oWhere A clean up for the mind

Once in a while, most of us take time to declutter our room, throw out those old sweaters with some holes in it and stinky pairs of shoes that don’t provide our feet sufficient support anymore. 

It can feel so good to throw out some of the old stuff that you don’t use anymore as it creates more physical space, which we don’t necessarily have to fill up with new stuff.

But how often do we take time to declutter our lives and our mental spaces?  

Our thoughts, emotions, behavioral patterns? The way we spend our free time and the persons that we surround ourselves with.  

You don’t have to wait till the end of the year when you feel all nostalgic, to reflect and act. 

It can be done anytime, creating more space in your life and more internal peace (aka shanti). 

Letting something or someone go doesn’t have to be a loss you know. 

My grandmother used to say: “no creation without destruction.” 

Where to start?

Start by asking yourself some questions. Is this something I really need? How does this help or support me? Feel free to be a bit selfish in answering these questions. But also, be honest with yourself.

When I don’t know where to start, I just pick a small specific part to start with. Then slowly and with awareness I’ll continue. Along the way, the next step will present itself. 

For instance, start observing your thoughts. Which thoughts help/support you and which thoughts actually hinder you or create obstacles? 

Observing my thought patterns actually brought more awareness in my decisions regarding food choices. When I used to study or work at my desk, I often craved something sweet like chocolate or cookies. 

Being more reflective, helped me to act more out of intent and less out of impulse, which in the long run helped me to make more healthy and wholesome decisions and create new behavioral patterns (yay!)

Become aware of what you’re feeling 

Get familiar with your own feelings, both physical and mental sensations. I have recently learned how valuable it is to get to know your own body better.

Your body continuously gives you signals or feedback on how you are doing and it really pays off to take time and listen to these signals once in a while.

The decisions you make for yourself will be “better informed” when you learn to listen to your inner world.

We often go outside to seek for advice or help, but listening more closely to inner signals can often provide us with the answers we need. 

So how do you do all of this? Well, what really helped me get ahead is meditation. And yes, meditation is easier said than done and it took me some years to get the hang of it, and actually I’m still learning.

Also, it’s actually a systematic practice that goes beyond just sitting silently, if you’d like to hear or learn more about this topic, hit me up and let me know! (shantigrooves010@gmail.com)

With love,

Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti ♡