Once upon a time, six blind men were walking to town in India. On the way, they ran into an elephant. They were fascinated with the elephant and wanted to understand more about him. So, each described the part of the elephant that they had contact with. The first blind man was touching and exploring the elephant's trunk, He declared, "The Elephant is like a large, wiggling snake!". The second blind man had hold of the elephant's tail and he knew the elephant was just like a rope. The third had the ear and felt the elephant was like a large fan. The fourth had his arms around one of the elephant's legs and decided the elephant was like a tree. The fifth had run into the tusk and experienced the elephant as a sharp spear. The sixth was amazed at the elephant's massive side and thought the elephant was like a strong, stone wall. So it was that the six blind men stood arguing in the road that day, about what an elephant is, each defending his perception. The truth, that the elephant is all of their perceptions and more, eluded them, as they focused on their ideas.
When it comes to honoring and caring for our bodies, many of us focus on one portion of health, not being aware of the greater picture. So I would like to suggest taking a step back and taking a look at your whole health picture.
First look at your self-esteem. How do you talk to yourself, with gentle words, criticism, encouragement, praise? What is your level of self-efficacy, can you do what you would like to do? Do you respect your own needs and limits? Write a list of the twenty most important things to you. How many of them are active in your life now?
Next analyze your work/rest patterns. Our natural rhythms of work and rest would like 20 minute around every two hours to rejuvenate and balance. This is called the Ultradian Performance Rhythm. Is it in your life? Do you have a natural wake/sleep cycle? Do you wake up rested and ready to explore your day? If not, what do you need to do so you will?
There is no substitute for good nutrition. Keep a forty-eight hour record of everything you eat, drink, inhale or inject into your body. Then ask yourself these questions. Did you meet the basic requirements for good nutrition? Does your diet have all the food groups for healthy nutrition? How does it compare to the food pyramid? Did you drink enough fluid (around 8 cups)? What percentage is carbohydrate, protein, fat? Did you supply your body with the necessary vitamins and minerals? Do you read labels? What chemicals and harmful products did you ingest? What does your body do with these products? Did your energy intake match your energy output, or did you consume too much or too little food? What quality of fuel do you give your body? It's my belief that the closer your food is to its natural state, the easier it is for your body to use it.
Another cycle important in our lives is our work/play cycle. As the"Desiderata" asks, do you keep interest in your own career? Does your work fulfill your need to be productive, skilled, competent? No matter how humble, do you value your job and know it's worth to society? Along with work, do you play? How many times have you laughed today? What kind of play do you enjoy? Do you find yourself playing with complete abandonment of other life issues? Can you look in the mirror and make five funny faces at yourself?
Take a look at your skin. What condition is it in? What does it tell you? It is healthy? Does it show signs of some imbalance in you? How about your muscles and bones. Do you exercise them daily. Are you keeping them strong and healthy. How do you care for the great pump in your chest. Do you exercise for at least 20 minute a session, at least three times a week? Remember to begin any exercise program from your present level of ability and gradually increase it. Listen to you body for signs of "this is too easy, time to increase the work" or "this is too hard, I'd better back off." Exercising is usually more enjoyable and easier to maintain when it is done with friends. Can you identify exercise partners?
How do you relate to others? Are you aware that there are basic gender differences in communication style? As example, generally, a woman needs to be listened too, a man needs to fix it. Take the typical dinner meal after a day at work. The wife says, what a horrible day she had at work, (she just needs to vent her frustrations). The husband replies, why don't you just quit that job, (he feels obligated to solve the problem for his wife). Hopefully, this couple is able to say things like, "I don't need you to fix it, I just need you to listen" and "when you are so sad, I want to make it better for you." Many of us are so busy thinking about our answers to questions, our replies in conversation, that we miss important parts of conversation. Can you practice listening without contemplating what you will say? The most powerful communication technique I know, was mentioned by Mother Theresa when she said, "I see the Christ in every face." Can you find the sacred in every face you look into? The more we develop and understand, the more responsible we need to be for our words. Choose wisely, words create.
How do you honor and care for your Spiritual Self? What is the meaning of life to you? Do you know your purpose on this earth? How do you spend time with yourself? Are you able to be alone? What rituals and symbols are important to you? Do you listen to your dreams? They are Self trying to get your attention about your own development. Do you share your Spiritual self with a sacred community? There is a peace that passes understanding. Do you know that Peace?
This is such a short story on such a long topic. It's just a primer. Please take responsibility for your own life and create balance, harmony and peace for yourself. It will radiate out from you. (But, it cannot radiate out, if it is not there!) Libraries and book stores are filled with books on all these topics. People are a wealth of ideas and information, available for the asking. Our own quiet mind has direct knowing of what is needed in each moment, when we still the chatter of the thinking mind. When each one of us finds peace in our heart, we will be finding peace in our world. It is the acceptance and love of ourselves, just as we are, with our beauty and our joys, our sorrows and our challenges, that allows us to learn to love and accept our world. And this is the first step in our evolution, personal and universal.
I ask you to go ahead and explore your own elephant of life. But don't stop with it's parts, step back and behold the total picture. Look at the balance. Is your elephant all ear or all tusk? Then step back again and see how the elephant is connected to the blind men, the landscape, the world. Keep stepping back, see the connection and the balance.
Linda Eklof Read 1995