As Is

The Leaves

Missed out on part two of the mindfulness workshop at work because I was too busy. Asked one of my coworkers to take notes not knowing that she would be so mindful; I was touched because she did such a great job...

As I tried to wrap up the day, something unexpected came up and none of the people that I needed were responding but I stayed calm hoping for a favorable resolution even though I felt so alone with the problem. The situation resolved itself and I was proud for not panicking or being dramatic.

Went to yoga tonight and thought about Luther Vandross' Here and Now which is not the first time that this song has popped into my mind during yoga. Wish I knew why my brain frequently associates events with music.

Walked back to work after lunch. Perfect weather -- not warm and not chilly. I wanted to escape to Forest Park and just walk and walk.

While walking listened to a funny episode, Her Life For Ice Cream, of  The Sporkful with comedian Maria Bamford. Also finished listening to Dan Harris' interview with Rivers Cuomo on 10% Happier. I'm still trying to decide whether to download another episode of 10%...

Since I ready the article on Turia Pitt, I've started following her on Instagram where I found out that she did a Ted Talk; it's so inspiring and made me reset as far as having gratitude for my body as is.

Part of Coworker's Notes

✨The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let the dead things go✨ . Fall is coming... What do you want to let go of? What change do you want to welcome in with the start of a new season? . #wholeheartedliving #welcomechange

A photo posted by Tanya Conner-Green (@wholeheartedlifecoach) on Sep 11, 2016 at 9:16pm PDT

The Grape Exercise

We had a mindfulness training at work on Thursday. You know, how to be mindful in your life and at work.

The presenter, Greg, talked about organized forms of mindfulness like yoga and Tai Chi etc. We also did an exercise with a grape -- concentrating and observing it for about three minutes then eating half of it. While we were studying the grape, I kept thinking that if I ate mindfully more often, my clothes wouldn't be shrinking...

I've been feeling pretty confident about the whole take my front wheel off my bicycle but got to the riverfront today and the brake cable wouldn't cooperate. Thought that Alison and I would end up walking but this guy who looked like a hardcore cyclist tried to put it back together and it didn't work for him either. He suggested putting the cable together then deflating the tire which then made it fit between the cable mechanism. Inexplicably, the darn thing worked when I reassembled at home.

Around the five mile mark, we hit the rest stop and there were some other women there with Nutcase helmets on. We chit-chatted with the women a bit and one, a former trauma nurse, gave us a friendly reminder about wearing helmets and then her friend chimed in to say that when you crash, your body is still going 14 miles per hour. Obviously, she hasn't witnessed the speed at which we ride. The little lecture definitely gave me something to think about though.

Went for a float again. It didn't seem as relaxing as last time but I do like the whole ritual of showering, floating then showering again followed by a post-float time-out in the relaxation room. While it wasn't as relaxing, it still felt like a reset.

Float Tank, Filtration System Activated

Ease

Embedding this old Instagram post is kind like having a flashback of a flashback.

I instantly fell in love with Mary Oliver's Wild Geese. Reading this poem is like taking a breath since it puts me at ease and makes me feel connected.

The first two sentences also make me think of yoga which also puts me at ease. Seriously, I do not have to be good in yoga and I do not have to do a headstand or wheel pose and I don't have to execute a perfect Warrior I and I don't have to be thin etc. etc...

You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers. Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again. Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting -- over and over announcing your place in the family of things. #WildGeese #MaryOliver #Poetry #PoetryGram #FBF #Negril 🇯🇲 #Yoga #YogaGram #Balasana #ChildsPose #YogaJourney #YogisOfInstagram #MindfulLife #Namaste

A photo posted by Andrea (@andrea_mw) on Jun 10, 2016 at 5:47am PDT

E Is For Empty

It was a mad scramble yesterday: work, grocery store, cook (phase one), exercise, cook (phase two). Don't like cooking on Monday but I did like what I cooked -- baked chicken and Sweet Potato, Feta and Shiitake Packets.

Only, I didn't use feta cheese, shiitake, Swiss chard or mint. The packets were yummy and with the addition of mint, I just might out-and-out moan.

Sweet Potato, Feta & Shiitake Packet

Instead of the usual Monday night yoga class, opted for a bubble bath while reading the Jan. issue of Prevention. Spooky that I named the last blog post Soothed then came across The Healer.

If a doctor learns to practice mindfulness...and she walks in quietly, peacefully, that's already medicine. She's calm. She's not outside of her body. The patient feels the attention, that tenderness, that care, that true presence. The patient is already soothed.

The Healer, by the way, is Sister Dang Nghiem.

Took The 'Fugee to see her acupuncturist a few weeks ago and we were on a very tight schedule but the thing that I remember the most is the acupuncturist's calm...

Felt punch-drunk when I woke up this morning. Crawled under the covers when I got home and it was about 70 minutes later when I woke up. Ate then headed to the pool and hoped that the chilly water would energize me.

Stopped by The Fugee's after swimming and she wanted to know what was wrong. She was surprised by the whole Queen of the Ashy People look. I need to remember to put lotion in my gym bag because when my face is under water, all the moisture is sucked out.

Also stopped by the gas station. I can count, on one hand, the number of times that I've let my tank get this low. And, apparently, my car's tank is not the only thing that's low.

I Am At The Helm

I narrowed my exercise choices to Zumba and yoga but didn’t really feel like jumping into a new adventure so I nixed Zumba but had to look for a yoga class that I don’t normally go to because there wasn't a class that I wanted to attend at my regular gym.

It’s often unnerving to walk into a new situation but I went anyway. Fast forward to savasana -- tears started to roll. I’m definitely in a weird space right now.

As I drove away, I felt such intensity in my throat -- as if a sock was in there or a boa constrictor around it. Interesting since I went to a mindfulness workshop yesterday. I found what the therapist said about the throat chakra very interesting. I can’t remember what she said exactly but it was something about the throat chakra being the gateway between the heart and brain.

Release...and relief. My lower back was tight and, now, it’s not; I think I have bow pose to thank for that.

Now that I think about it, we did this Breath of Fire situation at the beginning of class and I've never done it before and wasn't comfortable with it either. Almost feel like if someone initiates the Breath of Fire, it's kind of like doing Reiki and permission should be asked first. I want to say that I was not at the helm but it is my yoga practice and I should have not participated in the exercise if I didn't feel comfortable. At any rate, I think BOF might have contributed to the sensation in my throat.

Past Tense

I worked week-old stiffness out of my neck at the Kennedy Rec Complex.

I did eight laps before being overrun by the furious front crawlers in the designated lap lane.

I thought about Thich Nhat Hanh and mindfulness as I watched the clear blue sky and the clear clouds.

I practiced doing the sidestroke on my left side which turned out to be a clumsy effort and I, of course, practiced the front crawl.

Lately, I've been feeling like this clinging bird on a wire.