poetry

Rumi stirs between my fingers

dancing on the edge of the flame on my candle lit tonight

gracefully

truthfully

open-harted

“You are the sky my spirit circles in, the love inside love, the resurrection place.

Let this window be your ear. I have lost consciousness many times with longing for your silence, and your life-quickening smile…

You give attention to the smallest matters, my suspicious doubts, and the greatest…

I know these dancers,

Day and night I sing their songs in this phenomenal cage…

But what can stay hidden?

Love’s secret is always lifting its heas, out from under the covers,

“Here I am!””

-Rumi (pieces of “I have Five Things to Say”)

poetry

I am beginning my morning meditations with a bit of poetry to wake up my inner song. The 5 tier shelf to my left is stacked with an array of inspiring books, and I chose The Essential Rumi this beautiful morning.

A Community of the Spirit(just a piece)

There is a community of the spirit

Join it, and feel the delight
of walking the the inner street
and being the noise.

Close both eyes
to see with the other eye.

Open your hands
if you want to be held

Sit down in the circle

Inner Excavations

I just bought this great book that I want to share with anyone who has numerous aspirations, like myself, and have ever hoped to tie some of them together. The book Inner Excavations- Exploring yourslef through Photography, Poetry, and Mixed Media by Liz Lamoreux was suggested on one of my favorite podcasts, Tranquility Di’Jour (previously know as “Hip Tranquil Chick”). In my quest for expressing my creativity, this book is a great resource that uses creative sparks to ignite the artistic candle in my daily life.

My first excavation has been to begin taking photos once a week of a typical day. The point of this exercise was to really look at the beauty that surrounds me, and find them in my photography.

The second idea I got from the book, that I am totally keeping forever, is making a Word Toolbox. I found a skinny notebook, and began writing words that jumped out at me while I was reading. I have always thought about doing this kind of thing, and it’s funny to me that I am now doing it because someone else suggested it.

These were my daily pics..

Ahimsa, Non-violence, and a Dreamer

This morning I’m starting on the 2nd packet from my previous teacher training. I re-read the first article on Ahimsa which is the first yama, or observance, in Patanjali’s 8 limb path; it translates to mean nonviolence. Coincidentally, today happens to mark the birth of a very important advocate of peace over violence, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Last week in my Pre-K class of 4-5 yr. olds we discussed what Dr. King’s dream was, what he went through to make changes in

an educated and peaceful manner, and how his actions greatly affected the country we now live in. I was so refreshed by the reality of how 1 person can really make the world of difference. In my classroom of 4 and 5 years olds, I wanted to impart this concept that each of them holds a bright light, and no matter how dark a room, or situation, they can choose to shine on and chose peace.

So, yesterday I was thinking how appropriate it would be to honor him somehow for the example he set. He had every right to be upset with the system, and chose instead to fight back without violence. He lead people to freedom with his dream for equality with his heart and his voice. So powerful. It reminds me of the many others that have come before us that took the higher road which we can learn from. From these great people, I can find the strength and encouragement to be, live, drive, and speak more peacefully.
To wake up and actually read his name in my skill-pack seemed very serendipitous. These kinds of in-sync moments seem to happen more and more, and I have come to call them ‘Divine winks’. I feel like they are winks from the the Divine that I am on the right path. What a great way to start off the week.

Thank you Dr. King for setting an example for peace and ahimsa for me in my life. Happy Birthday! Peace!

painting:

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

by BRUNI

“I Have A Dream”

Home

Isn’t it wonderful when a song can transport you somewhere you’ve never been before without leaving the comfort of your home! I am sitting here, without my Paul, he is visiting his grandmother-working on a short document of her story. I am listening to some of the new music I bought and this is one of them that I bookmarked a while back that stays sentimental. I remember I was driving to work, about 5 blocks away from school and I was tearing up to the lyrics “Home, let me come home, home is wherever I am with you…” I love love songs.

My Sunday class

This morning I had my second private session with my friend Denise, and this time she brought along her adorable 12 year old daughter, Andi who offered such a sweet joy and innocence to our time together. I was so happy to have her here. It seemed so perfect that she happened to join us with all my new projects formulating which support working with kids too (more on this later). It’s all happening!

I was very excited in preparing my practice with my two new yogis this morning. I spent time cleaning my house, and bringing a calm ambiance with candles and music. I made sure the room was clutter free. It was like my tiny apartment was a mini studio. 🙂 I recently spent some time carefully picking out some new yoga music (Ben Leinbach & Jai Uttal), and was looking forward to experiment with sound for the first time. And, not much to my surprise, I really enjoyed having it, and my yogis relayed that they felt in sync and at ease with it as well. The class went for 2 hours this time. Time flies. Lots of permission, a little demonstration and a few adjustments. My intention was to give instruction, but really be aware of overdoing it, especially with Andi. From what I have read about teaching kids, it should be more about having fun, and being in their bodies, and less about finding the perfect alignment- but I did throw in some thoughts on that for safety purposes.

Overall it was a great Sunday morning, and I really enjoyed having both of them join me. Yay!

First Private

On Sunday I had the pleasure of teaching my very first 90 minute private class to my dear friend Denise, who is a trained Bowen and Cranial/Sacral Body Work and Massage Therapist. This being Denise’s first yoga class, I had set up a sequence, but I was surprised that I improvised a lot from what I originally wanted to do, yet it seemed natural and seamless. Something I really enjoyed about working in a one-on-one setting was having the opportunity to make small adjustments on her, and get bits of feedback while she was in poses. It felt very personalized and fun. We laughed too, which totally dissolved all my nervousness away. This is something that makes me feel even more drawn to doing privates. It was nice to focus soley on her needs and get in tune with her. My favorite part was putting her in a restorative form of Vipariti Kirani (legs up the wall), and it was so beautiful to see her so relaxed and cozy. I felt so much gratitude in my heart afterwards for her time, her trust, and her honesty. What a beautiful Sunday.

Some things I felt: serene, comfortable, silly, focused, playful, intuitive, and creative.

 

Resolutions

Happy Twenty Eleven!

I don’t think that I am perfect, by any means. I just love Calvin and Hobbs, and this was too good to not put here. Now, know I have already made like a dozen lists of things I want to begin, and things I want to leave behind this past year, but the New Year has come and I have an itch to make another list. I like the idea of a fresh slate. The chance to say to myself, “I haven’t _____ this year!” or “I have _____ every day this year!” gives me some internal motivation, and I know I am not the only one.

Resolutions for me are like a rebirth to the possibility of my truest most vibrant self to shine through, leaving behind silly habits, and allowing my dormant passions to spring to life.

I think that its fair to state some of the wonderful accomplishments I made in 2010 first.

1. I got engaged, set a date, found a location (whew!)

2. I went through Yoga Teacher Training(double whew!)

3. I am on my 2nd year of teaching Pre-K (…)

4. I have a daily home yoga practice

5. I have been blogging regularly since summer

I’m feeling pretty good about all that.

So, now for the Twenty Eleven Resolutions… I have a few

1.  Read a book a month– join a book club

2. Be debt free by August-which means sticking to my budget

3. Teach Yoga in Sacramento-which means I need to practice teaching now, free classes, teach my kids, practice on Paul and friends

4. Become a good photographer-How: watch photography videos with Paul, and take more pictures

5. Every 2 weeks read through, answer unanswered questions, and study the skill packs from YTT again-How: every Saturday morning make a date with a coffee shop, as well as every Wednesday night after work.(2xs a week have a study date) Let Paul know its my study time.

6. Become a better cook/Save time and money-How: Spend time each Sunday to plan menus for the week, get recipes, and go to Farmer’s Market and Trader Joes, then prep for recipes so I can come home after work and make yummy food. Use 101Cokbooks.com to help me with healthy, and inexpensive dishes.

7. Live more simply-How: buy less stuff, live off less, do more stuff outdoors, get rid of stuff we don’t use/need, be more conscious of our shopping.

8. Move out of Sacramento and travel-How: Put our stuff in storage, and sell what we don’t need, then buy a plan ticket to another place, and go live on a farm, or go on tour with Alma Desnuda, or move to the Bay Area.

9. Bike to work when its not raining How: Start getting ready for work earlier, and stop making excuses cause I know it will make me feel good.

10. Ban plastic bags and paper towels. Stop using paper towels and bring my own basket/bag whenever I go shopping How: Just don’t buy them– Use cloth wipes

11. Keep blogging-How: Use the Prompts from Reverb10 on a daily basis-Be short and sweet!

12. Cut out alcohol How: Drink more tea, juice, sparkly water, water, and GanoExcel

13. Kick myself in the butt-Just do what I need to do, and stop procrastinating-How: Set up appointments, run errands after work, take care of me, find the drive inside and get to it. Make due dates, put them in my phone

14. Make jewelry and put it in stores again: How: Make an artist date once a week to dedicate 1 hour of jewelry design-no excuses

 

Whew! that’s a lot, but I think I can start. I think one major element to my success is not making excuses and not spending my evenings partaking in alcohol. I am hoping to have more energy, more time, and more creativity. It’s time for a change! So here’s to 2011. May I be rich with motivation and surrounded by inspiration.

The Gift of Permission

picture by: Cathy McMillan

Prompt: Gift. This month, gifts and gift-giving can seem inescapable. What’s
the most memorable gift, tangible or emotional, you received this year?

per·mis·sion
1. authorization granted to do something;
formal consent

My most memorable gift I recieved this year was ‘permission’. The permission to explore, and dig deeper into my practice during the weekends with my fellow yoga trainees at IAY. The permission to be OK right where I am, and not need to be something or someone else. The permission to be in the process and not have to be perfect, or reaching wildly for some goal(even though I persisted to keep reaching for one), but permission to be with what is happening now. The permission to mess up..again and again, to get into the sticky parts, to play, to cry, to be whatever I was, to speak, and above all to learn what Yoga truly means to me. My version of Yoga is forever changed because of this permission, and I hope that I can give back the same gift to those I love and teach.

The Gift of Presence

Christmas is a such a wonderful time for being with friends and family, and this year, more than any other, I have really meant and felt this truth. With all the hustle and bustle, trying to get this and that just right, I truly noticed the best part was the presence of all the people I spent the holidays with. Everyone was so ‘there’, interested in everyone, listening to stories, genuine smiles, and being present with one another. I loved this. Ending this year with these moments, I am filled with joy, right up to the brim, like a full cup of sweet and rich hot cocoa.