Holiday Clutter Can Hinder Flow of Chi
Question: Every holiday season I have the same problem. With all the gift-buying, wrapping, decorating, baking and extra activities, my house turns into a big mess. Even though I enjoy doing these things, the season is always very stressful for me.
I can’t help but wonder if the out-of-control clutter I experience each year creates bad feng shui, which leads to more stress. What do you think?
KIMBERLY R.
El Segundo
Answer: I think you’re onto something. The sheer volume of gifts, wrapping paper, pine needles, boxes, ornaments--and all the other glittery paraphernalia of holiday merriment--can really mess you up. And that goes for your mental state as much as your living environment.
Feng shui emphasizes the importance of minimizing clutter because clutter interferes with serenity at the same time it inhibits the free flow of chi. If your place is too small to entirely hide the clutter, at least make peace with it by arranging the rubble as neatly as possible while the holidays continue. When they’re over, clean up everything as soon as you can, and enjoy the influx of renewed chi--until next year.
Hoping Room Changes Improve Son’s Health
Q: Our son, age 12, is growing fast and gaining weight, but he has not been feeling well for some time and complains of headaches, sore throat and nausea. He finds it difficult to maintain his normal activities. Various medical specialists find him in excellent health.
I have tried to pay more attention to his room, which has windows on only the north side, by adding bright colors, a mobile and a growing poinsettia. The foot of his bed faces the door, a bad element, but this is where he insists on sleeping. What does feng shui say about improving health in such circumstances?
R. NOVELLI
Via e-mail
A: East governs growth and health; green and wood are the color and element that correspond to this direction. To maximize the feng shui enhancement, and to keep the color consistent with the direction that governs health, I suggest you replace the poinsettia in your son’s bedroom with a Ficus benjamina. This plant is a good choice for your purposes because it has a woody trunk.
But the ficus may need more light than the north window in your son’s room permits. If this seems to be the case, put a blue grow-bulb in a lamp next to the ficus. If your son insists on leaving his bed so that his feet point directly out the door, do what you can to mitigate this negative position by putting a chest, low table, plant or some other object to break up the direct path between bed and door.
Feng shui adjustments can’t replace consultation with appropriate professionals, and the two simple suggestions above are unlikely to make a significant difference in your son’s symptoms.
Whatever the medical specialists say, by definition your son is not in “excellent health” as long as he complains of the symptoms you mention. You might want to consult other specialists to find the source of his distress.
Basic Principles Apply to Big-Rig’s Interior
Q: My husband and I own several big rigs: long-haul trucks that also have sleepers and refrigerators. Since he is in the truck 24 hours a day and driving for two weeks at a time, I am curious what feng shui we could apply to protect him (and our other drivers) and promote good chi.
Ginger C.
Sacramento
A: Those farmers in southern China probably didn’t think of big rigs when they were working out the principles of feng shui a few thousand years ago. But since big rigs carry produce and other farm products to market, there is a nice symmetry here. And, of course, feng shui can be used to improve any setting (whether it’s on wheels or in the air) simply by applying basic principles.
Your letter mentioned that one person sleeps while another drives the rig, which sounds like as good a circumstance as you can hope for on these long hauls. Be sure to treat that sleeping area as you would your own bedroom at home: Make it as conducive to sleep as possible. Block out distractions such as noise, color, light and fumes. And don’t use the big rig’s sleeping area for any other purpose.
Meanwhile, create an enhancement at home in the northeast corner of your bedroom. This direction governs fathers, travel and interests outside the home. Use the color gray and the number six in this area to bring positive energy to your husband’s endeavors.
Probably the most fundamental principle for positive feng shui in any situation is to keep the environment neat, clean and in good repair. If you were concerned about good feng shui in your home, for example, you’d never want to leave a burned-out porch light unchanged or ignore old newspapers lying around in front.
These standards are absolutely vital in your family’s big-rig business, of course. So be ultra vigilant about maintenance of every bit of equipment on each truck--from the shine on the windshield to the grease on the axles.
Kirsten Lagatree is a New York City area writer whose books include “Feng Shui, Arranging Your Home to Change Your Life” (Villard 1996) and “Feng Shui at Work, Arranging Your Work Space for Peak Performance and Maximum Profit” (Villard 1998).
Mail your questions on feng shui to Kirsten Lagatree, Real Estate section, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053, fax them to (213) 237-4712, or e-mail them to kfengshui@aol.com or Real.Estate@LATimes.com. All questions will be considered for use but cannot be answered individually.