January 22, 2019 Restore

The Unspoken Thank You

I recently had a conversation with my youngest daughter about the importance of gratitude.  I was wondering where I had failed as a parent because in the past few years, I’ve noticed that my girls do not say “Thank you” or send Thank you notes.  It has always been an important part of my teachings as a parent and I modeled this behavior with my girls. From early on, we wrote thank you notes for gifts. I’ve always used “Please” and “Thank you” in my daily conversations.  This question of where it all went, arose recently as my younger daughter had an interview with an architect for her career class.  Following the interview, I asked her if she sent a thank you note.  She looked at me like I had two heads saying that it wasn’t necessary.  “Oh boy!’, I responded. “It is more than necessary…”. 

I asked whether or not it was taught in her career class and in other classes at school. She responded that it was.  I explained the many reasons why a thank you note is necessary and hoped that she would file this away for her future personal and professional life.  She did email a thank you.  This interaction prompted more dialogue about the role of the thank you.  So my daughter informs me that there exists a silent thank you.  Awww…I wasn’t aware.  I was afraid that it was in some social media post somewhere that I missed.  She then demonstrated said silent thank you with a tilt of her head, a slight smile with some eye contact and a subtle nod.  So different from the jerk to one side with a smirk on the face…oh and the eye rolling!

I am now on the lookout for the gratitude spilling from my kids and my hope in sharing this is that you become aware of the Unspoken Thank You. Tilt, smile, eye contact and a nod. Try this meditation below for an ounce or pound of gratitude.

Supported Bridge Pose

 

Props: 3 blankets, neck roll, eye pillow, bolster, block

Extras: blanket for warmth

Benefits: Expands the chest muscles, opens the lungs, balances the glands, quiets the nerves and releases tension in the nervous system, increases oxygen intake to the brain, can stimulate the immune system (thyroid)

Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Lift butt and slide the stack of 2 or 4 blankets under the base of your spine. Find a comfortable position, then let the upper back release on the floor. Arms are relaxed at sides or resting on belly. Feel chest and belly rise with each breath. Roll gently to one side when done and inhale up to seated.

Extended Bridge Pose

Supported Downward Facing Dog

My beautiful model Pat

Props: 2 bolsters, 1-2 blankets
Benefits: Gently stretches the spine, slight inversion to release pressure in low back, improve circulation, revitalizing while giving a bit of grounding through abdominal area and lower chakras, internal massage to organs, lengthens muscles fibers in quads.

Stack one bolster on top of another vertically on your mat.  Move the top bolster slightly back so that the two bolsters are staggered like stairs.  Roll one blanket for ankle support and place toward back of mat where ankles can lay across.  Recline your belly over the bolsters and reach legs back until ankles rest on blanket roll.  Legs will still have a small bend in the knees to keep alignment.  Your head hangs over so that the chin may either be resting lightly on side of top bolster or even resting forehead on a block which is placed on bottom bolster.  Make sure that the neck feels long.  Drape arms over sides of bolsters and let the tension drain down the arms to fingertips and out into a puddle on the floor.