The Real Things in Life - Part 2

More advice that is constantly offered:

Be Healthy!

Of course it's good to be healthy, but this advice is normally so thoroughly bundled up with shame it often does more harm than good.

Yes, people enjoy happier and longer lives if they are not carrying extra weight.

They also enjoy longer and happier lives if they are not laid low by anxiety, depression and self-contempt.

Is our central problem that we ask too little of ourselves or that we demand too much?

We hate ourselves for our every imperfection and then we over-consume in various ways to suppress the shame of that previous over-consumption.

There are two epidemics under way in the West - obesity and depression.

How interesting that both started just as people began obsessing over their body mass index.


"The trouble with always trying to preserve the health of the body is that it is so difficult to do without destroying the health of the mind."
~~ G.K. Chesterton

I haven't shown photos of my two favourite boys for some time.  Here are a couple taken this year.

Bella and Charlie (aged 8) hanging out together - June 2012

Joseph aged 6. Photo taken at his school art exhibition  - September 2012.

PS  Still haven't found another music site, but discovered how to add a youtube and start it playing when you click on my blog.  So much for the peace and quiet!

Foresight

I read an article recently that suggested we can make lifestyle decisions that reduce our risk of developing eye diseases like macular degeneration.

It said certain aspects of the eye are directly related to the physical body. Just like in reflexology, where they press our toes and neck pain releases, symptoms like myopia, cateracts and glaucoma are directly related to parts of the physical body such a back pain.

We can improve our own eyesight naturally, through an approach that begins with the brain.

People can have eye surgery to see clearly but the symptoms held with the brain aren't addressed.

Here is the technique that Allison Fahey, the Dorrigo based Yoga and Pilates teacher, learnt at the Yoga School of Perfect Eyesight in Pondicherry, India:

"The first thing to do is to blink regularly, to lubricate the eyes".

"We like to use our full range of movement in our joints; the eye muscles are the same".

"First look up and down, slowly.
Then look left and right.
It's quite hard as the muscles will be tight in certain areas"

"Other steps include standing in the early morning sun and swaying side to side with closed eyes and gently covering them with the palm and concentrating on seeing black"

"When you have good eyesight, you should see black only; if you see other colours, simply visualise black"

"It should be a pleasant experience".

Other suggestions include:

• Eyes tire when looking up close for long periods. When reading or using a computer, look into the distance for a couple of minutes every hour.
• Soothe tired eyes with a cool moist face cloth for 10 minutes.

"The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend."
~~ Henri Bergson


Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi, Sydney - November 2009