Stretch for Peace, Pt 1

When I stretch, I feel more peaceful when I get done. I just want to keep stretching, actually, because it feels so good in my body, and so peaceful to my mind and emotions.

Why? Because of the mindbody connection, (see the previous blog below). We remember everything, in our bodies, our heads, and if not consciously, in some deep recess of our mind. There is so much data coming into our senses, we have to pay attention to some and ignore others.

We ignore some of the data by not paying attention to it, and some by tightening up our body. Here's a practical example for you. A few years ago, my then 82 year old mother almost died. We did not know what was going on with her. We spent all night in an emergency room, then she was released. The next night, same thing. There were no beds to admit her. Two nights later, I found her unconscious at her house, we were back in a different hospital emergency room. They still could not figure it out. It was about 2AM, and I was getting nervous that they would not admit her. I was worried she was going to die, I was fearful they were going to send her home with me again. A lot to deal with.
In the quiet of the room, I could feel my muscles in my shoulders start to burn. They were filling with lactic acid, the waste product of muscle exertion. But I was doing nothing, except feeling lots of NEGATIVE emotions. I was not outwardly expressing them, and as I watched the process, I could see how my mindybody was tightening up so I could function with my mother in her condition and the doctors, to not feel what I was feeling.
She survived, and the next day I was sore in areas that were not physically exerted, just tight from an emotional condition. Yes, I did stretch that day, to release the tension.