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Step Into 2010 Feeling Your Best!Have the Holidays made you feel stressed out? Learn to “go with the flow”... bylearning to Meditate. 10 Minutes of Meditation a Day Keeps the Stress and FatigueAway and Calms Your Mind and BodyAdversity is a fact of life and can’t be controlled. In the face of life’s challenges, dailystresses and distractions you can react two ways: feel frazzled or find peace of mind.To find peace of mind and manage those moments that can frazzle your brain, learnhow to rest your mind and your body effectively by meditating. With meditation, youshut the world out and concentrate on calm. It only takes 1 to 10 minutes a day toreap the benefits of meditation. For those BodyFlow-er’s out there, you alreadyunderstand the benefits that meditation brings and have personally seen howmeditation brings calmness to people. Those of you who have never experiencedmeditation start by visualizing and breathing for one minute. To do this:(1 minute visualization)Visualize a turbulent surf or lake of water. Now imagine the wind dying down... and thewater calming down too. See the calm tranquil water as you breathe. Focus on the paceof your breathing and try matching your in breath with the ripple of water movingtowards the shore in your mind’s eye. Keep your eye on the calm, tranquil water as youbreathe slowly and deeply. Find the pause after the in breath and say “I am calm”, thenexhale…and let go of those turbulent thoughts and feelings that otherwise distract andfrazzle your brain (and your body eventually). Give your mind and body permission tolet go of what you cannot control and bring your attention or focus to what you cancontrol.(10 minute visualization)Find a comfortable, quiet place and visualize yourself in a room in a castle. You findthe door that allows you to walk out of the castle, and you do so. As you cross to theother side of the moat and keep walking, the castle dwindles in size behind you, andyou can now see the forest around it, and then a distant village. In your mind’s eye,walk towards that village and away from the castle.Your “castle” could be a rut or something oppressive you're trapped in, and thisparticular meditation gives you a sense of freedom and space. As you walk towards thevillage ask yourself “How important is my issue in terms of the bigger picture?” As youcontinue to walk towards the small village in the foreground of your mind, think aboutthe positives in your life, and be grateful. Think about your strengths and contributionsand say “I am… (fill in with a positive statement about yourself ie. ”I am an inspirationalteacher,” or “I am healthy”). Continue to repeat this statement about yourself toyourself with optimism in your words and thoughts. Use your breathing as a guide to