reverb recap part deux

I thought I'd share you ALL the babble from this last week and pass on some quotes and songs to represent these prompts. Let someone else's words do the talking.


Reverb 8 - Dharma, The Path - How did you wander well this year?

I wandered all the way to Bali, right into a yoga studio.  This, is my path.

"Yoga is a light, which once lit will never dim". ~B.K.S Iyengar

 Reverb 9 - Resourcefulness - How were you resourceful?  How can you be resourceful?

 Use positivity to bring on inspiration and motivation. Smile. Move.

 "Open up your mind and let light in".

 'Date with Destiny' ~ Nightmares on Wax lyrics

Reverb 10 - Ananda, Bliss 

Joy, I'm learning is a state of mind which can transcend into your state of being. Reconnecting to the simple things has brought me joy.

This song = pure joy

 'Let me lie' ~ Phish   lyrics

  Reverb 11 - Thanks - Write a thank you letter or poem to someone.


The poem to that someone, I've kept for myself.  But I will re-share this poem:

My love letter to Indo

 Reverb 12 - Book - What did you read in 2011 that was most inspirational?

I read a ton of books throughout the year. I wouldn't pick any one as being truly inspirational, however, there were many that got me thinking. Barbara Kingsolver was an author that I returned to time and again over the year. Here are a few gems that have stayed with me.

  "It's what you do that makes your soul".

 “There's such a gulf between yourself and who you were then, but people speak to that other person and it answers; it's like having a stranger as a house guest in your skin.”

 “Close the door. Write with no one looking over your shoulder. Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer.”

  Reverb 13 - Wisdom - What lesson or piece of wisdom did you learn from a child?

 I learned that children see the world the way it should be.

 "Better People" ~  Xavier Rudd lyrics

  Reverb 14 - Jnana, Self-Knowledge - What did you do that was completely out of character?

 I let go. I let myself go with the flow and see where the tides would take me. They took me home :)

reverb recap

Using the prompts from reverb 11 has been a great way to get me writing and reflecting on the past year.

Each day I pour myself a cup of tea and sit down with that days prompt. Here is the coles-notes version of what's been hitting the paper from the first week. I'll spare you the ooey gooey babble.

Warning: If you are tired of hearing me talk about Yoga or Indonesia or how either have shaped my life, stop reading now!

Reverb 1 - Pick a word to represent 2011. Pick a word you would like to represent 2012

2011 - Change “Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.” ~ Jim Rohn ~

2012- Presence "I have arrived. I am home. In the here. In the now. I am solid. I am free. In the ultimate I dwell". ~ Thich Nhat Hahn ~ This is where I want to be.

Reverb 2 - Community - Which community do you belong to?

I don't feel like I belong to any community (sigh), aside from my family, and it upsets me. Something I need to work towards in the New Year is finding my community. I used to pride myself on not "needing" anyone. I realise now how unhealthy that is. Not necessarily to "need" people but to have people in my life who I connect with, who I can learn from and grow with. ...It can't always just be me and my homeboy.

Reverb 3 - Change - What did you let go of? Who did you let go of?

When I think about change I think about the changes that have occurred within - the growth over the last year. I think of new things, thoughts and ideals - what I've learned, what I've experienced. Not about what I've let go of. I see now the importance of acknowledging these things that I've had to give up in order for these changes, this growth, to occur. As though I've had to open up new space within to make room. The big thing that I've let go of are my ideals about who I should be or how things in my life should be. I'm more accepting of myself and my surroundings. This is a nice place to be.

Reverb 4 - Guru - What was the most important lesson you learned?

I learned that happiness is within myself. I learned that I am braver than I think. I learned to be connected with who I am today. This shift happened over the course of the year, but really got it's start in Indonesia. I guess I just never really took the time to get to know myself like that.

Reverb 5 - Dream - What was your dream come true?

Yoga! Indonesia! Practicing yoga in Indonesia!
I was so lucky to have the chance to take that time to explore the country, explore the practice and explore myself.

Reverb 6 - Health - What did you do for your body's benefit?

Yoga!
Quit smoking (pretty much)
Lessened meat intake (pretty much)
Learned to stress less (pretty much)

Reverb 7 - Calm - What quiet beautiful moment do you recall?

There were a lot of serene beautiful moments in 2011. Many from my time in the Gilis. This is the first place where we really unplugged. No t.v, no wifi, no motorized vehicles. Waking up to the sound of roosters. Falling asleep to the sound of geckos. Laying back in the water letting the ocean support me as I float around with the sun on my face. Drowning my chitta vritti, my monkey mind, with the soothing hum of underwater life. Calm. No where to be, no time to keep. Happiness.

And then there were the moments during Yoga Teacher Training where the quiet and calm would be enough to bring me to tears and leave me smiling uncontrollably all in the same moment. Actually feeling the love flow through me. Uh, I know, I just wrote that...I guess I had to include a bit of the "ooey gooey"

Are we noticing a pattern here? Yoga, blah blah blah. Indonesia, blah blah blah. Hopefully the prompts for week two will give me something else to write about.

~peace :)

the fearful say what

What?

I sat on my hands and I missed my chance.

I have been reading Elephant Journal for about the same amount of time as I've been keeping this blog. I have always had the intention of posting for their site. I started the Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga series with the intention of submitting it to EJ. This, is a series I started last May. This is a series that interests me and I take pride in writing about. This is a series that a) I did not finish and b) I did not submit. So I finally muster the nerve to submit it to EJ and re-re-read the book and finish the series. I send in my query and a day goes by and I don't hear back, and then another, and my fear of being rejected impatience gets the best of me and I take a look through the site and see that someone else has already submitted a series of posts covering the seven laws.

Blurgh! Not only has this already been covered, but it's been covered really well, in a really creative way.

What was I waiting for?

During my usual 'net' time yesterday I came across yet another writing project: Reverb 11. And the first exercise was to pick a word that would describe my year of 2011. I donned my meditation necklace, grabbed a pen and journal and let the words flow. There were the obvious words: yoga, travel, adventure, change and growth. And then there were words that wrote themselves: Fear, frustration, limits. These are the words that stand in my way. Fear. I am fearful.

The ironic thing, is that the first law in Chopra's book is "pure potentiality". Finding stillness, letting go of your ego. Coming out of a fear-based state of being. I waited to post, because I cared what people would think. I was afraid that no one would read what I had wrote, or worse still, no one would like it. Scratch that, I was afraid of how I would feel if even one person didn't like it. Ego.

When we talk of ego and having an ego it's not about being an ego-maniac. It's about the fact that we all have an ego and it likes to be stroked. It's about being comfortable in yourself and learning to detach from your ego. Slowly, I'm getting there. Moment by moment. I'm finding a place in myself where I feel quite at peace with who I am and what I think and my ego isn't as fragile as it once was.

So here I am, ready to post and I missed my chance to post something original. My ego stood in my way. Down boy. Sit BooBoo sit.

pop culture stunted my growth

Check me out on Elephant Journal!!!!

~How Justin Bieber Stole my Summer~

Dear Diary,

The stillness has come. I was searching, and I think I found it. I have fallen in love with Yoga. The practice, the history, the philosophy and the sanskrit. I want to bundle it up and call it my own. This is my path. This is how I’m going to make a difference.

I spent four months schleppin’ my goods around Indonesia searching for something greater. I found it in the people, the music, nature and a yoga studio. With a 30 pound bag and Lonely Planet in hand, I set upon a journey to find The Truth.

After two years in the high tech world of South Korea, I was ready to fully embrace the island life. A place where cable and internet are considered luxuries and beer is the most expensive thing on the menu. It was easy to unplug and disconnect from the outside world, which was a welcome change which slowed me down, allowing time to sit and breathe and think.

I was happy. I drank less, read more and even gave up meat.

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