Jeremy Duke (00:01):
Welcome everyone to the Networks Healing Circle for January 6th, 2025. My name is Jeremy Duke, and I'll be your guide today on exploring a topic or an idea that is familiar to us in a lot of ways, but we're going to look at it in a different way that maybe helps us to bring the idea into something that is more helpful, more useful, more genuine, maybe more sustainable, more authentic. So the idea I want to discuss is New year's resolutions. And we all know about them. I think we've all probably tried them at some point. Maybe we've tried them many times and as famous or as infamous as New Year's resolutions are. It's almost as well known that people tend to fail at them. Gyms, for example, see an influx of people coming in the first 1, 2, 3 weeks of the year. And then usually by the end of January it's sparse.

(01:26):
Most people have already fallen off the wagon, so to speak. The first thing I would point out is that the new year is a wonderful celebration. It's always great that we've made it another trip around the sun, and yet it's not really a natural cycle, so to speak. The natural cycle ends with the solstice where the year has reached its nadir, where the days are the shortest, the light is the shortest, it's the darkest coldest time of the year. And then afterwards we would traditionally celebrate the yue, the return of the light, the light being reborn, so to speak, so we can attempt to follow along with these natural patterns, if you will. So let's explore the idea of how can we enact positive change? How can we do something good for ourself? How can we accomplish something that we know we want without setting ourselves up for failure like we do with the classic New Year's resolution?

(02:52):
So in this spirit, I'd like to offer you a different angle on this, a different view, just a different place to start. And instead of saying, well, we're going to make this change and we're going to stick through it by willpower, let's say going to take the view of a gardener, we're going to view ourselves as a garden, a living garden. And perhaps we've not taken care of our garden the way we would like to, but we can always make a new decision. And it doesn't just have to be at the beginning of the year by any means.

(03:47):
It can be helpful to do so, to align with nature in that way. Just like we would plan a new garden in the spring or even begin preparation before that, we can ride that wave of nature, but we can also take advantage of this idea, this viewpoint, this Dao gu, this view upon the Dao, if you will, time of year, anytime we decide we're ready, really ready for change, ready to experience more peace in our lives or more gratitude or more love connection, more wonder, more mystery, more awe, more curiosity, more achievement and meaning of our goals. Because truly we are fertile ground. We're going to produce something in the field of our energies and the field of our mind and the field. That is our life. Something is going to grow whether we try or not. Whether we direct ourselves into the direction that we want or not.

(05:03):
Something is going to manifest. Something is going to grow. What is it going to be? So are we going to allow nature to take its course? And I don't mean the intent of nature herself, but rather our current nature, our habitual mind, our habitual feelings, our habitual reactions to things, everything we have done to get to the point that we are in life. Everything that we've been that has brought us to where we are seeking for more. And if that is the case, if we're looking for more, if we're seeking for something else, even if we're not sure what that is, this should already signal to us that change is what's required. So how are we going to change what we do in tending our garden? What are we going to cultivate? What are our habits? What weeds have we allowed to take root? What are the habitual reactions that are coming from our perceived trauma in the past? What selfish desires have we given into? Where have we taken the easy road? Or where have we gone for instant gratification?

(06:37):
And if that's the case, are we going to choose a different path? And this isn't to say it's any kind of easy project. Maybe our garden has grown unattended for years, for decades, a lifetime. Maybe it's really overgrown. Well, okay, that's what it is. So if that's the case, it might take us a while to clear out the overgrowth, to create space for the things that we want to grow, to have a chance to succeed. What are we going to get rid of? What are we going to let go of? What habits are we going to move away from?

(07:25):
Could be staying up too late or sleeping in too long, not getting enough movement throughout the day, being addicted to dopamine bars like social media or Netflix. And we habitually eating foods that don't serve our bodies. Are we addicted to emotions like being angry? That's a good one. Anger tends to cover up a lot, tends to project what we don't like about ourselves onto others. Our dis-ease onto others. All we have to do is start taking steps, putting one foot in front of the other. Where are we going to start? But once we figured out how to let go of some of that overgrowth, how to just get things moving to get some circulation in our lives, circulation of energy, circulation of the wind, the soil, the sun, the things that are going to support growth, then we have to carefully tend what we want. But we have to be careful, especially while it's young and new in the early weeks and months, we have to be diligent.

(08:49):
We must keep clearing out the old growth that wants to take back over. We have to make sure we nurture the new growth with the right light, the right food, the right attention, doing it habitually and daily progress will be made over weeks, differences will be made over months, more differences will be known. And if you can stay the course, if you can be strong enough to not fall back, not get distracted, to not lose it, when what hits the fan in life after a few years, you could be amazed at the progress that has been made. You can be in awe of the beautiful garden of your life that's flourishing, flourishing beautifully in the direction you intended, and it will flower it, express itself in ways that you couldn't even have predicted that will add even more beauty into your life. Be the gardener of your own life. Be that self cultivator. Be curious. See what fruit you can bring forth from your efforts in combination with the power of the sun and the earth and the elements around and within you.

(10:31):
So in the spirit of viewing ourselves as a garden, in viewing ourselves as a part of nature, as potential, potential for new life, for new growth, new levels of beauty, new things we can look forward to experiencing, let's try a practice. So follow with me first. I will ring this bell as the sound will help us to settle ourselves and to center. Place your feet flat on the floor or the floorboards. Allow your sit bones to settle into the chair. Feel yourself supported by the floor. Feel your hip bones supported by the chair. Feel your shoulders centered comfortably over your hips and your head resting lightly centered. The top of your shoulders.

(11:56):
Allow your body to be open and yet aligned. Allow your attention to come to the breath. Allow the breath to soften, to lengthen. Allow the breath to deepen. Bring it lower into your belly. Have a sense of smoothness, a sense of evenness about the breath. Slow, soft, deep, smooth, and even feel the way the breath connects the body brings us to the present moment. We're going to take a trip around the garden of the body through the organs. We'll use the generative cycle in Chinese medicine to bring attention to our organs in a way that will support them to tonify them.

(13:40):
Begin with gently breathing while bringing our awareness to the rib cage on the right side underneath the lungs where the liver rests. Just bring your attention to that area of the body. Let a slight smile come to your lips almost like the Mona Lisa smile doesn't have to be big and expressive, but just allow it to be mysterious and curious. And as that smile touches your lips, allow the energy of that smile to be directed down to that liver. The amazing organ on the right side of the rib cage that does so much for our body, it detoxifies so much, helps us balance our blood. Sugar fulfills so many functions in the body.

(15:05):
That liver is so miraculous. You could lose a portion of your liver, even a majority of your liver, and this organ will grow back. Directing that smile to the liver if you want. You could even see it as a ball of green energy. Have a sense of gratitude for this magnificent organ, a sense of wonder and how it does so much without us even having to know about it. Be grateful for how much it detoxifies our body and even our mind and emotions. Just directing that soft smile into the green ball, into the organ of the liver, and with a final sense of gratitude, move your attention to the heart.

(16:20):
I call the heart. The emperor in Chinese medicine directs the rest of the body. Science tells us that the electromagnetic field of the heart extends much farther than the brain, several feet outside the body. And in fact, we can react to the field of others' hearts and they can react to ours. Our heart pumps our blood continuously throughout our life, thousands of times per day. Keeping that smile on our lips and that smile in our heart, allow the sense of the smile that you feel on your face to expand in your heart. Almost as if your heart itself was smiling almost as if your heart was able to radiate that sense of appreciation and love to your body. Just like the sun radiates its light constantly the heart pumps its blood and sends out its electromagnetic field. Constantly feel a sense of gratitude for the heart, magnificent heart.

(18:01):
Next, we'll bring our attention to the spleen, which is on the left side of the rib cage. In medicine, the spleen deals with infections and also recycles the old blood cells of the body. In Chinese medicine, it's associated with the stomach, with digestion, also with the conscious mind. Feel a sense of wonder for the fertile ground. That is the spleen, that is the conscious mind, that is our digestive tract that miraculously does so much - that digests the food that we put into it, whether it's the most ideal food or not, that does this transformational work for us each and every day, each and every time we consume a meal or snack, that enables the structure of our body to stay healthy and strong.

(19:26):
In Chinese medicine, the spleen represents the earth itself. So it's a wonderful organ to view as fertile ground. And just as the ground can transforms things, just as the earth can compost, just as the earthworm can transform earth into an even more fertile version of itself, send that smile from your face to the spleen and to the stomach. Allow the inner smile of the heart to radiate to the spleen and the stomach, these magnificent earth organs of digestion. Next, send your attention to the lungs. Two beautiful lungs, four lobes, two in each lung, the beautiful branches that go inward, like an upside down tree. Enter our body just like roots and the gentle sacks of alveoli that allow the transfer of oxygen from the air into our blood.

(20:44):
Just think about thousands of breaths we take every day, the hundreds of thousands of breaths that we'll take throughout our lifetimes, our lungs always working even while we're sleeping. Providing our body with the resources it needs, providing our connection between the inside and the outside. Many traditions talk about the breadth of life and its connection to spirit. Just like in our intro to this exercise, you can always return to the breath with gratitude, return to the breath with a sense of curiosity, return to the breath With a gentle guidance, allow yourself to be more peaceful, to be smoother again with a sense of gratitude, smiling from the heart and from the mouth, directing that radiant gratitude to the lungs.

(22:07):
And finally, bring your attention to the lower back approximately across from the belly button lie the kidneys. Two small organs that do so much to constantly filter our blood. They provide the adrenaline from the adrenals that rest on top to give us that boost of energy when we need it. In Chinese medicine, the kidneys are the base of our physical being. Our physical energy, our physical batteries. Our lungs are so important, especially here. Our kidneys are so important, especially in wintertime, you can see them as blue, powerful blue energy. The energy of the water that they so skillfully deal with in our blood, breathing deep enough into our body that the breath reaches those kidneys, massaging them deep in our body.

(23:31):
Once again, allow the smile of the face and the smile in the heart to radiate deep into those deep blue kidneys, energizing them and gratifying them. And take a deep breath. One more deep breath. Let it out with an aha. Be grateful that you've taken this moment for yourself, for your body, for your physical being that supports your mind and emotions and spirit. You've taken a few minutes just to cultivate them, to make that ground a little more fertile for all of the things that you want to grow.

(24:36):
So keep in mind that there are so many ways, so many techniques, so many strategies, so many philosophies that you can use, but the overall point remains the same. You can treat yourself as a garden, your life as a garden, your body and mind and spirit as a garden. What do you want to grow? What do you want to overcome? How can you bring yourself from dis-ease to more ease, to a better feeling, to a better path? Just the fact that you've been here to engage this process makes me believe that you are capable of making progress in it.

(25:34):
So thank you for being part of this today. Enjoy your cultivation as you move forward. And my gratitude is to you for listening and taking this journey with me. Remember that the Networks Healing Circle comes the first Monday of each month. The past episodes are all available on the Networks website, and I look forward to sharing this time and space with you all. Again, thank you so much for your attention. Be well.