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Saturday, December 30, 2006
Am I insane?
I turn on the tv this morning and am assaulted with images of a man being hung, people dancing in the street
and tales of more bombings and people being killed. I find this appalling. Isn't killing wrong on any level?
My father (the republican marine) would say I am naive'. He would logically explain the necessity
of hanging a human. He would use the population explosion to justify many Iraqis and Americans being slaughtered.
He would shake his head sadly and say, "well, it is what it is".
I suppose on some level he's right. Being raised American means we accept that sometimes you gotta
do what you gotta do.
What about being raised Christian? How can we justify creating death on any level? What about
being raised a human being? Ugh.
I know there are no answers. I do not presume to have any. All the appalling issues: war, abortion,
capital punishment, poverty, Darfur, global warming, it just goes on and on and on. The only thing that is clear is that we
do not live in a perfect world.
But, I can't help but feel that killing is wrong. On any level. For any reason. And that
sometimes there are other ways to approach evil and ugliness.
Course I didn't lose any relatives or friends on Sept. 11th. And I am blessed that my nephew made
it home safely from Iraq. And I've never been in a situation where I've had to make a horrible decision regarding life
or death.
I guess I am naive'. Thank God.
Let there be peace on earth, and let it
begin with me,
Let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be.
With God as our Father, brothers all are
we,
Let me walk with my brother, in perfect harmony.
Let peace begin with me, let this be the moment now,
With
every step I take, let this be my solemn vow,
To take each moment and live each moment in peace eternally.
Let there
be peace on earth, and let it begin with me!
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Tree Part Three
Ahhh. The time of year where it all starts closing in. And we start wondering, "why on earth would you put
a tree IN your house?"
I think the world is divided into 2 types of people. Those who think it's really important to follow ALL the traditions
of Christmas whether they have any idea of why they are even tradtions in the first place and then there's me.
Ugh. I feel as if I am the Staypuff Marshmallow woman trying to navigate a hamster's cage.
 I need this and I need it now. I just can't decide if it's for me or for the tree......
Calgon take me away!!!!!!!
Monday, December 25, 2006
Merry Christmas!
Happy Happy Peace to all!
Monday, December 18, 2006
My favorite things.....
 Yesterday was the Christmas Families gift wrapping at our church. Would you think I was a total nut if I said this is
my most favorite thing I do at Christmas time? As far as I'm concerned Christmas is done now. Seriously, I look
forward to it all year long and not just the wrapping, the picking the name of our children we buy for, the shopping (it's
the only shopping I LIKE to do), the gathering and anticipating and then taking it to the church, putting it all on their
chair and getting there early so we can be the ones to wrap OUR kids presents.
What a great thing it is! I think this year they said there were 85 kids our church bought clothes and toys
for. 85! How sad that there are 85 kids in need.....that we even know of in our community....How blessed we are
to have the opportunity to give even a bit of joy to those kids. I know, I am a total sap.
I used to work in the Therapeutic Nursery at our church. The best Christmas family year was when I secretly knew
the kids I was buying for because they were in my class. (You aren't supposed to know them and they don't know you)
I would be playing with them and just casually ask them for their hearts desire....and then go buy it! They were so
thrilled when I saw them in January, raving about how Santa brought them just what they wanted!!! Too cool!
This year was a very meaningful one for Barry and I. Our 16 year old daughter picked her very own kid to buy for.
She works now and not only did she pick a toy but she picked out a whole outfit for her little one....Marchele. She
spent a tremendous amount of money for a 16 year old with a part time job. She took a long time picking out just the
right thing for "her" girl, it was a beautiful thing to watch, I am so proud of her.
While we were wrapping yesterday, I came upon a chair with a little boy's name who didn't have a 'top'. Each child
has someone sign up to buy a top and/or a bottom and/or a toy. Apparently whoever had his name picked out the wrong
size and so the Elder in charge of Missions was trying to find something that would fit this boy. She had been running
around all day--rushing to the store for batteries for kids toys without them and clothes for ones whose donators didn't show
up. She is a very beautiful woman, filled with light, but right now she looked very tired and a bit dismayed at
the prospect of having to run out again. Who could blame her? I told her to just wait a sec and let me see what
I could do. So my daughter calls my 20 year old son who was at home nursing a very swollen shoulder injury (he is delivering
packages for UPS this season trying to raise money for college) and asks him to look around to see if he has a errant shirt
with tags in his room sized 12.
Would you believe he ran right out to the store and bought a great warm sweater for this child he'd never heard of?
And then rushed right over to the church so it could be wrapped and included in the delivery today. AND refused to be
reimbursed for it---wanted to just donate it?
Ahhhh....I had Christmas yesterday. It was the best Christmas I've ever had.
Monday, December 11, 2006
The Nativity Story
We went to see "The Nativity Story" yesterday with the spirit group. It was enchanting. What a beautiful
movie! It's not your 'let's see if we can modern this ole story up' that you usually see nowadays. It was very
true to the times and story found in Luke. The actors were amazing, they said more with their eyes then I could say
in a year of blogs. It was very moving, as my friend Lori says, "I almost went into the ugly cry there, had to really
bite my lip to stop from sobbing out loud". Not because it was sad, quite the contrary, it was because they portrayed
the reaction people would have had to the idea of a Savior being born to rescue them from years of oppression so well.
It was just done so beautifully.
I heard it got bad reviews and I imagine if people go into it expecting the usual tripe we get, the fast, smash em up,
yelling in your face and laughing at fart jokes, they probably won't like it. It's slow, doesn't have a whole lot of
dialog, requires you to put yourself in their positions and empathize with what they actually went through. It's authentic
looking, really doesn't embellish too much, just puts you there. In a peaceful, thoughtful awareness place. And
when you go back and read Luke (I am researching a new project) it changes the way you see it. In a good ALIVE kind
of way.
I highly recommend it.
Friday, December 8, 2006
Scattered
Had a student send me an email about a new form of yoga called "Laughter Yoga". It's where students walk around
squawking like chickens until they dissolve into giggles. See Yolinna's Yoga for Comcast News Article. Anyone who takes my classes knows that this is not a new fad. In fact, we must
be extremely trendy as we have doing this for years. Just mention "releasing your toxins" to any of my students and
they will instantly turn 12 and start giggling.
Last night before yoga, my family and I were watching Rachel Ray. If you don't know who she is, she has some kind
of cooking show where she talks incessantly. She has a real grating voice, like someone from the Bronx who has smoked
for 50 years and a deviated septum. Anyway, we begin mocking her (I can't believe how un PC this post is!) laughing
and joking about how funny it would be if she was a yoga teacher. <insert wicked, obnoxious voice here> "NOW!
GATHER ALL THE LOVE IN THE ROOM!!! NAMASTE'!!! PEOPLE!"
I guess you had to be there. So I'm closing my class last night, my people are all peaceful, soft Christmas music
letting them float and you guessed it.....I can't stop laughing.....and it's one of those 'not supposed to be laughing in
church' things so of course it won't stop. And I'm keeping my head bowed so they can't see it but I'm sure they thought
I was having some kind of seizure.
After class I was telling some of them what was up and my good buddy Johnny Chaturunga says, "You really are just a big
kid, aren't you?"
And I thought about sticking my tongue out at him. 
That would have confirmed it, huh? Instead I put my hand up, wiggled it back and forth and said, "I'm 5 years old".
That was mature.
Can you tell I'm a bit scattered lately? Feel like a chicken pecking around the yard. Gotta go shop.
Ugh. I am so not a shopper. Sensory overload. Linda. Stop typing and just do it!
I'm 5 years old.
Tuesday, December 5, 2006
Snow
 I was browsing the pictures I can put on this site and I found one called "Welcome Snow". I thought "wow, how beautiful"
and then "ugh, how ugly it gets" and then "wow, how nice it feels to watch a snow storm" and then "ugh, I HATE driving in
the snow around this lunatic town". Such a conflict over one little picture.....
Wouldn't it be cool if the minute it snowed, the whole town just shut down? Everyone go home and sip hot chocolate
and watch it fall? We'd walk along the roads, smiling at one another, knowing that snow was just a major gift from God
to give us a time to pause and reflect on the majesty of nature,,, ahhh. Was it like that when I was a kid? Or
did I just not have to drive?
It seems like the minute it snows around here, everyone jumps in their SUV's and frantically drive all over town,
pushing little cars out of the way, throwing their heads back and laughing hysterically as their big honking tires splash
black road slush on poor innocent sledders just trying to enjoy the freakin' wonders of nature.
It doesn't help that my husband is a snow fanatic.
I love snow. When did it become a suicide mission? Why is it that people will go to work when there's
10 feet of snow to prove their macho-ness but will call in sick for "an upset tummy"?
People! If it snows....STAY HOME! Love your family and your solitude. And whatever you do, don't put
the TV on! Crazy news people are only trying to challenge you with their don't drive smirking while they are standing
on the interstate. Hee hee, where's the black slush SUV's when you need them?
Friday, December 1, 2006
Hawks
The other day I was sitting in the living room chit-chatting with my son and husband. C, my son, goes into the
kitchen and exclaims, "Holy Crap!" (he's 20, sigh) Right away I'm thinking the dishwasher exploded or something expensive
like that but he gets very excited and starts yelling for us to "come here!" Reluctantly I get up and look to where
he is pointing outside and there on my dogwood tree, not 20 feet from my house is the biggest hawk I've ever seen.
So we start yelling for his sister and father, running for the camera, sssshing the very excited dog and of course
in all the excitement the hawk flies away to the next door neighbors trees. We go outside, disgruntled, he thinks it's
our fault, the rest of the family starts bickering about whether it was a hawk or a peregrine falcon and I sit down on the
stoop near the hot tub and just contemplate the whole thing.
I'm just sort of watching it (like a hawk) and the next thing I know, it takes off and heads right for me! It swoops
down and flies directly over my head. I watch it open mouthed as it flies by.(thank goodness THAT didn't backfire on me, if
you know what I mean) I thought maybe it may have a message but I sort of forgot about it and moved on to other things.
So, 2 nights later, I dream about it. I see the hawk clearly, in color. Still I think nothing about it.
I was very tired from all the yoga/Thanksgiving Day festivities so I was sort of on auto-pilot, plus I was very filled with
the promise of my sureness of the right path for me.
On Tuesday, I went to http://Peacefulrivers.homestead.com/ to pick my animal medicine card. I hadn't been there for awhile and just on a whim, clicked on it. Well,
of course the card was Hawk. I just laughed out loud. Of course it was.
"Hawk is akin to Mercury, the messenger of the gods. Hawk medicine
teaches you to be observant, to look at your surroundings. Observe the obvious in everything that you do. Life
is sending you signals.
Life is the initiation.
If you have pulled the Hawk card, then right now a clue about the magic of life is being brought to you. This magic
can imbue you with the power to overcome a currently stressful or difficult situation. The test is your ability to observe
the nuances of power lurking nearby. Is power the talent you have and are not using? Are solutions always hard to find
because you have lost the broader vision of Hawk? Or is the Great Spirit displaying a gift that you need only to receive?
Have the colors of the morning inspired you to create? Or has the gloominess of a present situation left you earthbound, unable
to hear the voice within the raindrops splashing on your window? Pay attention! You are only as powerful as your
capacity to perceive, receive, and use your abilities.
 If Hawk has circled and landed in your card spread, you are to be aware of
signals in your life-- so notice and receive them. Hawk may be teaching you to grab an opportunity which is coming your
way. On the other hand, Hawk may be bringing you the message that you should circle over your life, and examine it from
a higher perspective. From this vantage point you may be able to discern the hazards which bar you from freedom of flight.
Remember: Hawk has a keen eye and a bold heart, for Hawk flies close to the light of Grandfather Sun.
I just went there this morning and would you believe I pulled it AGAIN? Okay,
Universe, I Get It!!! You got my attention! I am watching the skies, circling my day, noticing the cues and I
will follow..... Isn't the Universe funny? Go to quotes and links to see the message I got today. I think it's pretty clear.
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