365 Inspirations—260: You Have Options

"We must dare to think 'unthinkable' thoughts. We must learn to explore all the options and possibilities that confront us in a complex and rapidly changing world."—J.William Fulbright

One of the best lines of our entire trip to Peru came from our guide on the Salkantay Trip to Machu Picchu. He always gave us a briefing every morning at breakfast and my favorite thing he said each morning was:

"YOU HAVE OPTIONS!"

And then he'd clue us in on the 'normal' plan and all the other options we had. For example, instead of trekking on a service road with cars whizzing by leaving us in a blanket of dust, we had the option of foregoing this section of the trail by truck, hence saving us from a very unpleasant few hours of walking. We took this option, preferring to trek on pristine trails far from cars.

Whenever I feel like I'm stuck or don't know what to do, this line now comes to my head.

It's so true.

All of us, at some point in our lives, get stuck in our habit patterns and 'normal' ways of thinking. We may feel like there is no way out of a situation. What I've learned, however, is that we all do indeed have options. One option might not be much better than another, but all of us can choose something or some direction in our lives.

Knowing that there are options, even options we can't perceive at this moment in time, provides a sense of freedom.

Right now my husband and I stand at a crossroads. We have to do something different. I won't go into details yet, but I'm not afraid of a detour or a different direction because I know we have options. Instead of using my limited thinking mind, I'm going to leave the space open for those options to come.

Actually, I'm excited about all the options and different directions we might take. New options and directions are always breeding grounds for growth and change.

I can't wait to see what the future holds.

Do you often feel stuck, or do you believe you have options?

365 Inspirations—117: Dreams Taking Shape

"Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition."—Steve Jobs

Sometimes it's hard to see a full picture of what our dreams are telling us. Yesterday, I got a full snapshot of what the picture looked like. All the pieces formed an overall theme and I knew what I wanted to do.

 I do collages often and they are another creative way of using the right brain to get ideas out of the head and onto paper. My friend who is an art therapist got me hooked on creating collages and I've always been amazed at how many of the things I've created on paper have actually come true in real life.

What I love about collaging is that there are no set rules. We can work with all kinds of materials, different textures and colors to bring what is inside to life.

A really good friend who was in the South Pacific for two years in the Peace Corps came over and we collaged together. She joined a collaging party at our house a couple of years ago and had such a great time, she requested to do it again.

We spread out all the materials on my dining room table and without further adieu, we got to work.

So for all of you who are wondering what this "birth of an idea" (Inspiration 116) is all about, my collage this evening sheds some light on the themes that are coming to me. I believe that we all intuitively know what we are meant to do, but often times the picture we get presents a challenge. I believe all of the challenges come from our own minds.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I'm going to lay some foundations down under my pictures. I'm ready for this change!

Do you ever collage or participate in creative activities in order to get a view of what you are called to do?

365 Inspirations—74: Doing Something NEW

"If you never did you should. These things are fun and fun is good."—Dr. Seuss

I chopped off all my hair and got bangs.  I wanted to do something completely different. Perhaps it's a mid-life crisis?? I also got a manicure (the first one in my entire life) and a pedicure (the second one in my entire life). It's a stage I'm going through.

I'm feeling the need to change my life in a BIG WAY. I don't know what that is all about Alfie?

I still have so much school work to do before I leave on Tuesday, but I need a break!

I think I've already checked out. I'm on vacation in my mind even though I am not technically done.

My husband just pulled a movie out from his backpack. He got it from the Seattle Public Library. It's an Irish movie called  A Shine of Rainbows. I'll let you know how it goes. Guess we need to go get some movie snacks!

I hope you all have a wonderful Friday night!

Here's my new haircut:

Have you tried anything new lately?

365 Inspirations—66: Visiting the Korean Spa

"Take care of your body.  It's the only place you have to live."—Jim Rohn

 This quarter, I promised myself that I would visit the Korean spa between my classes. I have a split shift on Tuesdays and Thursdays and there is a Korean Spa called Bella Luna Spa just down the street from the college. I'm lucky to have all the things I loved about living in Korea right here near the Seattle area.

 For some reason, I kept postponing it. Finally, while I was getting ready for my morning class, I instinctively started gathering my shampoo, soap, scrubby and other material for the spa. Today was the day! I hadn't really planned for today to be the day, but given that there is only really one week left of school, I thought it was perfect timing.

Have you ever been to a Korean spa? They are wonderful and fairly inexpensive. $20 gets you in for an entire afternoon of pampering. If you want to pay a little more, you can get the body scrub or massage. I like to just go to the spa.

Korean spas, called mogyoktang, are an important part of Korean culture. Long ago, many Korean homes didn't have bathing facilities, so people often went to their neighborhood spa or bath house to bathe. Now they are really more like spas which still have some of the original features.

For example, the spa I go to has several hot pools and a cold pool in the women's area. There is also a dry and hot sauna. Upstairs, there is a jimjilbang. A jimjilbang has different sauna rooms that vary in temperature and have different healing elements in each one. For example, there's a charcoal room, a salt room, a clay room, and a crystal room. They are typically more like caves. Some of the rooms have medicinal herbs inside. Each room is known to heal a certain part of the body depending on what the room contains.

I love the charcoal room. Charcoal is what is in our water purifiers. Charcoal is known to extract toxins from air and water, leaving only a clean, pure air and water. I always feel like my lungs completely open up in that room. I feel so refreshed upon leaving it.

Another thing I love to do at the Korean spa is walk on the pebble circular walk. You walk in a circle on stones and it is extremely good for the body—a kind of reflexology.

There's even a restaurant inside the spa and I often get a cold drink. Today I had an iced coffee and read a magazine while sitting on the sofa between sauna rooms. While sitting and enjoying the serenity of the spa, I rolled my feet back and forth on a little foot massager.

If you've never experienced a Korean spa and there is one in your area, I highly recommend visiting. It can do wonders for your body and peace of mind.

Have you ever visited a Korean spa or another kind of spa? Have you ever given your body and mind a special treat?