(24 min CLASS) Seasonal Living for January w/ Sophia Bouwens

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In this video, Sophia dives deeper into winter - the season of Water or the Kidney. This time of the year is about inner reflection and work. The Kidney system is our deepest and most foundational system - it is the inner source of all of the other body systems in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In the Kidney system lies our history of everything we have inherited, our response to our environment, our reproductive and neurologic health, and what we pass down to offspring.

The brain doesn't know the difference between something intensely imagined and reality itself. This is our time to intensely imagine, so that we can come into alignment with a new reality that will birth forth. We give an offering to "birth" in the winter by resting and replenishing ourselves. We decide to actively be passive and rest in order to allow vitality to rise in us, through connecting to ourselves.

Our work for this time of the year, when the Yang energy starts to take root, is to go deep with our observation of our world, our consciousness and our history to consciously choose how we want to participate in the world. If our thoughts are the Yin, and the manifesting of those thoughts is the Yang - then this time of the year is about aligning our inner world to be able to lay the foundation for the physical reality that we want to see.

This is our foundation for conscious creation - nourishing our roots so that once the world around us comes out of hibernation, we can flourish in it. In this work, we can often get side tracked by thinking about the obstacles in our way and the mountains ahead.

In this time, we don't need to be strategizing. It is a time to just dream about the "what" and allow the possibility of "how" to come forward from the world around us.

Embodiment

Reflective stillness at this time can lay the foundation for new creation to enter. This stillness can feel unproductive, stagnating, and be very challenging for us. Indeed, it feels great to be accomplishing and working towards a goal. However, the energy of Water calls us to stillness, and in that stillness deep work is being done around us - think of it like a passive power of action. This is a season of shutting and storing - guarding against cold and fear with warmth and tenderness.

This active passiveness allows for new life to take root and grow. It is important to take strict prevention against cold at all times - physical cold, and also coldness of heart or disposition against the world.

Resting our bodies, mind and spirit creates an opening for creation to arise by way of holding space for a desire, without getting too attached to the "how"… but gaining clarity and alignment with the "what". We are doing the inner work to allow for the outer world to reflect back to us what we are choosing to create through our own life. Overall, this is a time to nourish ourselves, to connect with our deeper inner resource and our heart to trust the universe around us to manifest through us.

In resting, we are actively participating in the rhythm of this season.

Reflection:

This winter season belongs to the element of Water, which opposes Fire. These are Kidney and Heart energies, respectively. This season is a time of deep inner work, connecting to heart space and warmth, to guard against fear and cold. This is a season for doing inner work, to lay the foundations for manifestations. Spend time sinking into warmth in heart, mind and body, and observing and reflecting on the landscape of the world and the resources around you. Once you have clarity on your inner world, work within your imagination to feel the manifestation of the future you want to be in, with the intention of synchronizing your inner world with your outer world through your heart space and imagination.

Suggestions:

FOODS

Kidney nourishing: mutton, beef, goose, duck, yams, mushroom, sweet potato, sesame, rice, leeks, dates
Bitter flavors: grapefruit, apricot, vinegars
Steamed/cooked: asparagus, celery, lettuce, radishes, kales
Hoppy flavors - beers, whiskeys

ACTIVITIES

Stillness
Heart-centered reflection
Deep observation of yourself & the world around you

MEET YOUR TEACHER

Sophia Bouwens, L.Ac, is a Neurological Acupuncturist and Traumatic Brain Injury survivor who is on a mission to help others heal and empower their nervous system and bodies. She uses a unique integration of Chinese Medicine, Acupuncture and Functional Neurology to produce profound effects and positive changes in brain function and body connection.

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