NLEK

Couldn’t be in a better mood this morning, the sun is shining the normally dull Radio 6 is playing some absolute bangers and I’ve just been treated to a little baby yoga show from my boss’s son Soya. So I woke up pretty early today, naturally, with the sun bursting through the bay windows. The best way to wake up I think. After cleansing my chakras, I threw on my leopard print trousers, tumbled clumsily down the stairs and chowed down on some fruit and fibre, mostly fibre much to my dismay! A simple start to the day perhaps but I’m a simple soul, not simple in a special rainbow bus kind of way, although my boyfriend might disagree there! But simple in the way that as long as I have fresh air first thing in the morning accompanied preferably by a few rays I’m generally a happy little lady. I have recently made a promise to myself that despite the restrictions of a full time job, next year I will travel more. Too many people spend their lives working and worrying about how the next e-mail could potentially affect their future ten years down the line. Getting caught up in work is, to me, the dullest thing that could happen in life; don’t get me wrong I’m keen to get wrapped up in a vocation but a job….a day to day job….no thanks. Perhaps that is where my fascination with Buddhism comes in, not a religion but a way of life, no restrictions simply guidelines…. I remember one evening in Sri Lanka. After a lengthy trek up an intimidatingly large….rock, for want of a better word, we stumbled across a sun bleached Buddhist monastery. Although visiting times had come to an end and the early evening breeze had begun to dance amongst the various streams of prayer flags, our guide managed to sneak us in to have a wander around. Greeted by an orange-clad, balding and considerably well fed Buddhist monk we were left to wander at our will around both the temple and its uneven courtyard. Whilst my family appreciate the intricate carvings and delicate detail of the monastery doors, I stand alone at the edge of the courtyard looking out across the vast valley that lies before me. It is easy to feel both spiritual and emotional in a place of such natural beauty and I think to myself that perhaps if this had been a Christian settlement the view might be overlooked by an, at times, unhealthy obsession with the big fella that lives in the clouds. It’s all about balance. I place my hands on the wall separating me and a particularly tummy turning drop, listening to the haunting but oddly comforting chants that travel on the breeze from the mouths of meditating monks. Perhaps this snapshot in time was my inspiration to take part in my recently completed Reiki course, or my decision to take life less seriously. What exactly this moment encouraged I’m not entirely certain, however I do know that at that time, in that space, surrounded by that overwhelming natural beauty a great deal of weight was lifted from my upsettingly distressed young shoulders. Without any words of wisdom or drawn-out lectures I was able to envisage a path for myself, a path to a healthier and happier life. So if you’re caught up in New York Fashion week, do me a favour put down those diet pills, take that cotton wool ball away from your mouth and realise that life really is too precious to waste on weight-loss and staring in the mirror. Have a bleddy wonderful day everyone….it’s Friday!!