Body Wisdom Project

A few weeks ago, at the dark of the moon to be exact, I began a personal exploration of my relationship with my body.  I am approaching this journey with my friend, Jessica.  We call it the Body Wisdom Project.  Our intention during this moon cycle is to LISTEN.

It seems like a no brainer; LISTEN to the body.  But how often do we do it?  How often do we get quiet enough to tune out the world and  its messages and messiness, and tune into the body’s subtle whispers.  How often do we follow the body’s advice?  How often do we honor the wisdom it offers?

The Body Wisdom Project puts LISTENING at the center of what I value during the day.

Connecting the Body Wisdom Project with the cycle of the moon has helped me connect more deeply with my body.  Towards the end of 2012 I offered a moon wisdoms e-course called Touch the Moon.  The course helped me amplify my awareness of the moon, its rhythms, and meanings.  As I have watched the moon these past couple of weeks since the Body Wisdom Project began, the connection with my body has grown more intense.  Something has shifted.

I began at the dark of the moon, when the moon was void of all light, and have continued to allow my connection to grow as the light of the moon has.  The moon has become an outward reminder of an inward journey.

Where the journey has taken me…

In the first couple of days as I listened, I became aware of some of the aches and pains in my body.  The most prevalent one being a pain I have had in my neck for nearly 6 months.  I asked what the neck needed. I discovered that it is very tense. I often tighten it for no reason. And so as I listened more and became aware of the tension, I would send my breath to the muscle and invite it to release.  This has been very helpful and has brought me some relief.

I also heard my body telling me it was thirsty and starving.  These surprised me to some degree.  When I asked what it was starving for, I discovered that I need more greens and root vegetables.  That is how I fell in love with brussel sprouts.

This week, I began hearing that my body wanted to move….more specifically, to dance. I reached out to a friend and on Friday we met at my house to dance to Gabrielle Roth’s Inner Wave.  Gabrielle’s dance is spiritual, mindful, meditative. It didn’t take long for me to find myself in a sort of communion with my body, tenderly moving it to its own rhythms, taking on the shapes that gave meaning to what it needed to express.  Expressions like….relief that I was willing to honor it with this delicate movement, grief over the messages it receives from the world, delight at the memories of dances past, hope from more dancing in the future, dreams of bringing moving meditation to others.  All that wrapped up in the nuance of a flit of the hip, a carefully placed step, breath pulled in and guided out, heat across the brow, a growing joy in my spirit.

With the arrival of the full moon on Saturday, I payed special attention to the body.  I LISTENED.  And heard….rest.  And so these last couple of days, I have given myself rest as the body has needed it, letting go of any notions that I need to get more done.  The body says rest.  And I am trusting that the rest will be just what I need.

Join Jessica and me in LISTENING.  Let’s start a movement.  A gentle, loving movement.