Including gentle yoga asana to address the places that feel a bit stuck after 2 1/2 hours in a hard small chair with a desk attached to the right side (I write with my left hand). I change my position almost constantly, but slowly, so that it’s not disruptive.
I woke and dressed myself as early as if it were a work day to take the metro and then the bus to the little playground/park where we entered the creek. It was already promising today’s humid heat in the sun, but it was pleasant in the shade. The group was a good size. Large enough to get some work done, but small enough to stay easily connected. We divided the work — path or creek — based on who wore which shoes, which allocated the cleaning well.
It was a beautiful way to appreciate off the mat the Anusara axioms, “look for the good,” and “respond from the highest.” As you can see from the pictures, Long Branch Creek is a lovely sanctuary of greenery and running water. It is evidently not fresh, but it is still giving its all. We could see the beauty, but also recognize that the creek could more powerfully share the energy of nature if it was not so dirty. Rather than complain that the creek was dirty and dangerous and stay away from it, we were invited to appreciate both what it is and what it could be and got our feet wet and ourselves dirty to be with the creek. I wish it weren’t necessary, and I will be looking for more ways to try and contribute less waste, but I think in the meantime, it would be right to do this more often.
One of the things that I love about a slow, therapeutic practice is the joy of delving into details. Seeking mastery and refinement of understanding can itself be exquisite, even when the subject matter is not of our choosing. Although I would like not to have places of constraint or tightness in my body, they are a fact of my life. I find great freedom and delight, though, in exploring in detail how to go into the constraints and untangle them.
Last night, after having taught two classes, cleaning house, and walking 5-6 miles commuting to teach and running errands, my hips and low back were not feeling pained, but they were tight. Going to bed without a good, long practice was not an option.
So I dug in deeply, working to isolate different muscles better to open them. One of the things that works best for me to open my hips and low back is to work the Anusara “loops” separately. When I work the loops independently to refine the major principles, I find it optimal if I move the right and left side independently. If they are moved as one, I find the tendency is to have the thigh bones and spine shift with the muscles, instead of having them be supported in their optimal alignment by the movement of the muscles. So, for example, in working kidney loop with refinement, the action of kidney loop lengthens the psoas muscles and brings them more into the back plane of the body, but the inward curve of the lumbar spine remains unshifted.
As I continue to practice, I look forward to ever refining my understanding and ever enhancing the optimal flow of energy.
Last night I went with a group of friends for dinner and to see “Hell Meets Henry Halfway” at the Woolly Mammoth. We all had a most enjoyable time, although the play was pretty negative. What could you expect, though, from a play based on a 1930s novel written by a Polish exile that was about declining monarchies and social depravity, etc? What relieved the bleakness of the outlook was the slapstick playfulness of the acting and staging. It was also a pleasure just to see beautiful technique, and acting was wonderful.
As the recession deepens, I have been trying to go to see more theater and dance, to support local theaters and restaurants that I care to have still in my world. It would be easy to settle into a mindset of anti-consumption at this time. Better I think, even if we are trying to shift the consumer orientation of our society, to become ever more mindful in our consumption, being especially mindful of those around us are struggling from the sudden shift. The right action, I think, for those who cannot help but recognize problems, or suffering, or even absurdity, is not only to seek change, but also to see the playfulness in everything to keep the spirit vital and to be able to accept the change that might not be realized despite our best efforts and intentions.
The filibuster and related activities, including an interfaith vigil on Wednesday the 28th, continues until Thursday. Details on various Facebook Pages–ACLU, NARAL, Planned Parenthood, Move On, and others.
Mostly I will be working during the scheduled times, but I will head over outside of my work day again. Senator Chris Murphy was on his way to dinner with friends from Connecticut who had spent the day doing citizen lobbying–telling their story about why keeping and improving on the ACA was important to them. Senator Murphy said that he’d heard people were outside and felt he needled to at least stop by and connect. He said this is just the beginning, don’t let them tinker and declare a victory if they only deprive 5 or 10 million people from getting insurance; he said keep it up; he’d like to see millions of people coming to D.C. and making their voices heard. I was starting to get caught up in listening and then realized it was time to be at William Penn House.
