I am so thankful to have attended the National Kids Yoga Conference last weekend. It was an opportunity to recharge and be in the presence of some inspiring folks who sing and breathe their way into more mindful being. In light of what is going on the world, it's most moving when people choose love instead of fear.
If more people greeted each other with authentic intention, perhaps our world would be less of a vast mystery and instead a more magnificent magnum of respect and tenderness.
During my yoga retreat, teacher Kira Willey led us in song,
may we breathe in light, breathe out love
may we breathe in hope, breathe out joy
may we breathe in peace, breathe out kindness
May we pray . . . for Paris, Syria, Beirut, Baghdad, Ferguson, Mizzou, Claremont, Ithaca, Yale, Spring Valley, Kenya, Palestine, Ayotzinapa . . . & so many others in our world that is smaller than we make it out to be . . . (it's a small world after all, isn't it?)
wishes for hearts to grow as wide as the sky
wishes for hands to hold others'
in courage and in dignity
with reverent light as brilliant as breaking dawn
Back and forth with our attorney to sell our Jersey home, constantly in touch with our realtor to make the necessary repairs to meet Certificate of Occupancy and buyer's needs along with settling into our new (temporary) home, trying to get organized and make sure N. eats well enough to have a satisfactory poo (which is my greatest daily stress!) makes it challenging to stay sane -- some days more than others.
I have ongoing to-do lists for the Jersey home, for our NoVA home, alongside N.'s food /poo journal (sad faces for when she doesn't poo & happy dancing faces for when she does!), notebooks of penned information across our kitchen counters that sit next to file folders with inspection reports and requests for transfers of medical records. I'm also scheduling doctors' (specialists included) appointments for all three of us to make sure we're on top of our health and wellness needs.
It's not pretty.
While I try to have my moments of peaceful meditation, I can't seem to get enough calm or sleep.
Did we really gain an hour this past weekend?
Reminder to self: Self care isn't selfish. Taking care of me means that the people in my life, especially the loves of my life, will receive the best of me, not what's left of me.
So when I went on my run/walk yesterday on the W&OD trail, I forced myself to pause several times, look up and breathe. I repeated, I am grateful for this Life. I am grateful for my partner. I am grateful for my daughter. For every concern, there is a solution.
I am thankful for every opportunity to take care of myself.
My prayer for self-compassion . . .
May I be filled with loving kindness. May I be well. May I be peaceful and at ease. May I be happy.
My wish for you . . .
May you find moments to be kind to yourself. May you give yourself the compassion you need.
Life never happens the way we expect. Am pretty sure others never thought we would ever leave Jersey. In a matter of a month, four weeks of chaotic planning and packing, prepping our home to sell, we have officially moved to Northern Virginia, otherwise known as NoVA. The universe has a way of working things out.
We arrived just two days ago. Never saw our now rental home-for-the-year in person. It was our Choice D. Found it online after an unsuccessful few days of house hunting in the DC area. And here we are.
I sit in our dining room, multiple boxes open and strewn randomly, the smell of cardboard that has been on and off a moving truck, and take it in. Are we really here? Are we really doing this? Have we made the right decision?
Throughout the moving process, I have made sure to be with gratitude and breathe moment by moment. I am thankful for my partner whose intellect, discipline, professional expertise and integrity have worked in his favor to bring him to an opportunity that came when he wasn't looking. I am thankful for our families who have been supportive of our move and our desire to create a better quality of life especially for our daughter, the best quality of life experiences to which we can expose her. Amidst the maddening stress of moving out of state, considered one of the top major life changes, I have frequently put things in perspective by reminding myself that we're not Syrian refugees in survival mode. We're merely moving from Point A to Point B, and we have been blessed with the resources to do so.
This morning, we took a break from unpacking to explore Clemyjontri Park, "where every child can play." It was N.'s much deserved adventure in all of the transition. The expansive playground spans acres, where children of all abilities are welcome. It is by far *the best* playground we have ever been to. Even more impressive was that it was completely free! Watching N. roam carefree and in sheer delight, I began to sing to myself (from 'Annie's' 1982 soundtrack), "I think I'm gonna like it here . . . " I know we're going to like it here.
We have received the warmest welcomes from an old college friend and his husband who treated us to a weekend brunch, distant family member who continues to be a communal resource, as well as our niece who happens to be attending a local university as an out-of-stater and is an incredible older cousin and pal to N. A. is upstairs preparing for his first day in his new esteemed position, an amazing career juncture that has brought us to making a wonderfully unwonted life in Fairfax County.
We're off to great places. Today is our day. We're off and away!
