In my last post, I shared an overview of the 3rd Pillar of Transformational Positivity: Natural Harmony, which is all about our Connection to Nature. Today, I want to share a bit about the ways I am integrating and incorporating natural elements in and around my home to help strengthen and enhance my 3rd Pillar.
Practice sitting, laying, or standing barefoot on the ground
Move your yoga practice outside or meditate in Nature
Collect and study rocks, crystals, gemstones (ethically sourced)
WATER
Add a water feature such as a fountain, pond, or pool
Soak in a tub
Meditate in the shower
FIRE
Enjoy a fire pit
Light a candle
Have a beach bonfire
ANIMAL FRIENDS
Cuddle with your pets
Observe the animals that live near you (including birds and insects)
Set up a bird feeding station
SUN & MOON
Start a Sunrise practice
Start a Sunset practice
Follow the phases of the Moon
All of these are simple ways to integrate and incorporate elements of Nature into your daily life- even when you are housebound, or live in the city, or have a limited income. Do what you can to create nurturing spaces that will strengthen and support your 3rd Pillar and help you to foster a stronger connection to Nature.
To work on a personalized plan that takes into account your particular lifestyle, schedule a Soul-Mirroring Session & 4 Pillars Assessment with me right here: SCHEDULE MY SOUL-MIRRORING SESSION
Michelle Lewis (she/her/they) is the creator & founder of The Blessings Butterfly, a holistic coaching & energy healing practice that is teaching people to live a life that they love. She is a writer, speaker, energy witch/healer, and author of the Amazon bestselling positive affirmation books, The Blessings Butterfly and The Blessings Butterfly Having worked hard for decades to overcome severely traumatic events that began in her early childhood and repeated in painful, looping patterns well into her adult life, Michelle is passionate about using her gifts and wisdom in bringing hope and healing to millions. This is more than “mindset hacks” and “Pollyanna” positivity. Through the work of what she calls Transformational Positivity, Michelle helps her clients to get clear on where to shift their thoughts and actions, while dismantling the culture of toxic positivity.
In my continuing exploration of the 4 Pillars of Transformational Positivity, we come to the 3rd Pillar- Natural Harmony.
Natural Harmony involves your relationship to the Natural World around you (earth, sky, animals, plants, elements etc.) and cultivating our connection to Nature.
Ask yourself: Where does your soul naturally feel most at home- at the beach, on a lake, hiking the mountains, walking in a forest, tending a flower or edible garden, or exploring the desert? What sorts of images from nature do you feel most drawn to? Do you love animals or feel any special connection to certain species? Does a starry sky on a clear night fill you with awe? Do you crave the feeling of your bare feet on soft grass, warm sand, or cool wet mud?
Transformational Positivity has taught me that I am not about being in The Hustle. I am not on this planet to constantly be grinding away at meaningless tasks of my own making (or anyone else’s). I’ve learned how to get everything done that I need to, with ease, and even a fair amount of joy, by tuning into the harmony of nature & managing my energy accordingly.
When we distance ourselves more and more from the Natural World, we lose a deep and ancient connection to our very roots and the natural systems that sustain life. Creating more harmony between your being and the natural world might look like temporarily “unplugging” and escaping from your desk, your laptop, and your cellphone periodically for planned and/or spontaneous “Nature Breaks” in your nearest green space and reconnecting with the very real life happening around you.
While taking a week-long remote tropical island retreat might be on your dreamiest bucket list (just me?), creating more Natural Harmony in your life can be as simple as sitting outside quietly for as little as 5, 10, 15 minutes a day… or longer if you can manage it… and being mindful of how many different living things you encounter in that time. There is a natural, palpable stress relief that occurs in your body when you let yourself focus on the shapes of the clouds, or the scents on the wind, or the many different shades of green (or blue, or orange, for example) you observe in the plants and/or animals around you.
Some possible ideas to explore:
Stargazing, observing lunar cycles, sunbathing, living by seasonal rhythms
Studying the energy of Elements and how you relate to them: Earth, Air, Water, Fire
The patterns, variety, and perfect cycles found within the Natural world have been an endless source of awe, inspiration and rejuvenation since the dawn of time. Stay tuned for my next installment of this series where I begin to dig into some of the above mentioned practices and how I incorporate them into my life.
Michelle Lewis (she/her/they) is the creator & founder of The Blessings Butterfly, a holistic coaching & energy healing practice that is teaching people to live a life that they love. She is a writer, speaker, energy witch/healer, and author of the Amazon bestselling positive affirmation books, The Blessings Butterfly and The Blessings Butterfly Having worked hard for decades to overcome severely traumatic events that began in her early childhood and repeated in painful, looping patterns well into her adult life, Michelle is passionate about using her gifts and wisdom in bringing hope and healing to millions. This is more than “mindset hacks” and “Pollyanna” positivity. Through the work of what she calls Transformational Positivity, Michelle helps her clients to get clear on where to shift their thoughts and actions, while dismantling the culture of toxic positivity.
I’m always amazed by the incredibly gifted people in my world. Today I want to give a shout out to multi-talented photographer, musician and dear friend, Michael Powell. Holla!
Michael and I became friends years ago when he was playing guitar in a mutual friend’s band (more on Josie and her current band Eye the Realistanother day). We bonded over LOST, a.k.a. one of the best TV series ever. I bawled my eyes out on his couch during the Series Finale. Oh, and it was a party so there were quite a few people there watching me totally meltdown… Anyway.
At that time, Michael was just starting to develop his interest in photography. I remember seeing his early work and telling him, “You’ve got a really good eye. I hope you’ll keep doing this, like, for real.”
I’m so glad he did!
A few years later, I asked him to take some pics of me to submit to a casting director for a small indie film (“11 Sexy Witches” – ha! I KNOW RIGHT?!) and he did. I got the part, felt good about myself, and then for personal reasons, let the part go. But here’s the shot that got me hired:
Fast forward to May 2016: I’m in the process of updating my website for The Blessings Butterfly and needed some fresh photos. I want to communicate strength, confidence, beauty, and love- so natch, I call my friend and ask if he’s got any room in his schedule. We set a date and I was so excited!
First I had some pro makeup done. My girl Crystal at the Charlotte Tillman counter in Nordstrom (Cerritos, CA) made me look GLAMazing:
This past Wednesday, we headed into Bommer Canyon (Irvine, CA) for a magical photo shoot and I’m so STOKED on what we did! We shot for about 90 minutes to capture incredible light from just before sunset through dusk.
I love all living things and am awed by the magic of the natural world. I do my best to show kindness and caring to people, animals, plants and the planet.
WARNING: This post contains SO MANY EXCLAMATION POINTS!
This week I’ve been focusing on loving my adventurous spirit and letting her out to play a bit more. I chose this focus because at the end of this week… I am leaving for a special adventure with my Love, and fulfilling my life-long dream of going on a CARIBBEAN CRUISE!
I will see snippets of some of the most beautiful places on earth!
I will enjoy incredible food!
I will dress up all fancy-schmancy (at least twice!)
I will experience amazing natural highs while interacting with stingrays, zip-lining at crazy-fast speeds, and more!
I will experience different cultures, albeit somewhat sanitized and tourist-friendly versions! The majority of my world travel up to this point has been humanitarian based, and I’ve loved it, but I am also (finally!) OK with allowing myself to enjoy something different without feeling guilty. Which leads me to…
I will allow myself to enjoy luxury! This is huge because it’s not something I’ve ever felt comfortable with.
It’s all extra-exciting for me because not only do I get to do something I’ve absolutely always wanted to do, but I get to share the adventure with the love of my life and some great friends too! I. Can. Not. WAIT!
Let YOUR spirit of adventure out to play and see where it takes you. Life’s short, get out and LIVE IT!
If I look for Beauty in the obvious places, I will find it. If I look for Beauty in unconventional places, still I will find it.
There is Beauty in the natural world. There is Beauty in the human-made world. Life in all of its magnificent diversity has offered us more beauty than we can observe in one lifetime. The Universe and all that is within it, so vast and far beyond our limited comprehension, has offered us more beauty than we can observe in a thousand lifetimes. Yet so often we skip right past the most beautiful things, moments, and people in our lives and focus our attention on what needs to be fixed, cleaned, or corrected. When we do this, we miss the blessing of seeing the beauty all around us and appreciating it, acknowledging it, and connecting to it ever so briefly.
Today I will look for the Beauty all around me, and I will find it.
For additional resources, or to purchase my eBook The Blessings Butterfly please check out my Resources page.
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Michelle Lewis (she/her/they) is the creator & founder of The Blessings Butterfly, a holistic coaching & energy healing practice that is teaching people to live a life that they love. She is a writer, speaker, energy witch/healer, and author of the Amazon bestselling positive affirmation books, The Blessings Butterfly and The Blessings Butterfly Having worked hard for decades to overcome severely traumatic events that began in her early childhood and repeated in painful, looping patterns well into her adult life, Michelle is passionate about using her gifts and wisdom in bringing hope and healing to millions. This is more than “mindset hacks” and “Pollyanna” positivity. Through the work of what she calls Transformational Positivity, Michelle helps her clients to get clear on where to shift their thoughts and actions, while dismantling the culture of toxic positivity.
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