Thursday, February 01, 2018

Let's Talk and Walk toward Health





My early morning ramble

Yesterday was Bell Lets Talk Day in Canada with its focus on mental health. It's an important annual event, raising money and challenging stigmas around mental illness. I appreciated Shelagh Rogers, one of my favourite broadcasters, sharing that her CBC producer has recognized and accommodated her mental illness for a decade or more, as might happen for physical illness.

I went for a walk in the woods yesterday morning, minutes from our home,  and while I didn't connect this ramble with Bell Lets Talk Day in the moment I do now. I am almost always in a better frame of mind and spirit after I have walked or paddled. My senses are retuned, like a musical instrument. I marvel at the critters I see, or the sight and sound of wind in the trees, and the light at different times of the day and night. I've mentioned before that I'm inclined to hum or sing when I'm outside, usually hymns of praise, and I'm not a spontaneous singer by inclination. I even enjoy the sensation of temperature changes which accompany the different seasons. Hey, just writing about this lifts my spirits!

I figure we all need to get away from our addictive little screens (ironic given that we were all supposed to be tweeting yesterday) and get outside, as we are able. I'm committed to experiencing nature as much as possible with our three marvelous young grandchildren, and I'll get my 92-year old mother out in her spiffy new wheelchair once the weather warms.

I don't think it's coincidence that Jesus did some of his best teaching and healing while he was outside and on the move. I am convinced that I am more emotionally and spiritually grounded when I actually touch the ground. There are plenty of studies to support this and I think our Christian scriptures do so as well.

Actually, the gospel lesson for this Sunday from Mark tells us that after a heavy evening of healing and curing Jesus gets up early the next morning and "went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed...". Having clambered about on hillsides in Galilee in my time I can imagine this. So, let's get out there and walk as well as talk for the good of our bodies, minds, and spirits.

Comments?

Deep peace of the running wave to you.
Deep peace of the flowing air to you.
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.
Sun and moon pour their healing light on you
Deep peace of Christ, the light of the world to you.

                       Celtic Blessing

3 comments:

Lori said...

I don't often publicly talk about the years I spent boarding myself up inside my home, but in the spirit of Let's Talk I will today. Agoraphobia didn't hit like a ton of bricks. This was not a sudden terror, but a slow incremental lose of a sense of direction. As depression took over, staying in felt safe, like chocolate cake without calories. What could be better, right? Gradually, comfort evolves into terror.Getting back outside is horrible. Really scary. Worse than eating liver. But then you feel the sun in your face and you remember the way. To say that nature heals is only part of it. Nature makes whole.

David Mundy said...

Thank you for your reflections and honesty Lori. While Ruth might describe liver and onions as a positive experience, your analogy works for me! While stepping outside literally and metaphorically can be daunting, it is also healing.

Lori said...

I wasn't specific enough. Going out was like knowing you would have to eat liver straight from under the cellophane where it sat on the meat tray, uncooked.