With everything that is happening in our world and individual lives, I am feeling especially grateful for, and mindful of the practices that bring me back into my body and into my heart space where I am grounded in peace.

Lately I have been reflecting more deeply on what my current soul nutrients are and whether I am implementing them as often as my mind, body and soul is yearning for it.

What feels most nutritive for me is the times I spend feeding my creative mind, where my inner child resides. The times when I do things that awaken curiosity within me, allow me to feel my feelings, honour my intuition and follow its lead for no apparent reason other than it simply feels good, are the times when I’m most happy. These are the moments when I am experiencing present moment awareness, freedom and fun; when I get to taste pleasure, joy and bliss, mentally, physically and emotionally.

As children, these feelings flow naturally and frequently within us. Children are yet to develop their rational mind hence why they spend much more time within their artistic, creative mind where life is all about imagination, exploration, inspiration and fun. As we grow into adulthood, the child within us doesn’t disappear. In fact it does everything it can to get our attention. Just like when a child gets upset and starts to throw tantrums when and become somewhat self-destructive when it’s not given attention, our inner child does the same. As adults, our logical mind knows that it isn’t socially acceptable to throw tantrums. In turn, the tantrum manifests itself in the form of mental health issues, supressed rage, passive aggressive behaviour and pessimistic beliefs about life and self.

These days, I do my best to spend time in nature, free-write, paint intuitively and play with colour, dance to music, cook meals that make me happy, read books and stretch and move my body. These are what I call my soul nutrients. Without frequently tapping into these activities, I start dropping into a space of stress, anxiety and depression. Whenever I have started to experience a drop in my mental health
state, I instantly realise that I inner child is feeling neglected and deprived of its soul nutrients.

What are your soul nutrients right now? Are there ways you can invite more of these things into your daily life? Are there activities, people, or ways of thinking that are feeling more draining than nourishing? Is there one thing you can do today that will fill your cup?