My Metro Medicine
  • Home
  • Acupuncture
    • Forms & Fees
  • Tai Chi & Qigong
  • Media
    • Publications
    • Blog
    • Podcast
    • YouTube Channel
    • Ask The Expert Show
  • Location
  • About Us
    • Our Staff
    • Mission & Vision
    • Contact Us

The Official Blog of
My Metro Medicine

How to Practice Gratitude

11/16/2014

0 Comments

 
Thich Nhat Hanh has been a great inspiration for millions of people across the globe. His rich publications, inspirational quotes, and his healing presence have all been important reminders for all. 
He has directed us on the path to finding ourselves:

He has taught us to love again through the shadows of hate.
Gratitude Acupuncture DC Northern VA
Gratitude Acupuncture DC Northern VA
And he has given us reason to say two powerful words: Thank you.
Unfortunately, these two words are routinely (and often weakly) uttered after we have decades of practice. Fortunately though, there are many opportunities that exist each day to emphatically share these two powerful words. Not with the intention to change someone's life, but rather to take a moment in their life and yours to stop, look at them eye to eye, place a hand on their shoulder, and firmly say "Thank you." By doing so, we assuredly recognize the other person for who he/she is and the value he/she has in our life.

Acknowledgement of another human being raises awareness of the undeniable connection and relationship we all have with each other. Beyond acknowledging another human being, we can express our gratitude to the earth beneath our feet and to the heavenly space above us. Both of which provide us with everything we need in every moment of our life.
Gratitude Acupuncture DC Northern VA
A study found in the NIH library states that "An existing body of research supports an association between gratitude and an overall sense of well being...". Sharing gratitude is an important step to a healthier you, a stronger community, and any loving relationship. Never forget the power of these two words when expressed with full intention. And just as important, never forget how to accept this acknowledgment for yourself, for when you thank another person, you are in fact thanking yourself for the very same reason. I thank you for reading.
Take a moment this coming Thanksgiving Holiday to practice sharing these two powerful words with someone in your life. 
With sincerest gratitude,
Justin Flinner
0 Comments

Planting the Seed of Potential

10/16/2014

0 Comments

 
The past is a seed that is planted in the present and grows into the future.
Personal Success Potential DC VA
Yesterday, I met a group of friends, who also happen to be acupuncturists, over a delicious meal and good conversation. After not meeting with them for four months, I was reminded of the importance of having my own community of friends; to share our life stories, the current day-to-day happenings, and our visions of the world transforming into the ultimate living environment.

As I filled my mouth with extraordinary flavors of a savory Chinese beef dish, I held my cup of hot tea and listened to the friendly and inspiring conversation. My friend Brooks began to describe a moment from a course he teaches about the roots of the medicine our small group sitting at the table practices and shares in common. A student in his course, a native from China, began to declare at one point that his ability to speak English was "not very good". Brooks, drawing on some wisdom from his days in the same program, invited the student to change his declaration to one with more possibility: "My English is better than it was yesterday." This tiny shift in words has the potential to create a huge shift in the person speaking them. This sharing from my friend Brooks reminded me of the reason I recently shared something about my late grandmother (shared below).

When we live with the constant mindset of "I need to improve myself.", "My skills aren't quite where they need to be.", or "I'll NEVER be THAT good!", we bring ourselves to a screeching halt on the road of life's potential. If these kinds of phrases are running through your head or coming from your mouth, you have then exercised your ultimate ability to withhold yourself from experiencing your full potential. In essence, you've tightly tied a tourniquet around the moment in your life that comes just before the moments of tomorrow.

In moments of what we consider failure or areas of our lives where believe we are lacking in something, we must acknowledge all we have done up to that point. We should instead take a moment to reflect on what we've accomplished. It is important to understand that all of our actions we've taken were opportunities to learn from (just like the quote from Thomas Edison above). Repeating an action, like speaking English, gives us a chance to improve upon it each day.

We should be thankful for this seed, plant it with care, nurture it, and watch it grow into something magnificent. Every moment in our lives is important, valuable, and not to be considered wasted. I will leave you with the words I recently shared about a person who had great impact on who I am today; my grandmother.
My Metro Medicine Success Potential DC
Peacefully,
Justin Flinner
0 Comments

Natural Acts of Kindness

8/15/2014

0 Comments

 
Kindness Compassion
As we approach the end of August, it is almost time to say our goodbyes to the summer season and open our welcoming arms to the breathtaking landscape of Autumn. You may notice as you walk outdoors that it seems the leaves on the trees are nearing the end of their time as their color shifts to a dark shade of green and they hang heavily from their branches towards the ground. Or you may notice in your garden a plethora of full-hearty produce begging for you to pluck it from its exhausted branches and vines.

This is the wonder of the harvest season. The season of abundance, of nourishment, of being nurtured, and of gratitude. This is a time in nature where we honor the richness of life and say thanks to all that has been offered in support of our growth and experience of life.

In your day to day life, how many times do you actually say THANK YOU to others and to yourself? When someone holds the door for you, do you say THANK YOU? How about when the metro brings you safely to your destination? Do you say, out loud or silently, THANK YOU?

How about the other way around? When was the last time YOU held the door for someone? When was the last time you randomly did something for someone else because you were feeling "in the mood"? Coming back to Mother Nature and the change of the seasons, we must remember that Mother Nature does not take a moment to think before she provides what is necessary for us and the rest of the world to survive, let alone thrive. She just does...and so should we.

What if Random Acts of Kindness were no longer Random? What if we considered them to simply be Natural Acts of Kindness? Moments of unconditional love and nurturing from ourselves to others; a moment of spoken or unspoken gratitude to another for simply being present in our life at this particular point in time, and above all, without judgment. Just as nature provides for us during this time, we should make the decision to act the same by sharing kindness to ourselves and others. No strings attached. 

We should willingly bear fruit for the plucking and satisfaction of others.
When others can reap what you sow, you nurture another human and change them in ways you can't possibly imagine.

One final thought I leave you with is an opportunity. One that may change a person's life forever. The opportunity (or challenge, if you choose to view it as such) is to show at least one Natural Act of Kindness towards someone you don't know. But don't stop there. Notice how you feel afterwards, and notice how the other person responds. Cultivate this feeling in yourself and continue to spread it and plant it in other. Because, just as this season provides a harvest for us now, it also holds deep within itself the seeds for the next year's crop. You hold this same power, the "seeds" of kindness to be planted in the next generation.

Yours in peace,
Justin Flinner
0 Comments

    RSS Feed

    Acupuncture DC VA

    Posted here are...

    inspirational ideas on healthy living through eastern medicine, optimism, and possibility through empowerment.

    Archives

    March 2020
    September 2019
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    June 2016
    February 2016
    September 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    June 2013

    Categories

    All
    Achievement
    Acknowledgement
    Acupuncture
    Acupuncture School
    Appreciation
    Attitude
    Autumn
    Believe
    Be Present
    Breath
    Breathe
    Challenge
    Children
    Coaching
    Communication
    Compassion
    Confidence
    Confucius
    Conservation
    Conversation
    Courage
    Destiny
    Diet
    Dream
    Dreams
    Eat Well
    Education
    Elders
    Emotions
    Empowerment
    Encouragement
    Endurance
    Energy
    Ethics
    Excellence
    Exercise
    Existence
    Expectations
    Experience
    Finding Purpose
    Fitness
    Five Senses
    Food
    Future
    Goals
    Gratitude
    Growth
    Happiness
    Harvest
    Healing
    Healing Wisdom
    Healthcare
    Healthy Living
    Holistic Health
    Humble
    Humility
    Injury Prevention
    Kindness
    Korean
    Letting Go
    Life
    Life Coach
    Live Well
    Longevity
    Love
    Loyalty
    Martial Arts
    Martial Morality
    Mastery
    Meaning Of Life
    Medicine
    Mindful
    Mindfulness
    Morality
    Mother Nature
    Motivation
    Music
    Nature
    Non-Communicable Diseases
    Nurturing
    Nutrition
    Oriental Medicine
    Pain
    Pain Management
    Passion
    Patience
    Patient Education
    Patriotism
    Peacefulness
    Perseverance
    Philosophy
    Physical Therapy
    Physiology
    Pilates
    Posture
    Potential
    Power Of Words
    Presence
    Present
    Purpose
    Qigong
    Reason
    Regret
    Reminder
    Respect
    Righteousness
    Seasons
    Seeing
    Self Care
    Self-care
    Speaking
    Sports
    Standards
    Stress
    Stress Management
    Stressors
    Stress Relief
    Success
    Tai Chi
    Tcm
    Thankfulness
    Thank You
    Time
    Tradition
    Traditional Martial Arts
    Transformation
    Transition
    Trust
    Vuim
    Warming Foods
    Wellness
    Western Medicine
    Winter
    Wushu
    Yoga

    View my profile on LinkedIn

HOURS & Location

HOURS OF OPERATION
Saturdays   1:00-6:30pm

1980 Gallows Road
Vienna, VA 22182
(Acupuncture Appointments Only)

CONTACT Us

(202) 505-2805
jflinner@mymetromedicine.com

    ASK a Question

Submit
Photo used under Creative Commons from mockstar
  • Home
  • Acupuncture
    • Forms & Fees
  • Tai Chi & Qigong
  • Media
    • Publications
    • Blog
    • Podcast
    • YouTube Channel
    • Ask The Expert Show
  • Location
  • About Us
    • Our Staff
    • Mission & Vision
    • Contact Us