Sunday Citar: Looking Forward to Winter?

To poke a wood fire is more solid enjoyment than almost anything else in the world.

~Charles Dudley Warner

I'm joining in on Sunday Citar because, as a bookworm, it's only natural that I love quotes.

Niyaz - Beni Beni

Here's one of my favorite songs to dance to, sung by one of my favorite singers, Azam Ali with the group Niyaz. Enjoy!







Photo of Azam Ali - This is what my fantasy world looks like--well, one of them anyway.

Can’t Judge a Yogi by Their Pants

A lot of “serious” yoga practitioners, myself included, enjoy making of fun (and judging?) lululemon wearing yogis, but is this right? Is it any better than the hippy-yogi stereotype jokes? A stereotype that many of us fight—perhaps because it hits a little too close to home. It’s not fair to judge the lululemon wearing crowd--and by lululemon, I’m pretty much referring to all expensive, fancy yoga clothes. Besides, maybe the wearer got lucky and scored a pair secondhand. Just because someone is wearing lululemon doesn’t mean their interest in yoga is limited to achieving a yoga butt. Maybe they work hard for their money, working all day, and coming to yoga class is their only refuge and chance to experience a different way of being. Is it right then, for us to chastise them and make them feel uncomfortable in coming to perhaps the only environment that they can “let go” in?

(Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

AbunDANCE

Dance until the soles of your feet burn with fire
And all suffering is left behind
Moving forward with your heart wide open
Receiving the beat of the drum
And your soul cries out for more

Want to join the abunDANCE Movement?

It’s for those who wish to remember want it’s like to move the body joyfully and with pleasure, and not as a form of torture to get your body to confirm to same arbitrary ideal. Or perhaps you just want an excuse to dance to your favorite tunes. Dance and let the wild spirit inside of you shine forth. Cultivate gratitude for the body you have and its ability to move and create pleasure. Dance ecstatically. Turn your dance into a moving meditation.

To join the abunDANCE Movement, just save the image and put it on your blog and write about the dance of life whenever you feel inspired and link back to this post. Add your name below so others can find you. (This is my first time doing something like this, here’s hoping it works. And since I lack any graphics skills, and if this is not good enough for your blog, feel free to make me a new one!)

(Public domain photo. Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Moon Salutation

Yesterday, after I posted about my garden, I stepped outside to pick blueberries, and to my surprise, a frolicking baby deer. I froze, not wanting to scare the mother and child. The mother watched me closely as the fawn ran around the yard freely. Never before have I been blessed with such a close encounter of a wild mother and child. Eventually they returned to the secrecy of the forest. I am always deeply grateful for moments like these. Nothing brings you closer to Mother Nature than watching her creatures play.

In honor of the mother and child, the feminine, let’s take a brief look at the Moon Salutation.

(photo from Laura Cornell)

There are different versions, but this Moon Salutation is based on 16 flowing postures "created by and for women in the late 1980s at the Kripalu Center in Lenox, Massachusetts. It balances the more familiar Sun Salutation on physical, psychological, and spiritual levels.” (1) The Moon Salutation cools and calms the nervous system, and is beneficial during menstruation, menopause, and pregnancy. (2)

I personally find that it is a very grounding series of postures that leaves me refreshed and calm. It is a good flow series to practice in the evening or when it is too hot to practice more heat-generating asanas.

(Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Neglected Garden

First, I’d like to thank Mel from Clutter to Shine for the blog award! She said my blog had interesting insights and that makes me very happy. Since I received this award already just last week, I’ll redirect to that list--besides, there's only so much I'm willing to reveal about myself at this point!

Also, despite having my bubble burst last week, I recuperated well thanks to all the positive feedback I received from my readers. Not only that, but I’ve been rejuvenated after spending Saturday with other yogis and yoga teachers, AND my Kripalu teacher emailed me out of the blue, AND I ran into her at the market! I’m supposed to call her to discuss Kripalu. I look forward to going back to her classes this fall.

Oh the weeds, how they grow! I have to tackle the garden this weekend—pulling weeds, canning beets, blanching string beans for freezing. It’s been so hot (except for today) and busy lately that I’ve only been out in the garden to gather fresh veggies for dinner. I’m saddened every time I have to leave it, but there just hasn’t been time other than a few minutes here and there. And of course, the blueberries are taking up my time now. Sometimes I wish I could stay with my garden all day (perhaps if my other dream comes true of being a farmer and living off the land). I’ve also been sleeping in again lately--getting up at 8am instead of 6am. Those extra two hours make a world of difference. I must recommit to rising early. The housework as also been neglected a bit, as it’s been too hot for it. The hubby is going to build a small greenhouse. It’s still in the planning stages—hoping to do it cheaply. He still has no interest in getting his hands dirty and helping in the garden. Got a bit of a break with work now, so gotta go pick some of those blueberries!

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Some Sour Yoga Apples

I had my first confrontation with a yoga teacher that left a slight sour taste in my mouth. I have read of other people’s experiences with this; indeed, we are not all the stereotype of “peace-love-dove” as Linda likes to put it! We can have some strong opinions. I’m not usually one to rant on my blog about an actual person, scared as I am that they should come across it, and without naming names, will still know that they are the subject matter. I still respect this teacher, he/she is a classical yogi who has tremendous experience and knowledge, but he/she is just not a match for me, I’m afraid.

I wouldn’t go so far as to accuse him/her of thinking their form of yoga is the only correct and true form of yoga, but that is the impression I got when I inquired about a 200-hour teacher training program. Instead of guiding me with necessary steps for serious study and the realities of what makes a good teacher, I got a rant about Americanized yoga, commercialism, hot yoga, and soulless yoga aerobics (Vinyasa?--Which, if not Kripalu, is what I’m interested in). Frankly, I love “yoga aerobics.” I sit on my ass all day so it works for me. I’m guessing that’s one reason why it’s so popular, because so many of us sit all day. Plus, I have a tendency towards lethargy, so it keeps me energized throughout the day. I suppose it’s a matter of opinion what’s soulless or not—it’s certainly never been soulless for me, even if the teacher never uses spiritual language. Unfortunately there isn’t a Vinyasa teacher in my area, otherwise I’d go there.

Yes, the 200-hours seems to have allowed many to strive only towards a minimum of training, but it’s a first step. I would certainly not end there, I have too much respect for the tradition, even if I’m personally more comfortable with the horror that is Westernized yoga—but hey, that’s the culture I was born and raised in—it may not be perfect, and I definitely have my issues with overconsumption and commercialism of our culture, but no culture is perfect—there are people who corrupt ancient teachings everywhere. No matter how pure one’s yoga intentions may be, the fact is, you’re still benefiting from its current popularity as it brings in new students who help pay the bills. And as anyone who regularly reads my blog knows, the commericalism, Westernization of yoga is something I struggle with.

I had to rant as my bubble was busted. At least the second reply offered some useful advice (albeit not without a couple more digs) with suggestions to find a teacher in the style I like (advice I’m taking which means I’m not going back to him/her), to study for a few years, and take advantage of retreats and workshops in that tradition. Advice well-heeded, and I happen to agree. (But I’m still a little uncomfortable to show up for my last class!)

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Wishcasting - Who is the “you” you wish to be?

My first time participanting in wishcasting from Jamie Ridler and it's a tough one. Not sure why, since I was daydreaming about this very thing last night--now I just have to put it into words.

Who is the “you” you wish to be?

I’m going allow myself to dream BIG here to answer this question.

I wish I wasn't so shy—one of the few downsides I see to being an introvert. I wish to be a Yoga teacher. I wish to be someone who can help people experience more joy in their lives through Yoga and mindfulness. I wish to be a woman whom young girls look up to, to be a mentor. I wish to be a world traveler and adventurer, but also content to tend the home fires. I wish to be someone who always has a shoulder available for someone to cry on and be able to be comfortable their pain. To be a good listener. I wish to be brave and not hesitate to go after the things I want in life. I wish to make a difference, no matter how small. I wish to not care so much what other people think.

All this is already the "me" inside, just need some work to bring it out to the surface.

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Needing a New Definition of Success

"The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every kind. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to
make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little to do with success as we
have defined it."

- David Orr

(Photo and Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Yoga getaway without going anywhwere

I am loving the heat much more this summer than usual. Normally I find it uncomfortable, but for some reason I just want to be outside all the time--in the garden, the lake, or just lounging about. My pale skin can only take so much, however, so I did my yoga practice inside.

Even though this is a yoga blog (I suppose), I don't write a lot about yoga or my personal practice, but today’s practice had such an effect I have to say a few words. The heat and sweat were welcomed as my body opened up to the vinyasas. My curtains from college that I had put up the day before gave my yoga room (a.k.a., bedroom) a new, colorful atmosphere that combined with RiverTribe’s (now OKA) native Australian music and the heat in such a way that I felt transported to another world. I felt like I was practicing on a remote tropical beach somewhere. There was no resistance to staying in Savasana for a long time, no mental to-do list of what to do after practice; I was able to just let the feeling of peace wash over me. It felt like home. Not all sessions are so grand, but it's one reason why I practice--it's nice to have a reminder now and then.

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

What Do You Wipe With?

( Update: Check out Eco yogini's post to find out if your bum is worthy)

From Greenpeace Kleenercut.net

Kimberly-Clark and Greenpeace agree to historic measures to protect forests
"5 August 2009: Kimberly-Clark releases new environmental policy.
The Kleercut campaign is over.
Canada's precious Boreal Forest is better conserved today. So are ancient forests around the world.
At a joint news conference in Washington DC, Greenpeace and the Kimberly-Clark Corporation, the world’s largest tissue-product manufacturer, announced an historic agreement that will ensure greater protection and sustainable management of Canada's Boreal Forest and other ancient forests around the world.
The agreement also will stand out as a model for forest-products companies worldwide."



As anyone who has seen a clearcut forest that's grown back knows, that although, as the lady says, pine grows back faster than it can be cut, it doesn't mean the forest is healthy. It takes a long time for the ecological balance to be restored, and that's where sustainable forestry practices come in. There are a lot of clear cut areas where I live, and they are not the beautiful forests from storybooks with natural paths and a healthy mixture of tall trees that let a bit of sunshine in through the canopy for the plants and animals underneath. It's more like tall overgrown, invasive weeds with some pine. You can't walk there, not much lives there, and there is no shade or real canopy.



Most people won't switch to reusable bathroon tissue, but for our big ol'noses at least, let's be ladies and gentlemen and start using those old-fashioned handkerchiefs again.

(Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Fear

I have an embarrassing confession: I’m an adult woman who’s still afraid of the dark. There, I said it, laugh if you want. And yet, last night while home alone, I just casually strolled out onto the lawn and laid myself down to look up at the stars. True, it wasn’t pitch black, but it was not something I would normally do. The question of fear didn’t even register in me until I had been out for a while, and then I realized, Holy crap, I’m outside at night by myself! I listened to the insects and watched the bats flying overhead trying to catch moths. Perhaps this is one fear that is slowly fading.

There are a few other things that scare me: cancer (any serious disease, really) and travelling alone. There’s not much I can do about the first one, other than take care of myself physically and spiritually, live each day fully, and develop intimate relationships with friends and family. As far as travelling alone goes, well, it’s definitely something I think about from time to time. If I wasn’t saving up for yoga teacher training, I think a trip would definitely be in the plans, but who knows what I’ll decide in the end. My main fear with travelling, other than the logistics of getting there (I hate airports) and putting my other responsibilities on hold, is life after the trip. Would I have a job (money/security)? I’m kind of self-employed; I don’t get paid vacations. Of course taking off for one week to go see killer whales in BC is not the same thing as going overseas for a month or more. Solution? Start small. I joined a local hiking group (not sure how active they are at this point though), to help me get used to meeting new people in different environments. Next step: go on an outdoor adventure week-long tour, without the hubby (he’s not the outdoor type anyway), with some kind of group where everything is taken care of for you. Next step: Bali, here I come . . . or someplace like that!

What are you afraid of? What are some steps you can take to overcome your fears?

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

This is peace

(Anyone know what this purple beauty is?)

The heat still absent in the morning, as a cool breeze makes for a beautiful day outside. I’d rather be outside, but have lots of work with a deadline to do--lucky for me I work from home so at least I can sneak a few breaks here and there to pull out some of my first carrots, some more potatoes and beets, and hang the laundry out to dry so that nature can leave it’s scent that’s so much better than anything that can be bought. With the sun in my eyes, a hummingbird stopped for a brief rest on the line. I squinted to see; I had left my glasses inside. Not a bad start to the day.

(Photo & Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

The Veggie Garden: Present and Future

Tomato plants with no tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers,

and celery and string beans way in the back.

Two cherry tomatoes. That will make four cherry tomatoes so far.

My favorite section of the garden. Red leaf lettuce and buttercrunch, 2nd planting of spinach that's starting to grow, carrotes, beets, and hidden onions. The potatoes are behind where I was standing.

Recently tilled garden. Wild rose bush hedge in the background.

The two tarps in front will be moved and the soil tilled for next year. The two tarps in the back where just laid down this weekend, so they will stay until next year. The whole area used to be covered in the tall weeds you see in the back.

Weekend In Review

The weather was lovely, and windy, for my town’s very short reenactment play (it involved those Yankees), followed by my first art purchase (my “father-in-law” is an art dealer, so it was a good investment) and dinner at the pub with my in-laws. We went to their house afterwards for tea and chatting (and no religious debate ensued, yay!). I was able to pass on my new knowledge of sorrel to my “mother-in-law” as I found some in her yard.

Sunday satisfied my craving for silence and having absolutely nothing to do—but that doesn’t mean nothing got done. I tilled another section of the garden for next year using my own muscle power and a handy tool (one of those claw cultivator things). Moved two tarps over to cover another section to suppress hardy 4 foot high weeds. They will stay there until next year. I took pictures, but they didn’t turn out. The evening concluded with 10 minutes of yoga on my yoga rock (a rock with a flat surface)—I got distracted and ended up walking around barefoot in the grass, noticed the blueberry bushes where heavy with ripe berries and ended up picking those for a while. Returned inside when it started to get dark to read for a bit. Played Crazy Eights with my hubby (I had to explain the rules of the game, again) before heading off to bed with lots to be grateful for.

(Photo & Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

MeMe Blog Award

My mother (Getting Back to Basics) awarded me a blog award--she kinda has too, I suppose—I mean, what kind of mom would she be if she didn't!

The rules to this award are as follows:1) share 7 tidbits about yourself2) share this MeMe Blog Award with 7 blogger friends

All About Me (certainly not a conclusive list):

1. I want to go to BC to kayak with killer whales even though just the thought of a killer whale swimming next to me scares the crap out of me. I'm pretty sure I'd panic and cry—and I can only hope that my bladder is empty. But I think they are fascinating creatures.

2. I just under five feet tall. I'm almost 28 but I still get asked if I'm 16.

3. I'm a major homebody. I'd don't need to get out much.

4. I usually enjoy physical labour, but since I have a desk job, I’m not necessarily in the best shape for it.

5. I love frenchy shopping (used clothing stores in Atlantic Canada), just like my mom, and there nothing better than finding a size 2P Anne Taylor dress with the tag still on it--but that's only happened once.

6. Fall is my favorite season; I'm sure you'll get to read lots about that later.

7. I crave silence and having absolutely nothing to do. This is not boring to me at all.

I am passing on the MeMe award to:

1. Eco-Yogini: For taking the time to share crucial info on “green” products and green living. And she lives in NS too!
2. Flundrum Hill: For making me fall in love with Nova Scotia over and over again.
3. Mama Craft: For her beautiful garden photos.
4. Now, This is Yoga. One of my latest blog finds.

5. The Humble Yogini: One of the first yoga blogs on my blogroll.
6. Write On Yoga: Another recently discovered blog.

7. Yoga, the Mind and the Culture. For her honesty.

Random Things

Picked my string beans just in time before it started to pour—the kind of rain that sends you rushing to close all your windows—I love it. It’s already started to slow down . . . and now it's sunny again!

Potato porn from the garden. I love growing potatoes! I plan on planting lots more next year; enough to store over winter perhaps.

Thanks to Flandrum Hill I have identified this herb (Sorrel) that I posted about here.

Wild daylily stir-fry. Yup, I ate them. The daylilies tasted like everything else in the stir-fry. I plan to freak people out by being one of those “weirdo’s” who randomly picks things off the lawn and eats them.

I’ve stuck to my intention to stop buying bread. I only have to make fresh bread once or twice a week to keep the two of us in supply.

I'll soon be up to my eyeballs in blueberries . . . not that I'm complaining.

And here’s the beautiful lake down the road that we swim in.
(Photo & Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Graceful Simplicity

I did it. I registered a new blog, Graceful Simplicity, but then I thought, What am I doing? Why don’t I just update this one? Other bloggers seem to end up combining all their blogs eventually anyway . . . that or they just vanish. So now my little corner in the blogosphere will encompass the other things in life that I am equally passionate about. There have been inklings (well, maybe more of an ink spill) of it here recently anyway. It will be about yoga, home life, nature, books, contemplation, simple joys, and the everyday sacred—the things that I value most and strive to live my life by, not always successfully. Oh, I also changed the look—it’s pink . . . and flowery . . . and oh so feminine—deal with it (at least until I’m in the mood to change it again!).
(Photo & Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Not Much Better Than . . .

Picking blueberries in morning with the sun shining through the morning dew; feet wet and cooled by the grass; listening to faint, gentle coyote calls somewhere off deep in the woods.

(photo source: wiki)

A Little Yoga Humor

How many Kripalu yogis does it take to change a light bulb? None, they wouldn’t even notice the light went out.

Here’s a pretty funny video about some guys’s experience with one of those “beginner” yoga videos.



And here’s a video that’s not meant to be funny, but I can’t help laughing anyway because she talks about yoga being for everyBODY, and how she became a teacher because she wanted to make yoga accessible to everyone and how you don’t need to be young and fit (noble goals), but then look at the poses being demonstrated! Yes, it’s beautiful, but no wonder people are afraid of yoga and think they can’t do it! If you’re going to talk about making yoga accessible to everyone then why are you showing them these gymnastic feats?


(Photo & Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga, 2009)

"Create your own world, like Robinson Crusoe"

'What happiness it is to work from dawn to dusk for your family and yourself, to build a roof over their heads, to till the soil to feed them, to create your own world, like Robinson Crusoe, in imitation of the Creator of the universe, to bring forth your life, as if you were your own mother, again and again.'

- From Yury's journal, Doctor Zhivago . (Of course he ends up having an affair after this was written, so I guess that life didn't fulfill all is his needs after all.)

Also from Yury's journal:

'About dreams. It is usually taken for granted that you dream of something which has made a particularly strong impression on you during the day, but it seems to me it's just the contrary.

'Often it's something you paid no attention to at the time--a vague thought you didn't bother to think out to the end, words spoken without feeling and which passed unnoticed--these are the things which return at night, clothed in flesh and blood characters in dreams, as if to force you to make up for having neglected them in your waking hours.'

(Photo & Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga, 2009)

What is this sour-apple tasting weed?

Anyone know what this plant is called? It's tastes like sour apples and it grows in a bunch in various areas in my lawn. Is it edible?

(Photo & Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga, 2009)