Sometimes the winter lasts longer than you ever thought possible. Here we are, in the last 2 official weeks of the season, and temps rise, then dip. Daffodils, snowdrops, and crocuses bravely reveal themselves only to be punished with frost. So how can you restore yourself during this time of transition, sometimes fraught with pain or bleakness?
At Bliss Farm and Retreat, we take the approach that living blissfully requires nourishing the mind, body and spirit. We need to let them all rest. Carving out time and allowing ourselves to guiltlessly rest, especially during this season, is an incredibly beneficial practice. It can also be difficult, particularly for those of us who are so used to being “on” all of the time. We often find ourselves stressing about allowing ourselves to do nothing. We have to make a conscious effort in telling ourselves that we have permission to be completely and utterly off. Our world is not going to come crashing down if we stop “being productive” for a while.
Periods of rest are complemented by the really fun stuff. We LOVE to travel. We love to see the world, and to experience the cultures, cuisines and beauty from around the world, and then bring back our lessons and experiences, incorporating into our retreats and culture here at Bliss. We plan a trip every year. In fact, travel is so important to both of us, that we made an agreement when getting married that we’d continue to see the world together. Check out a recap of our latest trip to Costa Rica here [link].
Restoring the Mind
During our travels, we create space for ourselves to nourish our minds. We pick books for pleasure and books for self-improvement. Then, we lay on the beach or in a hammock, reading whichever we feel like. We may spend that time nourishing our creativity by writing, as well. We may just lay on the beach, allowing our minds the time to wander and contemplate. This is where the mind and the spirit often intersect or overlap. Allowing our minds the time to wander can take us in a million different directions. Sometimes, we may be imagining how we can incorporate new ideas into our business from the new experiences we’ve had in our travels. We may even just daydream about our business and our lives. Other times, we may be processing issues and experiences we simply hadn’t the time to process before. As our minds move and our bodies rest, we restore ourselves. And you don’t need to travel in order to restore your mind. You can engage in the practice by simply creating time and space in your own home.
Restoring the Spirit
Our lives can be so busy and overwhelming. Sometimes we don’t have time to process the breadth of experiences that we have. This can lead to negative side effects, like not being able to clearly communicate our thoughts and feelings. Allowing ourselves the time to process the things we’ve experienced allows us to gain clarity, understanding, and appreciation for our experiences, and then gives us an opportunity to apply those lessons to our future.
Restoring the Body
While we’re traveling, it can often be difficult to properly nourish our bodies. We want to indulge and try new things. However, we still like to make good dietary decisions. We still love to stay active while we travel, in the form of biking and swimming. It’s when we come back from our travels that we really capitalize on our bodily nourishment. Traveling is hard on our bodies and taxing on the immune system. Foreign foods equal foreign bacteria. Simply being in airports exposes us to so many things our bodies normally avoid.
Our return is the perfect time to intensify the ways in which we keep our bodies healthy. Upon return, when we’re feeling rejuvenated, we have the energy to do a cleanse. We may do a specialized cleanse, such as a candida cleanse. Whatever it may be, it’s a great time to create a new foundation for our bodies to work from the rest of the year.
One of the best ways to restore and cleanse your body is the enjoy a bowl (or three) of Ninja Soup— enjoy the recipe here!
