Our three-year-old pomeranian, Bambi, often gets the short end of the stick when it comes to receiving attention. After all she's a dog, she chews on sticks, poops outside and eats anything that falls on the floor...doesn't she require less emotional and attentional engagement? I don't actually believe that, but based on my actions it would seem that I do. I'm working to remind myself to include her needs more in my awareness and follow through.
Yesterday morning I began my practice a little after 5 am. Bambi showed up mat-side soon after. My wife and I have noticed, ever since Bambi has been living with us, that she quivers from time to time. Mostly it seems benign, but every now and then I can't help but feel it is significant in some way. And I'm not talking about a little shake to dry off, or a gentle shudder...it's more like she's shivering, sometimes powerfully, and I'm fairly certain she's not actually cold. My intuition has always told me it has to do with her feeling of belonging.
A year ago we found her wandering down the street in our Baltimore neighborhood, and after getting in touch with her previous owner, who had been hospitalized for some time and had passed Bambi off to friends, and friends of friends, we decided we could provide her with a good home. It seemed, and the owner even unhappily suggested, that she wasn't being well cared for. Who knows, maybe she was abused, or neglected. She is a sweetheart and seems to love being part of family, our family. When she quivers it seems like she's face-to-face with uncertainty, and working through past emotions relating to acceptance and fear.
When she came to visit me on my mat yesterday morning, I acknowledged her, and then continued on with my "I have (yoga) work to do" attitude. But she stayed put, and I noticed her quivering. It was so strong that it was practically audible.
My dad always says that the early morning is a very spiritual time of day, and it is true; within the vacinity of sunrise I always feel an auspiciuos perceptivity and connectedness. I knelt down to greet the beautiful furball before me, and I put my hands on her. I felt her shaking powerfully. For a moment I held the thought, "maybe it's neurologic, maybe a nerve is snapped or something. Maybe she's just a dog who will always shake". After that thought was had, I basically laughed at it. I fully believe that in each and every moment we possess the capability to completely understand and be the source of our experience. To me, healing is always within reach. It is always a possibility, awaiting a simple choice to trigger its actualization. Our health is the product of nothing but our own choices. The outcome of a situation is the product of nothing but the choices of those involved. You are the highest expert of any moment in which you participate, in as far as your ability to listen to what the moment is communicating.
After I released my thought of "oh this is just the way it is", I felt Bambi's shake as communication. I let it in. I let her vibrations travel through my arms to my center and I sent my own vibrations of ease, relaxation and "dude, we so totally accept you, you angel of a dog" back to her. I kept at it for a while, with heavy hands I firmly and kindly squeezed and massaged all of her barely-more-than-10-pound body. I felt her quivers becoming less frequent, her demeanor more quiet. It felt like deep work we were doing. There were times when it felt as though she wanted to walk away, still shaking, but I was unyielding in my assurance to her, "you can give me your shakes, you don't need them". Eventually she seemed at peace. She breathed easy, she felt calm--almost like she now remembered her place in the world, her right to be here, and our adoration for her. She layed down, I stood up. I brought my hands to prayer, samasthiti. I smiled and felt humbled by what just transpired. I also felt empowered. Our creations are the stuff of magic.
What a gift Bambi brought me yesterday. What will we hear...if we listen?
Monday, February 15, 2016
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
To Pay On A Sliding Scale
Maybe our whole commerce system should be sliding-scale. Instead of paying a fixed price for things, we could pay a percentage of what we have.
Real estate, cars, cell phones. Having to pay for these things according to a sliding scale would drop the incentive for people to do work simply because it paid well, and, perhaps, more of us would engage in work because we enjoyed it
The Space Between
My son went off before my alarm went off this morning. After my wife and I failed to coax him back to sleep, I brought him downstairs to start our morning.
I swapped him into a fresh diaper, we switched the laundry over, then we headed to the living room so I could get on my mat. I brought him some entertainment (wooden blocks and puzzles) and began my wake-up effort.
Xavier would stay with his toys for a while, then come climb on me, then eventually sit down and cry (the "daddy play with me" kind). Usually this is the point when I pick him up to soothe, comfort, and reassure.
Determined to continue my yoga practice I'd guide him back to his toys and continue my practice. We did this dance a few times, and the next time he sat down to cry I let him be. I heard him, I loved him, I wouldn't be held hostage by him. I continued my practice.
He wailed for some time, grabbed at me, climbed on me... After all, the precedent I've set is that when he cries I (usually) pick him up. This time, I remained steadfast and eventually he realized that he wasn't getting picked up. He sat down, put his thumb in his mouth, and sat quietly. Then he stood up, peacefully explored the room, found his toys and entertained himself. I was able to flow for a while.
There was a new dynamic between us now. We were aware of each other, Xavier and I, and at the same time we were aware of ourselves and the space in between. I felt satisfied.
That space in between is crucial. When the space in between is gone, a neediness sets in. When we maintain the space, we are simultaneously able to acknowledge one another and allow each other our own ventures.
Saturday, February 6, 2016
Direct Source Sponsors Direct Communication
How does one achieve balance, harmony in ones life? Sometimes it is hard to prioritize, and I feel lost...like I don't know what to do first...
And even as I finish writing the question I know the answer....
By asking that question I am still stuck in "needing to KNOW" (with mind). Let feeling guide, and trust feeling. Feeling is Direct Communication and Direct Communication comes from Direct Source. Get in touch with the Direct Source...not the modulated and reformatted version of source that fits neatly into our current view of reality. Allow Direct Communication from Direct Source to open your understanding to more and more possibilities, more and more truth.
Feel. Trust. You will know what to do.
Direct Communication...Holy Communion
Direct Communication is being caused to feel/know something before having a thought about it. If you are pushed, you do not need to think, and decide, and analyze with thought whether or not you were pushed. You simply feel it. You simply know. And because of this instant understanding, you right yourself. You feel the push and you respond however is necessary, without a thought about it. The push will send us toppling to the floor if we have to think about the state of reality before acting on it.
THE BODY KNOWS! LISTEN TO IT!
Do not think about what you're feeling. Instead, simply feel it, and respond how it FEELS appropriate.
When we hear a song that is moving, when we read something that resonates, when someone speaks to us and we tingle -- these are all instances of words carrying Direct Communication. We feel a certain way in response to the push we are receiving. We do not have to think about the meaning of the words before they are understood, before they carry impact. We know before we know how we know. We understand before analyzing content. Truth is felt, and it happens in an instant. By comparison, thought lags. Thought requires a delay for processing, analyzing, deciding. Direct Communication is instant, and this is why it is so effective at helping us create our highest reality. Direct Communication is a Holy Communion...it is the absolute leading edge of creation, all else lags behind.
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