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Do you have a favorite season? We do…it’s summer!
Just last week we were hiking up a mountain trail and feeling that special miraculous feeling we experience in the warm summer months. Perhaps the sense of freedom, fun, and relaxation are throwbacks to being a kid. Do you remember how excited you felt when school let out for summer? Going to the beach, camping under the stars, and playing outside with our friends are some of our favorite childhood memories.
But we know that that feeling of magical happiness isn’t dependent on balmy weather. In fact, research shows people living in warm, summery spots are not necessarily happier than those living in colder climates. According to one study, the four happiest places on earth are Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, and Iceland – not exactly tropical paradises.
So what does create that lasting feeling of happiness you experience when living in the Miracle Zone?
The secret lies in internalizing the well-being and freedom you feel during summer (or whatever your favorite season is) and bringing it into everything you do.
Here are three ways you can create an “endless summer” within yourself year-round:
1) Sunshine: One building block to greater happiness and a miraculous life is getting plenty of Vitamin D, which has been found to combat seasonal affective disorder (SAD). SAD is that sense of “the blues” that is most often associated with the dark months of winter. Sunlight triggers our body to make Vitamin D – one of the reasons sunshine brightens our mood. So take a walk before or after work to soak up some rays when the sun is not as intense. Make sure as much of your body is exposed as possible (and legal!). During the winter months, ask your health professional about getting more Vitamin D in supplement form.
2) The Great Outdoors: Mother Nature is another source of well-being readily available in summer. Our modern lives are inundated by the thoughts, fears, and demands that press in on us every day. A walk in the woods restores wholeness. A backyard picnic creates delight. An afternoon splash in a lake, river or ocean refreshes our spirits. The more time you spend immersed in the nourishing, simple joys of nature, the more miraculous your life will become. And as much as we would like to store the warmth like a squirrel stores nuts for the winter, it might not really be possible but there is nothing as enlivening as a walk in the crisp winter air and the joy of playing in the snow and sledding down a hill.
3) Friends and Fun: People tend to be more social in the summer, gathering for outings, meals, and fun. Our sense of community is heightened when we join others enjoying long summer evenings together. There’s more of a feeling of play in our daily routine during the summer. If you want to make summer last longer, keep that sense of fun, play and social engagement alive throughout the year. It’s pretty yummy to sit around a fireplace with friends on a cold winter night!
And here’s a bonus tip from Ayurvedic medicine that you can do in the winter: to purify, ground and energize your body – walk barefoot on the grass in the morning dew.
Now there’s a miraculous way to start any summer day!
We wish you the love, connection and the sunshine of a summer’s day all year long.
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