People frequently talk about steps in analogies and metaphors. "One small step for man -- one great leap for mankind”, said Neil Armstrong as he stepped off the Apollo space craft on to the moon surface. "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" said Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu. And the truth of the matter is that we can't get anywhere without taking steps, even small ones. In fact, it's one of the first things that we learn, after we learn to stand on our own two feet -- taking that first step. And look at how many steps you have taken since then!
We take steps in order to get from one place to another -- we take steps in order to get from home to work, from one side of the room to the other, from one place to the next in our lives, -- we simply can't get along without taking steps. So what's the problem when we take a step towards our own health and well-being by taking time to treat ourselves well at a spa for example? Why stop there? Why not keep taking steps after that big step that we have taken for the day, overnight, or weekend visit?
Most of the time it seems people say -- "I just don't have time" to take those steps to look after myself out there in the ‘real world’. But when you think about it, how much time does it to really take to take a step? It might need more effort to take one big step, but in fact it takes very little time to make several small ones.
Here is one step that you can take to continue the good feelings that you had when you were at St. Anne's for that day. Remember when you were lying on that massage table, or getting that treatment? Just let your mind go back there now and remember it – right now remember the smells, remember the sensations in your body, remember the feelings that you had, remember the touch. You may not know this, but your unconscious mind remembers every experience that you have ever had, and faithfully stores it away so that you can access that ‘file’ whenever you need to -- like right now for example. Visualize this in your mind, hear the words that were being said to you, feel the feelings that you felt. Take just a moment to re-experience that feeling, and while you are at it, just take a couple of deep breathes and let go of any tension you might have in your body. You felt good then and you can feel good now. Your body and mind will rejoice in the re-experiencing of that moment -- and it's a small step -- and you can take many of those during the day, because you know what? They only take 30 seconds or a minute, and everyone has time for that. All you have to do is just be aware that you can, and make the choice. Enjoy those small moments often, before you return to St. Anne’s for the big one!
