Things I love number 5

Driving upstate to see
the autumn leaves
and
other treasures.

Fall berries

Maya Lin

A Folded Drawing

That Space

My family

Today I am practicing how to be here, 

not watching where I am 

and not worrying about where I should be. 

A wave over my head

Jamaica Wildlife Refuge

How frightening it feels to start writing again. It has been almost 2 weeks since I posted and 3 weeks since I really opened my fingers.

Tonight the moon is almost full, 25 hours away. and I've been full. Time moving so quickly. I've so busy looking, planning, figuring it all, the future, the whole package- life and everything in and around it. Trying to squeeze it all in and make it all fit and hope all the rest works out the way I want it to.  Don't I know by now, I can't do that. None of that. The best I can do is just keep moving slowly with the waves, not trying to squeeze it in. Staying connected to what is around me, at each moment. Today it broke, a wave over my head perhaps. It caught me, turned me and it reminded me that I have to not just have the right intensions but stay linked to this peace inside me. Until last evening, for the past week or even two, I'd forgotten to be quiet and to stop and to get replenished. 


Last night, I stopped on my way home at this little quiet meditation space right in the middle of the city. And the buildings are tall and surround this place yet it has such a safe and warm feeling (even though it is outdoors). And there I got quiet and re-connected. I didn't feel the fullness of that replenishment until this morning, when I stopped, again, just for a moment to be grateful for all I have.

 

This Moment

[This Moment] the dance

inspired by Soule Mama

This sculpture is at the Metropolitan Museum in NY

transition

I am in an aesthetic transition as I am changing the design of my blog.
I am figuring out how to apply my own design, not using a template as I started out with.
All of this is part of my discovering and getting comfortable in this new environment and community.
I am really enjoying it today, this process, this way of sharing and creating.

I am so grateful that I am seeing new visitors, getting comments and having new "followers". Thank you all for giving me the opportunity to share and have gravity in this world of airwaves.

More about Peace

Here's our nature mobile

made at home from collected finds in Wainscott & Govenors Island

This mobile hangs in our kitchen and you can see our rooftop view. I love this quiet city view, filled with light and no people. This room gives me peace. I have my garden in this room. I just spent yesterday bringing each of my plants to the bathtub and giving them a long shower. I imagine that indoor plants long for the rain of outdoors that they see in the window. When it's a gray and rainy day I try to water my plants, thinking that they are wondering why they are not getting the liquid and feeling thirsty.

Dragonfly wing

I am truly grateful for this home we have. It came as a result of some vision work I began with intention, in 2004. This is the first real home I felt I have ever had- believe me I've lived in hundreds of places, squatted, slept, stayed, been transported. And in my real adult live, I've had few and tried to create a home. This place is the closest I ever come to it. In fact, I knew, shortly after we moved here, from a dark studio apartment we shared and had crammed with creatively stored stuff. I knew this was our home. We painted the walls fun colors and designed how we would place the furniture for optimal view of the city skyline and rooftops we viewed.  

but mostly it is the way the light comes in and the wind blows through. Facing west, we have an incredible sunset each night- almost, but not quite, as enchanted as the New Mexico sunset. The energy moves through this apartment with the breeze. I am sure that it is the way the energy moves through this place that I got pregnant and carried my child for 8 months, until he graced our lives with his flesh in March 2007. 

He too was a vision, I worked hard for years before, to clear my body and my spirit for him. but it was this perfect environment of peace, light and the movement of energy, in this stifling, crowded city that made it possible for him to come to us from the stars. (that is where he says he came from).

A glorious peacock feather on top
found at the
bronx Zoo 
 (you cant see the silvery
and turquios metalic colors in this photo)

Todd Parr has this great book called The Peace book. I love to read it with my son. I love how, in this book, everything wonderful, different, fun, everything loved, or loving is peace. In much the same way I found this piece together peace project on www.threadinglight.com.  On this website, created by 2 women, they are sharing an opportunity to participate with:

a team of peace walkers ...to promote peace in a movement called the 13 Moon Walk 4 Peace. They will be walking through 42 cities to heal the heart of America and transform the way we relate to each other and to Mother Earth.

So they suggest:

At the beginning of every month blog about your intention for being peace. Make a commitment to change some aspect of your life that will bring more peace to you and the beings around you. Think of something you can easily change today.

I made my intention for peace, on Friday Oct 1 and I'll keep you posted throughout the month about my personal peace progress.

My Commitment to Peace

It is Oct 1st, I am making a commitment not only to meditate more often, bringing more peace to my heart but, to really do my best to bring peace to my home, everyday, every minute that I humanly can. 

I have an affirmation taped on my bathroom mirror which is based on Gandhi's brilliant quote "...be the change you want to see". My affirmation, which I read each day, (along with 2 others)  says "I am so grateful for being the person I want others to be..." -to me this is an affirmation of this same commitment, particularly in my home...being that person I want others- expect others- wish others- criticise others for NOT being (others=my husband, my child, my boss, et al).    TO BE THAT PERSON. I am committing to this, which is much bigger than an affirmation and here I voice it out loud to all of you, to the wind, to the world, to the ethers, to the cracks and crevices of my heart and my ears, inner and outer. 

Here is my continual commitment to this great project I am grateful to join in:

piece together peace from Threading Light

http://www.threadinglight.com/2010/09/piece-together-peace.html 

Walk the walk.

Be the piece.

Be peace.

Together... let's Piece together Peace.



This moment

{This moment} of wonder

inspired by Soule Mama

Listening to songs sung by my honey and my son, together.
My son getting his own breakfast.
being together inside in this drizzly, gray and stormy day.


Through this I've seen an amazing invitation

http://www.threadinglight.com/2010/09/piece-together-peace.html#comment-form

Join in this project!