The word Spirit can mean so many things… it’s the charged energy you have for something, it’s that ghost you sense under the bed, it’s a lovely intoxicating drink and it is the true you- your soul.

Today I realized that I have been living with lots of Spirit- I am a big cheerleader for my friends, I have an open door policy with the ghostly spirits and let them visit when they want and I often enjoy the Spirit of Stoli.  But somewhere in this hot summer I lost contact with my spirit, my soul.  I honestly do not know what happened.  When I finally realized that I hadn’t seen it in over two months, I went looking for it.  It was a very sad sight, there it was on the floor, shaking curled up in a ball hiding, lost in the closet!  You cannot imagine how terrible I felt.  I had sensed something was wrong, I felt so lost and disconnected.  I have been so unbalanced and even bitchy!

When it dawned on me that my Spirit was lost, scared, unloved and in a dark place- I knew it was time to rescue it and bring us both back to life.  After my super bitchy morning, I called-in sick.  Really I was- one look at my spirit and anyone would say I was sick.  It was time to care and love for my spirit- time to nurture it back to life.  The first thing I did was put on some make-up and a cute outfit.  I headed out to my nail salon and got the mani/pedi works!  I decided that the next hour and half was for total enjoyment.  When they offered the $10/10 minute massage, instead of thinking about my budget, I said yes and I decided to actually enjoy it.

The Color is "Pinking up the Pieces"!

The Color is "Pinking up the Pieces"!

Cindy seriously hit a home run in those 10 minutes.  WOW I was feeling better!  From there I passed by my man’s work to get a real kiss- I owed him, remember I began the day as Ms Bitch.  I was feeling great!  It was time for me to pay it forward and brighten his day.  That was the anecdote to bring the color back into my spirit’s previous gray life.   The next bit of fuel was a yoga class.  I actually KNOW that yoga is not only good for me but that I also feel so amazing afterwards, yet it has been over a year since I have practiced!  After my class, I detected a slight grin on my spirit’s face and felt how proud it was of me and my choice.  A quick stop at Whole Foods and we were ready to put the final touch on the beginning of our recovery.

I made a simple salad of heirloom tomatoes, cucumbers, onions and tuna.  Funny how tuna is comfort food for me- guess that’s the California in me.  But the best was yet to come.  I turned on the oven, even in this heat, and baked up some delicious sweet cupcakes!  So far today I pampered my spirit with beauty and massage, I touched my spirit with a long kiss with the man I love, I honored my spirit with a yoga practice, I fed my spirit with a healthy dinner and now I am going to delight my spirit with mounds of vanilla frosting on chocolate cupcakes!

I swear I will never leave my spirit to whither and fade again.  I am back to writing, practicing yoga, dancing and cooking.  I can tell you this: “It is truly imperative to feed that spirit- every day, even a crumb or a leftover”!