Body Enjoyment

How do you find the peace of the day? As I start off the day today, I have already woken with a feeling of relaxation and with with an accompanying sense of joy. It's NOT always this way. Sometimes finding the joy is a struggle and task. Right now, as I get ready to go for my 3 mile fitness walk, I realize that I already have a great joy in my own body. The sheer physicality of doing some exercise and then going to school to learn bodywork fills me with not only peace and joy, but a sense of wellness and accomplishment at both taking care of myself and learning about and truly feeling/identifying with my own body. 

As infants, we gradually become aware of our own bodies--our bodies as separate from Mom's and something that we control ourselves. Younger children still feel an intrinsic joy of their bodies. They play with abandon and don't concern themselves with how they look or what others think of them. But when children start attending school, they gradually come under the scrutiny and criticism of other children their age and also of the adults around them. Little by little they begin to lose the joy of the body. Some children play games and sports that brings them strong feelings of control and independence of their bodies. Athletic types may take great joy in physically moving their bodies through space as well as learning new skills of movement. Those moments may bring great joy to them--body joy.

Gradually, as children enter their teen years, they become even more aware and self conscious of their bodies in relation to others. It can often bring tension and even feelings of dislike for themselves. Our society plays a strong role in how individuals perceive themselves and how positive or negative they feel about their bodies. Society is harsh in its criticisms and light on allowing people to appreciate their own selves. Teens change dramatically in their body size and shape. For some, it is heady and disorienting. Looking into a mirror, they may ask, "Is this really me? Who is this? Who am I? It's hard to find joy when you are asking those kinds of big questions.