OVER 20 YEARS AGO

Long Ago I Learned [was taught] that:

We are spiritual beings

Created be in relationship.

Not merely to survive in key relationships but to live FULLY.

To live fully in relationship

• with ourselves

• with others

• and with a God of our understanding.

We refer to ourselves as Human Beings.

SO…How are we spiritual beings?

We are obviously part Physical and part Spiritual

But the ultimate question is this:

Are we primarily Spiritual Beings living in our Physical Bodies

Or

Are we Physical Beings having the occasional Spiritual experience.

I BELIEVE WE ARE PRIMARILY SPIRITUAL BEINGS

If this is true perhaps we must go to the “gym” and exercise our spirits on a regular basis

I propose that the health of our spiritual lives directly influences

The quality of our relationships

Think of our Hearts … The age old idea of “put your heart into it”

Heart = Spirit

Consider that the heart consist of the following

Longings : The deep motivation that is spiritually connected to fulfill our soulful wish for REST PEACE JUSTICE HOME

Hope : The inextinguishable flame. The God given inability to stop wishing for life to be like it was made to be

Needs : SECURITY SAFETY TOUCH BELONGING SIGNIFICANCE GRIEVING ATTENTION SEXUALITY GUIDANCE ACCOMPLISHMENT SUPPORT NURTURING FREEDOM LISTENING TRUST

Desires : The energy that moves us toward fulfillment and expression

Feelings : GLADNESS LONELINESS ANGER SHAME SADNESS HURT FEAR GUILT

8 pure feelings that have been woven into the fabric of our hearts… [what is woven cannot be removed]

They are written on the doorway of our heart.

To enter the Heart, You must go thru the DOOR. You must know the feelings that are written there.  All Humans have these feelings so they are Mutually Understood. How well they’ll be heard, appreciated, empathized, accepted or rejected is a complex phenomenon.

Yet, They are our truth.. they do not control us but to deny our feelings is to deny our hearts..

We have emotions and to deny their power is foolish…

SO, ARE THEY REALLY JUST ‘feelings’?????

Consider these sayings:

I was so angry I felt my head was going to EXPLODE

I was so hurt I felt my heart was CRUSHED

I was so embarrassed I wanted to crawl into a hole and DIE

IF FEELINGS ARE JUST FEELINGS HOW IS IT THEY CAN TAKE ON SUCH POWERFUL PROPORTIONS??

Perhaps they exist from a functional core spiritual beginning to help MOVE US toward getting our heart’s needs

met?

Its about seeking an internal balance between what I feel and how it influences my conscious experience of life.

• Angry
• Glad
• Sadness
• Hurt
• Guilt
• Shame
• Fear
• Loneliness

Other “Feelings” like frustrated, excited, confused etc has some element of these 8 PURE feelings at their core.

To be connected to myself is to be connected to my heart.. You then possess a higher level of emotional physical integration. You will have not just a certain IQ… but possess a more functional EQ Emotional Quotient

To know the truth about how I feel and to, on occasion, be vulnerable enough to share it..

So what about the beauty of Relationships??

How is it conceivable to optimize and answer the paradox of Spiritual and Emotional

Independence

Interdependence

Connection

Think of this:

Your Needs and the Spiritual Root System

We’re all currently on a trajectory to live a certain number of years.

How can we engineer a way to enhance that trajectory and optimize the quality and number of  years.

This popular lecture at MIT by Peter Attia MD covers the topic

Longevity

The interplay of

1. Lifespan
2. Healthspan

• Objectives.. Longevity and quality of life
• Tactics..what you can control to achieve goals
• Strategy..

Can we live better AND longer??

Healthspan.. 4 features

1. MIND..COGNITION!

Executive Function..

Processing speed

Short term memory

2. BODY

Maintenance of Muscle Mass

Functional movement: ability to Squat and Rise[hip hinge]

Freedom from Pain

3. Methods to Enhance distress tolerance..tools to cope w emotional and physical pain

4. Sense of Purpose and Social support