How to Vote October 6?

~ Image by federico stevanin ~ 

What to have for dinner?

Which car to buy?

What shirt to wear?

Faced with questions like these, we’re constantly in need of making choices. Sometimes, we struggle with decisions that have the smallest of consequences like what movie should I watch tonight? Other times, the next several years of provincial governance, administration, and policy is at stake. Come October 6, we Ontarians are face with a vote that will shape our lives for the next four years and beyond. So much party platform information is available, so much editorial flows through the media, and so many personal opinions get exchanged, but how do we ultimately choose? Or under the weight of all this information, do we choose at all?

Just as important as any outside consideration is our inner instinct. A very simple and powerful tool for tapping into that inner instinct is with a Somato Respiratory Integration (SRI) exercise. Using your own breath, focused attention, gentle touch, and movement, you can turn your focus inwards and find answers for this election – and for any other decision you face.

This SRI mini-exercise consists of the following steps:

1. In a quiet comfortable setting, lie on your back with knees bent.
2. With flat hands, fingers and thumbs together like they are inside mittens, overlap the centre of each palm. Keep hands comfortably parallel with each other.
3. Begin gently breathing in the nose and out the mouth. Use breathing that resembles your normal everyday breath.
4. Centre your palms overtop of a comfortable position over the front of your torso. Try the navel (position #3), stomach (#2), and upper chest (#1) and see if any of those positions are comfortable.
5. With you hands over the most comfortable position, begin to think about 1 provincial party and what you know so far.
6. Observe your breathing. Notice how focused your thoughts are. Observe how much effort you are making.
7. Repeat steps 5 & 6 for each party and compare.
8. The party in which you breathe with the most comfort, the least effort and with the most clarity is the party that resonates most with you at your core.

This is one simply and effective way to make your choice – one that taps into the power of SRI. There are countless other ways and we at Source Centre would love to hear your opinion on the following:

• How do you make your decisions in life?
• What is the most unusual thing you’ve done to help you make a choice?
• What’s the most interesting sign you’ve received to guide you?

Stay tune for future workshop and posts about SRI.

Dr. Leo

What are people saying about the election?