"Thanks to impermanence ,  EVERYTHING is possible "

 - Thich Nhat Hanh

Fortifying my  living Temple

Raw.  Organic.  Cell soaking ,  life giving JUICE.

You ROCK Joanie Friedan!  Skinny Limits is liquid manna of the Gods.

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My Kula helps feed my tribe 

…and gives me a break from tending to boys in the kitchen.

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Love .  Light.  Namasté:  CYA Sponsorship

"Old man lying on the side of the road , with the lorries rolling by...

A window of opportunity in yoga class today opened up a lively conversation.. from the students came interpretations of the photos I've been posting on this blog with my temporary practice partner ,  Varian.  One described the machine quite accurately as an oversized ,  over-the-counter Kitchen Aide Baking Blender,  churning things up.  Another take was a version of the Biblical tale of David and Goliath … or a devious device found in the genius children's books, "Captain Underpants" - Emulsifying Sossilflange Inhibitor anyone???

Life. Death. Cycles.  Literal and Metaphorical.  Attachment and Surrender…..
Quite possibly one of , if not the most, beautiful songs ever recorded (  in my world at least )  .   I prefer to keep all accredited opinions about the meaning of this work of art at bay and know it instead  through my heart,  which I'm acutely aware of when I hear Neil Young's raw and perfect voice sing .  

"Don't Let it Bring you Down "  -  Neil Young

Old man lying

by the side of the road

With the lorries rolling by,

Blue moon sinking

from the weight of the load

And the building scrape the sky,

Cold wind ripping

down the alley at dawn

And the morning paper flies,

Dead man lying

by the side of the road

With the daylight in his eyes.

Don't let it bring you down

It's only castles burning,

Find someone who's turning

And you will come around.

Blind man running

through the light

of the night

With an answer in his hand,

Come on down

to the river of sight

And you can really understand,

Red lights flashing

through the window

in the rain,

Can you hear the sirens moan?

White cane lying

in a gutter in the lane,

If you're walking home alone.

Don't let it bring you down

It's only castles burning,

Just find someone who's turning

And you will come around.

Don't let it bring you down

It's only castles burning,

Just find someone who's turning

And you will come around.

Love. Light. Namasté…CYA Yogathon Sponsorship

a beginner's bow….tales from the radiation room.

Today.  A brick wall.  An invisible force field.  

Can both exist at the same time?  
A brick wall of weariness.  An invisible force field of fatigue.  God Bless the techs at Texas Oncology .   They will do anything for me ,  for any of us that they take care of.  They're not photographers and they do their best to shoot a body expressing stillness in motion on this mighty machine.  The radiation table  for the Varian is a narrow sucker.  Not the normal width of a practice mat.  I have a new level of love for my Manduka rolled out on the floor of my sweet home.   
Amy… she knew today I was struggling to hold anything with a level of confidence and grace.  
Needing to immediately rest my eyes, my brain,  my breath.  
But this is a prostration.  
Me a beginning student ,  resting at this teacher's feet. 

ॐ                          

vande gurūṇāṁ caraṇāravinde

वन्दे गुरूणां चरणारविन्दे

saṁdarśitasvātmasukhāvabodhe

संदर्शितस्वात्मसुखावबोधे।

niḥśreyase jāṅgalikāyamāne

निःश्रेयसे जाङ्गलिकायमाने

saṁsāra hālāhala moha śāntyai

संसारहालाहलमोहशान्त्यै॥

Aum śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ Aum

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॐ॥

Aum.

I honour the teachers with their two lotus feet; who have revealed to me the joy that is mine; most excellent sages, my refuge in the dark impenetrable thicket; who bring peace from the poison and illusion seeking ever to exist. Aum Shanti shanti shanti Aum

Aum shanti shanti shanti Aum

Zen Flesh, Zen Bones…tales from the radiation room...

"Mama ,  do you think you're strong?"

"Yes Kiran,  I believe I am strong. Why do you ask?"

"Because you need a strong body to have a strong mind, so you can think and learn better."

My 7 year old was given a Hindi Sanskrit name,  Kiran. 

His two older brothers were bestowed names of Gaelic and Dutch origins, so it was time to represent !

Kiran means " Ray of Light" ,  or " Of the Light" .

Children are little Buddhas…

"To keep the body in good health is a duty…otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear." 

The Buddha

Yoga helps me turn this florescent ,  inanimate , industrial room into a zen zone.

They say you don't feel anything .  That at the time of treatment, the  direct radiation is painless.

But I swear,  I swear I feel something.  

I know I can feel my own energy moving.

~Will you consider  sponsoring me with a donation 

to Community Yoga 

for their wonderful cause? : 

~CYA Yogathon~

Sunday Morning…Contemplation, Kombucha and CONTACT...

~faith~

Sunday Morning.  

Contemplation.

Kombucha.

and "CONTACT" 

queued and ready...

Jodie Foster as Dr. Ellie Arroway:

" …I was given something wonderful, something that changed me forever..a vision of the universe that tells us undeniably how tiny and insignificant and how rare and precious we all are.  A vision that tells us we belong to something that is greater than ourselves.  That we are not,  that none of us,  are alone."

         Tomorrow. Varian. Treatment 12. 

                              Round 2.

Come with me, my love…tales of GRATITUDE

I am ...A vessel for SPIRIT that is open, unbound and limitless.

GRATITUDE 

The Sea of Love by Phil Philips

Come with me my love
To the sea, the sea of love
I want to tell you
How much I love you

Do you remember when we met
Thats the day I knew you were my pet
I want to tell you
How much I love you

I will openly admit my addictions.  TED Radio Hour is one of them 

(  Oh … I have MANY! ) 

Stop.  Take some time and LISTEN…. and feel the  "WOW". 

David Steindl-Rast's TED talk.

"Want to be happy?  Be grateful " 

About David Steindl-Rast's TED Talk:

We all want to be happy,  says David Steindl-Rast,  a Benedictine monk.  And happiness, he suggests,  is born from gratitude.  An inspiring lesson in slowing down,  looking where you're going and above all,  be grateful.

About David Steindl-Rast :

David Steindl-Rast is a Benedictine monk who writes about gratefulness.  Since 1953,  Brother David has been a monk of Mount Saviour Benedictine Monastery in New York,  dividing his time between hermitic contemplation,  writing and lecturing.

He was on of the first Roman Catholics to participate in Buddhist-Christian dialogue,  and is the author of THE GROUND WE SHARE, a text on Buddhist and Christian practice,  written with Robert Aitken Roshi.  His other books include GRATEFULNESS,  THE HEART OF PRAYER and DEEPER THAN WORDS.  HIs most recent book is 99 BLESSINGS.  He's the co-founder of gratefulness.org.

loved ones..Friends familiar and new… There aren't enough words to express my GRATITUDE. ~M

"you're going to hear me ROAR …" …tales from the radiation room..

"ROAR" by Katy Perry 

"I got the eye of the tiger,  a fighter,  dancing through the fire
'Cause I am a champion and you're gonna hear me roar
Louder ,  louder than a lion
'Cause I am a champion and you're gonna hear me roar "

We have a fair trade off in our family car,  a healthy dose of NPR ( one button belongs to Mama ) , and then all the mind numbing mix stations ( 5 buttons belong to my boys ) .  Honestly,  I'll sing almost anything at the top of my lungs with them and for them. 

Today,  I'm feeling an anthem of sorts.  And the loop, well it just won't leave my head.  Even tired, you'll find me dancing through the fire ...and I WILL roar.

                     Calvin. He's at it again. He's got the eka-pada down 

                         with a little bit of "pin-up" girl thrown in !  :)             

                  

        will you help me raise funds to 

   benefit CYA's Yogathon?