Morning rituals or habits can impact our whole day. Sometimes we might not notice how small things from the morning can influence our appearance, actions, mood or thinking during the rest of the day. Focused on “what’s next” and “what needs to be done” we start to ‘run around’ from early hours. Chasing the day, chasing life’s moments.
Wake up every morning with the thought that something wonderful is about to happen.
How about stopping today for a moment? How do you feel when you wake up, how do you spend morning hours, who is around you? And let’s not skip: what are your morning thoughts and feelings? Seize the day. Lets reflect and do a bit of sharing. Beautiful day start = beautiful day. It is time to rise & shine!
MY MORNINGS
I need to say it first: I am not a morning person. I love to stay awake late in the night: to work, to study, to relax with a glass of wine or read a book. That’s when ‘by default’ I feel happy and energetic. And even if I slept less the night before – I will not steal time from my evenings! The good thing is, maybe thanks to DNA, I do not need to sleep a lot to be happy and relaxed!
One is for sure: I love slow mornings! Now with Our Little One she is my daily (and nightly) alarm clock. Otherwise I just love to snooze… and you will never find me setting up alarm for e.g. 6:20 or 7:00. It might be 6:21 and 7:01 and my alarm will display “Rise and Shine” message on it!
My mornings depend a lot on few factors: location (Poland, India or maybe somewhere travelling), who is at home, what is the plan for my lovely family for that day, is it my time off or working day… There was a time, few months back when I was going to bed around midnight and then waking up at 5:40 for 6am yoga class at home. Once the class was over… I just loved the feeling of that new energy, no matter if tired or sleepy.
Few things I can’t skip each morning: stay in the bed extra 5 minutes (even if this means that Our Little One is jumping all over me), play radio / tv with my music or morning tv show and lately use my favorite Orange and Lemongrass Face Wash from Khadi Natural.
And the most important: first I drink a glass of tea, Tulsi Green Tea from Organic India is my choice, and I follow with a cup of espresso coffee. That’s my favorite part of the morning. Sipping coffee and sitting in my own ‘world’ even if not alone at home, that’s when I connect with myself to start the day. To rise and shine.
MORNING RITUALS
SLOW START
Take time to make your soul happy.
Take your time. To open your eyes, to wake up. If you like to snooze your alarm, do it. If you feel like stretching or rolling in the bed, do it. Or maybe you like to spend more time under shower. Simply, find a bit of ‘slow time’ for yourself (called also as ‘me’ time, you can read more about it here). Take your time, don’t run. There will be many hours in the day when running might be needed. Start slowly and gather your energy. Don’t rush. If you have family / children, try to wake up a bit earlier or find a bit of time just for yourself. Even 5 minutes will make your soul happy.
MORNING UNPLUG
Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.
Anne Lamott
In this slow motion mode, try to do something to unplug. Yes, already in the morning. Remember that your brain is actually very active during sleep doing important things, it is not just relaxing. Morning meditation or yoga can make magic for the rest of the day. In fact, the benefits of meditation are enhanced when the mind is free and clear before accumulation of the stresses. It is a perfect way to start a well balanced day, I wrote about it already: click here to read. If it is still dark when you wake up (especially in northern countries) you can light up candles to make house more calm and relaxed. Or maybe don’t move from bed for few minutes and play some soft music instead.
YOUR MORNING THING
Life begins after coffee.
Ok, music is over, candles are burnt, meditation is completed. That’s it? Not yet! Morning and its rituals continue. You might be thinking: who has the time for all this? First, make it inspirational. Secondly, Rome wasn’t built in a day! My next question is: what is your morning thing. The one (or two or more) that makes you feel good and comfortable, giving you a small morning smile. Is it your favorite green tea or maybe strong coffee smell? For some it might be reading a newspaper or few pages of a book. Or maybe simply using a shower gel that will activate your senses. I know that for My Better Half it would be a chai by the terrace and playing guitar. And you?
FRAME YOUR DAY
One small positive thought in the morning can change your whole DAY.
Relax. Morning rituals are not only about the things we do. So you do not need to wake up 3 hours earlier to complete a new “relaxing list to do”. Most of the things happen inside us, in our mind. That’s why it is so important, already from the morning hours, to turn on positivity and good vibes inside us! Also here, don’t get concerned, it doesn’t need to be a big things: you do not need to accomplish a new project at work, find a new job or buy dream car or holidays. It might be as simple as knowing people you love are around you or enjoying the sunshine or birds singing outside your windows. Maybe you will be happy thinking you will grab a coffee with your friend or give a call to hear the voice you haven’t heard for a while. Keep away worries or morning mood swings. One small positive thought can work magic!
SMILE. YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL.
Smile in the mirror. Do that every morning and you’ll start to see a big difference in your life.
Yoko Ono
Positivity is already working magic! Now just one small thing: add a beautiful smile to it. That’s the best recipe for a perfect day start. Smile to yourself in front of the mirror: maybe as you will see a funny ‘post night’ hairstyle that you didn’t expect to see. Smile to yourself when enjoying your morning thing. The more you smile, the more chances that the smile will remain with you for the rest of the day! And remember: you are more beautiful (or handsome ;)) when you smile!
SPOIL YOURSELF… BEFORE THE DAY STARTS!
“Dear Self, today you will shine!”
One more thing. Before you leave your house or reach office or school, do something that will make you shine even more. Yes, it isn’t about looking like a Hollywood or Bollywood star every morning. Your hair might be messed up or you might be wearing not matching clothes, That’s fine – happens to all of us. But how about applying a nice lipstick or your favorite perfume? Maybe a new tie or earrings? That’s not your thing? Options are many: grab a coffee you love on the way to work or decide it is a cooking free day! It is your day! So shine!
EVERYDAY AYURVEDA TIPS
During one of my latest travels, rightly at the airport, I bought a new book Everyday Ayurveda by Dr Bhaswati Bhattacharya. It isn’t my morning ritual, as I love reading books in the evening. So I started to explore the pages of this “perfect lifestyle guide” just before sleeping. And I didn’t expect to get inspired so much by its content. So approachable, practical and easy to read.
I am sharing below some of it’s recommendations for “daily morning habits that can change your life”, mine too!
RISE AND SHINE
- Rise early, between 4 and 6 am
- Spend 1 – 2 hours with yourself
- Meditate or go for a morning run
- Follow your instinct on which activities work for you
- From 4-6 am spend time in reflection, peace, nature, meditation, yoga and similar activities
- Between 6-7 am prepare for the day ahead
WaSHING FACE
- On awakening, splash the face with cold water. Avoid soap or other cleansers first thing in the morning, unless there is excessive sweat or oil from heat / dirt that accumulated in the night.
- After the face, rinse the eyes many times with cold water.
- Continue with rising nose and then mouth.
- Replace artificial products with natural ones, like: aloe vera juice, sandalwood, lemon juice, rose water, cucumber slices, coriander leaves juice, yoghurt, ghee, castor oil.
WATER IN THE MORNING
- Once awake, drink a palmful of water and follow with touching vital points (called marma) near the eyes, ears, nose, lips, temples and clavicles.
- After you clean your face and orifices, drink a larger amount of pure water. It may be boiled and drunk hot, warm or cold, depending on the season, climate and person’s constitution.
- Drink a small amount of clean water after excretion, tears, bathing. eating, sleeping, sneezing, worship and travelling.
- Note how much water is optimal for you. Drink only that much, rather than a non-individualized prescribed amount.
SWEETNESS FOR THE DAY
- Engage each of the five senses with something pleasant in the morning, such as incense, flowers, a picture of a deity, clean water, recitation of mantras and rock sugar.
What is your morning secret that lets you shine throughout the day and gives you energy to ‘move mountains’? Or what do you do after waking up that helps you to approach this so dynamic world in its slow life version? Write below in comments, let’s inspire each other. Sharing is caring!
Moments that matter, no matter the ritual.
Leave a Reply