A bit of positivity
MR wants to believe
A little bit of positivity never hurt people in their busy lives trying to juggle work, family, friendships and exercise. But often it is easy to get lost in daily demands, to harness that energy and really use it for maximum benefit, and that is exactly what Intentional Smile is about.
Dhaka's first self help book written by two Dhakaites, Shazia and Merrill, who talk about their challenges in life, and how they got together to find that thing that's around the corner but eludes you sometimes—happiness.
The book is a combination of exercises, informational real life examples, and anecdotes in a bit of a helter skelter way, which just adds to its charm. They are centered around themes of loving yourself, energy, gratitude, breathing, beliefs, intentions, feelings, chakras and the blues. The exercises range from simple to more complex ones: one of them is a blank page where you list your blessings; people you love, places you love, experiences you enjoyed, and favourite foods. Another is when you visualize a ball of light travelling through your system, and it releases energy as it travels through you. The result is that at the end of that exercise, you feel energized all over.
It has certain practical tips for every day, such as rewording your problems. So instead of saying 'Our relationship sucks', a positive way to reword that is to say, 'I choose to cultivate a rewarding relationship with you'; and instead of saying, 'I am fat', you can turn it around to say, 'I choose to live a healthy life.' It talks about the need to write down daily intentions. The writers say: 'Every night, before I go to bed, I cuddle up in my couch, with my notebook and cup of tea. I write out a flow of intentions and affirmations for the following day. I intend to gain positive energy from my morning routine. I intend to eat a delicious breakfast. I intend to travel safely and peacefully throughout the day…the more details I go into the night before, the more successful I am in programming the day that follows.' Sounds simple enough, but how many of us actually end up doing it, and reaping the surprising changes that it may bring to our lives?
My personal favourite is when you press the tip of each finger (I actually learnt this at Shazia's pilates class) and associate it with one favourite memory. So the first finger can be a beach holiday you took with your husband, the second can be when you got a kitten, the third your wedding day, and so on. Simple, happy memories that always make you feel good. If you do it often enough, every time you press those fingers, you associate with a good memory, and your mind becomes conditioned to feel happy. I have tried it, and I vouch for it!
With beautiful, colourful, feel good illustrations by Lara, the book ends with meditation cards with words such as 'healthy', 'safe', 'grounded', 'calm'. The idea is to hold those cards to whatever chakra they synchronize with, and try to imbibe yourself with all the positivity the cards hold. Chakras have a chapter on its own, so read it before you get into this last activity. This is a book you should get if you are trying to find a systematic way to infuse happiness and gratitude in your lifestyle, are struggling a little bit, and want to believe. As it says,
'Smile with your lips, smile with your eyes, and smile with your heart.'
MR loves reading and reflecting on reading
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