Busy as a Be

One thing about being busy. Yes. We are. That's been established. And busy-ness gets a bad rap sometimes. But the cool thing about being busy is that it can take our mind off of the emotional or mental roller coaster that we can get stuck on. So if we are busy at work, and we can do the work without emotional charge or attachment, it can be useful. It can help us focus our energy somewhere other than our habitual-ness.  So being busy can help us "be" somewhere else in our mind. And that can "be" a relief sometimes. 

Wheels

Life keeps going. Life doesn't stop. It feels like it's accelerating. Getting faster. Crazier. Busier. But when you look at it, is it actually busier, or does it just feel like it?  

Like the big wheel that keeps on turning, we keep on burning. It's how we perceive the burn that will affect our experience of the "same old same old." "Same same but different." All these phrases that are out there make more and more sense every day. It's as if our big S self really is talking to us in a language we can understand. So listen to our little s self and hear what our big S self is telling us.

And here's a caveat.. Chakra means wheel. So remember - each of are chakras. Wheels. We are a chakra/wheel. We are our own veritable hamster wheels. And we keep spinning, turning, churning. That's what we do as we Open our Selves up to infinite possibility.

So of course we are trying to get our own attention.

Star crossed

Feeling a sense of uber-busy-ness? Perhaps you've been feeling like there is an insurmountable plate load of stuff to do, to get through, to handle. Maybe it feels as though time is no longer on your side. Well, yes it is. Because you've come running back. To your Self. Because nestled between 2 solar eclipses (April 15 and April 29) about April 21-27 there was is significant celestial event called the Cardinal Cross. (Need I remind you of the recent holiday that just passed where this particlar symbol played a significant role and what that was all about? Interesting and appropriate timing). 

Apparently this happens once every few thousand years or so. Please don't quote me on this. I'm not an astrology expert. What's important is that this occurance is rare, and even your great great grandparents haven't been through this particular planetary shift, unlike mercury retrogrades, Saturn returns, solar eclipses, etc... 

The Cardinal cross is where Pluto is directly opposite Jupiter and Mars is directly opposite Uranus , and the all form a cross in the sky. Hillory Skott, from the Vancouver Astrology Examiner says to picture a square with a big X through it. Like a big "energetic trampoline intended to launch us into a new dimension of reality." (Yes, I actually researched a bit for this because I know zippity do dah about astrology.)

I concur. This is a moment in time where all the work we've done in yoga will show itself. According to Patanjali, the result if effective yoga practice is when pairs of opposites cease to have impact ( yoga sutra 2:48). As we sit in our usual pairs of opposites like self/relationship, home/work, good/bad, right/wrong, physical/material, we feel the heat of this cross as we are forced to find center or burn up or out.

Whoever said that when opposing forces (such as Ida and pingala) align, we find the bliss of center, didn't share the whole story. The bliss of center comes when we have released or at least softened our charge on those forces- Where those forces no longer have a stronghold on us. If you feel like you are burning up right now, you can keep holding on to what you think life is all about, or start to let go of the positive/negative view of life, and be willing to see who you really are. Bottom line - you get what you ask for. And you've been asking for a very long time.

So pay attention . To your Self. Because it's here to stay and so are you. This busyness and urgency you've been feeling may be because you know you have a purpose and it's time to get it done. Remember this as you let your day feel busy. Because if it feels like you are spinning your wheels, it's probably because you haven't seen or embraced your purpose yet. If you know or have a sense of your deeper purpose, then re-frame your busyness knowing that it's just your physical self trying to catch up with your big S self. That this busyness is urgency in a bottle. That it's here. Your birthday. 

Relax and open your present. Moment. Self. Remember that stuff is stuff and only matter matters. You can play or not play. It's your party and you can cry if you want to. Or sing. Or dance. Or pet your dog. Or (fill in the blank). 

Or Remember. You Know.

Patience

Just want you to know that the Easter bunny has not forgotten. An appropriate blog is forthcoming. Let's just chalk it up to a) too many chocolate eggs, 2) not enough chocolate eggs 3) just the right amount of chocolate eggs 4) no chocolate eggs (which might be related to #2). Regardless of chicken or chocolate egg, I'm feeling the omelet that we are cooking in. Yes I have thoughts to grease the pan. Yes I want to put them to paper. And yes, what you feel is spot on the omelet. 

Cheese, mushroom, or Denver, we are all in the same pan. It's hot. It's greasy. And we feel cooked and fried. Which is not a bad thing, since we are cooking ourselves, transforming if you will, into exactly who we really are, so we can answe the big question- who am I and what am I doing here?

Picture this

Our pictures are worth more than a thousand words. So when we spend our time affirming this and that, pay attention to the picture that runs right beside it. Is it the picture you want, or the opposite? In the world of manifesting, it's more like a coffee table book than an encyclopedia of concepts. 

A side of dog perhaps?

Fluids

If life feels sticky, if creativity feels dried up, if you got no juice, then be aware of the obvious and hydrate.

Seriously. Increasing fluids has been know to contribute to understanding and funding fluidity in life. We are not talking about drowning here- just feeling the right amount of turgidity. Not rigidity. There is a fluid quality to the former and a stuck quaility to the latter.

So once again, the answer is, "drink more water." See what happens and get back to me with your fluid story.

Slugger

Slug. Interesting word. A punch, an animal, a bullet. When we think of the animal slug, or describe humans as slugs, we think of slow, sloth like, inferior. Ok, seriously? You are challenging me on that? Name one time when comparing yourself to a slug in any way was a positive. 

That's what I thought. 

So it's interesting that on the inanimate side of it, slugs have a penetrating power.  Yin and yang? Slug and slug? 

This little guy was minding its own beeswax the other morning, and if I had the chops of a Nat Geo photographer, you might be able to feel what I felt when I saw it slugging its way across a cement slab wall.

Bring it!

Our ability to digest is a determining factor in how much we can take on, and also how we feel about what it is we have on our proverbial plate. Good digestion gives us confidence, clarity and the ability to say "Bring it!" with enthusiasm. When digestive fire (Agni) is strong, we can extract the nutrients from that which doesn't serve us, and then whatever it is we have on our plate can feed us, grow is. If the fire is weak in relationship to the amount of stuff that sits on it, we may feel stuffed, overwhelmed, frantic, and ironically  undernourished considering how much richness is available to us. 

So if your plate is full, your guts are full, your life is full, and you still feel overworked and underpaid, it could be that the fire you have isn't enough to digest your life. Or food. 

So when we say yes, more please, take a breath and see if our eyes are bigger than our fire. When we find that balance, we digest our "food," we get hungry for more. Then when we say "bring it," we mean it. We are ready for it. 

This "bring it" attitude comes with an inherent sense of confidence, clarity, and fearlessness. So the more we listen and know what we are capable of digesting in any given moment, the more efficient and joyous our process of living becomes. 

So, would you like to see the dessert menu?

Presence

Yesterday, after what was probably an hour or so of a breathing exercise, Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen said "So for the next 20 minutes, explore being present." Or something like that. I was on my back, covered up with layers and a blanket because the room was cold. About as invisible as a person could be, and she was asking us to look at being present. I asked myself - from my vantage point, what does that even mean? And then, do I even WANT to be present? And what kind of presence are we talking about? Can I be present in my inner life without sacrificing my outer life and vice versa? What was this thing called presence?

Did i have to DO something? Or was it about being?

I don't have answers. But I do know that the interesting question was asking myself if I even wanted to be present in that moment. What does "being present" entail? And what made me think it was something that would entail a lot of work?

That question is still present. Even if I'm not. Or maybe I am.
Hmmmm....

Balancing Act

Is balance an act? An event? A myth?

I call balance a moving target. We find balance. For a moment. Then we grow. Our capacity to handle what is on our plate, or what is in our mind, changes. And life keeps moving around us. And voila! We are now out of balance. What is important about learning about this thing called "balance," is that we start to become more aware of what it feels like to be in balance, instead of looking at a bunch of external cues. i.e. - just because I'm not falling over, doesn't necessarily mean I am balanced. I may not be falling over, but how do I feel when I'm not falling over?

When we practice this thing called balance, tune into the feeling. What do you feel like when you are balanced. What qualities are present? Not present? Again, this is something that only you can determine. Not your mother, your boss, your best friend, your spouse. Not from a book, not from a to-do list that has everything or nothing crossed off. Not from the amount of sleep you get or don't get. Not from the amount of free time you have or don't have.

It comes from that internal state of whatever "balance" feels like to you. And that is a moving target. So we keep moving in and out of balance, just as the waves of life ebb and flow.

A balanced state is constantly  moving.
A balanced state is an act, an event. We hit it or we myth.