Starting Fresh!

Except for the allergies (“Out, out dammed snot!”—my apologies to Shakespeare), we’re glad to see spring.  We think of spring as a time of rebirth, renewal, and fresh starts.  What kind of fresh start are you looking for?

Each New Year, I devote myself to being braver, kinder, and wiser.  Spring is a kind of mid-term check.  This year I’m reading GODDESSES NEVER AGE by Dr. Christiane Northrup.  Her motto is “happy, healthy, dead”—a description of what life can look like for those who have the luxury of ignoring petty physical grievances until the life clock finally runs out.  They live joyously–moving, connecting, and caring for themselves so they can relate more positively to others.  They often forget just how old they are.

Dr. Northrup advises that we “get rid of the idea of health as the absence of illness—as a temporary respite from the discomfort of the body’s decline…”  Instead, she wants us to see health as a natural expression of the beings we were meant to be—able to “repair, restore, and fortify” our bodies.  We’re meant to be healthy, and our bodies are equipped to help us fulfill that destiny if we don’t get in their way.  If we can stop fretting about what might be wrong with us, stuffing our faces with chemicals in case we might be sick, maybe we’d notice we’re doing pretty darned well at the moment—and who wants to live worrying about the future?

Lots of sages contend that we are what we believe we are.  I believe I’ll be healthier and happier.  We’ll see how that works out!