Have you ever noticed the way your body reacts to the thoughts you have? For most of us, we go through our days shifting between the states of expansion and contraction, although we may not be aware of it.
These states are like the two sides of a coin – one cannot exist without the other, in that each one contains the absence of the other. For example, we understand the word “expansion” both for what it is (in this context, feelings of lightness, freedom, generosity, joy, abundance, openness, trust, creativity, vibrance…) and for what it isn’t (feelings of mistrust, boredom, anger, resentment, anxiety, sadness, heaviness, scarcity…).
When things are going well and we’re feeling happy or excited, our energetic vibration elevates too. Everything seems easier and we experience more clarity on the things that may have been problematic at other times. We smile more, we have more energy, and people around us want to be in our company because their mood lifts just from being near us. We experience living our life in alignment with our values.
Several years ago I was living by the sea and I would regularly take my dog for lovely walks along the waterfront boardwalk. Often we would pass an older man walking in the opposite direction, and I could usually hear him long before he came into view. He was always in a joyful state, and he greeted everyone – and I mean everyone – he met with a hearty “Good morning!” followed quickly by “You look fabulous today!!” or some other generous compliment. Everyone greeted him warmly in return and I could see each person or couple he passed walk a little taller, or have a more obvious bounce in their step (expansion!). I found myself looking forward to seeing and greeting him each time, and whenever I didn’t encounter him, the walk seemed a little less magical.
Then I realized the gift this beautiful human was giving everyone he met was so simple and 100% available to me too! All I needed to do was share my own joyful state with those around me and I could manifest the same kinds of loving gifts my waterfront friend had been giving me and others.
Remember: We are always in a state of either contraction or expansion – never stasis!
The challenge for so many of us is to recognize when our thoughts are working against us and causing us to exist in a state of contraction. When we dwell on our perceived misfortunes or tell ourselves our life sucks for this reason or that, our bodies feel tense, our breathing gets more shallow, our ability to solve problems or be creative is diminished, our mood drops, and we are no fun to be around. We can even manifest physical dis-ease in the form of illness or injury.
By contrast, when we set an intention to expand, to concentrate on people and things and behaviors that cause us to feel lighter, happier, and more loving, our bodies respond accordingly. We naturally move closer to a state of well-being and fulfillment, we release the need to control (a big stressor!), we feel more empowered and aligned, and so many more possibilities open up for us.
We are divine, energetic beings, and the more we can live our lives in a state of expansion, the more abundance we’ll experience in every area of our lives.