Author: Elizabeth

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    Perfect Weather Forecast for “Yoga for Gardeners” Fundraiser on Saturday

    ByElizabeth

    Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and unseasonably warm, one of those bright days right when the seasons are changing that bring a giddiness to our hearts and can incite us to premature planting.

    The forecast for Saturday is cool and gray, with a high of 54F. Not only will it be a great reminder that the danger of last frost is weeks away, but also of how important patience and preparation are in the early part of the season, so that our gardens will flourish most optimally throughout the season.

    Tomorrow is the afternoon and early evening to do a little weeding, to see what is volunteering, to check in the health of your perennials, and to sit with your vision of the garden for the year. Then on Saturday, nurture yourself and nurture nature by bringing yourself and your alignment questions to “Yoga for Gardeners” (to register and/or get more information please visit www.willowstreetyoga.com).

    Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

  • Please Don’t Use Peat Moss

    ByElizabeth

    I learned a number of years ago of the environmental devastation from gardening with peat moss and stopped doing so.  Here’s a great blog discussing the down and dirty of peat moss.

    Most of us are gardening for beauty, to have better food, and to help the environment.  The more we know about how we garden, the more beauty we can create–in our own gardens and wherever our gardens are sourced.

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    My First Five Thoughts (Compound) Before Getting Out of Bed This Morning

    ByElizabeth

    1. Still dark, too early to get up; oh right, daylight savings time.
    2. Wait; wake up call is Sri Rudrum; here’s the part I’ve learned by heart to help invoke auspiciousness, wisdom, compassion, light, interconnectedness, steadiness, fierce will, etc; good reminder; don’t sleep through it.
    3. Nuclear reactors in Japan; wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; Libya; aftermath of BP oil spill, Katrina, and 9-11; budget talks prioritize war and business as usual; no senators or Congress person for DC; mountaintop coal mining; tar sands; diabetes/obesity epidemic.
    4. Time to nurture cats and plants and sit for meditation; I am indeed blessed.
    5. How do I bring “2” and “4” to my response to “3”?

    Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

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    Old News?

    ByElizabeth

    I did not post a collection of photos from Miami trip as is my usual habit because I had other things I wanted more to share and because I had other things that were higher priority. At this point, a whole lot of living has gone on for me individually and for my social network and for the country and for the globe.
    I find myself falling into the general current assumption that the only news of interest to readers of this blog is what has happened in the last few days, though experiences from all times in our lives are still interwoven in how we think and behave, and all of history shapes our current global cultures and relationships.

    Is this picture really already old news even though I only get to go on “vacation” a few times a year (and that many are a great blessing for which I than those who fought for the rights of workers over the decades) and the effects are something to be carried through until the next opportunity? Is the photo any less beautiful an artistic offering for my posting it today instead of ten days ago when I took it?

    How has your relationship between news and art and knowledge changed with the progressively increasing available of new images and thoughts and information in vast quantities moment to moment? Does it leave a feeling of being overwhelmed or serve as a reminder that the fundamentals, the very essence of things do not change and that if we pause and go deep, the idea of the vast turbulence of the outer world will not itself be our uprooting, though specific events may well challenge us.

    Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

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    Flashpoint

    ByElizabeth

    I went tonight to the space at Flashpoint to see a dance performance by people I know from the Sunday contact improv jam. One of the things that I am finding thought-provoking about the jamming with dancers is dancing for the sake of the dance, but also as a practice for those who perform. I went to support friends appearing in a small venue. I know how much I appreciate it when people make an effort to come to workshops, and in the days when I was still exhibiting art, to my openings. I also went to be able to witness from the space of pure observer, my friends in performance mode, so that I could learn and appreciate more about the dialogue and dialect of dancers and the dance. And I went because it was fun.

    Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

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    The News

    ByElizabeth

    The photos of the aftermath of the earthquake are horrific. I cannot really imagine what it must be like. I found myself today thinking about how it is that I trust that the images are real even though those who offer us “entertainment” give us similar pictures through the same media. How do we stay keenly open to truth and sympathy when our receipt of truth and fiction comes through the same channels? My heart goes out to all those suffering.

    Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

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    Whether It Feels Too Soon or Not (Day Light Savings Time Is Arriving)

    ByElizabeth

    It still does not seem right to have daylight savings time start before the equinox.  I remember it used to be the first night I cooked outside.  Now it is always too cool and not quite light enough, and my morning meditation goes back to finishing before it is light.  Whether it matches with the weather or my mood, though, it is here this weekend.  I’ve had a much more intense work week than usual, which is resulting only partly from having been out of town for the previous week.  The coming weekend promises to be very full (assuming all goes as anticipated) with teaching my own class and studying with Ross Rayburn up at Willow Street both Saturday and Sunday, trying to go out to see some friends dance Saturday night, going to the contact improv jam on Sunday, and then having dinner with neighbors.

    To try and not get too off cycle by getting a socially induced equivalent of jet lag, I am starting to get ready for bed an hour early tonight and planning to get to the office before 8 tomorrow morning.  Try doing the same things you would do if changing time zones.  Get plenty of rest, drink lots of fluids, keep down the caffeine intake and if you really want to have caffeine, make sure you stop drinking it earlier in the day than usual; have any protein in the morning and then dine lightly on grains and vegetables in the late afternoon or early evening.  Don’t eat anything heavy at night.  That way you will have energy when you wake up too early and be sleepy when it is time to go to bed way before you think it is.

    And most important, use the change in time as an opportunity to celebrate the respective joys of shadow and light by having extra attention brought to them whether you will it or not.  It is always exciting the first night, particularly if it is warmish and bright as is in the forecast, that it stays light unnaturally late.

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    A New Landmark on Capitol Hill (Unveiling of the Dragon)

    ByElizabeth

    The weather was perfect last Sunday.  It had been misting and drizzling all morning.  At mid-day, the rain stopped, the temperature went up that which promises spring, and it was almost possible to see things sprouting green all around.  This promise of new growth couldn’t have been a better day for the unveiling of the neighborhood dragon.

    Thanks to friends and neighbors at the Kagyu Drupgu Chodzong, there is a new landmark in the neighborhood.  I was privileged to me among those who were present for the unveiling of this most auspicious dragon for all to see and to enjoy.  Whether or not we will be able to recognize any auspiciousness it might bring, it most certainly will be bringing delight not only by its beauty as a work of art, but from the knowledge that our friends and neighbors made the effort to offer such beauty to all of us.

    Much gratitude for good neighbors.