On January 7th, we had our first meditation of 2011. It was snowing so we had a small intimate group of 7. To be honest all meditations are perfect, but this was really special. The theme of the meditation was balance.

We started the meditation by simply noticing if we were physically in-balance. Is our right & left side in balance? I realized that I am not just right-handed, I am right-sided. I favor my right side when walking, when sitting, when walking down stairs. If you do something similar just make a slight correction when you notice it.

An easy exercise for balance is the single leg stance which improves strength of your weaker side. You can modify it by increasing difficulty as you improve. One of our members had the idea to use Wii Fit. I am going to try to do that all month.

So the intention for January is to work on balance. We are not going to become experts on balance in one month, but perhaps just being mindful will help. Here are some tips I plan to use:

1. Move: Let’s try to find a balance in stillness and movement. I struggle with this a lot. I sit the majority of my day so I am going to begin to try to alternate sitting and standing and finding ways to move my body everyday. I used to dance, maybe I can do that again.
2. Food: Just notice if you eat too much of one thing and not enough of another. Is there variety in your diet? How many colors do you eat in a day? When my kids were little we used to count the number of colors on our plates. So you could notice if there is a balance in colors in your diet. Ayurvedic healers also recommend a balance of 6 tastes in our diets: sweet (carrots), sour (lemons/berries), salty, bitter (arugula/spinach), pungent (ginger) and astringent (broccoli).
3. Sounds: Maybe you can notice if there is a balance between silence and sounds in your life. Some people have a tough time with silence but it is necessary for our well-being so try to give your nervous system a little down time.
4. Colors: Do you find yourself wearing the same colors everyday. I know I do. Perhaps this month we can experiment and play a little by adding some new colors into our wardrobe.
5. Sleep: A balance between waking hours and sleeping hours is so important. We all know nothing works for us, if we don’t get enough sleep. Along with a good night’s sleep, Sunday afternoon naps are a lovely idea as well.
6. Me Time: It is wonderful to spend time in the company of family and friends, but it is equally important to leave room for yourself and your own thoughts. Of course I would recommend 5-10 minutes in meditation, but you can use the alone time in any way that helps center you: prayer, walking, cooking, painting, writing, etc.

This month, I plan to simply become mindful of the balance in my physical life. Why not join me?