Photo: Karen Ari Sami Location: Lorien Hotel and Spa

Greetings to you,

It’s been too long. I hope life has been treating you well. I have had some moments of emotional ups and downs in the past two months, but overall life has been very kind to me since I turned 45 on May 15. It feels like I am going into a phase of self-mastery, knowledge, and spiritual power that I cannot explain to you at the moment.

After the past month of being with and around people every day, I am finally making time to relax and recharge. Below are some words of wisdom from my favorite spiritual teacher Thich Nhat Hanh‘s book How to Relax. Sometimes, the only way to relax is not in trying, but simply in just giving a command to our mind, body, and spirit to do so.

Waking Up to the Moment

Walking meditation is a way of waking up to the wonderful moment we are living in. If our mind is caught, preoccupied with our worries and our suffering, or if we distract ourselves with other things while walking, we can’t practice mindfulness; we can’t enjoy the present moment. We’re missing out on life, but if we are awake, then we’ll see this is a wonderful moment that life has given us, the only moment in which life is available. We can value each step we take, and each step can bring us happiness because we are in touch with life, with the source of happiness, and with our beloved planet.

I hope you enjoy the wisdom above. For me, walking is a daily meditation that I cannot live without. Regardless of where I am at the moment, walking at sunrise and sunset are usually my must-do activities. Most often, I prefer to do it alone and in silence so that I can hear the birds and the bees singing, whistling, and chirping.

Try walking without shoes. It feels amazing!