Mid-week Special:The Body Talks

THE BODY communicationWhen Albert Einstein met Charlie Chaplin, Einstein said,“What I most admire about your art, is your universality. You don’t say a word, yet the world understands you!”

Silent film star Charlie Chaplin epitomizes the power of nonverbal communication.  Think about it for a moment: he mastered the use of facial expressions and body language to convey messages in a medium where words were not an option.  He did so to such a degree that in 1998 – well into the age when words, music, and CGI could tell the story in the movies – film critic Andrew Sarris called Chaplin “arguably the single most important artist produced by the cinema, certainly its most extraordinary performer and probably still its most universal icon”.

Chaplin can help us understand what we were talking about last week: the importance of showing up.  When you show up there will be a language spoken, even if words are not.  As in Chaplin’s day, it will be the language of your body. Experiences and feelings are expressed by your movements, your posture, your silence, and your stillness. Continue reading

Anger And Getting Kicked Off The Island

Anger and getting kicked off the island

“I’m going to be voted off the island,” she wailed. Most of us know she is referring to the TV show, “Survivor.” On the show, team members are made to leave when they do not live up to expectations, or are seen as a threat by the other contestants. No matter the reason, a line was crossed, intentionally or unintentionally, and the situation could not be fixed. The contestant had done something wrong, and the mistake was large enough that they would not get a second chance.

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Mid-Week Special: The Importance of Showing Up

the importance of showing up.We have all heard the saying, “It hurt too much to cry.” What you don’t hear as often is the idea that there could exist a pain so great that to talk about it seems unbearable.  It is the feeling that the act of verbalizing an experience would cause such hopelessness and shame it would be impossible to endure it.

That begs the question: Isn’t therapy based on talking? If talking is too painful and therapy is about talking, what do you when you have this type of pain inside?

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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,on Equality and Change

DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, Jr. ,on equality and change.

I HAVE A DREAM

This is the day we commemorate the short life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  While he is adored and respected today, when he was alive he was feared and hated because he was working for radical change. He called for people to alter the structure of society, and to do so would require individuals to change from the inside.

 

We have moved from the era of civil rights to the era of human rights, an era where we are called upon to raise certain basic questions about the whole society.”

The call for Change

The message he brought to the world, and to the cause he championed, was far larger than segregation. He worked for justice, equality and peace. He opposed militarism and violence of any kind, yet he believed it takes action – nonviolent action – to bring about change.

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Mindfulness and Meditation for Reflection

mindfulnessLast week, we talked about winter being a natural time of reflection and introspection. I gave you 5 questions to consider to help you use winter as your own season of contemplation.  It is important to remember that this process only works if you give it time.

Think of it like starting a garden. You do not run out and dig deep holes in random places. The first step is to look at your land, the area you have, and begin to dream and imagine what your garden will become. Then you need specific information about how to grow a garden that accounts for a number of variables, including where you are, what soil you have, and what purpose the garden will serve.Only then can you begin to turn the soil.

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