Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Cardigan Queen...

Sing to the tune of Caribbean Queen. I woke up this morning and had a vague idea of what I wanted to wear. I keep an extra ten pounds hanging around for special occasions, and the cardigans in my closet serve two purposes. One, to keep me warm as I am freezing my butt off in arctic conditions during summer and winter months, and two, to cover up said "special occasion" ten pounds. Today's cardigan choice was a little more about the ten pounds than the arctic conditions, however, it never fails. I freeze in the office. So it is all good. As soon as I slipped my magenta cardigan on, the phrase "Cardigan Queen" hummed through my mind and it made me giggle.

I have been a cardigan queen for some time now. I am very "Vata" in nature. Vata is a term used in Ayurveda, the ancient eastern Indian system of holistic healthcare. Ayurveda actually translates as, "the science of life." I first discovered this approach to health nine years ago as I began my first year as an assistant principal. I read the book, "Perfect Health" by Deepak Chopra and it literally changed my life! It was like church camp for my health!

Ayurveda follows the patterns and rhythms of nature. Vata types tend to be cold and dry and experience a lot of movement. Think winter season. Thus the cardigan. :) When we experience dis-ease (disease), it is typically because we are out of balance with our true nature or constitution. I will be sharing more about this in future blogs, so stay tuned. In the meantime, if you are interested in finding out your true constitution, check out this link: Body Type Quiz (Doshas). You will be able to determine if you are Vata in nature, like me, or if you are more Pitta or Kapha in nature. Then come back to this blog, where among other things, I will be sharing about my amazing adventures with Ayurveda!

Monday, August 19, 2013

Something is Wrong with this Broccoli!

I always love the first few days of school. It is here that I get my best material! :) While walking through the lunch room, a kindergarten student declared, "There is something wrong with this broccoli! It is hard!" Despite the explanations offered up, we could not convince her that it was ok to eat the broccoli this way (fresh).

It isn't just kindergarten students that get stuck like this. How often do we get stuck in our own understanding of something that ultimately keeps us from delighting in a new experience or enjoying the fullness of life? What version of "something's wrong" are you experiencing?