My intention when I began these monthly newsletters was to have a
fresh one in your e-mail box on the first day of each month. I'm
letting go of that and moving toward a more organic model, based on
the moon cycles. I'm writing this at the time of the new moon on
Tuesday, April 17.
Here, in the Northeast, we are emerging from a late winter storm.
Everyone I meet talks of feeling off-center. Where is spring?
This morning, at yoga class, we explored postures of surrender and
flow. Shocked by the violence and murder at Virginia Tech, we took
solace in our practice together.
Yoga asks us to show up for our practice.
We can bring everything to our practice, the good, the bad, the
ugly, the shameful, the joyful....wholeheartedly. When we do this,
we find that there is no need to rationalize, analyze, fix or
control.
Consider the possibilities. Consider the energy that could be
available if we weren't busy rationalizing, analyzing, fixing and/or
controlling.
Breathe and notice where you feel comfortable in your body. Then,
notice where you feel uncomfortable. Let your breath be spacious and
full. Spacious enough to contain the comfortable and uncomfortable
with ease.
APRIL/MAY 2007 PRACTICE:
The Tribe
I wrote the following after pondering how plants climbed a trellis.
It is a remarkable process, each plant winding its way up the
support, toward the light. The morning glories I watched developed
from slender tendrils into a riotous, unruly party of purple
blossoms over the spring and summer.
In the long-night dark
soil, I respond to the call.
Awakened, the heart-seed splits open.
Root-legs stretch out and around, finding security.
Rocks, worms, bugs, compost, dirt nourish my growth.
Reaching upward, I sense light and warmth.
Finger-tendrils wind through the maze.
The earth smiles. I discover life.
Sunlight welcomes my spring-fresh green with mother love.
I find myself surrounded by others.
All of us bearing traces of the earth from which we were born.
The trellis awaits.
A holy ladder, of space and structure, it invites us to climb.
We climb with awareness and intention.
We climb together.
We climb alone.
We are climbers by nature.
We are a tribe by choice.
Connect with yourself as a climber, striving for warmth and light.
Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Follow your breath in and out of
your body. Visualize your body as a climbing plant.
What is the nature of your trellis? What does it look like? What do
you depend upon for support?
Begin to notice the trellis and the plants. Let their progress
remind you of your own.
Blessings to you,
Lisa
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