The power to choose
“Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself:
I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today.
I can choose which it shall be.
Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet.
I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.”
~ Groucho Marx
How can a meteor shower make you healthier?
Did you equate the recent Perseid meteor shower with good health? No? Neither did I until I spent time watching them and then thought about it in a different way recently.
My experience in regular terms: I decided I was going to catch a meteor shower for once. I’m a night owl anyhow so why not put that time to good use? It came at a perfect time: I’m in a new place farther removed from the city where the star-gazing is awesome. The sky is truly clear! So my daughter and I laid on the deck and watched the sky. It took a while to really see the sky and even more to quiet my mind and just be. But we had a great time getting to see a variety of the showers, chatting, laughing, learning about the bats also flying by once my daughter’s boyfriend joined us. (Mr. Nature Boy!)
My experience in health terms: For an hour or so in time, I easily embraced several important qualities to health — simplicity, stress relief, connection, play. With probably even a dose of spirituality and natural care and mindset thrown in. I relaxed, enjoyed, quieted down, did my body and soul a world of good. All for free; all in my own backyard.
Sometimes we miss the easy, effortless, free ways we can do some good for our health. It doesn’t all have to be expensive or difficult. Sometimes being quiet and at peace for a period of time, just doing a whole lot of nothing, can do wonders. And, no, you don’t have to wait for the next meteor shower. You can find a way that you enjoy right where you are — right now, right here.
Must herbs cure?
I take nettles to eliminate my spring/summer/fall sneezing attacks. And, ever since that became such a nice life saver for me, I’ve suggested it to others so they, too, don’t have to suffer needlessly. Sneeze a dozen times, blow, repeat, wipe your eyes. Fix your make up. You know the routine!
What strikes me as odd, though, is how often I get asked: So, did that cure your allergies? Umm, no, it didn’t. It’s simply an herb that helps me lead life without feeling like Sneezy the Dwarf. (With a good dose of Grumpy and Sleepy thrown in.) It’s inexpensive — a month-long supply generally costs me less than $10. It’s safe — I haven’t heard of anyone dying from taking nettles.
Besides eliminating the nasty effects of hay fever, nettles offer a host of other great properties. They have been highly regarded in Europe for hundreds of years. By medieval times, they were being used to treat rheumatism, arthritis, allergies, eczema, bladder issues, coughs, bronchitis, anemia, gingivitis, hives, laryngitis, gout, multiple sclerosis, tendonitis, PMS, prostate enlargement and sciatica. As a food, it is rich in chlorophyll, beta carotene, flavonoids, iron, calcium, potassium, phosphates, silica, several of the B vitamins and vitamins A, C, E and K.
But, back to the cure of herbs. That would be great, but how often do we get a cure for things like this with anything else, either? Do you take Claritin or some other over-the-counter allergy pill one year and never need it again? How about prescription meds for allergies? Are you done?
You’re not, correct? So here’s the beauty of choosing an herb where you can instead of relying on OTC or prescription medications: It’s not going to cost you as much. It’s far safer — I can’t see getting too enthused about taking things that feature fine print about possible effects that will be far worse than the issue you’re trying to treat. It does other good things for your body. There aren’t even minor side effects like dry mouth or sleepiness … or risk of death.
So, don’t let yourself get confused. Weigh out the information and choices, and figure out what makes sense to you. Try it out (get your doctor’s advice if needed), and see how it goes. Don’t put herbs in the category of an unknown danger when they’ve been around and been used for hundreds of years successfully. And don’t put them on so high of a pedestal — i.e. a cure — that you can’t reap the benefits they do offer.
Embrace the healing powers of nature
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in,
where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.”
~ John Muir
