AM and PM Ritual.

Congratulations on making it to Stage 5 of the program. For many people it can be very difficult to change their lifestyle. You took the first step in Stage 1 to promote relaxation and balance by incorporating a supplement regimen to sooth your nervous system. In Stage 2, you developed an awareness of your fight or flight responses and practiced guiding yourself into parasympathetic balance through biofeedback guided meditation with the emWave device. Stage 3 helped you take further control of your healing by identifying the lifestyle factors that influence your health and wellbeing. 

In this stage, we are going to describe an AM and PM ritual to bring a greater sense of self awareness, awe, and gratitude to our lives. The Ritual is a very flexible activity and can be done in any length of time you have. For example, if you are in a rush, simply think about it. If you have as little as 6 minutes, dedicate 1 minute to each of the questions. Five minutes per question would be half an hour. If you have a dedicated retreat day, consider giving an hour to each. We suggest grabbing a pen or pencil and paper to write down your responses. This exercise should be done in a light and playful but honest manner.

Below are 6 simple questions to be completed in 3 steps. Following these questions, you will find the definitions of the key word in each question to help guide you through the ritual. 

Step 1: Answer the following questions: 

1. What is my essence?

What is that core part of you that makes you unique? How do you express yourself in your life, today, and in general?

• What is my offering?

What are the gifts you give to yourself, your community, and the world, today and in general?

Step 2: Do some stream of consciousness writing or thinking for question 3. Stream of consciousness is a practice that tries to capture the natural flow of thoughts as they unfold and move through the mind. When practicing stream of consciousness, let your thoughts come and go without judgment, let what is subconscious come into the conscious.

• What comes up for you today?

Step 3: Continue answering the following questions:

• How will I apprehend Joy?

Joy is all around us. How do I express joy in my thoughts, actions, and words, today and in general?

• How will I manifest Love?

How will I find, create, and promote love, compassion, kindness, and empathy for myself and others, today and in general?

• What do I hold in deep gratitude?

Think of 3 people, places, or things that you feel deeply grateful for. What does this gratitude feel like in the body? What makes you feel this gratitude for these people, places, or things?

Definitions:

Look at the list of words and their synonyms below: Essence, Offering, Apprehend, Manifest and Gratitude. Get a deep, broad, and rich understanding of these words. *These definitions and synonyms come from the Oxford English Dictionary.

• ESSENCE (Noun)

Pronunciation /ˈesəns/ /ˈɛsəns/ 

Definition: The intrinsic nature or indispensable quality of something, especially  something abstract, that determines its character.

Example: ‘Do essences (or properties in general) exist in the physical world?’

Synonyms:

quintessence, soul, spirit, ethos, nature, life, lifeblood, core, heart, centre, crux, nub, nucleus, kernel, marrow, meat, pith, gist, substance, principle, central part, fundamental quality, basic quality, essential part, intrinsic nature, sum and substance, reality, actuality

• OFFERING (Noun)

Pronunciation /ˈôf(ə)riNG/ /ˈɔf(ə)rɪŋ/ /ˈäf(ə)riNG/ /ˈɑf(ə)rɪŋ/ 

Translate offering into Spanish

Definition: A thing offered, especially as a gift or contribution.

Example: ‘offerings during Lent will always be gratefully received’

Synonyms: 

contribution, donation, benefaction, gift, present, handout, widow’s mite, subscription

charity sacrifice, oblation, burnt offering, peace offering, thank-offering, immolation, libation, first fruits, tribute, dedication

• APPREHEND (Verb)

Pronunciation /ˌaprəˈhend/ /ˌæprəˈhɛnd/ 

Definition: Understand or perceive.

‘great art invites us to apprehend beauty’

Synonyms

arrest, catch, capture, seize take prisoner, take into custody, detain, put in jail, throw in jail, put behind bars, imprison, incarcerate understand, comprehend, realize, recognize, appreciate, discern, perceive, fathom, penetrate, catch, follow, grasp, make out, take in informal collar, nab, nail, run in, pinch, bust, pick up, pull in, haul in, do, feel someone’s collar get the drift of, get the hang of, make head or tail of, get the picture, have an aha moment

• MANIFEST (Adjective)

Pronunciation /ˈmanəˌfest/ /ˈmænəˌfɛst/ 

Definitions: Clear or obvious to the eye or mind; Display or show (a quality or feeling) by one’s acts or appearance; demonstrate; be evidence of; prove; appear.

Example: ‘one deity manifested in the form of a bird’

Synonyms:

display, show, exhibit, demonstrate, betray, present, evince, reveal, indicate, make plain, express, declare, be evidence of, be a sign of, indicate, show, attest, reflect, bespeak, prove, establish, evidence, substantiate, corroborate, verify, confirm

• GRATITUDE (Noun)

Pronunciation /ˈɡradəˌt(y)o͞od/ /ˈɡrædəˌt(j)ud/ 

Definition: The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.

‘she expressed her gratitude to the committee for their support’

Synonyms:

gratefulness, thankfulness, thanks, appreciation, recognition, acknowledgement, hat tip, credit, regard, respect

Helpful Tips:

• Be flexible and playful with this 
• Consider a unique synonym each day
• There are no right or wrong answers
• Some days will be easier than others, but with effort you will be surprised to find answers that will improve the tone for your day.

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