Tag: mental-health
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Fasting Day 22 of 40: Boredom
Out at sea, the wind drifts away and all sailors lament. The doldrums have come. The dread for these sailors is that the life giving and moving wind has gone away, and there is no knowing when it picks back up again. It could be days or weeks. The whole time you have little to…
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Fasting Day 21 of 40: Energy and Movement
We wade through pools of abundance daily. Every breath we take, every step we make, we are swirling the photons of light from the sun, and exchanging charged electrons, ions, atoms, and protons constantly with our environment. The light we see, the sounds we hear, the things we touch, all energy in one form or…
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Fasting Day 20 of 40: Courage
There have been many times in my life where I stopped just short of the goal. Most of the work was done, but I couldn’t take those few final steps. A critical voice begging for more perfection or fear and doubt would creep in and I would stop and turn away. I’ve done this with…
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Fasting Day 18 of 40: Truth
As a child I found lying to be safer than the truth at times. I was raised in an Orthodox religion and fear of punishment frequently meant hiding what had happened, or straight out lying. If you get caught, you get in trouble. If you lie about it and hide, you’re in the clear, or…
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Fasting Day 15 of 40: Receiving
So much has changed already that there are not many words I can use to convey what it is I am thinking and feeling anymore. I feel like a beacon and conveyor of thoughts. They ease into my awareness and move right through. Some are still memories and regrets, others wonderful ideas. Each one says…
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Fasting Day 13 of 40: Assuming
Assumptions. They are the bread and butter of many of our interactions with other people. We give someone the once over and think we know a little something about them. From that initial encounter we then infer what they will do next or who they generally are. It’s a way for a us to quickly…
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Fasting Day 12 of 40: Reflecting and Wallowing
We’ve all done it. One second we’re driving the car, talking with a friend, or reading a book, and a part of our brain drifts away and into the past. Memories of childhood, an awkward moment in high school, or an oopsie from last week start to flood in. Before we know it, the drive…
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Fasting Day 11 of 40: Habits
This afternoon I was chopping up some olives for my kids’ snack. Don’t ask me how any child likes olives, but mine love them. I sliced and diced and juice got on my hands, and I caught myself in an old habit. Normally I would have licked the little bit of juice off of my…
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Fasting Day 10 of 40: Temptation
Whew! Made it to the first hump. A part of me didn’t think it was possible and now 40 seems like a much smaller number. This is comforting because today has probably been the most significant in terms of challenge. Anything is possible when the heart and spirit are aligned with the mind and will,…
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Fasting Day 7 of 40: Purging
In my dreams I ate croissants, muffins, and cookies. I was just shoving them in one after the other. I started feeling a little guilty for breaking my fast early, and then I realized it was a dream, and kept on eating, albeit a little more delicately. I awoke and still have that feeling of…
Ryan Orion 