Thursday, December 18, 2014

Holiday Relocation Sustainability



The desire to be sustainable is on everyone’s mind. And yet, if you are moving during the month of December, perhaps sustainability is the last thing you are thinking about.

Even if you are relocating this month, consider the concept of inner sustainability, because accomplishing this will add, not subtract, from the peace of the season.

We are each our own ecosystem - a mini planet of sorts - and there are easy things that we can do to improve our own sustainability and care for the planet in an energetic, not literal way. Here are some ideas:

• Breathe. Breathing fully from the belly decreases stress, increases brain function and helps you to become more mindful.

• Be still. Stillness and mindfulness foster connectedness, and from this place we realize that all of our actions and choices affect others.

• Be kind to yourself. Being violent to yourself (running around chaotically this season, skipping your body movement and eating things that do not make you feel good) creates tiny ripples of violence that radiate out. Nonviolence and self-care ripple outward in a much more positive way, encircling our planet with peace.

Sustainability doesn't have to be relegated to engineers. It actually can live right beneath our noses with something as simple as the breath. Start with you.