Essential Stories: A New Compass
Hello WSFS!
I’m happy to report that A. found a job! It came about through a series of “coincidences” shortly after we changed the photograph in the bathroom from the sailboat to the anchor, and installed the compass in the career area!
I initially thought it took longer than I expected but after talking with A. about how he found this job I came to realize that the process actually began right after we implemented the changes to the Career area.
Things had seemed to be going slowly after the Career area changes so I made additional tweaks in the Helpful People area (added the statue of an angel) and changed the color of a candle in the Prosperity area to purple. I also swapped out a plant for a fountain on a part of the balcony that sits in the Prosperity area.
Read MoreEssential Stories: From Clutter to Cherry Blossoms
Hello WSFS!
I am still struggling with keeping my dining table clutter free. I keep piling stuff up here. My mother’s table has piles and my brother’s table has piles. What’s going on here? I appreciate Terah’s comments during the webinar on the psychological aspects associated with clutter and I will investigate this further. It’s apparent that it’s going to take more inquiry as well as discipline.
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Q&A – Spiral Staircases
Q: I have a spiral staircase and I don’t know what to do with it. I find that I’m avoiding going upstairs, afraid I’m going to fall through! Help!
A: The downward moving “waterfall effect” of stairs is greatly amplified when those stairs are also spiraling down just as water does in a drain. Spiral staircases affect our sense of stability and safety, especially when there are no risers installed and the banister is open as well. The ch’i rushes down these stairs too forcefully, and there is a sense of danger in using them—are we going to fall through those openings in step and banister on the way up, or are we going to lose our footing on the way down?
Essential Feng Shui applies our balancing tools of The Five Elements to remedy the situation.
(Download your full color FiveElementChart.)
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Comfort, Safety and Beauty
Photo credit: Terah Kathryn Collins
The Golden Triangle, part 1
by Terah Kathryn Collins, Founder and Instructor
Essential Feng Shui has taught me to take safety and comfort seriously. In fact, I like to baby-proof homes for people of all ages. I look for the uncomfortable and dangerous elements that live under most people’s radar. These include disagreeable desk chairs, poor lighting, sharp corners, problematic furniture placement, table legs and embellishments that protrude into walking space, and other irksome features that can compromise you and your surroundings. There is a good reason why I make such a big deal out of this.
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Life on the Yang Side – Where’s my Yin?
By Liv Kellgren, WSFS Instructor
I’ve been thinking about Yin and Yang lately.
Yin is a slow, patient waltz; Yang is a fast, tripping polka. Yin is an easy whispering beckoning; Yang a loud, demanding push. Yin can be a calm, sweet smile; Yang can be a wild, breathless anxiety. But they’re not glued in these extremities, they slide along the Yin-Yang Spectrum. Also, they are not alone in their positions, as they each need the other for self-identity. For example, that slow, patient waltz can feel really Yang if you’d rather sit out the dance altogether. They are always in relationship to each other, they aren’t fixed in their expression, they each exist as a part of the whole… Sounds a little too much like a riddle. The Yin-Yang spectrum is Nebulous? Changing? Fascinating? Yesyesyes.
As you can see, I’ve been thinking A LOT about Yin and Yang lately. Perhaps you’ve seen the circle, two spinning paisleys, the black one with a white eye and the white one with a black eye. Sometimes I even think they are watching! Those “eyes” remind us that within all Yin is Yang, and within the Yang there’s a little Yin, too. I even notice how Yin and Yang somersault around each other, each taking turns in the predominant role. Together, they symbolize balance. Or at least the search for Balance. I know I’m looking for Balance.
Like most people in-this-culture-at-this-time, I live on the Yang side of life. (And I like it!) A pot of coffee, workout at the gym, grocieriesplaygroupsearrands and then naptime for the kiddies at noon. Yep, some days do indeed squish together. This life in the suburbs with two kids under 3 has become a life of early mornings, to-do lists and a tile floor covered in loud, hard toys. It’s all too easy for me to turn my engines on full speed and gogogo; It’s an automatic setting at this point. But I’ve learned it’s unsustainable (unfortunately): Too much coffee = reflux. Stepping on toys hurts. What day is it, really? How do I create/find/allow for moments of peacefulness – especially if everything else in this life right now is not?
The one gift that Life on the Yang Side has for people like me (like us?) is that just about anything else is Yin. Looking at the Yin Yang Sliding Scale of Sanity, I’m waaaaaay over on the Yang Side. Not as far as it can go by any means, but far enough that there’s wholelotta Yin waiting to be discovered! I’ve been able to incorporate some Yin features into our daily lives that have helped me find some important moments of balance.
• We go outside for a walk – even if it’s just around the block – once or twice a day. This may seem a little Yang-ish, but we walk slowly, look at bugs, pick flowers, meander, hold hands, look at stars.
• We don’t watch the news. Ever. We have a TV and cable and Roku for kiddie movies, foreign films and stand-up comedians, but no “reality” TV. This alone has nearly erased that wild, breathless anxiety.
• We stop and listen to each other. To talk to the toddler, I’ll get on her same level, make eye-contact and summarize back to her what I heard. To talk to the baby, I’ll get on his same level (or lift him up to mine), and agree with everything he babbles, filling in the incomprehensible gaps. (The toddler now listens and talks to him the same way!) My husband and I stop what we’re doing, turn toward each other, make eye-contact and listen – without responding. These moments have established a deep connection between us and the freedom to self-express.
And I’m looking for more. Life on the Yang Side can be a challenge. And I want to create/find/allow for even more moments of Yin. What is it that YOU do to seek out Balance?
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