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Autumn Equinox, 21st to 23rd March 2006
(Southern Hemisphere)
The Autumn Equinox is a time of balance and harmony and when the day Light hours equal the night Darkness hours! It's a great time to take a break and reflect on your life and aspirations. It's also a good time to start looking at your eating patterns and habits... and exercise regime, and consider the changes you can make to slow down the hectic outdoor lifestyle of Summer that you have enjoyed and embrace the contemplative energy of the Winter months!
Late Summer ends with the Autumn Equinox and is a great time to Celebrate with Gratitude and Appreciation the very essence and miracle of life...
My Autumn Equinox Reflections
- Summer has been a time of accepting my fears and testing my Strengths!
Summer has been a time of facing my fears and weaknesses and testing my strengths.... discovering that sometimes working through my fears and just allowing myself to be human, I can tap into my courage and strengths. Even though, at the time I feel neither courageous nor strong.
One of my greatest strengths is starting a project, planning and doing all the necessary work that's entailed and completing a project - seldom allowing myself to be distracted for anything. This, I believe is one of my greatest strengths - except when it comes to long term projects, then of course life just gets in the way.... especially the good things in life, like family, eating, sleeping and simple pleasures. *Grin* One of my greatest weaknesses I believe, is that when I am distracted during the process of a project for too long, then I just drop what I was busy with, and seldom return to complete that particular project. Often I start something else and weeks go by and months later my initial project is still incomplete.
In January 2005 I started the 'A to Z - One Step at a Time' project, for the WhyWeight website. I was writing an article every day during January, full of inspiration and creative energy and publishing to the website the following day, it was fun and I was full of excitement. Then, life happened, a migraine for a few days, a tummy upset, dwindling energy and flagging spirits. After a couple of days rest and feeling revitalised, I continued to write articles although only one every two or three days.... then life happened again. I took a weeks leave to get my project finished and amidst some normal daily family chaos, all my website source documents were overwritten.... and despite backups and whatever, I simply gave up! (Or so I told myself ;o).
Although my husband willingly volunteered to spend the necessary hours (probably more like days or weeks) it would take to restore the documents I needed, he was busy with a very big two month project of his own - worth valuable income, and I lovingly refused his genuine offer. So, I decided to just be and enjoy my few days leave. Early one morning the following week, I was up at three in the morning re-creating a website, unable to sleep because I was filled with energy and creative ideas. I started with a blank document, keeping the parts I liked from the previous work, leaving stuff out that I thought was unnecessary and adding new and creative ideas. A website that had previously taken a few months to create and compile, was completed in four days - start to finish, and it was better!
I was happy with my work and energised by my successful accomplishments....
it was a great experience!
After a few days, again I woke up at three in the morning filled with creative ideas and energy, and again I started another website from scratch, opening a blank document... keeping what I liked from the previous work, discarding what was unnecessary and adding new ideas, articles, information and graphics, the results were simply stunning!
I went through the process another three times with great results. I had five revamped websites - complete, and I was happy with my accomplishments. Then I started another website, despite following the same process, nothing worked out right. The colour scheme failed to work with the new graphics, and the old graphics lacked something, and after working with our client for five weeks going through innumerable changes, I gave up and my hubby took over the project. I felt relieved... ;o) and was happy to get on with going through the process for the WhyWeight website, a project that I am still busy with..... 12 months later!
During the course of all these changes, starts, stops and pauses in between, I managed to get the 'A to P' of the 'One Step At A Time' project complete and published to the website, then life happened, I got distracted and started and completed other projects..... Until I received an email from one of the subscribers (in September), saying they had been reading through the 'A to Z' with enjoyment... AND then there were no more links after 'P'. I was embarrassed and promised to try and have the articles published and available as soon as possible...... I went back to the
'A to Z - One Step At A Time' - first reading through all the existing links and writing the new articles for 'Q to V'.... and got stuck on 'W'.... feeling uninspired and with no idea of what to write. I searched through my notes and planning documents and found no answers.... then life happened, I got distracted and carried on with other things *Grin*. In January 2006 a year after I first started the project, I decided I either had to complete the project or discard it and remove what was already published online. By the end of January I was still stuck on 'W' - maybe because I had chosen to write on 'Worthiness' and this was something I was and had been struggling with for the last 12 months. My husband advised me to chose another topic after days of frustration.... Once more I read through the articles (A to V), correcting mistakes, doing some editing, adding some extras and really enjoying the work I had done, also discovering I was unable to simply discard the time, effort, work and energy I had already expended.... I would just have to work on the 'W'. *Grin*... In a moment of inspiration, I decided to tackle the other 'letters' that remained, and in a couple of days 'Y and Z' were complete and published..... 'W' my remaining challenge. I continued with the other articles and projects on the WhyWeight website, working on 'Late Summer' of the Seasonal program, learning more about myself in the process. Returning to my nemesis 'W' every other day. In a fit of frustration one day, I shared my stress with my husband, lamenting the fact that I just wanted to get this 'A to Z' thing done and get on with other things in my life, when my husband replied with a very interesting comment.
"Mands," he said, "Your work on WhyWeight will never be done or complete!"
"What are you talking about?" I asked in exasperation.
"WhyWeight is about your relationship with your body, and your weight struggle and triumphs. It's about what you learn through your relationships with your subscribers and what they share with you. It's about what you all discover and learn about your body's, weight, size, shape, lumps, bumps, cellulite, food, diet, exercise, pills, shakes.... and on and on. And Mands, the relationship you have with your body - whatever weight, size or shape it is, will never be finished, complete or done, until You Are! In other words, until you are dead. So get over it, as long as you are alive you will have a relationship with your body and you will want to share that on WhyWeight with your subscribers. So what does it matter how long it all takes?"
I had been standing in front of my hubby's desk with my hands on my hips, ready to have an enthusiastic discussion, like we sometimes do, when my hands and arms fell, like my mouth must have done (wide open ;o) and I slumped on the chair, speechless (this is not something that happens to me often ;o). WHAM, perspective shift, different mindset, got it... *Grin*!
You see, on the 2nd November 2004, I was inspired to create and write the 'A to Z - One Step At A Time' project - I did the planning, research and compiled the basic ingredients that I needed. I started writing the articles and publishing them to the website in late December 2004, and was busy with the project through January 2005, deciding I had to be complete by the end of month, using the January calendar as the links. Once the 31st January 2005, came and went with the project incomplete, I started to feel like a failure - (without conscious awareness of it ;o) simply because of my missed deadline, albeit self imposed. So how could I ever expect myself to write about 'Worthiness' for 'W' when deep inside I felt like a 'failure' for missing my deadline, without even realising what was going on, and how could I expect myself to ever continue to work on a project that already spelled 'failure'. Click, click... the mental images flashed in my mind and things began to make sense!
My husband calmly carried on working on his PC while I gaped like fish, looking up and saying, "Mands, breathe!"
And so I did. I breathed through the moment, shifting my focus from what I still needed to do 'W for worthiness' and focused on all I had already done, written and accomplished! The next morning I got up at 8:00 am and wrote the first part of 'Worthiness'.... then it took me another 48 hours to complete, with flashes of memory, reflection and insight in between! I was done, complete..... only to discover I had skipped, misplaced and completely forgotten about "X"..... can you imagine!......
*Giggle and Grin*
So here we are on the 22nd of March 2006 and 'X' waits to be written and compiled, and I haven't got a clue, what to write or even what the topic will be, and you know what, it might take another day, week or even a year, and it no longer matters how long it takes or when it will be done, because in my body, mind, heart and soul, I know that one day it will be written and the 'A to Z - One Step At A Time' will be complete and the success I feel will be more profound because of the struggle and what I learnt during this amazing experience.
I do realise that 'dates' are important - bills must be paid by a certain date or there are consequences to follow. Tax forms must be submitted by a certain date or people would just never bother ;o) Cars must be serviced regularly, tyres replaced, oil changed and the petrol tank filled. Maintenance on a home is equally important. Work projects and Goals should have a plan of action that can be followed with certain smaller requirements complete by a certain date, so that the end of the project can be completed by the deadline stipulated.
Yet when it comes to our Body, our weight, size and shape... we should always remember that time is ours to experience the very essence of life!
Eating healthy food for the nurturing and caring of our body, exercising for enjoyment and pleasure, getting enough rest and relaxation, getting enough sleep to rejuvenate, drinking enough water to hydrate our body and exploring life through our senses, taste, smell, hear, see and touch are more important than reaching a certain weight by a certain date!
It's when we get caught up with the 'timetraps' of the media influence that we struggle with the 'timing' of our weight loss:
that causes us concern and when we fail to accomplish the same, we feel like a failure, and rather than continuing with our own aspirations by focusing on what we have accomplished and realising how much we have already achieved.... we sometimes forget that we are unique and entitled to our own life experience (however short or long it takes), and stop trying in our struggle, or question why we should even bother, since we have already 'failed'.
So be gentle with your body when you desire to decrease your weight. Be enthusiastic in your exercise regime and enjoy the experience. Listen to your body and you will know what to eat and when you have had enough. Be creative in your diet by stimulating your appetite with healthy food and you will empower your metabolism. Be in your body and experience all that life has to offer.... The relationship that you have with yourself and your body are the most important one you will ever have. Your body has been there from conception through birth until now, and will continue to be with you through your life... just like mine is for me. Face it. Deal with it. Get over it if you have to... then accept that Your body is the gift that embodies your life energy and essence, enjoy and celebrate the experience. Right now, today, this minute!
I realised during the process of my ‘Autumn Equinox’ reflections, that I often take time to be grateful and appreciative to the people in my life: my husband, my children, my friends, my WhyWeight subscribers. I am appreciative of the work I do, the job I have and the other worldly possession’s and conveniences I enjoy. What I need to do more often, is be grateful and appreciative of the body I have, the person I am and what I accomplish and achieve.
For the Autumn Equinox find balance and harmony within yourself, be grateful and appreciative of your body and celebrate your life!
Love and Laughter to You and Yours
Mands
PS, I would love to hear about your ‘Autumn Equinox’ reflections and celebrations, so please email your feedback to EMAIL with the subject line ‘Autumn Equinox’.
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