Yesterday I missed my opportunity to help a friend. I wasn’t thinking clearly.  I wasn’t grounded. As an Aries, people think we are impulsive. We are. Or rather, I am. I am impulsive when it comes to my emotions, as they roll like a roller coaster, shifting very quickly. However, when called upon to respond or re-act to a situation new to me, I am actually pretty slow. Good thing I’m not a First Responder! It takes my mind a while to wrap itself around new things.

So in pondering this I wonder, what makes us grounded? What helps us to be present for ourselves and others? Certainly eating properly and when hungry helps the body/mind feel fed and secure. I am a bit erratic about eating times, often due to my teaching schedule which means I am teaching at mealtimes, and so have very little time to sit and eat and enjoy what I am taking into my body.

Jen & I landed in Mount Shasta in CA on our May vacay. It was a place she wanted to hike. Reportedly it's a place for grounding yourself, and it is certainly hiked often.

From Wikipedia: “In August 1987, believers in the spiritual significance of the Harmonic Convergence described Mount Shasta as one of a small number of global "power centers".^[22] Mount Shasta remains a focus of "New Age" attention.”

Mt. Shasta is believed to be one of 7 “natural wonders in the world”, specifically a place where energy centers .  Each of these 7 places is associated with one of the 7 chakras. Mt. Shasta is aligned with the root chakra. It is an active volcano, the second highest peak in the Cascade Range. It last erupted about 200 years ago. What a force! Rooted in the ground, measuring 85 cubic miles, rising to the height of 14,179 feet.

I didn’t feel anything special there. My daughter Jen once had a spiritual/energy experience or 2 in Sedona, AZ. We know we can feel energy. I just wasn’t feeling it-- the energy.

Or was I? To feel grounded is like feeling rooted, stable, like you’re on your own 2 feet and you know where you are. Your mind is not distracted and you’re able to focus on what’s at hand. Maybe I DID feel that!

It was the last day of our annual Mother/Daughter May adventure, and we were headed back to Jen’s home by that night. It had become unseasonably hot and we, and the faithful dog, were not comfortable outside the vehicle. I was driving and not feeling overwhelmed. We missed the hike Jen originally planned, due to her ankle injury. Then we somehow by-passed the walk around Shasta Lake. And yet we both felt okay about what we missed and were happy to move on down the road. So no histrionics, no drama, no bad feelings, simply acknowledgment and then moving on. Feeling complete and no desires left unmet.

Again, perhaps we did feel the root chakra energy there.

I cannot help but think of the victims of Monday’s tornado in Oklahoma. They are not grounded. They are not rooted. In fact, many are homeless. One woman said she didn’t know if she should buy a house or re-build or move. It’s like people were thrown into a shaker and thrown out like a pair of dice, to whatever fate lies ahead. In the un-knowing lies the lack of feeling grounded.

To feel grounded we need the basics: shelter from Nature and harm’s way, food & clothing, and don’t forget water. Sometimes we feel un-grounded or unsettled when we need water. And we need enough money to meet our needs. Those are all basic root chakra needs.

What I recommend is… yoga. Of course! Yoga helps us feel our bodies and be conscious with our minds and focus on what’s happening right now. Try a standing yoga posture, like Mountain or Tree pose or Warrior 1. Feel yourself reaching to the earth. Feel the strength of your legs. Feel all your needs met, not wanting for anything.

Or try a seated posture, rooted in the sitting bones, feel yourself reaching forward for your legs and toes. Feel grounded, rooted, and stable.

Imagine you are helping others feel grounded as well.

Know that anything you need, you can have. It's all good. And yoga helps make it even better.

Namaste

Debbie