Gratitude for Me

This past week we officially gave thanks for all that we have, as we celebrated our great country and its bountiful gifts.  Now it’s on to the harried holiday hoe-down!  If you celebrate Hanukkah, watch out because it’s practically on top of us; Christmas follows closely behind.  What gift will you give yourselves this month?

I highly recommend presenting your self with an hour of down time every day.  Sound impossible?  Try doing it out of your house to eliminate distractions.  Yoga is a good idea, of course.  Or visit the library and sit on a comfy chair under a window; you can read or just pretend to read.  Bundle up and take a meditative walk, leaving the dog behind so you don’t have to keep stopping (the kids’ll take him out later!).  Take a drive down a country road with the radio off. Wander through a garden nursery and breathe in the pine scents. Visit a local museum.  Again, you can wander and look, or just sit and relax.  Did I mention yoga?

Give it a go.  You will be surprised how quickly an hour goes by, and how refreshed and energized you will feel afterward.  The bonus realization will be that an hour of replenishing your soul won’t take time away from your busy day – you will seem to gain more time!  Need I say more?

All Blessings, Big and Small

Thanks a million; a hunderd’ll do!  Words of wisdom from Pop-Pop. 

We do have a million things to be thankful for, but let’s deal with a hundred instead – we’ve got turkeys to defrost and pies to bake, after all.  Oh, that’s the first two thanks, right there.  98 to go…..

I’m grateful for my teachers, both those I pay and those who lead extraordinary lives as an example to me.

I am thankful for peppermint tea and car seat warmers.

Namaste to my friends and fellow yogis.

I am grateful that garbage truck let me go ahead of him this morning so I didn’t have to follow him slowly down the street.

I give thanks for flannel pajamas and a husband who doesn’t object.

I shout halleluiah when my trick knee doesn’t play tricks on me.

… and on and on.  My list will include the usual – health, family, home – and the tiny things that bring a moment of pleasure each day.

What’s on your list?

Butterflies in November

I was watching the National Geographic channel last night -- a show about migrating animals.  Here is an interesting fact about Monarch Butterflies:

It takes four generations for monarch butterflies to complete their round-trip migration.  First batch leaves from Mexico in the spring, lays eggs and dies somewhere in the southern U.S.  Second batch hatches, eats, cocoons, emerges, and takes off for the upper U.S.; repeat lifecycle.  Generation 3 makes it to Canada, where they lay their eggs, and when Generation 4 emerges as butterflies, they head straight south, going the entire way back to the original starting location in Mexico before they too lay their eggs and perish. 

Why am I taking about butterflies on this cold and windy day?  Because their unfathomable migration echoes the mysteries in our own lives.  Things happen that we can’t explain, but that doesn’t mean they are less true.  And if we sometimes feel we are butterflies, being pushed by instinct instead of reason, maybe we should let go and take flight!

All is Ready

Everything you need, you already have.

Ever hear that before and say, yeah, well, I really need an iPad and I don't see it on my desk....

That's not what we're talking about, and you know it!  Everything you need, truly need, to live a life that is full and happy and kind and beneficial to all -- people, plants, planets -- is at hand.  The real question to ask is, how do I access these things, these tools for living?

A simple answer:  Open yourself to them and they will come in.

Ponder that.  We'll talk later.

Listen Up

You've heard of "The Third Eye", residing in the center of your brain; the eye that sees what your outer eyes cannot discern.  Let me introduce you to your "Third Ear".

You actually know you have a third ear, and hopefully you use it often.  The third ear resides in your solar plexus, i.e., your gut.  Yup, it's that gut instinct, that power inside you that is telling you which way to go.  Should you get into that elevator with that man?  Should you accept the job offer?  Do you trust her?

Stop and allow that third ear to listen to exactly what is going on, and it will let you know what it hears.  Sometimes the answer is immediate, other times you and your ears need to sleep on it.

Stop, look and listen.  That guy's right -- you did learn everything you need to know in kindergarten.

Who's got it easy?

Is there someone in your life for whom everything seems to come easily, without excess energy, thought, or angst?  I have someone in mind, and I wonder, if I presented her with this assessment, whether she would nod happily, or look at me in surprise.  Probably the latter.  Looking in at someone from the outside does not give the whole picture.  There is often something lurking in the background, or an issue your friend glosses over or avoids talking about.  Perhaps your friend has had the great fortune to learn how to deal with (notice I did not say "overcome") her negative issues.... perhaps she is just a good faker.

Rejoice in another's good fortune and happiness - and mean it - and you will reap happiness in return.

Just remember not to judge someone else's life.  Period.

The Knee Knows

A few years ago I had an operation on my knee.  It was considered a success, but still, I occasionally feel twinges and worry that the problem will return.  This is why I’ll often say to my yoga students, “Bring your attention to your knees” and “Put a micro-bend in your knees”.  Everyone has their own issues, whether it’s stiff hamstrings or the fear of headstand. The more aware one can become of different body parts and sensations that arise during yoga and in everyday activities, the better the chances to avoid injury and move forward in your practice.

As you go through your day -- up and down stairs carrying laundry baskets; crawling on the floor after babies or cleaning up spills, stretching up to swipe the cobweb on the ceiling – pay attention to what your body is saying to you.  Does it say, ahh, that feels good, or does it complain about the strain?  Take a moment of stillness and assess your joints and muscles.  Listen to your body and learn about yourself.