Beauty, Grace and Poise
Mood:  lyrical
Topic: Exercise
I went to my daughter's dance recital tonight. It was her tenth year in dance. She dances so lovely, just like a dream on a sweet summer's night. She has so much poise and grace.

She's danced all her life, since before she was even three. What a beautiful healing power there is in dance. I'm so grateful she has that gift.

We all need to dance! Perhaps not up on a stage...please...I'd look like an absolute fool! But we do need to dance. We need to dance in our hearts, and yes...we need to dance in our feet.

Movement, rhythm, swaying, tapping our feet. Fast dancing, slow dancing, exercising, holding each other tight...These are all healing things. Stretching, singing, smiling...These things all come naturally. It starts in the womb with the swaying and muffled sounds, mostly coming across as mere tones. We find comfort in this.

Comfort is a very good thing for your health. Stress without relief is too much for our fragile systems to take without harm. Comfort is vital to health.

Movement...Another important aspect of the healing power of dance. Movement gets everything moving within our body to where it supposed to be. Sometimes that's round and round, as in the case of blood. Other times it's just out, as in the case of bulk waste. (Movement helps relieve constipation. That's why it's called a bowel MOVEMENT! Things gotta move to move out!)

The blood needs to keep flowing to nourish our cells with the good stuff in the food that we eat, and also to carry the yucky stuff out through the liver and on through to the kidneys and OUT.

Same thing with the lymphatics. Lymph fluid does the same job as blood, except it's comprised of itty bittier drops that can go into itty bittier places like way down deep in tissues, to do the same thing as blood--carry in nutrients and carry waste out, to be disposed of on down the road. A sluggish lymphatic system can account for a lot of bad things. In my opinion, the best thing to get the lymph fluid moving is dance. (Echinacea would be my choice, when considering herbs.)

Stretching keeps us supple; rhythm integrates us with our own inner rhythm, and the rhythm of the earth and the cycles within us and the earth; and twirling makes us feel alive!

There are so many physical benefits to dance...to the heart, the muscles, the whole entire body and mind.

Balance, when practiced in dance, carries over to help us find balance in other realms of our being, such as emotional balance. We find this to be the case most of the time. Exercise is good for the brain! The various movements work to increase the production of important chemicals in the brain which work to keep us feeling good, such as endorphins, adrenaline, seratonin, and dopamine.

Breathing and balance are integral parts of yoga and other meditative techniques which are blended with exercise. This is evidence of the fact that physical balance aids in spiritual balance, as well.

Music is healing, there is no doubt about that! Even the sad songs can be healing, if it is tears that we need to cry.

But happy music! Happiness heals, as does laughter and love! Happy music has got to be the best kind of music, expressing our inner joy!

That's what I saw up on that stage tonight! I saw a stage full of absolute joy! That's why it was so beautiful! I was witnessing expressions of joy, and joy spreads. That's the wonderful thing about dance!

May we all find the dancers within us. Go on and try it when nobody's looking. Start with tapping your toes! Turn on some music. Okay, if you don't want to do that, then sing! Singing is soooooooooooooooooo very good for us, too!

Sway to the rythm. Do it a little each day. If you will make a practice of this one little thing, you will be amazed at the results you will find!

It's the little things like this that make a really big difference in health. People often don't realize the healing power of such simple things as just listening to music and moving around to the beat. Make a point to do this now and then through the day!

Sing, dance, twirl, tap your toes, hum, sway, do the cha cha, the waltz, and the twist! Whatever you're MOVED to do...DO! Dance until your heart is content!


Thank you, Sarah, for the beautiful inspiration you are!






Love,
Mom

(That's DR. Mom!)

Mary Jo Eshelman, ND, CTN, CNHP

allnatureworks@aol.com



The information presented is the author's personal and professional opinion, and is intended for educational purposes only. Nothing printed here is designed to take the place of a physician's advice. If you are experiencing problems with your health, it is recommended that you consult with a licensed health care professional. All Natural HealthWorks! is not responsible for any damages or ill-effects resulting from the information presented herein, nor do we make any recommendations regarding your health. We are simply here as a resource for you in making your own choices for your health yourself.

*NOTE: Don't forget to drink lots of water! Onceyou get things moving, you want the poisons to be sure to move OUT. This is a very important note!