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A Balanced Perspective Weekly 
on Health and Wellness
December 28, 2005

1. Creating Your New Year's Resolutions?
2. Cooking Classes
3. Holistic Health Counseling in person or by phone
3. Dance Your Heart Out!  Salsa Jan. 13
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Tired of feeling bad about your body? 

Want to improve your self-esteem and make the healthy
choices that you know would make a difference in your life, 
but you can't seem to find the willpower to stick to them?

~~myheartdances offers resources that provide support,
encouragement, feedback, and accountability for your life
goals and intentions.   

Set up an appointment for January.  Call Melissa at 917-689-6530

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1. Creating Your New Year's Resolutions?

2005 is coming to a close and one of my favorite things to do
at this time is reflect on my experiences over the past year. 
As I think about creating new goals for the future I find it
very inspiring to look at the things I accomplished and did well.
I also find it helpful to evaluate the events and situations that
challenged me.

What Are Your Successes?

Since most of you who read this newsletter desire to think of
new goals for 2006, I want to encourage you to also take an
inventory of your personal challenges and achievements. We
have a tendency to create goals that fit social standards
instead of goals that are truly meaningful to us personally.
The exercises I give you today will help you create down-to-
earth goals that will actually improve your unique life and
journey.  

The first important tool in creating your goals is to have a 
positive and realistic outlook because traditionally we only
look back at what we didn't achieve and we condemn ourselves
for our faults.  We punish ourselves with this negativity, create
lofty goals, and expect this to be our motivator to do the 
"better" in the future.

Sticking To It!

This doesn't work well. By February there's a good chance
you will have forgotten any New Year's Resolution you made
using this method.

Let's make this year different.  Following is a list of questions
to help you evaluate your year and come up with practical
and meaningful resolutions.

1. List your top three accomplishments this year (in any
area: relationships, career, emotional, physical, health etc.).

2. Name three lessons you learned from these successes
(what did these things teach you about yourself, the way you
work, your strengths, weaknesses, etc.).

3. List your top three areas of challenge over the past
year.

4. Name three lessons you learned from these challenges
(about what clearly doesn't work for you, what you’re most
vulnerable to etc.).

From doing this exercise you should be able to see:

1. What you value by looking at what you did accomplish during
the year.

2. How much you can realistically expect yourself to accomplish
in one year

3. What challenges and/or improvements you want to work on
this year.

evaluation questions excerpted from Experience Life magazine

Now, come up with 3 goals that will really make a difference in
your life.  You should also write steps down for how you will
make each of these goals happen.

Happy New Year everyone.  Thank you for reading this
newsletter.  You all inspire me so much.  I will see you in 2006.

xoxo
Melissa

P.S. A new website will be released in January.  Get excited,
there will be a lot of resources inculded for you!

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~~myheartdances was created with the intention to help
individuals gain the courage to say the things they really
feel, to do the things in life they really want to do, to be
authentic, and to live with integrity.

Are you ready for the challenge?~~

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"She listens.  she remembers everything we've talked about
previously when I can barely remember the past five minutes.  she
gently offers straightforward advice or suggestions without judgment. 
She makes things seem CLEAR to me, for me.  one step at a time."
T. H. Actor, NYC
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2. Cooking Classes 
(located on the Upper West Side)

Organic Food, Organic FUN, and Good Company

"I truly enjoyed the cooking class. It was more than I expected.
I met some really interesting people, and Melissa was a great
instructor, patient and very informative. Not to mention the dish
we made (salmon burgers, quinoa,and our very own salad dressing)
were all so easy to make and very tasty and satisfying. I look
forward to taking another class soon" - Valerie-Saun Alerte 

January 10
Sweet Potato Miso Soup
Buckwheat w/
Tahini Sauce 
Kenyan Style Mixed Greens

January 18
Garlic Braised Tempeh
Creamy Broccoli Soup 
Coconut-ty Millet 
Frozen Banana Smoothies

January 27 (Friday Night Class $45)
Creamy Salmon Soup with Mustard Greens
Baked Rosemary w/ Caraway Sweet Potato
Dandelion Stir-Fry
Lemon Jasmine Rice
Blueberry Cream