LISTENING TO YOUR INNER WISDOM
“Always Follow Your Heart”
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Listening comes in many forms. We can listen to others speak and to the sounds around us. We can listen to our inner thoughts and ideas, and most importantly, we can listen to our emotions.
We use different parts of ourselves to listen. We use our ears to listen to music. We use our Mind to listen to our thoughts. We use our feelings to listen to our emotions,
All of these forms of listening help teach us in different ways. We learn all kinds of things by listening to conversations. We learn about ourselves when we listen to our thoughts, and our feelings tell us when things feel good and things don't feel good.
Our feelings are a type of Inner Guidance System. What do your feelings tell you? How do you respond to your feelings? When something feels good we know it’s right for us. When something doesn’t feel good then there is something we need to change. Many people, poets and philosophers throughout time have called this Following your Heart.
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Take a moment to practice listening with your ears. Close your eyes, relax and breathe gently while listening to this video. What do you hear?
When the video is over, take a moment to discuss what you heard with someone, write down your thoughts in a journal, or draw a picture of what you heard. Maybe you heard a bird or insects?
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“You’re sure to do impossible things if you follow your Heart
Your Dreams will fly on Magical Wings when you follow your Heart.”
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Make a plan with friends or family to get outside and take a walk. It could be in your neighborhood, in a park, or a hike through the woods. As you walk, practice being in silence and listen to all the sounds around you. Pay close attention. Do you hear things you wouldn't normally hear if you were being loud or talking? Is there anything that you heard that made you happy? Anything unusual or surprising that you may have normally missed? |
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The most important thing to practice, no matter what type of listening you are doing, is the practice of being in the Silence. If you talk while someone else is talking, do you think you will be able to hear what they are saying? This is why it is important to make yourself very quiet and be in silence so you can hear what your ears, mind and heart are telling you. |
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The Silence Game: This activity is for young children to practice being silent.
Use a small sand timer, like the one is some games, or you can use a timer on a phone. (use a gentle sound as the signal so you don't get startled) Set the timer and practice sitting with your body still and quiet.
This is good to practice any time and it may be helpful when you need to transition from a louder activity to something quieter. For some children this is great practice for self regulation.
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“With a pencil and paper, I write and draw art
To create many stories that come from my Heart.”
Samantha Berger
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WHAT IF?
By Samantha Berger Art: Mike Curato
Stunning mixed media illustrations, lyrical text, and a breathtaking gatefold conjure powerful magic in this heartfelt affirmation of art, imagination, and the resilience of the human spirit.
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Grab some art supplies and practice Listening to your Inner Wisdom by using your imagination. Use the questions from the book, "What If?" to inspire creative ideas. What would you do if your pencils disappeared? What if you could only use what you find outside to create with?
Sometimes, we want to be creative but we don't know what to make. We can practice using our Internal Guidance System, our feelings, to help guide us. Read the description below and use this listening technique to help you create your art.
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LISTENING TO YOUR INNER WISDOM |
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Sometimes when I need an answer for something. I will close my eyes, ask myself a question, and then I’ll take a few deep breaths, relax and let ideas pop into my mind’s eye. I’ll pay close attention to how the thought or idea makes me feel. Most of the time I won’t feel anything at all so I’ll keep looking in my mind’s eye for the answer. Then suddenly, something will pop up and I’ll feel interested, excited and happy about the idea. And I'll know! THAT is the answer!! I can feel it in my body that it is the right choice.
We can practice listening for answers anytime. Just start with small questions like deciding what to eat or what to play. This practice is a good boredom buster. Close your eyes and think of all the different options of what you can do and all of a sudden something will get you interested and excited!!
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LEARNING TO LISTEN
Children are professional listeners. Their bodies have been speaking to them since they were born. They cry when they are hungry. They get excited when it's time to eat. As our children grow, we want to offer them opportunities that encourage intentional listening so that they will grow a strong relationship with their Internal Guidance System.
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EXPERIENCING THE SUBTLETY OF SOUND
- Sit in nature and listen to the sounds
- Create a sound exploration basket. Find items around your home or from nature that have different sound (foil wrap, paper, leaves seedpods) and allow your child to explore the items. Use descriptive words like, loud quiet, and crinkly.
- Create Sound Shakers. Use plastic eggs that are all the same color. (This helps isolate the sound.) Add items like, dried beans, rice, beads, small ball or marble and sand. Make two eggs for each filler. Make sure you use tape to seal the eggs!! Children can begin with just exploring the different sounds of one set of eggs, then add the other set and practice match the sounds by shaking an egg, listening, then trying the other eggs until you find the same sound. Continue until all are matched.
- Use your Sound Shakers with music. Decide which shaker works best with different types of music. Soft sound for quiets music. Loud sound for upbeat music, etc
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FOLLOW YOUR HEART!!
Thumbelina Clip | Fox Family Entertainment
Jacquimo encourages Thumbelina to journey home
by ensuring her that all she has to do is follow her heart!
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I AM LISTENING TO MY HEART.
Practice using this affirmation as you spread kindness to yourself and others..
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Send in your artwork, ideas and thoughts about this week’s lesson and it will be added to next week’s newsletter!! I’m looking forward to seeing what you send to share with your Youth Community and families!
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Sending Love!!
Our friend, Lausyn sent us this wonderful work of art from the February's Love & Unity week. He shared the meaning of the colors he used. Red and his name in the center represent Love. The blue and yellow circle is the sky. The green is the grass and the red dots is the Love going out into the world.
Thank you for Sharing, Lausyn!!!
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MONTHLY YOUTH FELLOWSHIP
Sunday, March 28th, 9:00am
This is our monthly online Zoom Program on the Fourth Sunday of the Month. We look forward to this opportunity to build on the month’s lesson and to share projects & activities. ALL are invited!! Children will participate in new lessons and activities as well as sharing our weekly activities.
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Meeting ID: 850 8501 9460 Passcode: 261116 |
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February Youth Newsletter Links |
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Use the links below to revisit last
Month's Youth Newsletters
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