Alexis Faere Body Wrapper

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    Alexis Faere

    • Bother

      Bother

      To me, Bother looks like someone who deliberately places their hands on their hips and fumes a big sigh of frustration or disgust. You’ve probably experienced a parent or someone gasping at you at some point in your life. It also looks like someone or something pestering you. Perhaps a child keeps asking why or while you’re sitting at your desk working, your neighbor is chomping on some carrots.

      What does Bother feel like? Where do you feel it in your body? Bother feels like a wound-up spring demanding to be set free so that it can relax. In my body, it feels like tension and a hovering cloud in my chest area. It feels impatient, urgent, and distracting. It also feels irritating because someone or something has interrupted a good focus or flow. It’s like a buzzing energy that never finds a resting place.

      Feeling Bothered functions to point something out to me that is outside of my normal, comfortable little world. It interrupts me. When I feel bothered, it seems like someone around me is not being as sensitive as they could be to others around them. I’m then quick to judge or jump to a mindless conclusion either about the other person or in my self-talk. I think feeling bothered could transform into a reminder to me to get ‘outside of myself’ or to be compassionate toward someone else, if I stopped to recognize it when it occurs. I could dance with that, instead of being caught up in it.

      If you’re feeling it, this is an invitation for you to explore bother today. What does bother look like to you? How does it feel to you? Imagine feeling bothered and how it works for you. How might you transform it to function for you?

      We are beings with feelings…

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    • Lost Adventures

      Lost Adventures

      Now this title could take you in a couple of different directions — lost adventures or the adventures of being lost. I’m going down the path of the latter.

      When was the last time you got lost? What was your experience of that: were you frightened or panicked or did your inner ‘role with the punches’ lead you into a memorable adventure?

      My husband and I were hiking near Pagosa Springs, Colorado, in the fall. The aspen trees were getting their golden leaves on and the woods were glistening with color. Early one morning, just after sunup, the path we chose led to a small lake with a waterfall and we guessed, based on the distance, that it would only take us about 45 minutes – a short hike, but assured to be quite beautiful. We weren’t equipped for anything lengthy but had a backpack with a couple of bottles of water and enough room to throw in our jackets if we got warm and a hiking map of the area.

      Looking at the posted map at the trailhead, and after noting our entrance onto the selected trail, we headed into the woods on our adventure. We walked through wooded areas that lead to open meadows and back into the woods again. We savored the mountainous beauty surrounding us, chatted about our adventure, and enjoyed the dewy sparkles accented by the rising sun.

      We walked and walked, sure we were following the right path, but after 3 hours of romping in the hills and working up a thirst, we realized we were nowhere near any lake and there was a pronounced absence of any audible evidence of any nearby stream. Time to pull out the map!

      Oh my! We missed our turn! Retracing our tired steps, sun high in the sky by now, with map in hand, I felt a little discouraged. Glad to have someone with me, but discouraged. As I watched the moist dirt path beneath my feet, I came upon a gift. A dampened, yellow, fallen aspen leaf on the earth’s surface with just the right mixture of dew and dust to form a smiley face. A little gift from nature encouraging me amidst my plight of being lost.

      Eventually, we arrived at our selected awe-inspiring destination and the talisman discovered in my path encouraged me all the way back to the car where we could rest our tired feet and head back into civilization to find some nourishing vittles to quell the growling bellies.

      The moral to this story – When you’ve lost your way, pause and look around. You just never know what adventure awaits, and you might just find a ‘sign’ to lead you toward your destination.

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    • Cheer

      Cheer

      What does Cheer look like? To me, it is a smiling face. It is a child caught up in a moment that causes excessive giggling. It is a performance or a job well done, recognized by observers, perhaps there is applause or someone delivers a compliment. Sometimes, cheer is going home from work knowing the next ten days are vacation days. It even looks like watering taste buds upon receiving that perfect scoop of your favorite ice cream.

      What does Cheer feel like? Where do you feel it in your body? I feel my mouth turn upward into a smile, and then my heart feels lighter. I feel peace in my soul. It feels happy and it feels relaxed. I find it to be contagious, too. When I feel it, I want to share it in some way. Do your toes ever wiggle when you feel cheer? My belly relaxes. I feel warm light beaming from my eyes.

      Feeling Cheer functions to help me let go of something otherwise burdensome and turns my face into peace and joy. When I feel it, I imagine warm excitement and relaxed acceptance blanketing all those around me. Perhaps my cheer lightens an otherwise arduous moment into a floating feather. Cheer also invites me to get away from being too serious. Even in serious moments, this feeling is helpful to keep my soul in balance.

      I give you permission to explore and play with cheer today. What does it look like to you? How does it feel to you? Imagine what cheer’s function is for you. How is it working for you? Here’s an experiment. Visualize putting a cool cherry on the belly button in the picture above. What happens to this bright little being when you do that?

      We are beings with real feelings…

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    • Planet SARK

      Unchained Writer

    • Defiance

      Defiance

      The classical definition of Defiance: (1) The act or an example of defying; bold resistance to an opposing force or authority, (2) Intentionally contemptuous behavior or attitude; readiness to contend or resist, (3) Suspicion; mistrust.

      To me, Defiance looks like a kid that refuses to eat her green beans. Or, refusing to empty the dishwasher because you’ve done it the last 4 times, and it’s time for someone else to pick up that ‘chore’. It’s like resisting the urge to jump in the car to obtain an ice cream cone because you saw an advertisement.

      What does Defiance feel like? Where do you feel it in your body? To me, it feels like determined resistance to do something you know you ‘should’ do. Or in opposition, it is grabbing an orange to eat, instead of caving to the scrumptious suggestion to grab some ice cream. It creates a dust storm of negativity. It feels like a wall I’m not willing to move or reshape.

      Feeling Defiance (defiant) functions to create a stand or a perspective that I’m not willing to budge away from. Sure, it could gently be creating a healthy boundary, but when I experience it, it feels more like a child refusing to do something. It often functions as a boundary for me, without consideration for anyone else but myself. Being aware of its presence could provide me with an opportunity to shift stubbornness into a fresh cool drink of flexibility.

      I offer you this invitation to explore defiance today. What does defiance look like to you? How does it feel to you? Once you identify it, see if you can understand its function. Upon that grasp then explore how you can reshape that into something that functions for you.

      Our feelings can be fluid vessels of goodness…

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    • Elation

      Elation

      What does Elation look like? My elation looks like me standing tall with pride and optimism. It is an author receiving a little message from a known or unknown reader saying, “Your book (article, blog, idea) helped me understand…” It looks like holding a published book in your hands for the first time. It is the smile on a child’s face when she learns to ride a bicycle without help or training wheels.

      What does Elation feel like? Where do you feel it in your body? I feel elation in my belly, like a giggly child full of bubbly energy. When I feel elated my body feels light as a feather or excitedly liberated. It feels like a sense of accomplishment. Everything in my body vibrates with joy and freedom.

      Sometimes it’s hard to explain how a feeling feels. But, finding words to describe it helps to solidify our intellectual understanding of any given feeling. With Elation, I imagine holding my hands in the air and waving them happily while proclaiming, “I did it! This is exciting!” That image creates an anchor of sorts which helps me recognize the specific feeling. Then, I can recognize it in myself or in others. It’s a good way to add to your dictionary of feelings.

      Elation in my life functions to generate vibrant energy in the space of all that is life. It is a vibration that resonates through every fiber of my being. It is contagious energy. When I see it in someone else, I find myself hopping onto the same wave of liveliness. Isn’t it interesting how contagious feelings can be?

      If you care to, this is an invitation for you to explore elation today. What does elation look like to you? How does it feel to you? What is the function of feeling elated? Tell me what it is like for you to feel elated. Share the colors of elation in your world!

      We are amazing, feeling beings…

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    • Fear

      Fear

      What does Fear look like? To me, it looks like someone hiding from something or someone. It looks like a bird that takes flight when I walk too close or an animal that jumps upon hearing something startling. I sometimes do things because I am afraid of a certain outcome and choose to do something different so as not to elicit the feared conclusion or consequence.

      Fear feels like running away or intentionally avoiding something. I feel it in my muscles because they tense up to somehow try to protect me. Sometimes I feel it in my gut, like a warning message. I feel fear when I’m outdoors, or camping in stormy weather. My fear comes from a place of wanting to feel safe.

      What is the function of Fear? Oh, this is a big one! It functions in some circumstances to warn me of impending danger. Other times, it functions to keep me hidden from sight for one reason or another. Sometimes fear functions from a position of perspective, because I got a certain unwanted response as a result of something I said or how I said it.

      I think, ultimately, fear is looking out for my best interests, and it wants me to feel safe and loved. Perhaps when I feel it, I can determine if it is protecting me, or if it is helping me to avoid or run away from something. If I’m avoiding, then I can acknowledge it and allow my fear to give me a big ol’ teddy bear hug. Then maybe I can listen to it with different ears and act accordingly.

      Here is a permission slip for you to explore fear. It’s okay to do this in small incremental steps. Try a little short step. What does fear look like to you? How does it feel to you? What is fear’s function? How might you tweak it to work on your behalf?

      Part of being human is being aware of all of our feelings…

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    • Story People

      Marcy Pusey

    • Oxibug