Ugh.
My last LoveLetter left me feeling incomplete. The title of it was How to Create Counter Spells and I talked a little about the power of words and then shared some poetry and how I had a poem published.But I feel like I let you all down because I didn’t really talk about how to create counter spells! Which are, of course, mantras! And I started to go into that in my last letter but felt like I was digressing.So, this LoveLetter is really dedicated to creating counter spells for yourself by creating your own mood altering, mind calming, spirit soothing, empowering mantras.If you practice yoga, then you probably have access to many mantras and, if one of those calls to you, then go with that. Also, if you are a regular reader of scripture, then pick your favorite one and go with that.However, if the concept of mantras is new to you, or no Sanskrit or scripture is coming to you, then here’s a short practice that was taught to me by my teacher, Christine Arylo, that I use for just such a purpose.You can do this practice first thing in the morning, especially if you wake up feeling anxious or sad or whatever, or you can do it any time during your day as needed.
Step One:Find a mirror.Step Two:Look yourself in the eyes and ask yourself, in the third person, what do you need to hear today?For example, I would look myself in the eyes, which admittedly can be hard to do when I am reeling from anxiety, and ask myself, “Jenni, what do you need to hear today?”Step Three:Listen. Don’t judge. See what comes up for you.Then take whatever it is and turn it into a short mantra that you can repeat to yourself, either silently or out loud as appropriate, as often as you need throughout the day.
For a good, solid year, my mantra was “I am safe. I am in my body. I can do hard things.” I would walk around, giving myself this reassurance of safety and strength as often as I needed to hear it.Sometimes it is more effective to continue to speak to yourself in the third person. For instance, “Jenni, I got your back, girl.” Or, “Jenni, you got this!”Just feel it out. There’s no wrong way and this is certainly not the only way but this works for me.Oh, and if you are tripping up over the word mantra, then just replace it with the word prayer because it really is no different. Don’t worry. It’s all God.I hope this is helpful in bringing a little lightness and magic into your day.Until next time…xoxo, Jenni