Saturday, June 27, 2009
Mindfulness
"Mindfulness can be thought of as a moment-to-moment, non-judgmental awareness, cultivated by paying attention in a specific way; that is, in the present moment and as non-reactively, non-judgmentally and openheartedly as possible. When it is cultivated intentionally, it is sometimes referred to as deliberate mindfulness. When it spontaneously arises, it is sometimes referred to as effortless mindfulness. Ultimately, however arrived at, mindfulness is mindfulness." - Jon Kabat-Zinn.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Soltice at Breitenbush and other news
This was the fourth year for Helen (my daughter) and me to go to the Solstice Celebration at Breitenbush Hot Springs. We did our annual skit on Saturday night - added two women - Cynthia and Meredith.
How can I describe my experiences at Breitenbush? I'll just jot down some words that come to me from my right brain:
Delicious
Soft
Natural
Glorious
Trees alive
Lithium mineral in the pools smoothing, soothing, uplifting, centering, flying
People exuding love
No demands
My daughter Helen is visiting from Albuquerque, NM. She is someone so very special in my life. We laugh until tears come into our eyes and our sides hurt. She corrects me more than I correct her. After all, she's a trained elementary teacher and school librarian, practicing as a school librarian.
Someone at Breitenbush said that Facebook is evil. Hmmm.
Yesterday we went to our favorite consignment shop and found treasures. I bought the most BEAUTIFUL silk jacket - reversible, a black velvet hat and several soaps and bath salts. Helen got a bunch of stuff. She will fill an extra suitcase to take back.
Today I taught my senior Nia class. I used the two tracks Jeremy created for The Gentle Way to Fitness and some drumming music. It's growing quite organically. I didn't do any FloorPlay. Somehow it was instinctual to not do that today. I'm following my instincts, my guidance in the way I'm teaching this summer - listening to my body and my students' bodies.
Life is oh so good.
How can I describe my experiences at Breitenbush? I'll just jot down some words that come to me from my right brain:
Delicious
Soft
Natural
Glorious
Trees alive
Lithium mineral in the pools smoothing, soothing, uplifting, centering, flying
People exuding love
No demands
My daughter Helen is visiting from Albuquerque, NM. She is someone so very special in my life. We laugh until tears come into our eyes and our sides hurt. She corrects me more than I correct her. After all, she's a trained elementary teacher and school librarian, practicing as a school librarian.
Someone at Breitenbush said that Facebook is evil. Hmmm.
Yesterday we went to our favorite consignment shop and found treasures. I bought the most BEAUTIFUL silk jacket - reversible, a black velvet hat and several soaps and bath salts. Helen got a bunch of stuff. She will fill an extra suitcase to take back.
Today I taught my senior Nia class. I used the two tracks Jeremy created for The Gentle Way to Fitness and some drumming music. It's growing quite organically. I didn't do any FloorPlay. Somehow it was instinctual to not do that today. I'm following my instincts, my guidance in the way I'm teaching this summer - listening to my body and my students' bodies.
Life is oh so good.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Clearing Out
I've accumulated a bunch of journals, books, papers and oddities beside my bed where I have some bookshelves and floorspace. I decided to go through and discard, sell, give away or keep appropriate items. As I was wandering through the journals, I read some of the entries. I found them to be quite entertaining and occasionally enlightening.
I now have a full bag of books to take to Powell's Bookstore. I filled a large trash can with papers etc. I have a HUGE number of manuals notes, handouts, fliers, and lesson plans from my Nia studies. So far, I'm keeping them.
Looking through books: so much information, some of it contradictory - especially information about diet and nutrition. I want to be so in tune with my body that I feed it what it needs rather than what some book or person tells me!
I now have a full bag of books to take to Powell's Bookstore. I filled a large trash can with papers etc. I have a HUGE number of manuals notes, handouts, fliers, and lesson plans from my Nia studies. So far, I'm keeping them.
Looking through books: so much information, some of it contradictory - especially information about diet and nutrition. I want to be so in tune with my body that I feed it what it needs rather than what some book or person tells me!
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Continuing
Yes, I want to keep account here.
I taught two yoga classes. Kate called me a couple of hours before class to sub for her. The first class was for pregnant women. There were two of them. The second class was for a roomful of new, intermediate and advanced students, male, female ranging in age from teen to elderly. I am quite confident in teaching yoga - have been doing it for many years. Today I seemed stronger, more focused, more connected than ever. Something is happening! Something has loosened.
The DNA is dancing. Energy is flowing. Love.
I taught two yoga classes. Kate called me a couple of hours before class to sub for her. The first class was for pregnant women. There were two of them. The second class was for a roomful of new, intermediate and advanced students, male, female ranging in age from teen to elderly. I am quite confident in teaching yoga - have been doing it for many years. Today I seemed stronger, more focused, more connected than ever. Something is happening! Something has loosened.
The DNA is dancing. Energy is flowing. Love.
Activating the DNA
Last night we returned to the Crystal Temple to learn more about the Mystery School and activating the DNA strands. This study and process was created 3000 years ago by King Solomon. It was kept secret until 1997. Now the secrets are being given to prepare us for the changes (2012 AD) which have been predicted.
I received an activation.
As yet, I don't notice any dramatic change - unless one considers my even stronger desire to serve, to share the Light I have been blessed to be given.
Each moment is an eternity and a nanosecond.
Time is an invention to allow us to function sequentially. Actually, everything occurs simultaneously.
These concepts give me the opportunity to take it all much less seriously.
My body is telling me it's time to feed it.
Namaste
I received an activation.
As yet, I don't notice any dramatic change - unless one considers my even stronger desire to serve, to share the Light I have been blessed to be given.
Each moment is an eternity and a nanosecond.
Time is an invention to allow us to function sequentially. Actually, everything occurs simultaneously.
These concepts give me the opportunity to take it all much less seriously.
My body is telling me it's time to feed it.
Namaste
Friday, June 12, 2009
Free Form
One of the first parts of the video will be Free Form. This is a technique to get into body awareness gently and safely. It is powerful, can be done anytime and anywhere by anyone.
Basically, you close your eyes, go inside, watch your breath, communicate with your body to follow its movements and observe it as it moves.
After a bit, you consciously pause, ground by sending energy into the feet, hands and head. You may make minor adjustments to maintain balance. Then you begin to move again. You continue moving and pausing, moving and pausing. I find when I do this that the breath is key in directing the energy.
After another bit, you open your eyes, continuing the process, to expand your awareness to the outer environment while being as conscious of the inner environment.
I have been employing this technique with my students and they are finding it useful. In class we partner up, then add more and more people moving and pausing together. I may or may not have that on the video as part of the workout. It would be fun to have a section where that kind of thing could be shown (group activity etc.) Also, in class we usually start in silence and then add music, which of course has an influence.
I have been doing this myself in a classroom situation (Kelmanworks with Melanya Helene) and on my own. It's a different experience each time. It serves me as a moving meditation and a warm-up of the body.
What I love most about it in terms of having it on the DVD is that it is a Gentle Way to Fitness and anyone can do it and benefit from it!
If anyone reading this blog tries this technique and has some feedback from it, I would love to hear about it.
Basically, you close your eyes, go inside, watch your breath, communicate with your body to follow its movements and observe it as it moves.
After a bit, you consciously pause, ground by sending energy into the feet, hands and head. You may make minor adjustments to maintain balance. Then you begin to move again. You continue moving and pausing, moving and pausing. I find when I do this that the breath is key in directing the energy.
After another bit, you open your eyes, continuing the process, to expand your awareness to the outer environment while being as conscious of the inner environment.
I have been employing this technique with my students and they are finding it useful. In class we partner up, then add more and more people moving and pausing together. I may or may not have that on the video as part of the workout. It would be fun to have a section where that kind of thing could be shown (group activity etc.) Also, in class we usually start in silence and then add music, which of course has an influence.
I have been doing this myself in a classroom situation (Kelmanworks with Melanya Helene) and on my own. It's a different experience each time. It serves me as a moving meditation and a warm-up of the body.
What I love most about it in terms of having it on the DVD is that it is a Gentle Way to Fitness and anyone can do it and benefit from it!
If anyone reading this blog tries this technique and has some feedback from it, I would love to hear about it.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Writing and Sleep
Writing
I've been writing for years. I've written plays, poetry and articles. I once had a column in a newspaper. I've done quite a bit of editing for various situations which I won't go into at this time.
I study correct spelling, punctuation, grammar and syntax as a writer, teacher and editor. I particularly enjoy editing - making sense out of the garbled writing of people who have great ideas yet lack the skill of clear sentence structure. So much of what I read, particularly on the internet, is rife with misspellings, illogical transmission of communication, poor grammar and what I call "dart board punctuation."
It seems that writing is becoming a bit of a lost art, as has conscious conversation. Communication is transforming. Someday it may be only energy transmission - perhaps the way the animal and vegetable kingdom communicate! There is a whole new language from technology - tex messages etc. It's kind of fascinating.
Sleep. I enjoy my weird sleep habits. Occasionally I get caught in the information trap, i.e. that we NEED x amount hours of sleep and we NEED to sleep at certain times. The problem is that different experts (former spurts) have different opinions which they back up with official sounding statistics and studies. When I'm clear about who and what I am, I ignore all that. Oh yes, who and what I am includes part cat.
It's time to do some heavy duty cleaning and organizing.
I've been writing for years. I've written plays, poetry and articles. I once had a column in a newspaper. I've done quite a bit of editing for various situations which I won't go into at this time.
I study correct spelling, punctuation, grammar and syntax as a writer, teacher and editor. I particularly enjoy editing - making sense out of the garbled writing of people who have great ideas yet lack the skill of clear sentence structure. So much of what I read, particularly on the internet, is rife with misspellings, illogical transmission of communication, poor grammar and what I call "dart board punctuation."
It seems that writing is becoming a bit of a lost art, as has conscious conversation. Communication is transforming. Someday it may be only energy transmission - perhaps the way the animal and vegetable kingdom communicate! There is a whole new language from technology - tex messages etc. It's kind of fascinating.
Sleep. I enjoy my weird sleep habits. Occasionally I get caught in the information trap, i.e. that we NEED x amount hours of sleep and we NEED to sleep at certain times. The problem is that different experts (former spurts) have different opinions which they back up with official sounding statistics and studies. When I'm clear about who and what I am, I ignore all that. Oh yes, who and what I am includes part cat.
It's time to do some heavy duty cleaning and organizing.
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