 I
love being a woman. Love everything about it. We are so many
things to so many people. Last month I talked about the Lunar
Woman, and I promised to follow up this month with the Earthen
Woman.
She’s
not called “Father Earth” or “Father Nature”
now is she? Round, grounded, fertile, arid, wet, unpredictable
and peaked, we, like Mother Earth, radiate with warmth, understanding,
internal and external beauty, grace, peace, and the push and
pull of polar opposites that comes with the waxing and waning
of the moon. In this cyclic process, we create balance, stability,
and security in moments of chaos and are Mother Nature, or,
better yet, mother nurturer to all.
But as
I asked of our Los Angeles students last week, who nurtures
you? That is the overwhelming question eating away at my mind
these days. Who nurtures the women of the world? We came from
mothers and fathers and, hopefully, they were nurturing in
one way or another. We moved away from home, some of us went
to college, some to work. Then, maybe, we found a love, and
he nurtured great until…well, his needs overwhelmed
yours and you began nurturing him, because you know guys do
that sometimes. Then, maybe kids came, or not, but you're
still nurturing him and the kids or child-like friends in
your life who need nurturing. Work gets more consuming as
you grow up and, before you know it, you're nurturing work
and him and them, and if you have a pet, you end up being
the nurturer there, too. And you're about to fall apart because
you've spent every last cent of giving on everyone else and
you're tired and you feel empty ‘cause who's filling
you up? Most days we feel like Mother Earth with our natural
resources tapped, our natural beauty disappearing, and our
purity tarnished with pollution.
So, ladies,
who's nurturing you? Maybe you used to nurture you before
him/kids/pets/work/etc. but then you became last in line,
and you got use to it, and by the time it was your turn to
get your attention, there was nothing left. Who do you turn
to? A shrink? Tried that and, although it was good for a while,
where was that unconditional love in return that I give so
freely? Do you turn to God and religion? God's great, and
religion? ... Sure, it can be helpful but I need some human
touch and nurturing and physical warmth. Do you turn to another
man? Tsk tsk, uh uh, no. That's just too damned unreal and
too damned destructive.
Do you
turn to friends? And in this compartmentalized, insanely busy
world, are friends really there for you to nurture you? Hell,
they're probably in the same boat as you are, nurturing him/kids/job/pet/etc.
So one day, just like Mother Nature you erupt and scream “enough!”
and discover that what you are left with is a choice. You
cannot be all things to all living creatures if you don't
have you anymore. You must put yourself first or all else
fails. I believe this fully and heartily and I try to live
this everyday of my life. Oh yes, I say no to him, I say no
to work, I even say no to the pet until I get what I need,
and sometimes, when I’m sure they have what they need,
I say no to the kids. It's survival.
And one
of the things I need more than anything else in the world
is my time at the S Factor Studio or at home S-Factoring on
my own. It regenerates me like nothing else. It inspires me.
It fires me up and impassions me. And it is all my time. Two
hours of pure free time. Two hours of pure me time. Healing
time. Resurrection time. It's my unconditional love time for
me. It’s the time when I reconnect with the earth and
she grounds me. I feel high as a kite and grounded securely
to the earth at the same time, connected to the earthen woman
inside of me. And when I give her just a little time of nurturing,
she begins to nurture me.
Yes, I
love being a woman for so many reasons. I love my heels and
I love flirty skirts. I love my shit-kicker motorcycle boots
and warm sudsy baths with rose flavored bath bombs. I love
getting a facial and having my hair massaged with hot oils.
I love my curves and even my not so curvy curves, and what
I love the most is the earthen woman inside of me who has
the power to heal, comfort, nurture and “S” her
way through life.
Think
about it. Who nurtures you?
All
my love and respect,
 |
BODY
CONSCIOUS |
Every S Factor warm-up begins with the same exercise, the sitting
spine circles. Why? Because it focuses on your spinal energy
and awakens the curves and the earthen woman inside of you.
I can’t wait to walk into that studio, turn down the lights,
turn up some slow, beat-filled, wave-riding music, and begin
to feel my connection again to the earth. And sometimes, if
I’m having a particularly crappy day, all I have to do
is shut the door and shut out the world for five minutes, close
my eyes, and nurture myself with the spine circle exercise.
In just five minutes, I feel more grounded, less stressed, and
better able to deal with whatever is coming at me. Try it, and
you’ll see what I mean. 1.
Sit in an easy cross-legged position with your left foot in
front of your right and your hands resting on your knees.
Feel your sit bones pressing into the mat and imagine that
they are rooting you to the earth. Now imagine your head is
filled with helium, so that your spine is being pulled up
at the same time that it is being pulled down by your sit
bones.
2. Inhale and push your chest out toward the wall in front
of you like the carved figure on the prow of a ship, arching
your back and neck.
3. Begin circling your spine clockwise, pushing your spine
around to the right. Be sure to keep your left sit bone on
the mat. Feel the stretch in the right side of your torso.
4. As you come around to the back, exhale and push the middle
of your spine out toward the wall behind you. Scoop in your
belly, creating a large semicircle with your upper body.
5. Circle the middle of your spine around to the left. Feel
the stretch in the left side of your torso. Keep your right
sit bone on the mat.
6. Inhale as you come around to the front again, pushing your
chest out in front of you and arching your back.
7. Increase the size of your spine circles with each inhalation
and rotation until you’re making large circles that
stretch your spine in every direction.
8. Do ten clockwise; change direction and repeat.
9. Now that you’re more grounded, you can move on to
the Inverted Spine Circles where you can begin to open your
chest, your throat and your heart up to the world.
Adapted
from Kundalini Yoga, you can see this exercise in action on
our S Factor Studio Series DVDs, or read about it on pages
6 & 7 of the book, “The S Factor: Strip Workouts
for Every Woman”.
Visit
the S Factor Web Site
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