Summer can look very different depending on your region. From north to south, it can range from pleasant to sticky hot, while from east to west, it can range from humid to dry. So, how do we embrace the gifts of summer? Some lessons from mindfulness and Ayurveda can help!

Mindfulness invites us into the present moment, a place where we can be self-aware and acknowledge, "This is what is happening right now." From this place, we are better able to make decisions.

Ayurveda invites us to use this awareness and begin to seek balance. Summer is Pitta (Fire) season. While some areas are humid (the south certainly is!), the cumulative effect of all this heat is dryness, so you might also notice some effects of Vata (Air/Ether).

So what are we to do? Well, let's take a little inventory via mindfulness...

• Where are you right now? What can you feel on your skin? Can you feel heat? How does your skin feel?
• What are your thoughts? Do you feel scattered, heavy, or dull? Do you seem extra sharp? Do you notice judgment or criticism rising in you? Maybe you are enjoying clarity.
• How is your heart? What emotions are you experiencing? Are you anxious, quickly angry, or have an underlying frustration? You may feel a little sweeter, softer, more open, and more welcoming.

Now that you have taken some inventory and know where you are, you can make some choices. The body, mind, and heart are close neighbors in our souls. If one or more are out of balance, it can pull the other(s) off balance, too. Let's discover how to restore balance graciously during the summer months.

To balance heat in the body, let's shift toward cooling foods, exercises, and gentle practices. Think cucumbers, watermelon, and fresh berries, all bountiful in this season. Consider lighter meals with herbs like dill and mint, and spices like coriander and cardamom. Choose cooling drinks like teas with peppermint, fennel, or rose. I like to start my day with lemon-infused water, but you can choose lime or add some mint.

Consider exercising in cooler times of the day and enjoying some summer water activities. Banyan Botanicals shares that since "the solar plexus tends to hold heat, favor asanas that massage, strengthen, and wring out the abdominal region such as Cat/cow, Cobra, Boat, Side openers, Twists. Cooling, self-referencing poses, and gentle flows are also very beneficial during the pitta season, such as Child's Pose, Forward Bends, and Moon Salutations." (https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/pages/ayurvedic-summer-guide#pitta-season)

Try Sitali breath or "Taco" breath to calm the mind and cool the body.

• Curl the sides of your tongue towards the center to form a taco shape. Stick the end of the tongue out between your pursed lips. If you can’t roll your tongue, purse your lips instead, making a small “o” shape with your mouth. In this case, keep your tongue against the back of your bottom teeth so that the air you are drawing in passes over it.
• Inhale slowly through the "taco." Let the breath expand your chest and fill your belly. If your lips are pursed in an "o" shape, channel the air through that opening.
• Close your mouth and exhale slowly through your nose.
• Repeat three times to "try it out." If you can tolerate this well, you can eventually increase to five or ten rounds!

Finally, I would like to offer a few scripture, breath prayer, and reflection questions to "cool" an overheated heart, bring sweetness to the sharpness, and a gracious openness to judgment.

Consider using these Breath Prayers as a springboard, diving into further exploration with God:

• But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” –Isaiah 43:1 ESV

Inhale: Fear Not

Long, slow exhale: I belong to Jesus

How does knowing you are called by name, chosen, redeemed, you belong, and you are desired and wanted (even when struggling with judgment or being critical) feel? What are your thoughts about that? Do you have any sensations in your bodily experience?

• Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. –John 15:4 ESV

Inhale: I abide in you, Abba

Long, slow exhale: Abba, you abide in me

Could you be curious with Papa about the areas where you feel like you are on your own or that you have to do it all yourself? I wonder if Jesus would give you a picture of him in you, working with you — abiding.

• The eyes of the Lord are upon even the weakest worshipers who love him—those who wait in hope and expectation for the strong, steady love of God. The Lord alone is our radiant hope and we trust in him with all our hearts. His wraparound presence will strengthen us. - Psalm 33:18 & 20 TPT

Inhale: Abba, you see me

Long, slow exhale: Your strong, steady love wraps around me.

How do these verses and breath prayer sit with you? Can you soften and open to the love of God for you? If not, could you ask Jesus to speak to you about it?

May this summer be a time to "drink deeply of the pleasures of this God. Experience for yourself the joyous mercies he gives to all who turn to hide themselves in him" (Psalms 34:8 TPT).

Grace & Shalom,

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