December 30, 2012 ~ Welcoming the New Year

December 30, 2012 ~ Looking Back & Looking Forward: Welcoming the New Year

 "And now we welcome the new year, full of things that have never been."

~Rainer Maria Rilke

"Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending."

~Carl Bard

That's Janus, the ancient Roman god of gates, doorways, beginnings and transitions, depicted with two faces, one that can see into the past and one into the future. He was worshiped at harvest and planting times, at marriages, deaths, and other times of beginnings and transitions, and the first month of the year was named in his honor. What an apt symbol for these final days of 2012, as we reflect on the harvest of our thoughts and actions born of the past and envision the seeds of our intentions for the coming year.

Last week my good friend Diana and I created a ceremony to honor and appreciate the beloveds in our lives. I had requested this ceremony because I had had a realization of my tendency to have difficulty in receiving positive reflections, in really letting love in. There has been some resistance. That's the shift I wanted to experience for 2013—to open to allow more love in—and I know that gratitude and acceptance are the keys.

We created a little impromptu altar area with lavender and sage, lit a candle, and we each took a turn laying out photographs, cards, mementos and gifts that we had received from friends and loved ones over the years. We shared with one another how each person has touched our lives, how love has been expressed through each one, appreciating the unique qualities of each person and how we had been inspired or had grown as a person through their presence in our lives. What a heart-opening experience it was to be able to get in touch with those feelings and to have a space to share them.

Looking back into the past with abundant gratitude for all of it—even the losses, the "opportunities for learning" that were challenging or painful—we were also looking with new eyes toward the future. We were preparing the soil, planting seeds of intention for new ways of being in life and relationship. Knowing that we are authors of our own life stories, we are opening to the possibility of creating a whole new story. With hearts full of gratitude for all that has come before, we are "starting from now, making a brand new ending." 

Wishing you many blessings in the coming year. May the stories that unfold be filled with adventure, rich learning opportunities, and abundant joy!

"A happy New Year! Grant that I

May bring no tear to any eye

When this New Year in Time shall end.

Let it be said I've played the friend,

Have lived and loved and labored here,

And made of it a happy year."

~Edgar Guest 

December 17, 2012 ~ Indra's Net: The Web of Life

December 17, 2012 ~ Indra's Net: The Web of Life

"We did not weave the web of life, we are merely a strand in it.

Whatever we do to the web we do to ourselves."

~Chief Seattle, North American Duwamish People

"If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other."
~Mother Teresa

Last Friday the universe shifted. A wave of deep and powerful emotion struck every shore like a tsumami of shock, horror and grief. How could this possibly happen? Twenty beautiful innocent children, 6 and 7 years olds, and the principal, guidance counselor and teachers who lovingly dedicated their lives to teaching and caring for them, were gunned down that morning in the most brutal and violent way imaginable. It is unfathomable; in trying to speak of it, words utterly fail.

Although I wept last night as I sat in my car 3,000 miles away listening to the radio broadcast of President Obama's speech at the Interfaith service in Newtown. He somehow found heartfelt and eloquent words, reminding Newtown that they are not alone, that the whole world has been struck by grief, and hoping that our sharing in the grief might lighten their burden just a little. For a terrible situation for which words utterly fail, I was immensely grateful that he was the one called upon at this moment in history as Commander in Chief to speak so genuinely on behalf of the rest of the nation, and indeed the world. Since Friday I've had an overwhelming urge to fly to Newtown and give the entire town a hug. It felt like President Obama did that for us all last night.

I worked at a publishing house in Newtown for several years and spent a lot of time there. It's Hometown USA—a beautiful woodsy suburban town bustling with commerce and families committed to values of community and family living. One of my family members knows a child who was in Sandy Hook Elementary School that day, who blessings be, was unharmed. The shock and grief reverberated through my heart deeply when I heard the news. But you don't have to live in Newtown or know someone who does to be deeply altered by this experience. Expressions of condolence came from all over the globe: from Queen Elizabeth, Pope Benedict XVI, from China, Israel, Japan, Germany, France, and Russia. In Rio de Janeiro 50 people gathered on Copacabana beach, planting crosses in the sand bearing messages of solidarity in mourning. 

There is an ancient Buddhist story that teaches about the interconnectedness of all life. The story goes: In the heavenly abode of the great god Indra, there is a wonderful net that stretches out infinitely in all directions. At each juncture in the net has been placed a glittering jewel. Each jewel, representing an individual life form, reflects all the other jewels in this cosmic matrix. Each jewel is intimately connected to all the others—thus a change in one gem is reflected in all the others.

May we honor the lives lost in this tragic event by striving to understand our oneness, our interconnectedness. We are each a glittering jewel on Indra's Net, intimately connected to all the others, and what we do has an effect on all the others. May we accept the responsibility each one of us has to the whole. May our hearts remain open and loving in the face of this terrible thing, and as we are called to, may we listen to our heart's wisdom about right action...whether it be sending love and prayers to the families in Newtown (and all over the world where peace is needed), or whether it is engaging in social or political action to curb gun violence (becoming the change we want to see)...whatever it is that we are called to do, may we act with love and kindness. Namaste.

 

December 2, 2012 ~ The Brain

December 2, 2012 ~ The Brain

"The brain is a monstrous, beautiful mess. Its billions of nerve cells, called neurons,

lie in a tangled web that displays cognitive powers far exceeding any of the silicon

machines we have built to mimic it."

~William F. Allman

"You have brains in your head.

    You have feet in your shoes.

    You can steer yourself

    any direction you choose."

~Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!

As the Bard says, what a piece of work is man! This year of living in gratitude has opened my eyes to so many wonders of life that I used to take for granted, and has awakened awe and appreciation within my soul. Today I am celebrating the human body, in particular the workings of the central nervous system and its command center, the brain. What a truly magnificent piece of architecture, this "monstrous beautiful mess of nerve cells" that regulates every life process and gives us the ability to think and reason, create works of art and music, store memories, communicate with one another, experience emotions, dream, envision, inquire and explore the world around us and the universe within us.

I've got the brain "on the brain" ever since I watched a program on PBS this week in which Rudolph Tanzi PhD, Professor of Neurology at Harvard, gave a talk promoting his book (coauthored by Deepak Chopra) called Super Brain: Unleashing the Explosive Power of Your Mind to Maximize Health, Happiness and Spiritual Well-Being. Dr. Tanzi teaches how to transform our everyday brain into a super brain—how to keep the brain healthy (exercise it like you would a muscle), induce neuroplasticity (increase the production of new brain cells), and integrate the different parts of the brain for increased health and well-being.

How do we keep the brain healthy? Dr. Tanzi talks about the importance of eating a balanced diet—your basic Mediterranean diet is best; limiting sugar, fat, salt, wheat and butter (darn!) and increasing foods high in antioxidants, such as blueberries and dark chocolate (yes!). Getting adequate sleep is important, giving the body time to recharge and repair. Stress reduction is key, through meditation or yoga. Here's some good news: did you know we can actually increase brain cells as we age? Although we lose tens of thousands of brain cells every day, we are also constantly replacing them. Exercise is the best way to induce production of new brain cells. Staying socially connected is important for brain health, as well as staying intellectually stimulated—perhaps learning a new language or learning to play a musical instrument.

I also learned about a simple exercise that helps to increase mental energy: SuperBrain Yoga. Check out this video for a demonstration.: 

Practicing this simple exercise for a few minutes two or three times a day, they say, sharpens memory and concentration and actually increases intelligence. I tried it out and it's actually quite fun and energizing. Created by Master Choa Kok Sui (see his book SuperBrain Yoga), this exercise stimulates neural pathways and synchronizes right and left hemispheres of the brain by activating acupuncture points on the earlobes while incorporating movement and breath.

We exercise our bodies to stay fit and strong—whether it's working out at the gym, running, walking, biking, swimming, hiking, whatever. Doesn't it make sense to exercise our brains as well—to choose thought patterns, attitudes and practices that nurture and protect our mental and emotional health as well. Gotta run...I'm off to eat some blueberries and do some SuperBrain Yoga!