Shadow and Light
They are what they are. Sometimes it is better to be in shadow, sometimes in the light.
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- Asana, Pranayama, and Yoga Practice | Food for the Mind (Yoga Philosophy, etc) | Meditation | Photos
In the Ashram
I am not a devotee, but I am enjoying the beauty and welcome of it and sharing the practices that resonate with my spirit. This spider (over my bed) however, is moved to stay close.
Each One, Reach One
I went with a friend from volunteering at the youth garden yesterday morning to join with others to heighten awareness of the potential impact on the fabric of our fragile democracy of what the current Supreme Court decides in Moore v Harper, which was being argued.
We got to talking to one of the fellow demonstrators. I had pictures of N (for more from N, see @blacklivesmattermemorialfence), from a previous demonstration relevant to voting rights earlier in the year. After we confirmed the connection, N asked me if I was a lawyer for the government; it turns out N also remembered that I had given directions and ended up walking a few blocks together to the gathering near the Capitol for the one year anniversary of the January 6th insurrection.
We all talked about impact and whether it makes a difference if we only inspire a few people. I shared a story about one of the very few comments saying I had inspired being more politically active and outspoken in the yoga context. Maybe, I conjectured, it doesn’t matter if we only reach one person, because we don’t know who is that person and how they will be moved. N plans to make a t-shirt that says, “each one, reach one.”
To whom will you reach out? What moves you?
A Dream I Won the Lottery
I dreamed last night that I won 30 million dollars in the lottery. I had no recollection of having bought a ticket (in waking life the only time I ever bought a ticket was 17 or 18 years ago as part of a 15-person group of co-workers who collectively bought two tickets when the prize was 75 million; we were going to quit en masse if we won).
In the dream, an acquaintance also won the same amount. She immediately quit her job and started engaging in activities about which she had previously only imagined doing.
On learning of my windfall, I stopped and paused and found that I didn’t want too much change right away. I deliberated about whether to take a lump sum or an annuity and to whom I would give the money. I wondered whether I could take a couple of months leave and then go back to my job part-time. I thought about whether I would like to move or set up a charitable foundation or teach yoga full-time. I found that after having been given financial freedom, I was still content to work and to live comfortably, but relatively modestly. I wanted to take time to deliberate where I could make the best offering with this outrageous stroke of luck.
The dream reminded me of the Zen proverb that was popularized in the 1970s: “Before enlightenment; chop wood, carry water; after enlightenment; chop wood, carry water.” What was beautiful about my dream was a sense of a deep acceptance, a sense that even with my desire to grow and change for the better, that in my middle age, I am essentially comfortable with how I am living. I will keep seeking a deeper and more loving and compassionate way of being, even as I recognize that there is no prize that will transform me from the challenges of being human.
Signs Around Town
Both the beautiful and the beastly archtypes. Dwell together inseparably within us. No light without shadow. No shadow without light.
Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.
