Yin and Yang

Yin and Yang represent the pair of everything in our world, and are inseparable.Without Yin there is no Yang, and vice versa. Earth follows the patterns of Yin and Yang with the changing of the seasons. Winter Solstice, the darkest day of the year occurred on Dec. 20, and it is the most Yin of all of the days of the year. It’s important that we embrace our surroundings, as we will be within them more during the winter than in the other seasons.

History

The ancient Chinese developed a system of health that is simple in its essence, but sometimes challenging for Westerners to follow. We see things as being steps in achieving goals. Chinese medicine teaches us to live in harmony with nature and the seasons. The seasons were named winter (water), spring (wood), summer (fire), harvest (earth) and autumn (metal): the Five Element Theory.

Each season causes us to adapt our behaviors so that we can create balance between our bodies and our environment. The ancients tended to sleep longer in the winter and get up with the sun, wear clothing that helped them maintain & regulate their body temperature, and eat foods that were available to them during a given season. In doing so, they were able to maintain their immune system and stay healthy throughout the year.

Personal Ways to Attune

As far as acupuncturists are concerned, winter is a time to get more sleep, take care of our kidneys, our ears, bones, to meditate, and relax the mind. Because of its association with the element water, it’s a great time to drink more water, herbal tea, and soup. Eating cooked root vegetables, black beans, kidney beans, bone broths, and dark leafy greens all honor our body’s need to be nourished.

Find a place in your home where you feel completely calm and comfortable and use it for meditation. It’s great if you have a whole room you can dedicate to meditation, but if you’re like most people, finding a small area within a room will work just fine. Try to make it as free of distractions as possible: remove the TV, books, computers or laptopsanything that doesn’t support your need for solitude. Consider using candles to light the room during meditation, rather than brighter ambient or task lighting. New to meditation? You do not have to sit in the lotus position for 20 minutes or more. Research now shows that a few minutes a day can really help to reclaim balance in your outlook on life

Adjust Your Decor

Color According to Feng Shui

• Red is associated with fire, parties, reputation, and auspiciousness.
• Yellow or gold represents power, and emperors enveloped themselves in it for many centuries. It is truly an auspicious color, and sits in the center of the Ba-gua along with the Gua for health.
• Orange is a mixture of yellow and red, and is also auspicious in nature, combining happiness and power.
• Brown brings stability and established a sense of depth and establishment.

In an article published through Swedish Hospital, color can impact people in many ways. For example, many people report a preference for warm colors (red, orange and yellow) while sitting in a cool room while others sitting in a warm room indicate a preference for cool colors (i.e: green, blue and violet.) The same could be applied for our outdoor weather. As it cools down, consider using warmer colors in your decor: yellow, yellow-green, orange, red-orange, brown, rust, and red.

This doesn’t mean that you paint your living room school bus yellow*, or you buy a fire engine red sofa, however. (After all, spring will always follow winter.) Decide on a hue what works as an accent color with your walls, your sofa or sectional, and/or the other major pieces in your room and use it as an accent color: in throw pillows, throw blankets, art, accessories.

Another means is to change out your pure white accents, such as candles, pillows, throws, etc. to a creme color, again using texture as well as color.

*That same article published through Swedish Hospital reported that:

• Red is associated with increased appetite, energy, excitement, and passion.
• Too much red in a bedroom can disrupt sleep, increase respiration rate, and raise blood pressure.
• While yellow is often associated with joy, happiness, and excitement, it can have a polarizing effect when people are exposed to it in large amounts.
• • Yellow is considered the most difficult color to the eye, and people are more likely to lose their temper and babies are more likely to cry in yellow rooms.

If you’d like to read the whole article, check it out at https://blog.swedish.org/primarycare/how-the-color-of-your-wall-is-affecting-your-health? utm_campaign=June2017&utm_medium=email_free utm_source=swedishmonthly

In conclusion

Change things up for the winter season, even if they are relatively small changes. If you need help with remodeling, or to just adding beautiful touches to your home, please contact me at Shelley@TFI.design, and return in two weeks for a report on Colors of the Year for 2022!