The Body Knows

I haven’t been here in a while. My life has segued into having a full-time job, which is taking up a lot of my attention at the moment. That along with the overtime and the commute where every street and highway packs in the cars like sardines, I end up only
having forty-five minutes a day for ‘relaxation’. Even most of my days off I am running around playing catch up, so I am taking a break from teaching and writing. On the upside, (and there's always an upside), I have signed up for a 16-month intensive Shamanic course. This job is affording me the one thing that I have wanted since the days I lived in Paris. So, I may be on the uber-busy highway of life right now, yet I am squeezing my passion into my world just the same.

One of the books I am reading for the course is Sandra Ingerman’s, “Soul Retrieval”. The first exercise in it is a simple one, yet even in its simplicity, I had fascinating results, which led to me to put pen to paper—or at least my fingers to the keyboard, in order to share my experience. This exercise is brief and only takes a few minutes. So even us busy folks can find time to see what it's all about.

The first thing that you do is get into a meditative position. Close your eyes. Think of something simple that you love. Not a person, but something like a flower, a book, a movie, a favorite color, even a piece of pizza if that's your thing. I chose a particular Oak Tree that has always captured my attention. In fact, it was love at first sight—at least on my end anyway. Even when I moved away from California to start anew in Paris, some of my students there would “see” an oak tree when they intuited information about me. They didn't know about my tree in California, at least not by my words, and yet they would see the strength of my feelings towards it. So, yea, I like it a whole lot.

This isn't "my" Oak Tree, but a lovely one nonetheless.

It's such a spectacularly beautiful Being. For one thing, the branches twist and curve in their own unique fashion. Like all Oaks, it’s a one of a kind. This eye catcher has to be a couple of hundred years old. I can't even begin to wrap my arms around it. At best, maybe they reach around a third of its trunk. When I press my hands against the bark, I feel it’s age. It’s a wisdom keeper. Here longer than any of us, it knows what’s going on.

One of its boughs is so heavy that its weight pulls it down towards Mother Earth, so that I can just reach it and touch its burgeoning leaves. This one branch allows me to get close to the scene and really notice how it looks on different days, whereas when I look up, I see the tree in its entirety, both angles give me different perspectives.

In the winter, it is naked for all to see. In the spring, it re-emerges with color with small buds sprinkled throughout its wooded frame. Each day the leaves grow with mind-blowing speed, as though they want to come out an play and can’t do it quickly enough. By the time summer shows up, the tree adorns itself in all its glory with a bursting of fully formed verdant leaves. Ever hear them rustle in the wind? It’s a sound that can calm any nerves—as long as you pay attention. In the autumn, the water retreats from the leaves, allowing them to change color from reds, to oranges, to yellows. Eventually, the lifeless leaf takes its final bow by falling to the ground. My inner child loves the crunching sound my feet make when they step on the newly discarded leaves. And as always, autumn leads to winter when once again, the tree is exposed for all to see it’s unique twists and curves. This tree is the embodiment of the cycle of life.

So, that’s my tree. It’s not really ‘my’ tree, but I think of it is a compadre, a nurturer, a guide.

Today, when I practiced Ingerman’s exercise, I closed my eyes. I breathed deeply and consciously for four breaths. I then repeated in my mind, “I love my Oak Tree. I love my Oak Tree. I love my Oak Tree...” I immediately felt a connection with my physical heart and my heart chakra. My body recognized the truth of my words, by energetically touching my heart space.

After my body showed me how it feels truth, I got up for a minute or two and busied myself with something else to occupy my mind. My brain rebooted itself and I was able to come back with a clean slate to start the next part of the exercise.

For the last few days, I have been a bit under the weather and took today off, which is why I have time for some much needed healing-writing (the gift in a so-called negative situation). Anyway, after meandering around my room, I crawled back into bed, where I had spent much of the day. I laid in the same position I was in a few minutes earlier and thought of my tree. Only this time, I repeated in my mind, “I hate this oak. I hate this oak. I hate this oak.” 

Even just reading those words brings shock to my senses. At this point, I can see how someone might think that this exercise may not be very fun or very spiritual for that matter. However, the idea is to find out how your body reacts to a lie. In my case, my brows immediately furrowed. Not only that, my hips and legs squirmed like a mermaid trying to flee from a potential captor and this happened every time I thought it. Yep, my body was revolting against me! This statement was clearly a lie.

Maybe most lies won’t show up as visibly as this one did for me, but discovering the base, whatever that may be, can be helpful in gauging when you are telling the truth to yourself and when you are not telling the truth to yourself. Your body DOES know and it will tell you in whatever form it chooses.

Feel free to try this exercise for yourself. Simply replace Oak Tree for whatever it is that you love and see how your body reacts to the love/hate—truth/lie exercise. It is a rather illuminating experience.

Thank you so much for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in You!)

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