Plastic Free July Day 12

OK, here it is.

I have a huge mess to clean up.

For those of you who didn't live through the era of video cassette tapes, count yourselves lucky.  These days, if I were to buy? a movie, it would be a download.

But for 20 years we collected movies on vhs cassette tapes.  We loved old movies.

Now I'm paying for it.  In lack of space, in overwhelm, in wtf am I going to do with all these stinking video tapes that no one wants.  I couldn't give 'em away.

And speaking of paying for it, I will be...literally.

For the last two years, I've been trying to find a place to recycle my tapes.  I'm going to have to face facts.  There is a place that will take them, but it's going to cost me. About $200.00, if my calculations are correct.

Somehow, I'm OK with that.  When I researched this subject,  it became evident that GreenDisk was the only solution.  Literally.  No one else does what they do.  They take techno trash and recycle it.

Let GreenDisk safely and securely destroy your old data, recover reusable components, and recycle all the rest of your accumulated technotrash...

So even though it's going to cost me to do this, it seems like a small price to pay for peace of mind.  Peace of mind means, I no longer have to think about it, and I know it's being handled responsibly, not just dumped into a landfill or the ocean.

And when I think about that stuff being gone, my body relaxes and I feel the stress draining away.  I have been sitting on this "stuff" for years, because I haven't known how to dispose of it responsibly.

It's time to move on and be done with it.  I'm tired of being a slave to this plastic trash.  Feeding it with my anxiety while it takes up space in my life.

I'll post more about this, as I go through the process.

That's all for day 12.

Neutralizing Stress

We live in a very high stress environment, and most people feel the affects of that.  There is so much going on in the world to divide attention and to distract.  A divided attention adds mental and emotional stress.

Add to that the physical stress caused to the body either from trauma or environmental factors as your immune system is taxed and your digestion is asked to compensate for processed foods and toxins.

And to top it off, there is the stress caused by trying to figure it all out.

This is the prescription I try always to remember to use.  When I feel overwhelmed, I have learned to remind myself  to stay in my heart field.  To stay present with my heart.

But how to do this?  I admit it takes practice and focus, but like any discipline it becomes automatic the more this practice is engaged in.

This is the exercise I use:

1.  Take a deep breath and bring full awareness into your body.  Just notice for a moment being present with your body.  What are you feeling within? What are you noticing? Notice the contact with the surface you're sitting or standing on.  Notice your clothes against  your skin.  Notice the air temperature, etc. But also notice your inner sensations, like any aches or subtle sensations, and how you're feeling emotionally.

2.  You can take as long as you like with this.  And when you're ready, shift your focus to your heart field, which is the electromagnetic field generated by your heart. 

Just spend a little time focusing your awareness on your heart field.  Don't think about it, but feel it, if you can.  Just noticing it, is enough. 

I picture it as warm soft golden light radiating out from my heart.  I  allow my focus to be as soft and diffused as the golden light I am seeing.  Just a soft awareness mingling with my heart field.  Just allowing myself to be present with that energy.

I invite you to practice doing this at least twice a day.  It only takes a few minutes.  You can do it as often as you think of it.

The reason this is important is because when you have trained your awareness to go automatically and easily into your heart field, you have amazing medicine at your disposal.   You have an amazing tool for changing your experience.  You have powerful protection from negative influences which you may feel are threatening your well being.  Because this excericise changes your perception of your experience.

Here are some variations on this exercise which may benefit and serve you.

1.     The next time you are reading an article, or you are watching or listening to a program which causes you to become agitated or angry or sad or overwhelmed or any emotion which does not feel good to you, take a moment to notice how it is making you feel.  Then allow your awareness to shift to your heart field.  Keep your attention there.  Now how are you feeling?  Which would you rather experience?  Which do you think is doing more harm to you?  And which is healing you?

For people who want to stay informed, without experiencing the negative effects of doing so…(remember the information we get is not coming to us first hand, but being reported through the perspective of the person writing or speaking the information)…being present in your heart field will keep you from dwelling in the perspective which would have a negative impact on your body, mind and spirit.

2.     The next time you are having an angry interaction with another person, rather than letting it escalate into a barrage of hostility with toxic words and feelings, go immediately to your heart field.  Stay there and watch the encounter change miraculously before your eyes.

This exercise takes a lot of practice and the ability to remain calm and focused when faced with hostile emotions. It also requires a willingness to surrender your investment in needing to be "right" or "win" an argument.

Anger is a natural emotion, and expressed in a healthy, non toxic way, can move you forward.  Interacting with people while being present in your heart field allows you to maintain your emotional equilibrium, keeping emotions non toxic.

3.     Being fearful, can also keep us in a state of overwhelm and keep us frozen and stuck.  In that state we are not fully living.  We are not realizing our potential.  We are instead, using up our precious internal energy resources dealing with distractions not worthy of us.

So what are some of the things that cause you fear or cause you worry?  Sit with one of your worst fears for a moment and tune into what that does to your body.  How does it feel --in your body?

Now put your awareness on your heart field.  How does that change your perception of that thing you fear?  Are you getting any insights about it?  Is that fear maybe softening it's hold on you a little bit?

Try using these exercises to engage your heart field awareness with your daily life.  Allow yourself to find ways to stay present in your heart field as much as you can.

When ever you are noticing anything which doesn’t make you feel good, go to your heart field.  See if it makes a difference for you.