Before you know what kindness really is

you must lose things,

feel the future dissolve in a moment

like salt in a weakened broth.

What you held in your hand,

what you counted and carefully saved,

all this must go so you know

how desolate the landscape can be

between the regions of kindness.

How you ride and ride

thinking the bus will never stop,

the passengers eating maize and chicken

will stare out the window forever.

Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness

you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho

lies dead by the side of the road.

You must see how this could be you,

how he too was someone

who journeyed through the night with plans

and the simple breath that kept him alive.

Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,

you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.

You must wake up with sorrow.

You must speak to it till your voice

catches the thread of all sorrows

and you see the size of the cloth.

Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,

only kindness that ties your shoes

and sends you out into the day to gaze at bread,

only kindness that raises its head

from the crowd of the world to say

It is I you have been looking for,

and then goes with you everywhere

like a shadow or a friend.

-Picture credits:

Westwind Studios
Hand Crafted Web Design
http://westwindstudios.net

The post Kindness (Poem by Naomi Shihab Nye, 1952) appeared first on NWA Marriage and Family Therapy.

Surprising article in Scientific American Journal that explores the mind body connection. Scientists are now discovering that  people’s “gut instinct”  or “butterflies” are connected with mind and emotions through our body.  This gut instinct or some call it intuition, can process information much faster than our rational mind and it is usually accurate.

This other gut brain “second brain” is composed of many neurons in your intestinal tract and is connected with the brain in your head. The article points out that  it is the seat of your unconscious thought.  It can alert you very quickly to  danger, suspicion, excitement.

People  often say,” I just knew it in my gut”  that is because this second brain contains 100 million neurons,  give or take a few. That is more than in either the spinal cord or the peripheral nervous system.  The second brain can control gut behavior independently of the brain in our head, and it is very connected with our emotions and with our physical illness or health.

More research is needed in the future but preliminary research shows that maintaining a healthy gut contributes to good mental health and vise versa.  So notice your hunches and your gut feelings and be open to their influence, they can provide valuable information.

The post ONE BODY TWO BRAINS? YOUR GUT INSTINCT? appeared first on NWA Marriage and Family Therapy.

A feelings of getting stuck sometimes in a marriage, relationship, career, or even in defining who we are as whole person is part of our human experience as people.   Emotions are not to be ignored or suppressed; they are your intuitive messengers and should be examined, verified and honored to create a more authentic fulfilling life.   One can struggle with feelings of depression, anxiety, anger, and fears that all  may be legitimate.  Emotions are powerful and have energy to creatively transform, expand and encompass new perspectives, new thoughts and behaviors.  Do you know how listen to your emotions with more clarity and compassion?  Finding your life’s goals and finding your own    voice can be important both for you individually, as well as for your couples success.

The post Couples and Marital Therapy appeared first on NWA Marriage and Family Therapy.