Light, Life, Love

There are events happening all around us that we don't notice. Small things, and bigger, splashier things, that we somehow miss. Sometimes we are simply to busy to stop and look, and sometimes we are on autopilot. We flash past and don't see. 

This Spring, though, is a little different. The difficult, cold, icy winter we just endured has made us more aware of the signals that proclaim a change. I've noticed people are a little more excited about the first crocus this year. They are a bit more energized by the first semi-warm day; just a smidge happier than usual when the sun is out. Robins are greeted with sighs of appreciation.

We want to segue from that new habit of noticing signs of Spring into a larger awareness of events around our personal world, and around our global world. Look past the scary news broadcasts and into the smaller, brighter nooks that abound. 

Increasing numbers of people are discovering that being kind to themselves translates to being kind to those they encounter during the day; and the inevitable ripple effect that ensues is wonderful to see and experience. I believe it will be the little things that save our planet. Small, grassroots gatherings and projects will galvanize more and more people into right action. When we move from love, with love, we can move mountains. One stone turns into a shovelful, which increases to a wheelbarrow then to an overflowing dump truck. Watch.

The flame from your candle illuminates the dark. Darkness cannot extinguish its light.

Yogi Island

 When you step onto your yoga mat, you are as on a deserted island. Although in reality there are mats to your left and to your right, and you anticipate brushing hands with a neighbor at some point during the next hour, you need only focus on what You are doing and where You are. No need to compare backbends with the guy next door; every reason to sit out a sun salutation in child's pose because you had a tough day. You carry who you are today into your yoga practice -- not who you were yesterday or who you will be tomorrow. If you feel open and energetic you can turn your Wild Thing into a Wheel; if you feel the need to nurture yourself, Tame Thing may be your choice (you can create that pose yourself!). No need to keep up or to hold back. If you resist judging yourself, you will find your best practice. If you resist judging your neighbor, they will respond in kind. 

But if you feel a giggle coming up as you attempt a seemingly impossible pose, let it out -- I'm sure your neighbors could use a laugh, too!

Autopilot, in a good way

It all begins with awareness: Awareness of your body, your surroundings, and your mental and emotional states. Knowing how you feel after eating a certain food, after practicing a particular exercise, after talking to a certain person. Has the experience left you tired and foggy brained, or do you come out feeling energized and clear-headed? Take notice of what your oh-so intelligent body is saying to you.

Awareness takes practice, though. Remember when you started yoga and discovered all sorts of body parts you didn't even know you had? They were always there; you simply never noticed them! Or like that tummy ache you get when you eat a second helping of tiramisu. In the back of your mind, you know the bellyache is coming, but you push the thought away and eat more anyway. 

You ignore your body’s signals, and satisfy an urge that goes against your own best interest! The next day you are kicking yourself, wondering why you couldn’t resist.

Wake up to what your body is telling you. When making a decision, be aware of whether your body sends you a zing to warn you away, or a wave of calm that indicates you are on the right road. Recognize that you have all the answers, but you need to find a way to access them.

Increase the strength of your intuition by practicing awareness of your body’s signals. It all begins with listening to your gut and heeding your instincts. As your intuition improves you will notice your decision-making skills being honed, and your gut instincts becoming more and more reliable. It’s all there; you just have to listen.

Ladybugs, Worms, and Dirt

Spring Equinox (Equinox = Equal Night)

It's coming, I promise. Actually, the promise is all around you, you just need to notice.

Look for signs of spring: Ladybugs, worms, birds chirping and the return of the geese. Feel your own blood rise like the sap of the sugar maple. Embrace the fresh new energies that emerge from far beneath the soil. Imagine the movement deep under your feet: Pale white roots reaching down as tender greens shoot toward the surface. Worms and insects begin to wiggle and squirm, eager for their first day of sunshine, loosening and aerating the dirt as they squirm. Larvae of every kind begin to uncurl, still dreaming of the tender leaves they will soon munch.

Watch for movement in the air. Ladybugs drop out of nowhere to land at your feet on the bedroom floor. The errant moth flutters by, and a sunny day wakens that fly you thought you were done swatting at last fall. Listen beneath trees and around bushes for the sound of birds celebrating the end of this long, hungry winter. Watch the skies for the return of our winged fair-weather friends.

Note the length of the day as the pale spring sun begins to shine more brightly and touch your shoulders more firmly

. Stand outside under the sun and again at night under the moon; lift your arms up to the skies and turn your face to the orb above you. Breathe in the spring air and imagine green gardens, warm breezes, and fragrant lawns. Imagine feeling the dirt beneath your bare feet or ocean waves tickling your toes. Know that it is coming, and smile.

Then, if it snows one more time this season, close your eyes and imagine it all again.

The Big Picture

I recently attended a yoga workshop. We were there to learn ways to relieve stress from our physical bodies as a way to keep fit and healthy. The teacher led us through some poses and spoke about self-compassion and healthy eating. Then she proudly held aloft a liter bottle of brand name water. “And, I drink at least four of these every day. See, I brought two along with me in case it was warm in here and I needed more than one.” Half of the group smiled smugly as their disposable water bottles stood proudly by their mats; the rest of them nodded sagely, reminding themselves to stock up next time they were at Costco. Leaving the yoga studio two hours later, I noted that the trashcan outside the door was filled to overflowing with disposable water bottles.

Taking a narrow focus, laying aside the global concern in favor of a personal one. Hydrating the body while filling the landscape with plastic. We need to remind ourselves of the Big Picture. We need to remember that our personal health depends greatly - perhaps even solely - on the health of our planet.

And so ends my unsolicited commercial for refillable water bottles and filtered water pitchers.

Turn on the Light

It snowed again last night. No surprise, in this winter with snowfall after snowfall. But still, when it is coming down, it is beautiful.

White Ash in Sunlight

I brought the dog out for his last hurrah of the evening, and he trotted into the fluffy, clean white stuff. His paws left tracks in a circle around my car, then over the little mountain at the end of the driveway created from shoveling the last heavy, wet snowfall.  I watched from the porch, wrapped in a blanket, feeling the heavy wetness of the flakes as they settled on my hair. I looked out to my beautiful, old white ash tree lit only by the ambient light from the reflection of the town's lights on the low clouds. A bright night, wet and cold. Then Sport turned and walked toward the back yard, setting off the motion sensor and turning on the light. Suddenly the scene changed. My vision was filled with sparkling dashes of precipitation. Grayness was gone, light reigned. Dashes of light falling to earth, and I couldn't help but laugh with joy. It was beautiful. It was shiny. It was revealed. 

The same moment, lit up. The same snow that, in darkness was just wet and cold, with illumination was transformed into beauty and joy.

Eventually, I called the dog and we went back inside to watch snowboarding Olympians. 

My light is on.

I Know Why

We've had a cold winter here in New Jersey. I heard on the news this morning that many of us in the tri-state area will see our heating bills double this season. But aside from getting good use of all my beautiful scarves, this chilly weather has given me insight on one of my favorite childhood poems:

Halfway down the stairs
is a stair
where i sit.
there isn't any
other stair
quite like
it.
i'm not at the bottom,
i'm not at the top;
so this is the stair
where
I always
stop.

Original poem and wonderful illustration here.

I notice that when going up my own staircase, there is a step, halfway up, that is warmer than the stair above it or the one below it. It's like swimming through a warm spot in a pond, oooo, warm! Ohh cold! I think that was the spot Christopher Robin chose on his own staircase.

I spent a year in England, living in an old (built 1300's) building that came with the modern convenience of a plug-in heater that accepted 10p pieces for a half hour of dubious warmth. I'm thinking Christopher Robin's house was drafty and poorly heated, too, and he, like most children and animals, found the coziest spot to rest.

. . . all sorts of funny thoughts
Run round my head.
It isn't really
Anywhere!
It's somewhere else
Instead!

(With thanks to A.A .Milne and E.H. Shephard. Now I will go get my Pooh Poems and reminisce a bit.)