THE RIVER OF LIFE

In Thomastown where we live, we are very fortunate to be within five minutes walk of two charming rivers from Kilfane and Mong.  They are beautiful small rivers that babble and flow with such vigour that they can only bring joy.  When I get up early in the morning to walk by the two rivers, our two rescue dogs Sunny and Sylvie can hardly believe their luck: their howls of delight are almost human!

I have to confess that I am no great fan of jogging.  My first attempt at doing a 10k fundraising jog ended up with me fainting and waking up in an ambulance.  I was taken to Jervis St Hospital where I had worked as a student nurse – all very embarrassing!  The problem was that I had done no training for the run, even though I thought I was fit and expected to do well.  My lifestyle then simply didn’t include enough exercise: I now know that we need to move our bodies to stay healthy.

So although I still don’t enjoy running, with nature in on my doorstep, I find it easy to gently jog to the rivers with our dogs.  As I sit by the riverbank, I reflect that we too have a river that runs through us: the blood that flows through our body.  When we are working with this energy flow, moving our body, being fully present in life and supporting the flow with positive thoughts, then we are like the river that flows freely in the right direction with no blockages to affect its energy.  But how many of us try to swim against the natural flow of life?  We criticise ourselves, we worry too much, we are too sedentary, and we fail to shift the negative debris that can block our flow at any time.    

Often I will see a branch or stick caught in the middle of the river, but when I return the next day, it has been washed away.  We need to take the same approach with the debris that clutters up our own lives – simply imagine that it has been washed away and can no longer interrupt our natural flow!

Every time we walk, jump or run, our cells benefit from the fact that we are moving, helping the energy in our bodies to flow in the right direction, and making us feel better both inwardly and outwardly.  So like those rivers, get moving!