Saturday 28 July 2012

Summer haiku


Red cold
guffaw of summer
slice
of watermelon!

José Juan Tablada, translated by Samuel Beckett.


¡Del verano, roja y fría
carcajada,
rebanada
de sandía!

I get some serious joy from eating a watermelon slice, in particular at my parents' house in their beautiful back garden guarded by pines. 

Wednesday 18 July 2012

When your heart breaks...

dance the rest of your body!

Living the dharma is also about learning to live without. And it's so hard sometimes.

Hay golpes en la vida, tan fuertes... ¡Yo no sé!
Golpes como el odio de Dios; como si ante ellos,
la resaca de lo sufrido
se empozara en el alma... ¡Yo no sé!

César Vallejo

To those who suffer; find your dance whichever your steps may be, find your music. Or hold a pencil between your teeth in front of the mirror for a minute, it's called the Facial-Feedback effect.


Thursday 12 July 2012

The cake trust table

How glorious England is! I had the chance to go to Castle Combe these last couple of days, as I was attending a conference there. Amongst many sightings of limestone in all its glories (weathered, leached, newly carved...), I spotted this cake table just outside someone's cottage. Their business was run on trust; you take a cake and leave the money there. No one making sure you were being honest, and no one cheated.

Monday 2 July 2012

All the birthday blessings


It was my birthday on Friday, and I had a great day at work, and an even better weekend. My girls at work made me a candle with coloured paper and cardboard, which went on top of a slice of the melon cake I baked the previous evening. 
The next morning, my Nia class felt just heavenly. I started the class by gathering every one in a circle and setting the focus and intention; self-healing. Never mind the looking good, the getting the steps and stances right, the moving in unison. I invited every body to listen, to give themselves exactly what they needed, in their own natural time. And in reminding them about their capacity to self-heal, I did a lot of self-healing myself. I relaxed my shoulders and neck, even loosened up my lower back. How I feel now is so much better than I did years ago, when I was younger. I have arrived in my body, and I intend to remain aware of it for a long, long time, as joyfully and fulfillingly as I can. 

And after class my best girls (and Ben) and I went to Avon Beach... loving those negative ions!