Protecting Your Peace &
Guarding Your Spirit
By Audrey Muhammad @classa.alltheway
As a Black woman with a beautiful Black
daughter, I know the stress that we can experience. I want to give my daughter and other women
tools that help us navigate this world.
Both my daughter and I have had a stressful
semester. She is a senior computer science major and leader of an organization
on campus. She worked hard striving to get all of her projects completed before
the end of the year. I, on the other hand, am in my final year of
graduate school while teaching 8 classes. To say I was overwhelmed and
overworked is an understatement. So, when I saw the email
saying 2 spots were left for a yoga retreat in Jamaica, I immediately thought, “I need this!”
We traveled to Jamaica and had a wonderful
experience; I will share more about Jamaica in a future article. However, for now, I want to share some
wonderful ways to “protect your peace and guard your spirit.”
Why is this important? If we protect our spirit, which is God’s
essence in us, we are also helping to maintain a state of harmonious mental
health. When our spirit and peace are
disturbed, we can lose hope. When we
lose hope, it can lead to other problems including illness, lack of sleep and
depression. Defaulting in duty, I heard Minister Farrakhan mention in a lecture, can also cause stress. Are we defaulting in our duty to take care of self? I had to reflect on my first duty, which is to preserve my body physically and spiritually. My top tips for protecting one’s
peace are:
1.
Prayer or connecting with your divine source helps to give us hope
and strengthen our faith. I remember The
Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan saying that we can never doubt God’s ability
to bring us out of the worst of circumstances.
I bear witness! Can you? Do you remember having something happen to
you or being in a bad situation and your prayer was answered? Always
strive to express thoughts and gratitude to the Creator. Remember, we must
express ourselves, so we don’t “depress” ourselves.
2.
Exercise. After prayer,
exercising is one of my favorite ways to engage in self-care. Whether I perform a few yoga poses, take a walk
in the sun, or participate in a kick-boxing workout, I get energized and
prepared for the day. Exercise is a form
of self-care because I am strengthening and paying attention to my body. What we love, we pay attention to…right? If we love our children, we pay attention to
them. When we neglect our homes or our
bodies, well see visible signs of neglect.
When you pass a home with a well-manicured lawn, it is a sign that the
home is being properly cared for by someone.
The same can be said for our bodies and eating healthy foods. As I add more rotations around the sun, I have
come to appreciate yoga and relaxation activities more and more. Now, I always add yoga movements at the end
of my workouts. Now, I also value an
entire yoga workout, when I didn’t previously.
3.
Thinking, reading, and writing positive thoughts. Since every action is preceded by a thought,
what we think about takes up our attention.
There is a saying from the movie The Secret that says, “Energy
flows where attention goes.” When I was
at the retreat, I didn’t have my computer and was able to “unplug” a little and
not be consumed with the information online. Instead, I was able to focus more
on being still, thinking, reading, and reflecting on my thoughts. I was able to appreciate the abundance I saw
in nature every day. We are “enough” and
God has given us plenty. One of our yoga instructors at the retreat reminded us
to look around in nature whenever we feel we are having a feeling of lack.
4.
Lastly, I was able to embrace “peace.” I wasn’t rushing anywhere, which I usually
do. I felt more present during the day
and was able to sleep at a decent hour, which led me to be more refreshed when
I woke up. I didn’t realize how sleep
deprived I had become. It felt wonderful
to sleep and naturally wake up around 5 a.m. for prayer. It was priceless. In Torchlight for America, Minister
Farrakhan emphasized eight guidelines preventive care guidelines. “Get proper rest and relaxation” was number #6. He said, “Allow your body time to recuperate
from the emotional stress and physical exertion of the day, and to re-energize
itself to meet the challenges of the next day (p. 124)
To get more tips on self-care, join us for a special “Virtue Live”
show on Saturday, December 31st at 8 p.m. est. Free and VIP tickets will be
available. (Proceeds will go to our annual Saviours’ Day Gift). To
reserve your spot, go to virtuelive.eventbrite.com.