Mantra

I always thought mantras were hippy bullshit.  And then I found mine.  As I stood by the Portland Harbor one day, I looked out over the still water and the endorphins were surging.  I am going to blame my 'hippy bullshit' moment on dopamine overdose.  This is the view I looked out on when a phrase came to my head. "Strong in body, strong in mind, strong in spirit".

This has stayed with me for about a year now.  I stop every time I run, looking out at nature, and repeat that phrase in my head.  I might even whisper it out load if I am extra adrenaline loopy.  And I may have even growled/ grunted it loudly and unconvincingly at my last marathon. 

"Strong in body, strong in mind, strong in spirit".  And then it got even worse as it became a philosophical quest to see if I was truly trying to find a balance between these 3 parts of myself.  This is how hippy bullshit is created. 

I've been working on my body pretty consistently. I run most days.  I am taking strength training more seriously.  I try to stretch and foam roll....okay, so I don't stretch much.  Who has time for that?!  Overall, I am proud of how I treat my body.

My mind.  Some might disagree, but I am pretty bright for a dingbat.  I have moments of being what one would call 'dull' but I read the New Yorker and even get the cartoons quite often.  I can hold my own in most conversations and appreciate people who get my head whirling with new ideas.  So the mind is doing okay most days.  If you count determination as a mental quality, I am as smart as they come.  I am determined to a fault.  Stubborn?

My spirit.  Here comes HBS again (for the purposes of this blog, hippy bullshit will now be HBS); but I have felt an emptiness lately.  End of winter blues, too near mid-life blues, lack of a spiritual community?  I am not sure the cause but I feel it and I feel it hard some days.  I realized recently that I do not feel strong is spirit.  So unless I want my mantra to be changed to, "Strong in body, strong in mind, so-so in spirit", I realized I have to do something about it.  I reached deep into my heart and gut, which is where all HBS stems from, and came up with the solution.  Do more that is selfless, that is for others who do not have a voice.  And anyone who knows me knows my 'others who do not have a voice' are nature and animals- in particular the ocean and those who dwell in it.

This spring and summer I will volunteer for Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.  May 16, I will do a talk about Sea Shepherd at the V-Learning Community, a wonderful meetup group here in town.  On June 6, I will table for Sea Shepherd at the Portland Vegetarian Food Festival .  In October, I will run 26.2 to raise money for Sea Shepherd. I am just getting started and already, as I try to support this organization who dedicates themselves to the oceans and the animals, I feel stronger in spirit.  I will soon join VegME! again.  They are a lovely Portland group who works to promote veganism and animal welfare.  I feel like I am doing more for a world larger than myself.  I feel my spirit growing stronger.  I might even start a meditation practice to reflect on the issues of nature and animals!  How is that for HBS!!!

Please come to my events if you can and keep reading (all 3 of you) as I keep trying to be "Strong in Body, Strong in Mind, and Strong in Spirit"!