We take a break from the acupoints this time with a look at some of the Gifts of the Wood Element. When we are in harmony with an Element and the Element is in balance within us, then we have access to the positive qualities of that Element in our lives. There are many such qualities and here we examine three of them. As you read about these qualities, consider how easy it is for you to access them in your own life. Your answers will tell you much about the relative strength or deficiency of the Wood Element within you.

Vision

The ability to see the world in all its colours and shapes is indeed one of the greatest gifts of a human life. Of all the senses it is the one that most people say they would find hardest to lose.

But Wood’s gift of vision goes far beyond the ability to take in visual information through the eyes. It is also about the capacity to envisage, to see a future possibility with the mind’s eye.

People who have this gift most strongly are called visionaries. Their imagination and foresight help them to make creative leaps that see future possibilities projecting out from current circumstances.

In the modern era, Steve Jobs was repeatedly described as a visionary for his ability to see technological possibilities and pursue their production. Martin Luther King’s I have a dream speech is particularly illustrative of this quality of Wood. He had a vision of a world of racial equality which is slowly being realised.

• How is your vision for your own future?
• How clearly do you see the path before you in your own life?

Planning

Once we have a vision for our future, we need to find a way to get there. We need a map, a plan, a flowchart, a series of connected steps that will allow us to follow a path. This quality of Wood is the province of the Liver Official who is sometimes personified as the General.

Imagine this General’s headquarters where the room is strewn with maps, plans, lists of troop units, transport, all the information that is needed to form the big picture. From this place, removed from the battles themselves, the General can formulate an overarching strategy, a grand plan.

In our individual lives, planning is incredibly important. Each day we need to plan what we are doing that day and what order we are going to do things. We need to prioritise, organise and strategise. Without these steps of pre-planning, our day can become chaotic, we might waste time and energy backtracking, and the day just doesn’t run smoothly.

We need to plan each day, but we also need to have a sense of where we are going in a longer time frame. What are our plans for the next month, the next year, the next stage of our life? At various points in our lives we pause and take stock, reassess our direction, make a new plan, draw a new map.

When the Wood is not strongly available to us, we might have difficulty making plans. We might have difficulty even knowing what it is that we want, so we can’t even begin to plan. Some of us get lost in details and have problems seeing the big picture. We can’t see the wood for the trees!

• How do you feel about the direction your life is taking?
• What are your plans for the next year, 5 years, 10 years?
• How flexible are you in changing plans when circumstances change?

Decision Making

Once we have our plan and a map of where we are going, we set out on our journey. The journey begins with a first step and proceeds through a series of steps until we reach our destination. While the planning itself is the province of the Liver Official, the actual implementation of the plan on the ground is the function of the Gall Bladder Official, sometimes personified as the General’s Chief of Staff.

While the General holds the overall plan, the Chief of Staff makes the step by step decisions about how that plan is put into operation. The capacity to decide is a fundamental one for Wood. When the Wood is healthy, decisions are made easily and quickly because things are clear. The plan is clearly understood and the best way to carry out the plan is obvious. All the information is taken in and organised, and the way of action naturally arises.

Some of us are good planners but not so good at carrying out the plans. Others are good at managing details but not so good at seeing the big picture. When our Wood is in balance, we have access to both of these aspects.

• How bold are you at taking the first step?
• What stops you from making a decision?

This is an extract from my second book ‘Seasons of Life’ to be published in 2016. Meanwhile, the days tick down to the publication of ‘The Way of the Five Elements’  by Singing Dragon Press. Publication date November 21st, 2015. You can now pre-order this book at Fishpond, Book Depository and other online booksellers. (60 days to go!)