If you take the time to stop and look around, you’ll discover that you can learn a lot about life from nature.

Gaze at the clouds.  Watch them float by.  Each cloud is different.  Each day, the number of clouds are different.  Clouds are constantly changing, just like everything in life.

Smell the early morning jasmine.  It’s scent can be detected several feet away and linger in the air.  The jasmine and other natural scents remind us to take a deep breath.

Listen to the birds singing in the trees.  Their songs remind us to stop and listen and enjoy the moment.

Notice the morning glory on the vine.  It’s petals close at night and open to the sunlight.  The morning glory reminds us to get a good night’s sleep and to enjoy the day.

The river flows slow and smooth.  It reminds us of our journey in life.  Look forward, appreciate the present, don’t worry about the past.

Every beautiful tree grows tall, but bends due to the way it was planted or forces put upon it like a constant wind.  The trees mind us that each of us grows up differently - different parents, different education, different circumstances.  Yet each one of us is beautiful in our own way.

I know that there are many other ways that nature shows us how to live – what is your favorite comparison?

Posted: June 6th, 2008 under Stained Glass, present moment.
Comments: 2

Thank you for this beautiful day.

I woke up early by my standards, 5:15 a.m., and felt a lightness in my heart.  I dressed, made a cup of tea, and headed out to Mt. Soledad for a sunrise meditation. 

The sky, mottled with gray skies, did not afford the opportunity to view the sunrise, but my skin drank in the moisture of early morning dew.  My ears were treated to silence, that rare sound we so often do not  hear.  My eyes took in an air show courtesy of a flock of large black crows.  The moisture in the air brought out the pine and sage scents surrounding me.  My fingers flew over my mala beads as I quietly repeated my mantra.  The taste of green tea on my tongue warmed my mouth.

This past week has been chaos in my house, but today I begin again, without judgment, without worry.  I pay attention to my heart.  I pay attention to my body.  I pay attention to the beautiful world around me.  Living in the present moment keeps me at peace.  Living in the present moment allows me to be thankful for the preciousness of today.

So, how are you living in the present moment today?

Posted: May 21st, 2008 under Stained Glass, present moment.
Comments: 3

Chaos is swirling around me, sucking me into mental chatter and stress.  My walls will be opened in a few days.  The plastic pipes replaced with copper.  Wallboard dust will swirl throughout the house.  It’s also a good time to go one step further, remodel the guest bathroom.  The last time, and every other time in the past that we remodeled a part of our house, my body was consumed with stress.  But I have an opportunity to not repeat the patterns of the past.  I know how to be calm.  Stay in the present moment.  Even when my mind is filled with bathroom vanities, sinks, tile selection, and tub enclosures, I can be present with what I am doing.  I can make one decision and move on to the next.

I start my morning in peace.  Sitting on my patio, I gaze into the manmade stream that runs through our condo complex.  The water is clear.  The palm fronds reflect in the calm water.  A slight breeze passes and ripples the water, giving sound to the leaves on the surrounding bushes and trees.  A delicate petunia bloom sways.  The lavender offers up its scent.  I am present.

I hope every enjoyed their Mother’s Day.

Posted: May 12th, 2008 under mindfulness, present moment.
Comments: 4

As I drink my cup of of sereni-tea, I’m reading more teabag wisdom.  Here are two to get you through the weekend.

“Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens.” Carl Gustav Jung

When I was younger, I dreamed a lot.  I dreamed about graduating college, dreamed of my ideal career, dreamed of marriage and having a family, dreamed of buying a home, and a car.  While I managed to accomplish most of my dreams, I found only temporary satisfaction in the accomplishments.  It felt like riding a rollercoaster, a series of ups and downs.  I’ve heard many say “That’s what life is all about.”  But for a long time, deep inside, I felt something missing.  When I finally began to look inside myself, to see and feel the essence of me, I found the dream that had always eluded me.  Peace.

“When the heart is at ease, the body is healthy.” Chinese Proverb

This second teabag saying goes hand-in-hand with Carl Jung.  As I went through life on my rollercoaster, I not only rushed through each day, but was filled with negative emotions – anxiety, depression, stress, anger.  At the same time, my body reacted with back pain, osteoporosis, arthritis, heartburn, heart disease, indigestion.  After looking inside myself, letting go of expectations, forgiving others and myself, my aches and pains diminished.  My body became healthier.  I no longer hold onto negative emotions.  I began living in the present moment.  I became mindful of my thoughts, my actions, my words.

So as you go about your day, I encourage you to find a quiet space.  Take some time.  Look within and see what happens.

Have a great day.

Posted: May 2nd, 2008 under Stained Glass, mindfulness, present moment, yoga.
Comments: 2

Happy May 1 everyone. Wikipedia tells us that May Day is synonymous with International Workers’ Day, or Labour Day, which celebrates the social and economic achievements of the labor movement. As a day of celebration, however, the holiday has ancient origins and can relate to many customs that have survived into modern times. Many of these customs are due to May Day being a cross-quarter day, meaning that it falls approximately halfway between a solstice and an equinox.

May Day in San Diego was welcomed in by the Morris Dancers at sunrise up on Mt. Soledad.   They kicked their heels in the pre-dawn as they rang their bells strapped around their ankles, wearing yellow, green, and blue vests.  They waved handkerchiefs, and sticks as they danced to harmonicas and violins.

Today was busy at the cross.  Not only were the Morris Dancers romping in the grass overlooking La Jolla Shores, but this morning brought a group of worshippers out for National Prayer Day.  Several joggers, dog walkers, and early morning exercisers were also on hand to take in the sunrise as it rose behind the clouds and graced us with a pink streak as the clouds separated.

What an energetic start to a new day.  How are you celebrating May 1?

Posted: May 1st, 2008 under present moment.
Comments: none

Last night I saw the play 33 Variations.  It’s a fictional story surrounding the composition of Ludwig von Beethoven’s  thirty-three variations of Anton Diabelli’s waltz.  It was a wonderful play written and directed by Moises Kaufman.  But while some might view the play from the perspective of seeing one of Beethoven’s works come alive, I viewed it as a process of change and living in the present moment.

One the surface, Beethoven began with a simple waltz by Diabelli and transformed it into thirty-three different musical works of art.  During the play, we discovered the process of composing a piece of music, showing through Beethoven’s sketchbooks how he would draft a set of notes in pencil, then pen over a revision until he arrived at the final product.  In addition to depicting the music, Kaufman also portrayed the life of Beethoven as he descended into deafness, the process of a maestro at the height of fame plunging into the depths of illness.  Kaufman blended the past with the present day by including a musicologist sleuth, diagnosed with a debilitating illness, who’s out to discover why Beethoven was so obsessed with these musical variations.

The play made me pause and think about the process of life, how nothing stays the same, how everything changes, yet change happens day by day, moment by moment. 

At the macro level, we are born and grow.  At each stage of our life, the process continues.  We learn.  We work.  We love.  We experience the world around us.  Each year, each week, each day, each breath, is a new beginning.  As we focus more closely on our life, we can examine our career, and home life and see how each successive event in our live transforms us into the person we are today. 

As a writer, I think about the process of writing.  Typing subjects and verbs. Stringing sentences into paragraphs, paragraphs into pages of text until the words are transformed into a story.  As a stained glass artist, I think about the process of creating a work of art.  Designing a window, cutting the glass, leading and soldering and mudding until what was once small plates of glass and strips of lead have been transformed into a piece of art.

Everything is a process.  And every process begins and ends in the present moment.  

Posted: April 27th, 2008 under Stained Glass, present moment, writing.
Comments: 4

Today is Earth Day, and to honor our precious planet I’ve decided to be more mindful of what I can do for the earth, not only today, but always.  Even though I know that I won’t be able to totally eliminate my mark, I’m going to do my best to:

• walk or bike instead of drive
• reuse plastic water bottles
• use cloth napkins
• take cloth shopping bags to the store
• commune with nature as much as possible
• water potted plants with a watering can instead of a hose
• recycle paper, plastic, and glass
• recycle clothes and unwanted household items
• use earth friendly products

It’s the little things that count.  Live every moment to its fullest and be mindful of the earth.  So, what are you doing to honor our planet today?

Posted: April 22nd, 2008 under mindfulness, present moment.
Comments: 2

My body is in a state of pain.  I overdid or overstretched this past weekend while rock climbing in Joshua Tree National Park.  My spirit knew no bounds as I hiked, scrambled around rocks and boulders and clung to stone with my fingertips.  And now, my body is in pain.

A pulled muscle in my back revealed itself on Monday.  Tuesday, the muscle began to spasm, causing my vocal cords to cry out in agony.  My body is in pain, but I am at peace.

I’ve spent the last several days moving arms and legs as slow as a Tai Chi master.  Lifting one foot, moving one arm, turning ever so slowly, placing weight on my feet, letting my thighs tighten until my torso balanced in an upright position.  The doctor gave me medication for the pain.  The drugs dull my senses and allow me to sleep.

But an amazing awareness has come over me.  Being present, my body is not in pain.  Yes, occasionally I experience a sharp knife jabbing my back, but the pain is not consent.  I am observing the pain as it comes and goes.

I am not my body.  I am not my emotions.  I am the observer. 

Posted: April 18th, 2008 under exercise, meditation, mindfulness, present moment.
Comments: 3

I spent this past weekend in Joshua Tree National Park communing with nature.  The sun was bright and the temperature in the low 80’s, perfect for outdoor yoga, hiking, rock climbing and rappelling.  It was wonderful to see the spring flowers in bloom, hear the crunch of gravel beneath my feet, and sit in the shade of a mound of boulders in quiet stillness.

I brought along my journal, thinking I would record the sights and sounds of the high desert, but found myself so absorbed in its beauty that to capture the experience on paper would take me out of the present moment.  Take me out of being one with the universe.

It is an awesome experience, leaving the world of the past and the future behind and just being present.  Feeling the heat of the mid-day sun.  Smelling the light scent of blooming Joshua trees.  Touching the smooth and rough texture of granite beneath my fingers and rappelling down a 300 foot boulder.

If you live in Southern California, this is the perfect time to drive out and visit the area.

Posted: April 14th, 2008 under mindfulness, present moment, yoga.
Comments: 2

What is Creativity?

Julie Cameron in The Artist’s Way says that “Creativity is a spiritual experience.”

I’ve heard writers say, “When I’m in the zone, the prose flow from somewhere deep within me.”

I’m in the process of rereading Eckhart Tolle’s book The Power of Now.  On pp. 19-20, he writes, “All true artists, whether they know it or not, create from a place of no-mind, from inner stillness.  The mind then gives form to the creative impulse or insight.”

I had to pause after reading that statement and really think about what it says.  I’ve been writing for many years and more recently I’ve channeled my creative energy into my stained glass art.  I definitely agree with all these quotes.  There is someplace beyond my mind, beyond my thoughts, where ideas form and I give birth to them either on the page or in my stained glass.

So the question for you is this.  How do you define creativity?

Posted: April 11th, 2008 under Stained Glass, mindfulness, present moment, writing.
Comments: 4