When was the last time you...?

Very many years ago when I took my first ever contemporary class, I remember one question that the teacher asked at the time. We were walking randomly in the space and she asked us to open our toes, and as we were doing that, to put our awareness there, in the space in between, and in the feeling of the toes as each of them was slowly finding the floor one by one. Then she asked, when was the last time you slowed down and you looked at your toes?

As time stood still for a fraction of a moment, just like when you hear something deeply meaningful, my eyes welled up, as I knew, not only did I not look at my toes, I did not do so deliberately as I did not like them. It was one part of me that was just there for convenience, why would anyone bother? I would hide them in big sturdy boots that gave me a steady footing, and plus, my toes were a bit short for my liking, surely we are meant to spend time on our more pleasant features?

Fast forward to today, I have a lot of compassion for my toes and a lot of appreciation, as I have gone through a long journey of an uneven and rough terrain that has helped me find compassion for the rest of myself, my body, and the people I meet, interact with and have challenges with. I now know that that previously ignored part of me contributes so much strength and stability to the rest of my structure through activating the inner quads and glutes and allowing them to work efficiently along with all the muscles attached to them and surrounding those attachments, that I cannot help thinking, what else are we as people ignoring which could be so close to home, beyond the body and looking at our everyday circumstances, but which could have a profound positive effect on our lives given the right attention?

Back then, it was an innocent question yet with specific intention and a lesson that kept arising and which was never forgotten. But bringing it now to the forefront, and expanding it outwards to the everyday surrounding us, when you hear about 'when was the last time you slowed down to.......? Where does your mind go? What happens for you?

If you are struggling to feel at peace in your every day life and think you could benefit from professional support, you can reach me at constantina@thelantern.uk

Constantina Stamou

Constantina Stamou is a certified Strategic Intervention Coach, has trained with the Robbins-Madanes coaching school, is an NLP Master Practitioner, has attended Tony Robbins’ Business Mastery, and has a PhD in how we change the way we put sentences together as we grow older. Her work experience includes tutoring at her university, working for a charity, and entrepreneurship which has so far translated into the TNT Dance Salsa Club in London and her own Reformer Pilates Studio at Kensington Olympia, London, where she had the pleasure of working with her team of four teachers.