CONNECTIONS

Isolation leads to depression, selfdoubt, and fear; connection to people, places, and nature
leads to stabile emotions, a fresh perspective, and fulfillment. Please don't underestimate the
importance of connection in your life.
You might describe yourself as a hermit, meaning you only seek relationships with a few
people, if any. However, the few relationships you have are likely as meaningful or more
than how others perceive their friendships. Your relationships with nature, your home, or your
environment are probably more thoughtful and deep than other people experience who are
constantly involved in a social situation. The point is, if you take the time and make the effort,
you are 'at least' as connected being a 'happy hermit' as you are by pursuing a million human
relationships. In fact, it's the depth of relationships that tends to count for more than the
quantity of relationships.
If you're a social person who has a ton of friendships, that can be great too. The key is to
make sure you're able to balance 'depth' of relationships with a connection to other things
outside of people. Most commonly, a super social person will remember to have connection in
their lives with other people, but she might be missing a connection to nature, her home, or
some plants and animals. Instead, she might be focused on phone calls, meetings, hanging
out, and thinking about other people. If you find yourself in this circumstance, I would suggest
you revisit the idea of spending time on your own, isolated from other people, and with the go
al of appreciating and connecting with nature.
Today, I challenge you to see connection differently. Instead of seeing it as unidimensional,
let's redefine connection. From now on, let's balance by spending time connecting with:
People sometimes when you meet someone, you'll immediately notice you have a
connection. It's like you've known this person your whole life, but just met him now.
Pay special attention to these relationships, as you'll experience a greater level of
connection in them than others. Places -
it's super easy to go through our days thinking about the next thing coming,
a conversation we had earlier, or daily stressors/challenges that may arise. Instead,
think of those things in the moment, and be present with yourself and your
environment in other moments. Work on becoming an observer of the weather,
aromas, and location in which you live. Before you know it, you'll be spending time
grateful for your living environment, instead of neglecting it by accident while caught in
thoughts. Animals there's something unique and special about connecting with an animal.
For some reason, we tend to connect with other people through conversation and
shared ideas; with animals, we get to just 'feel' and have fun. What a great way to
balance and optimize the emotional side of ourselves! Plants plants and flowers -
provide us with lovely aromas, pleasant sights, and
pollen; which leads to fruits, vegetables, and honey. Taking time to smell flowers, sing
to plants, and appreciate both will lead towards a happier day, every day. Trees -
ahh, breathe. Take a big breath in, and as you hold it, think about the fact
that the trees around you gave you air. Not only are they beautiful, do they feel a
calm energy that emanates around them and increases your quality of day, but they
actually provide you with air to breathe. We are bound to trees for life; we need them
to survive. Yet, most of us spend very little time looking around in nature, surrounded
by trees, and attempting to connect/be present with them. This is one of the easiest
changes you can make to increase the quality of your day and life. Earth elements -
wind, water, light, and the ground; accessible at all times, and each
one provides an energetic connection to our planet. By thinking about each Earth
element, using your senses to appreciate it, and then attempting to feel how you
relate to it, you will be connecting with an 'organism' (planet Earth) that is able to
supply you with limitless energy, enthusiasm, joy, love, and answers to your deepest
questions. Take the time to connect with Earth, as your quality of life will directly correlate.
Spirit think about the world that is bigger than yourself gazing at stars, clouds,
oceans and mountains and consider how you fit in. Your relationship with the non
physical world is perhaps at least as important as your connection to your physical
reality. Your thoughts shape your reality, so take time to feel connected to the spirit
inside of you, how that feels when you communicate with other spirits, and how you
interrelate. You'll be centered on an ageless human question, and there's a reason
we all think about spirituality: it helps.
Be connected. Challenge yourself to see connection differently, in a more balanced and
healthier way. Observe the quality of your day when you take time to connect vs when you
forget, and then observe how quickly your day improves when you remember to connect for
even a few minutes. I'm so grateful for you,