Include a "Beauty Break" in your holiday preparations

Remember to slow down, breathe and take a "beauty break" in the midst of this winter's holiday preparations! -- time to notice the sparkle on the snow, the pink/orange / silver cloud patterns while the sun is setting low in the sky, the animal prints letting you know whose been visiting....  There's so much beauty outside! Take in and appreciate the gifts of nature.

 And of course give your body a "beauty break"-- massage or lightly tap your head  perhaps, cup your hands over your eyes to rest them for a few minutes, rub or circle your shoulders, stretch  or gently put extra lotion on dry skin around your nails. Notice and appreciate all your body does on your behalf!  
Tis the season to be thankful for simple things... every day.

Preparing for a Medical Appointment

"The more you prepare for health-related appointments, the more you will get out of them. While it is normal to feel overwhelmed, being well prepared will build your confidence. It is helpful to list in advance all the questions you wish to ask, whether your appointment is an initial consultation or a follow-up visit at any stage along the way."

 

And remember, "Don't go it alone" Take someone with you, unless your appointment is a routine physical when you don't expect any results at the time...

 

You can have your health history, and your questions all ready for your visit if you fill out these pages in  "My Health & Wellness Organizer: An easy guide to manage your healthcare - and your medical records".

Preparing for a Medical Appointment

http://archives.chronogram.com/blogs/Help-Yourself-to-Healing/show/Preparing-for-a-Medical-Appointment
www.rootsnwings.com/products.html

There are many ways one can “walk” a labyrinth

On a recent glorious Friday morning, our women's wellness group gathered to walk the Roots & Wings Labyrinth. We did this in such a beautifully unhurried contemplative way -- See photo below. 

Later that same day, I was inspired to do some weeding and path-mulching , when at least 5 young neighborhood kids zoomed down Ramah Lane on their bikes, and called across ,asking to ‘walk’ the labyrinth (they were introduced to it by one of their mothers before).

They did it their way  with such joie de vivre and spontaneity, running fast follow-the-leader style most of the time, heads held high, hair streaming, and high-fiving each other without stopping when passing in opposite directions, with at least a two of them  doing a few cartwheels as they made their way to the center. There they all sat down on the grass in a circle, heads bent  towards each other. Then they came running across to me, asking to make a phone call  to a parent...

I wish I had had a video camera!!

Perhaps they caught some of our vibes from the morning!  It was certainly a beautiful reminder of the many ways one can “walk” the labyrinth.

 

The Roots & Wings Labyrinth is open year round, weather permitting, for individual walks at your leisure during daylight hours. 
To schedule a group walk or event for your organization, please click the link below. 

http://www.rootsnwings.com/lab.html or call Puja at 845-255-2278

Gratitude Opens Your Heart

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

We can't remind ourselves enough of the power of giving thanks.

To read more, click on the link below:

Gratitude Opens Your Heart:
http://archives.chronogram.com/blogs/Help-Yourself-to-Healing/show/Gratitude-Opens-Your-Heart

Mediate Your Way to Peace

Entering the world of the spirit—your personal self, your inner world—is not always an easy task to accomplish. Mediate Your Way to Peace: http://archives.chronogram.com/blogs/Help-Yourself-to-Healing/show/Meditate-Your-Way-to-Peace

CROC's Tent at the Pine Bush Relay For Life Event

GO to https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.928989847114695.1073741827.584134881600195&type=1(CROC’s Facebook page) for lots more pictures of the CROC (Citizens Re-united to Overcome Cancer) tent at the Pine Bush Relay for Life Event -thanks to photographer Dan Hendrickson

Scroll down and enjoy. Many thanks to Denise Serrano-Eanelli and Dr. Tom Eanelli and all the CROC volunteers. They put in a power of work to make it happen.

I’ve contributed in the past by speaking at a couple of meetings held at Franco Di Roma Restaurant in Middletown NY who provided delicious Italian food, so it was a real pleasure to be asked to speak at the CROC Tent at the Relay for Life Fundraiser in Pine Bush on the 11th. Under Dr E.’s original leadership, they have created a very caring heart – centered support group for cancer patients and their families. Denise was a delight to connect with too as we prepared for the event, not to mentions old friends such as Mary Andreozzi and others.

There may have been lots of loud music and very high energy with it seemed like thousands at the event , but the CROC tent was an oasis of peaceful energy offering chair massage  and other services that bore out the theme of my talk, which was -- that to heal the body you need to listen to it, take care of it  and follow the clues it gives you  when you are out of balance, emotionally, mentally and, spiritually, as well as physically! Don’t wait till it screams at you in pain of one kind or another...

Time moves on; Spring's blossoming reflects the changing scene at Roots & Wings

Time passes so quickly. These daffodils that covered Daffodil Hill at the back of Roots & Wings are already gone, and the trees are in full bloom.

Now it's the turn of the Magnolia, the Lilac and other flowering trees.

Nurturing Your Passion for Creativity

It's a delight for me to support a young person's aspirations. Here’s what Tracy Tanoff shares about how she discovered her passion for reading and writing, leading to her choice of English and Journalism classes at college and hence her current internship at ROOTS & WINGS:

"When I was a kid, around five or six, my biggest dream was to be a veterinarian—everyone always observed that I was good with animals; I loved animals as much as they seemed to love me. More than that, I was interested in healing those who were hurt. I was strongly affected by negative emotions and any sort of discord, and while I shied away from the idea of healing people, I wanted very much to help animals, who’d brought me plenty of joy and amusement during my childhood.

As I grew older, I found that I wasn’t as cut out for veterinary training as I’d once imagined—I wasn’t very good at science and math, foundations any doctor would need, but fortunately, I did have another strong suit. Another childhood passion of mine was reading and, after fourth grade, writing. As a young girl, I was enthusiastic about and absorbed by fantasy and science fiction stories. I soon began writing some of my own, modeled after the books I loved most, by authors like Bruce Coville and Mary Stanton, and such epic series as Star Wars and Lord of the Rings. I was encouraged by the fourth grade teacher who first told me my writing had a real “voice,” and my supportive mother and stepfather.

When I reached my last year of middle school and entered high school, I discovered that my love of language also opened up another door for me—like my mother, I was a good editor. Peer-editing my classmates’ papers in a college-level English class, and being commended by my teacher for the help I was giving students who needed it, I decided on my future career path. I knew as early as eleventh grade that I wanted to be an English major, and my determination certainly surprised adults who were used to students who were undecided!

At SUNY New Paltz, I learned to extend my range as a writer and an editor; I took Journalism classes in addition to my English classes, and my minor in Journalism requires an internship in a communications field, such as publishing. I knew I wanted a position that would help me grow as a writer and an editor, as well as one with a specific geographical component: I wanted to stay local. New Paltz, as a community, has always welcomed me and made me feel safe; I feel much more grounded here than I would have in New York City or on unfamiliar parts of Long Island, my home.

Puja’s listing in the job fair catalogue called my name right away—not only was it in the New Paltz area, it was seeking someone with the skills I had and wanted to hone. It seemed like a dream, but I was still nervous; I’d been disappointed by seeming “dream jobs” before, overlooked in favor of other candidates. I tried to pour my nervousness into something other than needless stress: the hunt for the right black pants to wear to the fair, the right résumé paper to print my qualifications on.

The day of the job fair wasn’t nearly as stress-free as I’d been hoping—the humidity was awful and I lugged my six-pound Shakespeare anthology to class only to find out my professor had unexpectedly cancelled. By the time I got to the job fair, I was hot, upset, and slightly panicked, and I was sure that whatever chances I’d had at being hired had surely slipped down the drain!

I remember being so relieved after my interview—I liked Puja and she seemed to like me, and even the unfamiliar subject area I’d be working in didn’t seem quite so daunting after our talk. I waited nervously to hear whether I’d gotten the position or not, and was relieved and excited when I opened my inbox one Saturday morning to an email from Puja informing me that I’d be working at Roots & Wings along with another intern.

Since January, I’ve been greatly enjoying my work at Roots & Wings. I’ve been opened to so many new experiences—I’ve been editing manuscripts and seeing how layouts are formatted (and reformatted), and learning about how to write book proposals. I’ve even found that working with writing on health and well-being resonates with why I wanted to be a vet as a child—it’s all about cutting down on pain and negativity. The idea of “roots and wings” even applies to why I wanted this internship in the first place: I wanted to allow my New Paltz roots to flourish, and the knowledge and connections I gain here will hopefully allow me to spread my wings and take off into the professional world!"

Learning at any age!

I’m teaching a SUNY Lifetime Learning class for seniors, Use Your Energy to Welcome Change, One way I keep my own energy moving is to connect with younger people at other points of the age spectrum. I love to mentor SUNY student interns through the publishing aspect of Roots & Wings. It can be a reciprocal win-win for us all: interns have a hands-on learning business experience, practicing essential skills, while their perspective can be very helpful to me.

 Here’s what Lauren Boudreau wrote about becoming one of my two current interns at ROOTS & WINGS:

            “Take a moment and close your eyes; picture yourself at age ten stepping into an amusement park for the first time. You are overwhelmed by the lights, the music, the rides seeming to break all laws of physics. You are excited yet scared at the same time, but not to worry, your parents are right there holding your hands.

            This scenario is pretty much exactly what I felt the first time (and many times after) I stepped into a career and internship fair. The chills that ran through my body were only numbed by the fact that I knew I was not alone. There were hundreds of other students just like me waiting to start their lives.

            This year’s fair included companies in my field (publishing) and when I saw Puja sitting at her small table labeled Roots & Wings I knew this could finally be my big break.

            It did not take long after the Fair for her to ask me for an interview. As I sat in my car across the street from the Bakery where we were to meet, my hands were shaking and my teeth were chattering in the cold December weather. However, when I started actually speaking with Puja my nerves calmed down. Thankfully, I got the job! Since January I have been an intern for Roots & Wings!

At first I was a little worried at what I could possibly do to improve this one-woman company. I quickly found out that even though Puja is the sole proprietor, there is so much work to do! I am never bored.

            What I really like about this internship is that I can do it on my free time. Puja will send me pieces to edit via email and I can do it at 3 AM if I want to (I don’t). At times when I go to Puja’s home office, I feel relaxed—I am even  distracted by the sheer beauty of the surroundings, looking up to the ‘Gunks.’ (Roots & Wings also serves as a getaway for BnB guests.)

            The most fun assignments are when I get to edit her material. I remember being so completely satisfied with myself when after I sent her some edits, she ended up going with most of my suggestions! It’s truly the best feeling ever, feeling that you did something worthwhile.

            I’m learning a lot also. I’m more aware of writing clear and concise sentences than I was before, especially for the type of self-help books Puja is writing and publishing. You must use colloquial language and organize it in a way that easy for readers to understand. Editing is truly an art form and must be done with a careful eye. As I have learned, good editing is what truly makes a good book.

            Words cannot express how grateful I am that I get to do this. One day I can only hope that I turn these valuable skills into a full-time job!”

Roots & Wings Interns Spring 2013 - Lauren on left; Tracy on right.

Spring - the gift of buds, the time of new growth

....and a time to turn to the light and warmth of the sun and of our hearts to melt our cold edges, welcoming back home those parts of ourselves we may have neglected and left out in the cold.  Such resilience in nature! Like the daffodils, we can open up again after a time of chill to another season of growth.

... perhaps with some guardians looking on ...

Puja's current writing and contributions to previous Chronogram blogs

Past entries of Puja's blog for the Chronogram magazine can be found here. She is no longer writing a blog for Chronogram, but some of the entries may be of interest.

There have been some changes in the management of this blog. Puja would like to thank Cynthia Stewart for her contributions to the entries in 2012.

Puja is busy expanding her My Hope & Focus Cancer Organizer, which is near to completion.

Also in the works is an organizer for any health challenge. Its guidelines will help you manage and coordinate everything you need, from emergency contact information to health history, questions to ask your doctors, treatment decisions, tests, medication, billing, insurance and much more...

Look out for other posts to come!