By The FIRM Master Instructor Kirsten Palmer

Modern life is a balancing act — work and play, family and personal time, spiritual and physical. How important is balance in your body — not just muscle balance but balance during movement?

The reusable Wrapsack uses the Track-a-Sack system, so you can see how your gift bag keeps giving and giving.

Growing up, my mom kept every gift box we ever received in the attic so we could reuse them. Now I do the same, but I don’t have an attic. Instead, piles of salvaged boxes, ribbon and tissue paper have taken over an entire closet. It’s one of the ways I try to wrap a little greener.

Could something as simple as a quick and easy blood test save your life? Absolutely.

It’s called a C-reactive protein test, and it measures the degree of HIDDEN inflammation in your body.

Finding out whether or not you are suffering from hidden inflammation is critical because almost every modern disease is caused or affected by it. If your immune system and its ability to quell inflammation in your body are impaired, watch out. You are headed toward illness and premature aging.

I know exactly what my grandmother would say. With all the sturm-und-drang about swine flu vaccinations, she would scoff and mutter, “What they need is a good mustard poultice.”

A mustard poultice could cure anything — from “women’s problems” to a stuffy nose.

I won’t have a computer, an iPod or even a cell phone on my nature trip. So don’t e-mail, voicemail, Facebook or even try to call me. Don’t even phone me on a landline. I can’t be reached. When I travel, I purposely sever all lines of communication with my everyday life. I think you should, too. Because when you don’t, I get annoyed.

The most common reason people give for not getting enough exercise is: “I’m too busy.”

But remember that just because you are BUSY doesn’t mean you are ACTIVE! Being busy and being active are not synonymous. You can be busy all day long sitting at a desk or driving in a car without being active.

Being green isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

Sure, I’m healthier now that I eat better food and reduce my exposure to pesticides. I ride my bike, which makes me not only healthier but happier. I’m wealthier now that I make much of my own cleaning products, use less gas, cold-wash and hang-dry my clothes, and eschew AC for open windows.

I value feeling good and being at my best. When I am my best self, I can do the things I really love to do — and I can do them well.

You may know you want to seek enlightenment, but how exactly do you define it and know what you’re looking for? One astute attendee at the Vancouver Yoga Conference, where Colleen and I were answering questions about the Gaiam Yoga Club, asked us for our insight. “That’s the question we’re asking every day,” says Colleen. “What is enlightenment? What does it feel like? How do I get there?” Get our answer in this video that’s not what you might expect.

This is the time of year people are in the throes of preparing for the upcoming holidays. Travel plans, family gatherings and food preparations fill many conversations.

It is also a time for some that brings up anxiety. The thought of being with family creates an inner dialogue that is focused on challenge, past chaotic experiences and dysfunctional interaction. It is so interesting to see how the past begins to color the future. Historic events and conditions create mind chatter that can’t even entertain the possibility of harmony.