A BRIEF MEDITATION

As you squint against the sunlight, a burst of iridescent purple captivates you. These desert blooms, few and far between, are nature's secrets. Gifts that reveal themselves when we choose to focus on the intricacies of the terrain. The desert, in its quiet way, offers this lesson:

In the act of intentional observation, we are always able to find beauty. And in beauty, we find the strength to navigate the driest and roughest terrains.

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MANTRA BREAKDOWN

Consider an idea, project, or event that once ignited excitement…but now stirs feelings of boredom, resentment, or fear.

When faced with these emotions, it's incredibly tempting to change course.

Rather than avoiding activities, tasks, and circumstances that carry an emotional charge, a more worthwhile endeavor is learning how to press pause on our reactivity.

Can we suspend these fear-based emotions for long enough to scratch beneath the surface and find beauty in the mundane? Even in the discomfort?

When pausing becomes a practice, we learn to gradually let go of existing beliefs and expectations that limit our joy and fulfillment.

Pausing gives us the choice to take the initial resistance in our body, and transform it into energy that empowers us to live more fully and vibrantly.

You'll lose the resistance, and gain equanimity, curiosity, and resilience in spades.

QUOTES TO INSPIRE YOU

• "Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude." - Zig Ziglar

• "The world is the great gymnasium where we come to make ourselves strong." - Swami Vivekananda

• "We don't see things as they are; we see them as we are." - Anais Nin

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A 5-MINUTE VISUALIZATION EXERCISE THAT DISSOLVES TENSION (AND RESISTANCE)

When we are met with a challenging situation or trigger, it's natural for resistance to come up.

It's not just a mental thing, either. Resistance can manifest physically. Your chest tightens, your jaw clenches, and your heart rate quickens.

Here's a visualization exercise that helps transform stress and tension into a sense of inner peace, ease, and radiance.

Stay in each step for as long as feels right to you.

STEP 1. Close your eyes. Visualize enveloping yourself in a radiant, warm, and porous ball of light.

Remind yourself that you are safe within this space. No matter where you are or what you're encountering, this sphere of inner peace will never leave you.

STEP 2. Take a couple of deep breaths. As you breathe in, sense the light expanding from your body, filling the space around you. With each exhale, feel your body relax, carrying off any thoughts.

STEP 3. Identify a specific area in the body where you sense tension. If there are multiple points of tension, try a "body scan" from the crown of your head down to your toes.

With each slow, deep breath, visualize the warm & radiant light of your breath gradually dissolving the tension and relaxing the area of focus.

STEP 4. Come back to your immediate environment. Whenever you start to feel tension arise, conjure the vision of the luminous sphere surrounding you. Inhaling expands the light. Exhaling releases tension.

Mantras can help refocus the mind during this process. (e.g., "Inner peace is my superpower," "I am always okay.")

MOMENTUM TIP OF THE WEEK

It's too easy to forget that we don't have complete control over our thoughts.

The truth is most of our thoughts pop up involuntarily, and a great deal of them can be negative.

While we can't completely control what goes on up there (nor should we try to), we can always turn to wise words from others to lift our spirits and empower our actions.

Next time you're feeling down, skip Google (a distraction trap) and ask AI for personalized quotes directly on your dashboard. Add your favorites to help recenter you whenever you need it.

IT’S ALL GOOD (NEWS)

Here are a few stories that may spark curiosity and wonder. ✨

• 🧪 Sustainability: New Catalyst Completely Breaks Down Durable Plastic Pollution in Minutes

• 🦡 Biodiversity: Giant Pangolins in Kenya Being Helped Back From the Brink of Extinction

• 💗 Health: Immunotherapy for Hard To Treat Cancer Just Granted FDA Fast Track

• 🖼 Culture: A Forgotten Masterpiece Hanging Above a French Woman’s Hot Plate Now in the Louvre