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Natural Awakenings Sarasota / Manatee / Charlotte

Keeping the Faith

by Christina Captain, DAOM, MSAOM, MSHN, MA 

 

What does it mean to keep the faith? In whom or what do we have faith in? George Michael wrote a song about it, and so did Billy Joel. In Michael’s case, he needed faith to end a relationship and wait for something more. in Joel’s case, he has nostalgia toward his youth, and in the memory those earlier years, he was “keeping the faith.”

We all need faith too, don’t we? We need faith that a switch will turn on a light, faith that we can find the right doctor for a medical issue we have, faith that our kids will grow to be kind people who make a difference in the healing of this world. And even with political elections, no matter which candidate earns the votes, we have faith that our nation will survive.

My dog Cooper shows me what faith is. He is happy when I come home, always excited to play or just spend time with me. He has faith that I will come home, let him outside and feed him. Since he is a dog, he does not carry the burden of “what if’s.” Instead, he holds fast to what he knows to be true, and this knowing keeps him in love with his life—and with me.

My personal experience of faith has been one of trial, test and tribulation, but I believe that my faith is what helped me survive. Although my upbringing was steeped in the Greek Orthodox religion, I am not a religious person. I do subscribe to a spiritual view, and I believe in a greater power. Maybe that’s a cop-out, but it doesn’t matter because the only person I am trying to please is myself. 

I have faith in myself as a deliberate creator of my own reality, and this faith helps me know that everything in my experience is of my creation. That’s also a bummer, right? How could I create a car accident, failed marriage or a spouse who cheated with so-called “friends” of mine? Then I experience the descent into the inner monologue of, ‘Maybe what I have faith in is wrong.” Maybe I should be someone other than who I am. Maybe none of this matters anyway.”

And then I remember, “Oh yeah, for a moment just a moment, I forgot who I am. I forgot that I can do anything. I forgot that I make a difference each day, and I feel awesome about that. I forgot that I am a deliberate creator, and I determine my own reality. It comes from within me, not outside of me. I forgot that I am love, and that love flows through me when I allow it to. I forgot, that I do have faith.”

So, dear reader, find your faith and live deliberately, without fear, out loud, and in the moment. Ignore the mental chatter of “what if’s” and register for that next class, train for that half-marathon, apply for that new job, make a move with that special someone. Just take a risk—and keep the faith.

 

Dr. Christina Captain is nationally board-certified by the National Commission for Certification in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM). She is the lead practitioner at the Family Healing Center which she founded in 2000. Dr. Captain is also an expert Feng Shui practitioner and teacher who studied under Nancilee Wydra of the Feng Shui Institute of America, before originating her own style, Essential Balance Feng Shui. Since this discipline is a branch of Oriental Medicine, she often blends Feng Shui principles into her treatment plans. Family Healing Center is located at 2650 Bahia Vista St., Suite 101, Sarasota. For more information, call 941-951-1119 or email [email protected].

 

March 2024 Digital Edition

 


 


 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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