Expressive.
Subtle.
Uplifting.
I am looking at a bouquet of flowers gracing my dining room table. I arranged them a couple of days ago and made sure a few of them ended up in a vase on my night table. I LOVE fresh flowers. Numbers don’t matter. I am just as happy with a single bloom as with a full bouquet.
A long time ago, when I was in my early twenties, the mother of a dear friend of mine always had beautiful fresh flowers in her home – everywhere. This was back in Germany, where to this day flowers seem much more commonplace and affordable than here. She introduced me to the idea of bringing beauty in the form of flowers into your home, all the time, just because they:
…connected you to nature,
…opened your heart,
…brought joy and lightness.
Ever since then, whenever possible, I have had fresh flowers – or at least a single stem – in my home – no matter whether I lived in a small apartment or good-sized house, no matter if it was summer or winter.
At times, especially when the budget was tight, it seemed frivolous. However, I felt better, so I made that choice to forgo other things that were less important to me.
My suspicion that I was on to a good thing, was confirmed when I studied Feng Shui and learned about the flower cure that was created to bring up your joy meter!
Here it is:
When you are feeling down or have not been able to get yourself out of a funk for a while, place a single flower in a vase beside your bed, so you can see it last thing before going to sleep and first thing before getting up. The flower can be store bought or found in your yard or in the wild.
As we spend a relatively large amount of time in our bedroom, the energy of that space will affect us profoundly, even as we are sleeping. Therefore, going to bed with a beautiful image will linger in our unconscious mind as we are resting. Waking up to beauty will set us up to see more brightness in our day.
If you want to do it as a formal practice, carry this out for 21 days in a row. As soon as the flower wilts, replace it. It needs to look fresh.
You can set an intention to deepen the practice: to see more beauty in life, to feel more joy, to breathe more deeply and smile more often. Allow an intention to arise spontaneously when you are connecting to the flower.
Take a few moments in the morning and at night to observe the flower, noticing it’s unique design, color, shape and how it may shift over a few days. Stay open and curious.
And most of all:
Allow yourself to receive the gift of wonder and beauty that flowers offer you.
Allow it to inspire a deep breath that opens your heart.
Ahhhh….
Let me know in your comments below what you are discovering.
If you find some challenges in creating this change in perspective for yourself, let’s have a conversation and explore how I can support you in making this happen.