better with butter

today I taught my first 2 classes after my 6 week sabbatical. They were, well, quiet. I don't know how else to explain it. This seems to be a trend whenever I come back from a significant hiatus. There is an immense amount of space in the room and a stillness that is quiet profound. I know it has to do with my internal dynamic, which is so cool to be able to actually see and feel a palpable difference. In a nutshell - when i'm quiet, still, steady, so are the classes I teach. Or at least that is my experience. I can't speak from the point of view of the students.

And there is a lightness. I definitely drop weight when I leave the "burdens" of the day to day life. For one thing, i can always fit more in my suitcase on the way home, even when I leave from home at the beginning of the trip, i can barely close it. And I usually lose weight. It shows up on the scale, but what I lose is psychic, emotional, mental weight, and I get a bit thinner. Without dieting. At all. Seriously. Can you say "more butter?" cuz I sure do...

so again, we are physical and non-physical, and most of us is actually non-physical. if we can remember that, it will open us up to a bigger point of view, one where there is more chance for equanimity, possibilities, and happiness for all.  And more butter please. Cuz it's always better with butter. 

Sleep

Today was all about sleep. I embraced the lag of jet lag and slept. Then slept some more. And now I'm going to bed.

I predict that tomorrow I will feel more like a person. Feel free to cast votes, lay bets, or simply speculate, and I'll be back with the update.

I may have underestimated what I needed to assimilate the trip. But hey, that's why I gave myself some time off.

And the Oscar goes to...

[your name goes here]

Why? Because you are doing an outstanding job playing yourself in this movie of life called [your title goes here].

And yes, Spielberg also loves it.

So there ya go...

Cut! And print. And let go.

Re-entry

Yesterday was both the 20th and the 21st depending on which side of the pond i was on.

Things I came home to:
a clean house, husband, and dog
flowers
a wide selection of food in the frig because he wanted to make sure I was supported in that way
chocolate lava cakes
a beautiful and thriving yard, complete with rose garden

Things I brought with me:
a deeper meditation practice and connection with the shrine inside
new ideas
less judgement
more enthusiasm
more willingness
less attachment

Things I did today, my first full day back:
unpacked
meditated
ate
got caught up on Project Runway
changed voicemail message
checked email
talked a bit on the phone
slept
enjoyed my family and my life

Tomorrow's list is much the same.
Sri living at it's finest.
mucho gratitude from the heart. And it's those things of daily life that we have, well, uh, every day, so why not celebrate the beauty and wonder of these most simple gifts?

Goodbye India!

Final post before we leave for the airport in a few hours. Just had an amazing farewell dinner with full on spicy Indian cuisine here at the Nidra Hotel. And yes, I did yoga nidra at the Nidra.

Been enjoying the last 24 hours of relaxation, meditation, showering and food in the hotel. Catching up on some email, thanks to speedy and free wifi, and looking at some cool Facebook posts from the last 5 weeks. Looking forward to getting some pix up.

First teaching day back will be Thursday Feb 28 - noon class. Giving myself a week to digest and have some re-entry. A very mature decision on my part if i do say so myself. In the past my pattern has typically been to get back on the horse as quickly as possible, thinking that those extra couple of days would actually make the difference between success and failure as far as class attendance goes.

What will i bring with me as I board the plane? The smell of curry. Yes. It's coming out of my pores. And although the smell isn't my favorite (when its coming out of my pores),  I'm loving the experiences around where that smell came from. And this too shall pass. But the memories, the experiences, will feed me, curry free, for a long time to come.

Reflections while looking

I am a baby- whos body is this?
I am a teenager - who's body is this?
I am a grandmother - who's body is this?

Apparently, we aren't our bodies. Unless we can't recognize ourselves. The self we see in the mirror.

We can spend our entire life trying to recognize that face in the mirror, or we can spend it trying to recognize the big S Self.

Or we can spend it doing something else. But ultimately, at the root of all those "something else's," it's probably going to boil down to identifying with spirit or matter.

Unless we can find the place where neither/both dominate.

Here comes the sun!

And it's awesome!!!
After 2 days of stormy weather, there's light.
Wrapping up my time here at Khajuraho before tomorrow's departure to Delhi. Then a couple of days with wifi, then the journey home. And even though I leave at 3 am on the 21st, I get home to San Fran in time for dinner that same day. How to squeeze 24 hours into that,is another miracle.
Peace.