I don't know the title yet but

 maybe the Word Contentment is involved.

Dona Anderson

“Rather than being your thoughts and emotions, 

be the awareness behind them.”

― Eckhart Tolle, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose

Why don't we feel like we think we should or want to?

We're all Human and that means we all have many choices to carry around.

From happy, to sad, to wanting more, being satisfied, or being lonely & anxious to grateful, calm, and at peace.

And, there're many words for all those feelings & emotions mixed in what we carry within us. 

                                             

                                           Do you say to yourself any of these ...

Why do I start to cry at a beautiful piece of music.

Why do I feel lonely and sad when I have so much to be thankful for.

Why am I tired and stressed out every day.

Why do things irritate me so easily

Why... Why... Why...

How many things make you mad, sad, angry, frustrated, unhappy, stressed ... and then you wonder why you're tired, mad. sad, and stressed.

What can we learn from our feelings and emotions to help us build that awareness we need to support us when we need it. 

See if any of these lines below connect to some of your feelings - what is your word that's missing at the end.

We'll look at the emotions later. 

It's Ok if you add in some more lines if needed ... 

We're just taking a look for now.

The word I'm stands for I AM and this powerful word connects us to our feelings and emotions. 

I'm more sensitive some days than others so I'm feeling   

My body hurts more lately than it used to so I'm feeling  

My sleep isn't very good most nights so I'm

I forget to eat regular meals everyday so I'm

I'm not exercising very often so I'm 

I don't get out to my activities every week so I'm 

I don't see my friends as often anymore so I'm,

Here's some words that may help for building Awareness

Emotions before may be  - Depressed, Sad Stressed Angry Lonely Teary Anxious Gloomy Nervous 

Emotions After could be -  Joy Valued Energized Eager Grateful Needed Admired Carefree Forgiving Healthy

How we change things around is up to each of us. 

Love this quote below by Maya Angelou. 

"Do the best you can until you know better, 

then when you know better, do better." 

Will you let it take You there.

PS. How we breathe also affects our feelings and 

emotions so here's a photo message of mine with words 

from my book Moving Forward from the heart. © 2015

A full healthy breath celebrated.

Take Care and thanks for your visit today.

We're living in very stressful times and our list may be longer than usual so give yourself a break, phone a friend, rest often, eat good foods, go for a walk or sit outside, and take a few extra breaths.

Links for sharing below 

and, I hope you end with I am feeling better.

Visit the Resources page for information.

Discover your simple Lullaby of Peace

 A True Treasures post for you today.

Let's focus on stuff we can change.

Today We're connecting to the 

meditation, Lullaby of Peace.

Moving Forward from the heart,  # 42, page 105. 

Dona Anderson

Hi and thank You for your visit today. 

As the colder weather of winter is upon us it becomes that time of year when we settle into our homes and catch up on reading, TV shows, and enjoy those jams, pickles, pies and other freezer goodies we made to enjoy over the winter.

It's also a time for letting ourselves observe our day to day lives, our health, wellness and outlook on life.  

It may even be about what  we take out into the World and what we bring back -  is it what we need.

Things are uncertain still and changing for us and it will take time to process these last 2+ years ... what it all meant, what we lost, and what we'll take into the future.

Each one of us will have different things, different memories, feelings, stresses, loss  & more. 

Are you staying at home too much and not wanting to go out.

Are you still feeling the loss of income, friendships, activities, community or those  simple smiles and hello's when you go for a walk.

Are you still wondering if it will start all over again or get worse. 

To Help, I want to share with you today this short Meditation.

I hope it will soften your day, and spread good 

feelings throughout  your whole body & mind.

Lullaby of Peace 

"A musician brings music to life,

it starts from silence, to build, unfold,

reach and release when silence is returned again. 

You bring your breath to life ...

Each breath starts from a place of silence; it builds, unfolds, reaches, and releases when silence again returns.

Let this magical circle of breath go deeper to fill and hold even more ...imagine your organs, bones, skin and muscles all experiencing the different patterns of our breathing ... listen as these patterns become beautiful notes of music being played by your own orchestra.

As you begin to prepare for meditation, allow the music to fade and change slightly as you create soft inner waves of breathing... feel the rhythm of your inhalations and exhalations deepen to become the notes in a smooth, soft lullaby of peace ... 

Settle a bit more and surrender into feelings of being protected within the rhythm of you, your life, your knowing, your stillness and your breath ..."

Listen to these beautiful notes softly

playing your lullaby, your smooth,

soft, sweet notes of peace ..."

Moving Forward from the heart © 2015

PS. I hope you enjoyed these moments to relax, 

Take a few more minutes to be still and observe how your body feels, where your thoughts are.

Enjoy just being still for a few minutes to rest and notice your breaths as your body relaxes.

When you feel ready to restart your day wiggle your toes, stretch out your fingers,  and you may feel like you need a stretch or a big yawn.

Take a couple more breaths and slowly begin to return to your day. 💖

Lastly here's the ending to the meditation

"The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear ~ Rumi

Namaste.

Thanks for your visit.

PS. This is a good post to save and share at the links below.

Have you started building up your Wellness toolbox.

Don't forget the over 650 posts in the Archives for you to view, save & share.

New post on Tuesdays.

Have a good week full of fun, laughter, love and Self Care 

You can link to more True Treasures posts at the

 label True Treasures Below. 😌

3 things You can do to help Heal your Body, Mind & Soul.

 Play  Laughter  Joy

Dona Anderson

Thanks for your visit today. 

New posts every Tuesday.

I saved this quote to share with You & todays the day.

Your body cannot heal without play.

Your mind cannot heal without laughter.

Your soul cannot heal without joy.

~Catherine Rippenger Fenwick~

Healing with Humor, educator, therapist, author, speaker.  

           

How many times when you are unwell do you play some kind of game, do a puzzle, card game, craft or other things that you love to do that takes your mind off things and supports your soul.

How many times when you were unwell, sick, had a bad cold, flu, headache, new stitches or whatever it was did you try not to laugh but couldn't help it. You may even put on a comedy show to watch to help you feel better.

How may times did you find Joy in a song, a home cooked meal, a card, flowers, a visit from loved ones or cuddles from your pet.

I imagine it was many times.

A moment to play lets us move onto something that's fun, we can do, control. It fills our face, mind and heart with a smile.

 

A moment for laughter lets us relax, let our stress & worries soften a bit as it disappears out of our bodies and into the world.

A moment of joy lets us remember all the people and things in our lives that we love, hold dear and want to get back to.

Play ... Laughter ... Joy

PS. Often when I've been at a craft faire someone stops by just to have a chat.  

I've heard many good stories but mostly ones of sadness, grief, sickness and stress. 

Many times it was quite emotional but I could see how the releasing of the story helped them heal a bit that day - their face and shoulders softened a bit to help them breathe.

Sometimes they even came back the next day to chat again.💗

Our Lucy, loves to snuggle.

Take Care have a great day and week.

New post next Tuesday.  

Bye for now. 

Links for sharing below.

Which of these 3 Are YOU?

Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean ...?

What ??

I'm sure we can all relate to this video looking back at this last year and a half. 

It's been a time where we experienced many different stresses, emotions, changes, loss, difficulties & more.  

Check out the video - do you see yourself as one or at times all three.

Some days we probably are all 3, the carrot, egg and the coffee bean.  

We've all been stressed & challenged. 

Did you find that you are stronger than you may have thought.

We learned many things and maybe the most important one is what you learned about yourself, your life & future. 

You may have learned about how change affects you, your patience and stress levels.

Or it may have been about your health, future goals, relationships, family connections, needs and more.

In more closeness and time together in families we learn more about ourselves and others. 

Some maybe good and not so good so we have to figure it out and give it time to adjust.

We have all been in this place together and it's time to slowly start to recover, soften that protective shield and get living our life again as things open up and safety guidelines are met.

PS.  Thank You for helping to keep yourself and others safe. 

 Let's all do our best with what comes next. 

Confession - I didn't have any coffee beans to use for the picture so they are really a few pills I had.

The carrots were from our garden and the eggs from the fridge.

Love the sun flowers

Dona Anderson

Some thoughts & words to help when they can.

Positive attitude, Smiles, Hugs, Gratitude, Exercise, Reduce Stress, Eat well, Forgiveness, Relax, Set boundaries, Laugh, Support yourself & others, Talk to Friends 

And when needed cook yourself a carrot, an egg and sit down and enjoy a Coffee! 

Take Care and when you're ready click on the video in this post from a few years back and ...

Dance.

Have a great day - bye for now.

Links for sharing with others below. 

New posts every Tuesday!

Qi Gong for Beginners

 Wonderful practice for 

Health & Wellness

Dona Anderson 

Welcome and hope you'll like what I have for You today.

I started going to a Tai Chi class at a Senior Centre several years ago and when it was closed due to covid last spring we moved to an outdoors park.

We had some really chilly days, windy days, rainy, sunny and hot days - we got it all over the spring, summer and fall.

Then feeling winter coming on we eventually moved to an indoor space we could use that had space for social distancing with masks when we were allowed to gather.

During this time I also started doing Qigong on You tube. I had done a workshop years ago and knew it was similar to Tai Chi.

I have really enjoyed finding routines from several instructors and the variety sure works my mind. (My new learning)

In Qi Gong I'm learning more about how these movements support my Health and  stimulate the acupressure points, move the chi and lots more. 

Don't let those easy looking movements fool you. Some days it really takes a lot of concentration to decide what is left or right and combine foot and hand movements at the same time. 

Don't worry, it will all come together and I think as long as I'm moving, I'm doing something good for me. 

The video below is by one of the first instructors I began with.

Hope you like it and want to learn more ... 

I also feel better when I can open the window to breathe in the fresh air and hear the birds sing.

More good and healthy feelings.

A lot of the exercises can be done standing or sitting. Do what works for You to start. It's also good to have a chair near by for support if needed.

There are many easy ways to take care of ourselves to improve our Health.  

We just have to start slowly, 

and only do what we can do. 

Stop & Rest when you need to and 

talk to your health care provider as needed.

It's always good to watch a new routine first and see if it's one that works for you or you want to find another video. (easier/less time??)

Remember this is about You not anyone else. 

There are many beginner and on going videos you can check out to find what feels right to you.

There are different time lengths from a few minutes to half hour or so.  

Somedays I might do 1 or 2 short ones and another day a longer one or whatever I have time for.

PS. In our Tai chi outdoor class there was a lady 89, who drove on her own and  came every week with a folding chair to use when she needed to rest for a bit.  

She was sure an inspiration to us "younger ones." 

Take Care - have a good week. 

This video & post is for information purposes only in our quest for Well-being. 

I wish I could share the beautiful
fragrance this lily had.

Thanks for sharing with others -

links below.

The Best part - it's Free

what we focus on grows 

This is something we CAN do and it's free
                      .

 Another addition for your Wellness Toolbox

Dona Anderson

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Dona's photo - message from
Simply, One Breath At a Time.

A Calm Breath for Breathing...

We do it all day long but do we pay much attention to it.

Our breathing connects us to our inner self, our organs, heart, and lungs that are nourished, move and open up space for circulation to help us stay healthy and relaxed.

Have you thought about your posture and how sitting with head forward and rounded shoulders makes us shorter and not letting the breath move as it should.

And, if we're grumpy and frown instead of relaxed and smiling we've also shortened the breath. Shallow breathing also affects the body.

Let your next breaths softly fill your body ... 

as you do this a few times, also let your  

face, eyes and shoulders soften ...

Notice each breath opening 

and then leaving your body.

Feel the coolness of the in breath, 

and then the warmth of the out breath ...

Be part of this exchange, 
part of the simple gifts of life.

I picked a Rose Wellness Message
for us today that says ... 

I invite my next breaths to bring me
to a place to smile and be present,
a place to notice beauty, 
and a place to find joy ...

One Rose Wellness Cards

I invite my next breaths to bring me

to a place to smile and be present,

a place to notice beauty, and

a place to find joy ...

Is it time to rediscover your breath.

💚

Messages are from the pages of my book

Simply, One Breath At a Time.

Head over to the Resources Page

for more info.

And posts with similar messages

at the label below One Rose Cards. 

Thanks for your visit today.

PS. Lots of times in our lives we have to think about how our body breathes, our posture and see if we need to make some adjustments.

* This can be our reminder
*I needed it too.

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Weekly posts offer new thoughts,

experiences, stories and lots more.

Don't go yet!

Christmas combo
 4 links to check out. 

The Holidays are  coming up so please take care of you.

Rest often, ask for help and gift yourself lots of Self Care moments. 🎄

What do You do when Life gets complicated?

Have You ever felt like

Running away?

Dona Anderson

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With all the stress and worry in the World right now this is probably what a lot of us are thinking.

Story time.

The later 1950's kid version

One day a few of us on our block decided to "run away" well sort of.

We got as far as the baseball diamond several blocks away and after getting something to eat that took all the money we had, we went home - tired, piggy banks empty and waited for supper.

Our big exciting get away only lasted a couple hours or so.

Mom never knew - (?) unless my sister told.

The adult version

For me,

Lots of time when life got confusing, stressful, too busy, broke, too many problems, chores, moving and even the pets as puppies took what little energy we had left, the thoughts of running away seemed to cross my mind.

 Just to get away for a day or so to have  peace and quiet, sleep, relax, not have to  cook, clean, take the bus, or go to work.

But we survive, 

and get through it the best we can.

We learn,
to ask for help, change the schedule, prepare ahead of time, relax and exercise more often and let go of some of the have to do's in favor of the want to do's.

Thankfully - Life, home and work changes as years go by. 

The pressures, expectations, roles all change as we grow, learn, prepare, age and manage our days and life.

No, I never did "Run Away" but I have to say it did feel good thinking about it for a few minutes.  

What I should have done was taken a Wellness Day when needed. 

And used more of the benefits that were available so I would have been much healthier and happier instead of having everything hurt for years. 

That would have made a huge difference.

Now I can relate to this message better 

Say to yourself ...

I give myself Permission to Rest

It's nice now that there are more wellness words, information, thoughts and services to use for your Self Care. 

These words are normal now -

Spa days, Retreats, Meditation, Yoga, Relaxation, Homeopathy, Stillness, Acupuncture, Chiropractors, Massage, going for a run, or walk or just to stop

& take a breath.

What's on your list to help You?

Let us know in the comments.

Thanks for your visit today
new posts every Tuesday,

and Thanks for helping me spread Wellness around 

the world by sharing at the links below.

💚

PS. Honestly ...

I don't know where all  this stuff comes from each week

but you get to come along with me to see what's next!

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Take Care

That's our Scottie girl Lucy above.

She's 6 now - all grown up. 

We all need these ...

Quiet moments, 

Where do you find Yours?

Dona Anderson
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One Rose Wellness Message

for you today

There's nothing

 for  you to do,

There's

nowhere for

 you to go,

Simply surrender

to this

quiet moment ...

Do you have Quiet moments?

Where do you find them and for how long?

How do they make You feel? 

Perhaps yours is being away from cars, street noise, machines and being with calming sounds like music, waves, birds or whatever it is for You.

Quiet time also changes over the years as you age and your work & family life changes. 

It can even change through the seasons from outside to inside spaces.

Quiet time also helps connect us to feelings of peace, satisfaction, being grateful and contentment - a word I'm learning more about.

Where do you get your
 special moments.

One Rose Wellness Cards

There's lots of different things to do to relax, reduce stress and support your Health.  
It might start with just focusing on your Breath for a few minutes.

Take Care.

One Rose Wellness Cards are a set

of 105 Messages all from the pages
of  Simply, One Breath At a Time.

More information on the

Resources Page. 

Thanks for Your visit.

Links below for sharing, Thank You.

Hope you'll sign up to get email
 notifications of new posts.

Find more posts for One Rose Messages

at the label below, One Rose Cards

PS. My TV quiet moments is on the CBS Sunday Morning show where they end with a few moments in Nature every week. It's been a favorite for many years. Love it. 💚

I hope you like my photo above - very peaceful and quiet. - leave a comment and tell us about your quiet spaces.

What is Your Stress level telling You.

Please Take Care of YOU

What does that mean to you.

How do You take care of yourself ...

Stress even affects how we look and age. 

Another post for your
Wellness Toolbox.

Dona Anderson

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Let's start today with a 
few moments to Relax.  

Soften your shoulders,

your back ... your hands ... and face ...

Soften your breath to allow it to move 
through your whole body and mind
 letting go of Stress and moving
towards Relaxation.

A One Rose and message is waiting for you when

you feel ready.

   

A November Rose from 2 years ago.

Feel the Simplicity of this time  to rest and be with your breath a simple precious gift ...

Each Breath is our most precious Gift.

It's with us every day, every hour, every minute ...

 it becomes our friend, our teacher, our companion.

Please take care of You as your whole body breathes

 in Gratitude, Patience and Love.

Wellness Resources

Feel the Simplicity of this time  to rest

 and be with your breath

 a simple precious gift ...

One Rose Wellness cards is a set

of 105 messages all from the pages

of Simply, One Breath At a Time.

Thank You for your visit and
for sharing with others as we
spread Wellness around the
World. Links below.
   

Where in the World will we travel to this week?

Use the label One Rose Cards below

to find more similar posts.

PS. I hope you'll subscribe to get your

email link for these weekly posts. 

They'll help You easily make a
Wellness folder for the posts you
want to see or share again.

Quick access.

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Only one email a week, no cost no hassel.

You just started and already Meditation confusion.

Let's make it easier.

14 Tips coming Up

Dona Anderson
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You Want to ...

* Learn more about Self-Care and Meditation

* Rediscover your Breath

* Relax, Reduce Stress, Increase Mindfulness 

* Bring  more Awareness to your Body, Mind & Soul

* Connect more to Compassion & Gratitude

Start where you are 

Dona's Photo message

There are many styles of guided relaxation and meditation. 

And there's lots of different wellness programs, books, CD's, podcasts and information readily available.

Would you want easy words or words you don't know and have to look up.

Would you like sound meditations, visualizations, all silence, chakra learning or do you just want an easy way to start that feels good.

There's no right or wrong, it's a practice that can be different every day and gets better with time - like learning to play the piano.

For me - I usually can't just sit down and let everything in my life go in a few minutes & Meditate. I like to have a variety of guided scripts to use first to help me relax.

That way I don't go off in my head somewhere else and I can go slow, repeat or think about things along the way if I want. 

Later at the end I really enjoy those times of peace and silence.

The tips below are general and some may fit with your practice and others not.  

If you're just getting started or have questions, I hope these tips helped you.  

Here's your - 14 Tips 

1* Have no expectations other than to simply Enjoy.

2 * Self hugs, shoulder rubs, foot rubs and smiles are always important.

3 * Alter, change or lessen what you need to each day and sometimes you can even just imagine instead of doing.

4 * Practice in a comfortable and safe place (if you fall asleep). You don't have to sit on the floor unless you want to. 

Use a comfy chair, your bed, bath time, outside, a waiting room, park bench or enjoy a walk in nature. These can change like the seasons so be open to whatever you need.

5 * If reading from a guided script, you can easily skip parts or change the words to say things in your own way or bring in special messages you like.   

6 * If you have a paper book you could write in it what you'd like to say or add. See if there are blank pages or places that you can write notes on such as favorite quotes or messages. 

Get ideas and maybe write your own scripts to suit you or your group. 

7 * When time is limited shorten a longer script by leaving out parts/lines or only saying the key parts in each paragraph ... make them your own!

8 * Use battery candles, then no worries and always safe if you go to sleep.

9 * Have a timer if needed. It helps so you aren't worried about time.

10 * If you want music, soft unfamiliar instrumental music usually works best. You can even add in singing bowls, drums, rain sticks and whatever, it's up to you.

Or, perhaps some days you prefer a relaxing piece of music that is the meditation for you to sit with for a few minutes. 

11 * Have a blanket close by and use cushions and bolsters as needed to be comfortable depending on your seating arrangements.

12 * If sharing with others, check whether a scent free space is needed and determine seating arrangements. (often in a group someone may go to sleep - if so are they safe).  

13 * Dim lighting may be more comfortable.

14 * If reading to yourself or others use a slow, gentle voice and leave time when needing to focus on thoughts, breath work, or moving within the body. 

 💜Things are sometimes more fun when shared and so are guided meditations.

Possibilities are endless ...

You'll quickly feel at home and become a Pro!

Namaste.

 Link to Comforting resources for everyday Wellness

There's More 🠋 - Another  gift for you at the End.

More Resources - use the labels Simply, 
Moving Forward, and One Rose cards
below and get lots of ideas for your own
Meditation.

Links for sharing below and

Thanks for sharing to keep

Wellness spreading around

the World.

Take Care.

 Lots of information in the

Archives on the right side bar.

Thanks for Your visit today.

This post is for general information on our quest to know more about beginning Meditation.

PS. I couldn't end without giving You something else to use for a mini meditation right away - a few minutes to feel your breath and relax. Sometimes that's all you need.

A One Rose Wellness message to help you get started.

Breathe in and out a few times, 

and move on to the 

message below when you're ready. 

Quiet your mind and allow yourself to be

as you are, without judgment, accepting

the energy and inspiration.

💚

Are you signed up to get your email
link to new posts every Tuesday?

More Help coming up + over 600

posts in the Archives for you to

view and share at your leisure.

Subscribe to Dona Anderson by Email

More posts below,

or in the archives - Web version