With this in mind, do you consider the ‘energy value’ of food before you put it into your mouth, or do you eat for other reasons that may have to do with psychological urges, temptation, and cravings?

When you go outside, what do you notice? Are you stuck in your head? Or are you present and feeling nature? Can you feel the sun on your skin, the breeze pass over the hairs on your arms or legs, the temperature as you breathe, and do you notice any smells in the air? Are you fully present? And do you allow your imagination to drift, looking at the clouds for example, or searching for meaning from nature’s symbols that are constantly being shown to you?

And when you think about how you and I are connected, is it haphazard or meant to be? How about other people in your life? What do you think? Is there a greater plan? And why is it that we seem bound to meet some people our entire lives, because once we do, we realize we’ve been crossing paths for years and barely missing one another? How does all of this work, and is it of interest to you? I certainly believe this is one of the greatest curiosities in existence, and it’s super fun to contemplate.

When you consider how you affect another’s reality, or how they might affect yours, you become aware we are living inside this ‘organism’ called Earth together. And when you consider an ant’s perspective as it looks like us, that’s sort of like us looking at Earth, Earth looking at the Universe, the Universe looking at the Multiverse, and so on.

Today’s thought exercise:

If you shift the responsibility of relationship health 100% to your side, beyond the initial heaviness, how does it feel? Are you empowered to love, to be able to make a choice, and to honor everyone in your life, including yourself?

This is my wish for you.

Sent to you with love, honor, and in service,