Five Random Things: Yoga Edition

1. "Sita Sings the Blues"

I watched part of this movie, which I found over at Daily Cup of Yoga (which is a great blog I just discovered with lots of yoga inspired information and posts). It's inspired by the Indian Epic Ramayana, and is an artsy take on the story of Hindu Gods Sita and Rama by director Nina Paley....thought it was a fun thing to pass on this Friday afternoon!

2. Bindu Wiles 21.5.800

I joined in on an yoga/writing challenge!
The challenge, posted by buddhist teacher Bindu Wiles is to write 800 words a day and practice yoga 5 out of 7 days of the week for 21 days total! I have been practicing yoga a lot lately anyway and write on this blog and in my daily morning pages pretty regularly, but its always helpful to have more intention about these practices! I also love the idea of joining together with a whole community of people for a challenge like this. I believe that when an individual becomes a part of something bigger and participates in the greater community, the whole group is uplifted and empowered!


3. 30 Day Yoga Challenge
Until I started writing this post, I didn't even realize how many challenges I was participating in! But this is another one! Luckily, this challenge over laps with the last one and the next one! This is a monthly facebook challenge hosted by Anusara teacher Amy Ippoliti. Each month there is a new pose that you can work on each day for a month. Sometimes they are timed poses, like this month is a timed (1-2 minutes) of pincha mayurasana.
I adapted the challenge to my level (pincha at the wall and working up to a minute) and have done a pincha almost every day since the beginning of June! My shoulders are feeling it for sure and maybe even becoming stronger!

4. 1,000 Hours of Yoga Project
So, you may have noticed in my profile that I started another blog and when you click on that other blog there is nothing there! I started the blog to keep track of/journal about my yoga practice and decided a few weeks ago to commit to 1,000 hours of Yoga and even created a contract with myself (which I plan to post on over on that blog when I get around to getting it going...it's on the "to-do" list for next week!)
as a way to intentionally practice yoga to evolve my connection to my heart.
Since I began keeping track on April 27th, I have practiced 33 hours.
I have a long way to go to get to 1,000 but I have my whole life time to get there.
There is just something about jumping on a challenge that keeps getting me back to the mat, especially on those days when I'd rather just blow it off.

What motivates you to keep up with your daily practices?

5. Practical Sanskrit
Finally, I thought I'd share a fun blog I discovered to learn/contemplate the language of yoga, sanskrit. It is a wonderful resource, so I thought I'd share it here with you today!

Have a wonderful weekend!

(plans for next week: create new artwork! What are your plans for next week?)

Five Random Things: Yoga Edition

A Shot at Dancing

"Flow" Mixed Media Original Painting

(available in my etsy shop)


Every once in a while, I get really bogged down by the events going on in our world today. I start thinking about wars, the environmental crisis, the climate of the economy, etc. and I start feeling little and low in the face of it all. So much of it feels out my control and yet at the same time, I also feel hugely guilty about not doing enough, about my helplessness in making the world a better place.
 My mind starts churning on this and I become almost paralyzed with fear. I begin to have thoughts like, "what's the point of chasing dreams in a crumbling world like this"
or
"what's the point of striving for a creative, happy living when everything about this life experience is so fragile, and sometimes so destructive?"
or
"Who am I to deserve happiness and abundance when there's so much suffering and collapse in this world?"
These are thoughts that come marching in, one right after another.
This is the kind of thinking that starts moving me on a one-way downward spiral.
Sometimes, despite my usually optimistic attitude and generally positive out look on life, these thoughts come creeping in.
I fall into a dark place.
(sometimes this is why I don't always write here)
But I realize that in that darkness, if I listen very carefully, I hear tiny, quiet voices arising to meet the
Fear and Doubt.
They are whispers from my heart,
from wise teachers and other individuals I respect.
They rise up to say things like:
"your happiness is your gift to the world"
or
"when you live and lead from your heart, others will also live and lead from their hearts"
or
"What you want most for yourself, others want most for your also."
or
"In a world of dark, be the light"

And it's these little voices that I try to hold on to. That I try to breathe into my body and mind, even when the negative voices are screaming and drowning them out.
Anne Lamott writes,


"We are given a shot at dancing with, or at least clapping along with, the absurdity of life, instead of being squashed by it over and over again. It's like singing on a boat during a terrible storm at sea. You can't stop the raging storm, but singing can change the hearts and spirits of the people who are together on that ship."


Tantric philosophy says that this experience of ours is the play of Shiva, that it's all a part of his dance. He whirls us into the darkness, so that we may find our own light. There is a joy in this forgetting ourselves in order to remember again. There is joy in the rediscovery of ourselves. When we sing from that knowing, we change the hearts of others. With our song, we can remind others of the joy in their own discovery.
So, I will continue to hold on to these teachings, this quiet knowing, especially as I embrace the weight of the world (because there is certainly no running from it).
I will do my best to dance with the full spectrum of life, of my experience during this time on the planet. I will do my best to sing my heart out, so that I can do my part to change the hearts and spirits of others on this great ship, even during the terrible storms.

I invite you to join me.

A Shot at Dancing

Triangular Light

"Triangular Light"

Mixed Media Original Painting

available here!

I've been asked a couple of times recently what the words were all about in the backgrounds of my paintings. A lot of the time, I cover up the words with the images without writing them down elsewhere, so only the record I have of what I wrote, are the few words that blink through paint and images covering them. It occurred to me recently to copy the writing in another place too, so that I can still access that part of the process. 

Mostly the words are inspired by the image itself. I just write from my heart, like I would in my personal journal. Sometimes (this always gives me chills to think about), I seem to receive a direct message from the image itself...I know this sounds a little out there, but I use the image dialouging process  used by one of Lesley University's Art therapy Professor, Shaun McNiff.

I created the above image of the figure in triangle (trikonasana) pose a while back and finally finished the painting above the week before last. I decided to put the painting up on etsy as an original piece. 

While I was working on the background words, the following message flowed through me and onto the paper. For me, it was speaking about the experience of the pose, of what happens when we engage with the body and the breath:

"I hinge forward from the waist to see myself from a new perspective, triangularly. I extend space through my torso to grow lighter on the inside. I feel strong and steady, steady and strong. On the inside I am different every day, different every day. I breathe into this difference and into sameness too. I breathe in to gently soften and blur my edges the way the sun blurs into the earth at dusk. Can I tell where I end and the rest of the world begins?

I lean back into this knowing and this not knowing because I can tell air versus skin, I can tell gravity versus bone. I remember this kind of embrace, this kind of love. For a moment, I delight in its sweetness, in its purity, clarity and fullness. From my core, I send this love back down to the roots from which it came. I extend through the center of myself, out a liquid crown of lengthened thought. I look up to see fingertips extending, sky bound, grasping the heavens. I dive in to shine my own light out. I move to make space for the new. I breathe to invite release, to initiate change, to unfold the light."

P.S thank you to all of those coming over to to visit my blog and leaving your kind thoughts and support! I really appreciate it, you are all so lovely! 

Triangular Light

Best Stuff

{me, working on courage, honesty and openness}

It's really late here. So late in fact, it's early Saturday. The birds are singing. I almost always sleep through the night, but for some reason tonight, I woke up after four hours in bed and was 

WIDE AWAKE. 

And I was thinking about this blog. and those who've I been connecting with out there in this blogosphere. A lot seems to be buzzing here in this online world for me and I feel as though I am barely keeping up. I have been inspired lately by so many wonderful, creative and lovely people out there and I long to bring the quality of courage and honesty and openness that is outpouring out there, in here to this blog. 

It's a work in progress. 

Sometimes I feel as though I am caught in wide net cast in the sea. Even though, I'm submerged by the water, I can't seem to find a way to freely swim about and connect with all the other fish. But I long to connect better. 

I long to get out of my own way and as Kristen Walker, says in her awesome post, 

"put my best stuff out there into the world". 

This week, Kristen also wrote this beautiful article on creative tithing, over at scoutiegirl.com. It was about an experiment she's doing where she purchases a handmade item from an artist/craftsperson once a month as a way to support her creative community. It was a beautifully written article, and she brings up so many good points, about how supporting others in their creativity, really supports you too! I was honored to be featured as one of the artists she interviewed as part of the post. She asked me the question "What effect do sales have on your life and creativity?" 

and I answered, "Sales help me as an artist to keep doing what I'm doing. Not only do sales allow me to pay for the materials I need to keep creating, but they also give me encouragement to keep going. For me they are concrete signs that what I am doing is what I am meant to do. I truly believe that when you do what you love and you offer it up to the world, the universe (through the support of other people) steps up to support you. I also like to think that sales of my work, help me to support others in their creative dreams and ideas. When I make money, I can then go out and support people/ideas/companies I believe in. For example I can buy local, organic food from the farmer working to support their dreams of keeping their farm. I can buy other hand made items, supporting the dreams of artisans and craftspeople. In this way, I can do my part to keep the circulation of money flowing towards 
ideas and people I believe in." 

Thank you Kristen for your thought provoking question, your inspiring post on creative tithing and for your warm, couragous posts on your blog. This girl totally rocks.

and so, I've done some creative tithing of my own. And Kristen was right. It feels amazing to support others as I want to be supported.

and found myself with a beautiful magnet from artsyville/Aimee . I am always so inspired by Aimee's colorful content, both the visual aspects of all her wonderful creations. Her blog is funny and honest and always brightens my day! Now I have this inspiring magnet to help remind me why it is I set forth on this teaching path. Thank you, Aimee.

I also am now loving two prints, "Our Love" and "Hope" from Faith over at Leaves and Feathers and They. Are. Beautiful.

Thank you, Faith.

Along with that, I have been super inspired this week by Lis and her posts over on dandelion seeds and dreams. Lis, you are so insightful and I so appreciate your reflective way of writing about your experience. It always feels like your touching on a well of deep truths that I can relate to too. Your support and thoughtful words here on my blog continue to urge me on in both my yoga practice and creative journey....Thank you, Lis.

So here's to all you wonderful, creative, lovely people out there.

Here's to getting out of the net, to connecting, to supporting others.

Here's to courage and honesty and openness.

Best Stuff

Home Again

{Tulsi in her glory}

Well hello! 

I'm back on the Cape after my time in Vermont! 

My dog is giving me hateful looks (which sort of hurts, coming from a loving lab).

 that say "How dare you take me away from a back yard where I can chew on bark mulch, 

swim in the pond,

 and run in cow pasture eat cow poop" (I know...gross...)
Yes, how dare I. 

Not to mention, her very best dog friend lives in Vermont.
I am certainly in the dog house.

But alas, we are back home.

At the Open Studio, I learned a lot about showing my work 

and it got me excited about finding other venues to share my work. 

I reflected on the list of all the things I needed (and will need next time!), 

that I never would have thought of on my own (thanks Dad!) and thought I would share them with you in case anyone out there is thinking about showing their work for the first time:

• a sales book (the kind with carbon copies to give to the customers)
• white address labels to write the names of the pieces, size and price on
• a level (to hang my work so it wasn't crooked) and tape (to keep it from falling out of place)
• a sharpie (to sign my pieces...why hadn't I thought to sign them before?)
• an Art Asana Monthly Newsletter sign-up sheet (yup! I'm going to start a newsletter soon!)
• baskets or something to display cards/prints in
• foam core signage
• an "About the Artist" sheet kind of thing
• business cards
• an open mind and good attitude (you never know what kinds of things people will say and you can't let it get you down)

Does anyone have other good advice about what you need to have at art/craft shows?

Anyway, 

It's good to be home. 

Everything is much greener then when I left and I am going to get our tomato plants planted.

I have big planters that are going on the porch and I'm going to fill them with

lettuce and rainbow swiss chard.

Summer is here and 

 I'm dreaming about how I am going to decorate our porch...

{the "before" picture of our porch...the table and chairs belong to our landlord, but I think we have use of them?}

Any DIY ideas?

Home Again