the heart leads...

let's face it...i have terrible posture! i was talking about it with L the other night and she helped me realign correctly and, touching my chest and then my forehead, said, "the heart leads, the head's just along for the ride". i like to think of that more figuratively than anatomically. it's difficult for me...even figuratively, i lead more with my head and less with my heart than i thought i did. but that's one big area that i feel has been given room to grow, and that, my friends, is a good thing!

another one-liner from L that i've been thinking on is "the body never lies". this came about last week when we were doing a private yoga session together, and an unnatural movement for me brought more clarity to certain past life-events. i'm already convinced that my body knows me far better than i know my body, so i continue to be excited about yoga.
((more details on other insights to come later))

i miss my little man!

this is the little guy (the duke man) i worked with at head start last year. what i wouldn't give for another moment of snuggling with him, or having him get his snack all over me & down my shirt. or to hear his "singing" and other noises...to tickle him as he looks at me with his "i'm waiting for you to tickle me" look. oh how i love him!

((lyn, you are truly blessed to have this wonderful little man...thanks for sharing him with us at head start! much love to your family))

more snaps

on sunday i took a little roadtrip around the area. i only covered about 90 miles, but there was a lot to take in in that small area. first i hit an art museum & gallery (the dia in beacon) which was pretty great! i saw some stuff from one of my favorite sculptors (richard serra). he uses massive layers of sheet metal to create sculptures in ways that when you're walking by, around, or in them it actually feels like the space around you is moving...dancing. it's so amazing! then i explored a little bit of main street in the town of beacon, which was also really cool...art galleries behind every other door of the long line of buildings on main street. then, after finding this spot using my cool navigation tool on my phone, i hit an indian cuisine place for dinner. i usually don't enjoy public outings by myself, but it wasn't so bad...although it would've been great to have some company from kansas =) here are a few pictures i took around our town (garrison) that day...

this is one of my favorite spots...i see this clearing between the hills every morning when i take e-e to school. it's beautiful! if you look closely, you'll notice a "castle" at the top of the hill. this whole area used to be owned by just a few very wealthy people, so this is one of the original homes.

this is just a cool picture of the railroad tracks near the station =)

westpoint military academy across the hudson river

the garrison "yacht club" =)

just another cool picture, in my opinion

more than just a hammock

the hammock in our backyard hangs above a beautiful moss-covered patch of ground and is surrounded by the rugged rocks & trees in the woods. this has become my place of losing and finding myself...my place of rest...my place of peace. one of the hardest things for me to do is to stop. stop working, stop thinking, stop moving, stop over-analyzing. but here, it's all i can do...it feels so natural, and i lose myself in the splendor of the scenery and the sounds of the life around me, only to find myself at peace.

the following is another excerpt from the book i've been reading--yoga and the quest for the true self, by stephen cope

"in the yogic view, it is in these moments that we know who we really are. we rest in our true nature and know beyond a doubt that everything is ok, and not just ok, but unutterably well. we know that there is nothing to accept and nothing to reject. life just is as it is. it is in these moments that we awaken from the dream of separateness in which we usually live. the whole path of yoga begins with these little daily experiences of waking up. awakening comes, in yoga, not at the end of the path--rather, it is present from the very beginning. ...it is our awake nature that recognizes itself in the mirror of consciousness. in these moments, we are dissolved back into the One that is our source."

indigo

meet the newest addition to the family...indigo! he's a super-sweet 6-month-old german shepard. i was a little iffy about him when we went to look at him yesterday...he just seemed out of it and not too interested in us. guess he seemed depressed. but the change just since we brought him home has been amazing! he adores the kids...follows them everywhere and is so gentle with them. the not-so-great-dog of the neighborhood (aubrey) came by this morning to dig in our garbage, as he does every morning, but indi gave one loud bark (not even a bit aggressive) and audrey went scampering off =)
this dog is perfect for us right now, as he's already house-broken & over his little puppy stage (which is totally fun, but a LOT of work) and he's had a lot of exposure to dogs and kids. he's just great...and beautiful.

but you're part of the family now

k, just for the record, i'm going to start writing "e-e" and "tata" when i talk about the kids.

for the last three days, e-e has been pretending to be a puppy named "max". "max" is a really sweet dog and gives nice little puppy-dog kisses...you know, the kind where they LICK your face! i had had enough puppy-kisses so (after one on my arm while i was helping him in the bathroom) i told e-e to save them for his mom and he said, "but you're part of the family now." both of these kids are really sweet (90% of the time...for me). =)

the kids are so in love with dogs and, well...so am i. the parents have been talking about getting a dog for awhile, so yesterday they asked me if i'd be up for it. of course i said yes =) i think we're going to look for one this weekend!

the view from where i sit

i know, i know...i'm going blog-crazy. but i kinda like it. anyway, i have today off so i've spent most of the morning laying in the hammock in our backyard...reading, thinking, not reading, not thinking, dozing. it's been beautiful! here's the view...

the book i'm reading is "yoga and the quest for the true self" by stephen cope. just thought i'd read something that would help me understand the family i'm living with a little bit more, as they are yoga instructors. in the book, i've found myself connected with and inspired by a couple poems cope quotes. they are me, setting out to sail on this journey...

"you see, i want a lot.
perhaps i want everything
the darkness that comes with every infinite fall
and the shivering blaze of every step up.
"so many live on and want nothing and are raised to the rank of prince
by the slippery ease of their light judgements.
"but what you love to see are faces
that do work and feel thirst.
you love most of all those who need you
as they need a crowbar or a hoe.
you have not grown old, and it is not too late
to dive into your increasing depths
where life calmly gives out its own secret"
--rainer maria rilke, das stundenbuch

"passage o soul to india!
passage, immediate passage! the blood burns in my veins!
away o soul! hoist instantly the anchor!
cut the hawsers--haul out--shake out every sail!
have we not stood here like trees in the ground long enough?
have we not grovel'd here long enough, eating and drinking like mere brutes?
have we not darken'd and dazed ourselves with books long enough?
"set forth--steer for the deep waters only,
reckless o soul, exploring, i with thee, and thou with me,
for we are bound where mariner has not yet dared to go
and we will risk the ship, ourselves and all.
'o my brave soul!
o farther farther sail!
o daring joy, but safe! are they not all the seas of God?
o farther, farther, farther sail!"
--walt whitman, passage to india

most valuable possession

it's difficult to pack all of your stuff in 3 suitcases, but as i was doing that last week it became clear to me (and jenni s & jo, too!) that this painting is my most valuable possession. i'm sure those girls were probably annoyed by how difficult and over-protective i was being about getting it packed securely in a suitcase, but it's irreplaceable to me. it's a painting by joan, one of my best friends in kenya, that she gave me and it means more to me than anything else i own. anyway, just wanted to share it with y'all =)