Feel-a-holic?

As you know, I am just two weeks back from Sacred Sedona, a place where I met many true and valuable new friends, and met my new "self" as well. I'm still deciphering the new life's blood coursing through my veins and have realized and made peace with the fact that it takes time to make life impacting decisions. 

One of those decisions has been to dive deeper into myself and live true...to me. 

I recently received an email response from a new (and newly dear) friend, Gary Finnan, who helped all of us at the writer's retreat with our self-discovery and exposing the tip of the iceberg to my own essence. 

In this little email exchange was a challenge. After reading my blog he "challenged" me to use one of the greatest things I think we all learned while in Sedona: how to be COW's. Would you believe it? This sacred place developed and run by practitioners of Tao Fellowship teaching people how to be cows? Well, that's "C.O.W." not, cow, as in, "Mooo..."

C: cool head

O: open heart

W: warm belly

This is the formula for being at peace. It has to do with your Chakra energy but, I think you get the point (this isn't going to turn into a lesson in Taoism, I promise). The point is, he's challenging me to use the essence of our being--the warm belly- where all of our feeling essence lives, instead of my head, as in, becoming a Feelaholic instead of a Thinkaholic. 

I accepted his challenge. I am going to start using my belly-my essence-to feel my way through for a while, instead of my head and always trying to 'think' it out. In Taoism, if you keep the water energy flowing through your body (chakra centers) properly, you keep your head cool. A cool head is a calm and peaceful head=a calm and cool, peaceful you. 

Now, I am not Taoist and won't become a practitioner any time soon. I have my own beliefs and I've written about them here, often. But, keeping a cool head is not a bad idea. I'm going to give the feeling a try and hold off on the thinking for a while. I have always shared my ideas about not letting yourself be run by your over-thinking mind and it's time I really put that into practice. 

I have a lot of "feeling" to do, though. I'm giving myself permission to really get down into myself and "feel" what makes me happy and start doing it. 

Speaking of giving myself permission...I have an article to finish and I've carved out some time to finish it and submit it without fear. 

Wish me luck!

Peace,

Nanette

*PS: for more info about my new transformation, view my newsletter by clicking here. 

All of my new found friends at the Wellness and Writing Retreat in Sedona, Arizona.

Photo courtesy of Julie Colvin and Wellness and Writing Retreats