Interesting question!  I'd say, "completely".  In fact, if emotions aren't affecting my body, then I'm probably denying the emotion.  My task is to notice how my body is feeling, whenever I'm feeling a strong emotion.  And I breathe into that area, and let the emotion pass through me completely.  And let the emotion affect me completely. 

If it's sadness, my body may convulse while tears stream down my cheeks. 

If it's joy, my body feels light and like it opens up to the universe with a great freedom of self. <--hard to explain actually. 

When I'm angry, I feel firmly planted on the ground.  I feel powerful but with control.  Anger is an expression of my boundaries.

Well, I suppose there are many other emotions that correlate to many other bodily feelings.  But what I like about this question is that it points to a good way connect to the body.  When I feel an emotion, it's a great opportunity to pay attention to my breath and sensations in my body.

NO!

OK, it just sunk in.  Yesterday was my birthday (thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday AND to everyone who didn't but would have had they known!!)

I'm 29.  Seriously.  Not only am I not a teenager anymore, I'm practically not even in my 20s anymore.  Sheesh!  But you know what they say... "age is just a number" that measures how freaking ooooooold you are!! 

I know some of you are laughing at me for feeling old at 29.  You're saying to yourself, "Honey! You ain't got nuthin' to be's ashamed of.  mmm hmm!"  And you're right.  I don't.  But still, I'm in awe of how quickly the last ten years flew by.  AWE, I TELL YOU!!  Like, "Awe jeez, that went by fast!" or "Awe man, am I really 29 already?"

Wow.  It feels good to get that off my chest. 

But now I can feel myself closing in on 30, like a vortex sucking me toward the next age, and there's nothing I can do to stop it... 





























..................................or is there? (to be continued...)  Stay tuned for the next episode of "~Matthew's a year older, again!" coming to a blog near you, in just 364 days!

I am working on being authentic every second of every day.  I'm also working on Gaia!