Breathe in a gift from the sea

I have spent many enjoyable hours teaching walking meditation this summer that I am sure many footprints have been left in the sand around the coast of Britain. It sounds rather difficult to meditate and walk but anyone who has followed Thich Nhat Hanh and his teachings will be aware that there is nothing as simple as simply walking and breathing.The purpose is to be in the present moment and be aware of our breathing and our walking. Being aware of the way our feet make contact with the Earth and imagining we are imprinting a message helps us to slow down and stops our busy mind. What would your message be to our planet? Can you hold the image of a flower blooming under each step as you walk on grass or perhaps you press a shell or pebble into the sand to return it to the sea on the next tide.

On 24th October join me on a wonderful Day Retreat in East Sussex where we will focus on the inspiring book by Anne Morrow Lindbergh "A Gift from the Sea." This is a writer's retreat which I will co-host with Gilly Smith, a journalist and well established hostess. Gilly will open her house for us to spend creative time, reflect on this book and perhaps join us in a walking meditation.We will walk along the coastline on the south coast near the Seven Sisters and our day will end with dinner and discussion.You will return home with a deeper sense of connectedness to the seashore and Mother Nature's treasures.Indeed a wonderful gift from the sea!

Life

A year ago today I was sitting with my father as he slipped from Life into Death and I sent out a blog from an Internet cafe in North Berwick, a Scottish seaside town.
Today my reflections have been gentle as I took my Aspergers, adult son for a drive into the Ashdown Forest,East Suusex. What do you do when in fact there is nothing to do but remember.I would have loved to have walked for miles in the August sunshine or sit in a quiet haven and reflect but my son becomes unsettled and anyway he doesn't do emotions, really.

I took him to visit a friend of mine who lives in a beautiful area in the centre of the area know as the forest.
She is a natural healer living in a wonderful old property with her adult son. They have begun to refurbish an old house and barn into a living and working space. A beautiful English garden, green meadow land and two cats and a horse. How wonderful and so welcoming. On leaving she offered me fresh runner beans and apples from her garden and strong memories came to me of my childhood and how I took for granted the country environment that I was brought up in.
She on the other hand was London born and this is her haven now.

How nostalgic I am for that past life. The summers of strawberries, raspberries, acres of tomatoes flourishing in glasshouses. Private land to walk on feeling safe and secure in the fact it was Dad's land. Carol's parting words to me were " ----it is hard work!"
Yes indeed it was a life's work for my father. Thank you for those memories of the daffodils in spring, leeks in winter, picking peas and eating more than we picked.
For the hard work, the early morning trips to market and for the fact you gave us an ideallic childhood.So perhaps there is a little annual ritual that can develop each year. Being close to nature and man's cultivation of what sustains us. Fond memories!

Holiday Chill Out Techniques

I remember once hearing that most people need to take a holiday for at least 10 days to really unwind, turn off the busy brain and really enjoy a complete break. Well, this of course depends on many factors. Are you a completely obsessive compulsive e-mail junky? Do you go on holiday to rush around sightseeing. Do you view you holiday as a duty to the family or are you really seeking a space to not think about anything in particular?

As I have spent the last few years taking retreat time for myself as well as organising and running regular retreats. I have found that I now seem to have a more natural capacity to turn off my brain much quicker when on a trip or holiday. Yes I have had more practice than most people and yes I have been using yoga and meditation in my life for many years, which obviously have had some very positive effects. However the capacity to distance yourself from the everyday concerns, is not always so easy to do. So what assists you to control the brain, thinking and worrying and let things go? What helps you to self-sooth? Is it music, a beautifully quiet environment or wonderful scenery? Can you turn the mobile phone off and remain out of touch? Let me know what most counts for you as a way to really chill out on holiday.

Stepping into Summer

Mandala of Flowers and Vision Boards.

Being away on retreat, women join together to be creative and have fun. In June I am really looking forward to taking another group to our new venue in Sussex to work with summer colours, energy and walking close to nature.

Have you ever worked with chakras, mandalas, healing and reflection using nothing but yourself.
I love to relax with a chakra visulisation based on flowers. I design my mandala in my head, walk through the garden choosing plants and flowers to make a wreath and then I paint the mandala based on the scents, colours and patterns.
Balancing my chakras with the use of crystals and reiki.

Do come and join us if you can. We supply the accommodation, a spectacular English Stately Home and private gardens to walk in. We share healing and wonderful metaphors straight from mother nature.

Mindfulness in May

I am planning a wonderful Spring retreat here in Sussex, England which is centred on the theme of colours of Spring. ots of lovely time outside in the countryside being mindful of the all the new life blossoming around us.

It reminded me of a workshop that I attended sometime ago which had the participants walking mindfully around a cornfield which was indeed an introduction to walking meditation. It was such a great thing experience to be so close to nature that you can use all your senses, to tell the season, the weather, the time of day.The sounds that Spring holds is very different to those of September or indeed any other time of the year.

Try this exercise. Close your eyes and use all your senses : firstly to listen to the sounds furthest away from you, outside the space you are in. Then listen to the sounds in the space you are in and decide what is it that you hear that makes it definitely Spring. I can hear sparrows chirping outside and someone cutting their lawn. I can smell the Clematis in the garden and scent of bluebells and pinkbells! I can close my eyes and see the colours of Spring. You can just imagine the bluebell woods in Sussex or the pale purple Wisteria draped over houses and fences.

So I am drawn to designing a visualisation around using the colours of all these flowers to match the colours of our chakras. A Spring Flower Chakra Visualisation for all the wise women choosing to take time on Retreat. I knew I would find some inspiration if I started blogging again. It has been a while.

Enjoy your visualisation!

Spring's lessons.

In the depths of winter it is so difficult to remember what the warmth of the sunshine is like. The minute we change the clocks and spring time arrives we welcome the longer hours of light and our energy levels rise.

Easter always reminds me of the dark overcast days of Holy Week in Greece. The weather was strangely depressing as the week progressed and on "Good Friday" you could feel the depth of mourning, even if you were not particularly religious. The slow church bells ring and as the procession of the coffin is carried through the streets the darkness seems to return.

As the resurrection takes place, Easter begins and the mood swiftly changes to that of joy and celebration. From a place of suffering came release. From a place of despair came hope and the Easter message spreads by the tradition of sharing candle-light and ringing of bells.

Let us remember the simple message. Often we have to visit the scary places before we see the light. If you know of someone who has challenges and a heavy load to carry right now, share a little light this Easter.

Executive Depression

Executives of all backgrounds are suffering the most awful pressures whether from their workplace or from not being in work. Just look at the number of articles being written everyday on the increase in mental health problems, suicide and depression and anxiety cases.

"Prime minister Gordon Brown may have made a 'slip of the tongue', according to his spokesman, when he recently referred to the recession as a 'depression', but there is no confusion about the association between economic problems and poor mental health.
An increasing number of studies are linking the recession to ill health - particularly anxiety, heart disease and stress. For example, academics at the University of North Texas have found that three to five years after periods of job loss and financial insecurity, there was a marked increase in the number of heart attacks.
Meanwhile, researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine report that surveys following the break-up of the Soviet Union showed that the regions with the highest rate of job loss also had the highest death rates."

Let's get really active in offering our support. As Retreat Coaches we are trained to support and allow for reflection. This is our time as thousands are looking at their "Crisis of Meaning" a theme that we used to associate with the mid life crisis stage. It is hitting hard and our executives are losing face, confidence and jobs. Many of the values that they held so dearly have been wiped out in the business world and people are looking for guidance and support to find new meaning and purpose.

As their lives crumble there is the need to work with resilience, values, positive mental attitude, CBT and almost every tool in the Retreat Coach toolbox.

Look for the sign http://www.nursingtimes.net/depression/1996457.article

and step up to the cause. Be sure that coaching is the correct intervention, that medical assistance has been received and that you have your professional intentions set and contracted for.

Dorothy Larios