my world in 24 x 72 inches

Stories are the landscape of our lives. 
If the gods can commit acts of frailty,
then humans can have acts of the divine.

Alanna Kaivalya, teacher of yoga

 

This weekend I participated in a yoga seminar with Alanna Kaivalya...of course it was a weekend when I had about fifteen irons in the fire that I would schedule one more thing. 

 

It was absolutely life changing. 

 

It was tough to get there on a busy weekend...I felt moments when my core was being rubbed raw by my own frustrations and limiting thoughts...breathe through the pose...initially there were teardrops on my yoga mat because it was too much all at once. Moving through the postures (asanas) and the sacred teachings (sutras), I realized that despite all the searching and yearning to find the answers...all the time my truth has been within me. Freedom!  Profound! Exhausting! Enlightening!  What a joy to discover such gifts (presence) inside!  Here are some threads of wisdom to share with you...

 

Yoga is an mystical practice that teaches you to go internally and seek the eternal truths.

 

Every fear boils down to a fear of death.  Realize this is the way to release yourself into fearlessness.  There is a piece of us that will never die...it is our spirit or that which animates the body.

 

Suffering occurs in the mind.  Pain is inevitable. 
Suffering is optional.

 

Follow your bliss, go with what speaks to and inspires you
...this is what will free you.

 

What are the myths by which you are living?

 

What is it that inspires you, enlivens you
and connects you to your story?

 

Yoga does not look outside for solutions.  It goes inside where there can be a shift in perception where the problem becomes an opportunity...the revealer of possibilities.

 

Whatever I want to change in the world,
I can do it by changing one person...me.  -Byron Katie

 

The most valuable sources and resources come from within.  How about upgrading yourself to new thoughts instead of replaying those from the past or those of your worry?

 

The Source is in the heart...a little fire in the center or right side of the heart. 
It has been there all along and will not leave you. 
There is no need to go outside of ourselves because everything we need is within us.

 

Our best friends will be able to see without a doubt that we are capable of doing anything...
it is only when we believe in ourselves that we become the hero of our own story.

 

We are here to negotiate the relationships between heaven and earth--feet are on the earth, head is in heaven and the heart is where the negotiation happens.

 

Bad things happen in life...
this is the time to become the warrior.
A yogi explores both the light and the dark...
it is in the dark that we discover who we are.

 

You have to learn to lean into the sharp edges...like the yogi who lays on a bed of nails...by being fully there and balanced, there is no pain.  When we go into it gingerly,
we cannot do it and we feel the great pain.

 

When you do not bring forth the desire of your heart,
it will destroy you.

 

The stretching and bending in yoga tells you where you are tight and restricted in life as all the body has corresponding Chakras or energy centers which brings forth knowledge of our lives.

 

Yoga is the natural state.
There is no where to go, no where to be, and nothing to do. 
There is no graduation.
Yoga is the awareness of the present moment and
that all your power is NOW!

 

 Enlightenment happens for moments at a time and after awhile of practice it is always there.  But it is no big deal--you just finally realize who you are.  You still have to pay the bills and take out the trash.  It is becoming awesomely aware of everything and being okay with it.

 

Rip off all the layers, patterns, habits, guilts and judgments of yourself...
the more you peel off the easier yoga can come forth. 

 

Ignorance is believing that
we are anything other than divine.

 

We all have a thought train racing in our brain.  Yoga practice allows you to see the spaces in between the cargo, then to remove the cargo, and to slow down the train so you can see the world beyond your thoughts.

 

All animals are intrinsically afraid of fire and run away from it...it was when man ran toward the fire and harnessed it to make something useful that the world evolved.  Don't run away from the fear; go into the dark places...you will see who you are.  You cannot be destroyed. 
Matter and energy can neither be created nor destroyed.

 

Breathe in even patterns and bring yourself to balance.

 

Enlightenment isn't pulling yourself away from the challenges of life...you just stop letting things bother you and by doing this, you attract that which you dream and desire.

 

Enlightenment isn't special or exclusive but about the way you address the things that happen to you.  Change the patterns of your thoughts and change your world.

 

When disturbed by disturbing thoughts, think the opposite. 
When the event is done, it is done. 
Stop thinking of it and be free!

 

The answer is already there for you when you
come with the question.

 

To know and not to do is really not yet to know.--Buddha

 

And my million dollar question...did any of the enlightened masters have children?  The answer was very few...so if you have children like me, there is our work and  there are our teachers!!  Like Alanna's dog Roxie, they will speak to keep us on the path! Namaste!!

P.S. 24 x 72 is the size of an average yoga mat!

taking it in steps

The distance is nothing;

it is only the first step

that is difficult.

Madame Marie du Deffand, 1697-1780

French host and patron of the artsYou know how they always say "people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones?" Well, there is another adage that goes, "impatient people have no business purchasing 300 year old homes." For the last three months, I have been overseeing the refinishing of many rooms in our home, and despite the great progress we have made, I still find myself feeling overwhelmed and frustrated that it isn't the way I want it. I see the image in my mind, I can feel the air, see the light and smell the coffee...but it just won't go fast enough. When I was younger, I considered this the thrill of the chase...but as I "mature," I find the chase less thrilling because I JUST WANT IT DONE!!! No more dust, no more spill clothes, and everything in place. How easy it is to wave aside progress when we have certain ideals in our mind. We miss the little victories and forget to toast our accomplishments. Great philosophers have said we can avoid the frustration by staying aware of the present moment, and when you are creating a home what is more important than those little steps, that become big memories of the great things you have achieved? One thing I have begun to be more attentive to is to take pictures and start to document the before and after...so there is a visual reminder of the road travelled. Believe me, it helps keep you sane! In the same way, we need to look back at the memories of our lives...all those pictures and videos that document who you were...and celebrate all the steps that have brought you to where you are today!

seeing our shadow

"Did you ever have de ja vu, Mrs. Lancaster?"

"I don't think so, but I could check with the kitchen"

Phil Conors (Bill Murray) Groundhog Day.

If you haven't ever seen the movie Groundhog's Day with Bill Murray...run out and get a copy today. In brief, it is the story of Phil Conors, a weatherman, who goes to Punxsutawny, PA to witness if the groundhog sees his shadow. He wakes up to the same day over and again until he learns the lesson of becoming a better man. (That is really a nutshell and hardly does justice to the movie..."Am I right? Or am I right?")
We have been going through our own de ja vu as we have had repeated snow days here in eastern Pennsylvania...each day getting more extreme than the next. We definitely got to see our shadow side as cabin fever set in, and three kids who are dealing with all the pressures of the move let me have it.
Granted, life has changed dramatically for them...we have moved to a new country home that is very much the opposite of our former one, they are taking the school bus, in school with hundreds of kids, routines are different, missing friends...and suddenly we are reliving the same thing every day of "I wanna go home!!"
Moving with kids, much like the story of Phil Conors is about learning something new and becoming better than we were yesterday. At times, it is one step forward and two steps back, but learning to be patient and realizing this is a huge adjustment for everyone helps tremendously. Stop. Breathe. Find a good local restaurant for take-out and eat in the living room...show them that turning the world upside down can be great!
Many of the things we are discovering are fun...like the long icy driveway that is the best for skating and the mom-and-pop stores that wield treasures not found in chains, the hopes of spring and warmer weather...so we can open the pool!

a thought for your week

I don’t know why they all push to get in line

–we all walk in together.

My 5 year-old son was telling his grandpa about school, and he shared this bit of wisdom.  "Some kids cry because they aren't the line leader and didn't get to be first.  Me? I don't care because we are all going to get there together."  There is a biblical passage about a child shall lead us...and sometimes just when you least expect it...they do.