The First Few Days of Summer

The first few days of summer life's busy pace slows down for a moment. The kids can sleep in and the house is peaceful as the coffee is brewing. Today was one of those days that is starting out beautifully. I taught my normal 6am yoga class and when I returned home I did my own practice outside in the backyard. The sun was peeking out from between the clouds and a soft breeze was blowing as my "Shadow" (Charlie my dog) was next to my mat sniffing the air and I am sure he was thinking - "Life is good!" because we think a like!

As Timmy got up he grab his book and snuggled into his favorite chair to read - music to my soul! I put down the dishes I was washing and followed suit by grabbing my book and off I went to my reading corner. The morning passed slowly as we each enjoyed our books. Then Nick got up and he too went for his book to read. What a peaceful way to ease into the day and to top things off it is Friday!

I hope you all are having a mellow and peaceful start to your day!

Namaste.

Inspiring Quotes

I collect quotes. It is something I started to do about a three years ago unbeknown to me. I know that sounds strange but it is true. I would hear or read something that would resonate with me and I would write it down to reflect and share it later in one of my yoga classes. I now have 100s of saying that seem to fit perfectly at different moments. Today I thought I'd share a few with you.


My all time favorite one is "Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly and leave the rest to God!" - author unknown.


"When you can't stand life any more....Kneel." - unknown (Sent to me by my friend Margaret)


"How far we go in life depends on our being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak; because someday in life we will have been all these." - George Washington Carver


"The shortest distance between two people is laughter." - unknown (I got this off my cousin Anne's refrigerator when I was there last.)


"Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Those who look outside, dream...Those who look inside, awaken!" - Carl Jung


"Faith is like the wind, I can't see it but I can feel it." - from the movie "A Walk to Remember"


"Our very breath is a profound gift. Breathe life into your creative dreams. Breathe through difficult places. Breathe in Joy. Just breathe!" - Unknown (given to me on a card from my friend Cindy)


"I choose love... No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. I choose love. Today I will love God and what God Loves." - Max Lucado


"Pray for world peace and pray that it can being with you." - Joan (me)


Just some thoughts for the up coming week. Make it a great once! Peace.

Namaste.

Fun Questions - Pass it Along!

I was visiting my favorite blogs this afternoon in between running up and down the stairs while taking care of my sick son Nick. When I popped by "me&mine", ( http://ginamharris.blogspot.com/ )Gina had this great list of questions her friend Jen sent to her and said we should all answer it on our blogs, so here I go. Please feel to copy and add to your own blog - it is fun!

What did you do today?
Taught yoga at 6am; took my 8 year old Timmy to breakfast; helped at school with their poetry reading; was presented with the best book of poems ever from the kids (I teach them yoga throughout the year and they each wrote me a poem as a thank you); got my mirror on the van fixed (this is the third time I had to get it fixed – I keep hitting them on all sorts of things from the garage door, to a construction sign and last on the garbage tote); I got my hair cut; started laundry and then my son came home with a high fever from school, so I have been playing nurse ever since.

What are you wearing today?
My “Irresistible” denim colored t-shirt, navy blue cargo pants and flip-flops.

What's for dinner?
Mediterranean pasta and maybe a glass of wine

What would you eat for your last meal?
Spaghetti and my mom’s meatballs and a beautiful full bodied glass of red wine and a green salad!

What's the last thing you bought?
Gift cards for Timmy’s teachers from a yoga studio called “Breathe” here in Pittsford, NY

What are you listening to right now?
Peace and quiet with touches of laughter from my younger son and the groans of my older son.

What is your favorite ice-cream flavor?
I don’t like ice cream – I know I must be crazy

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
Wow this is a tough one. It would have to be by the water. I love the Outer Banks of NC, I love the finger lakes of NY, and I love the Islands of Greece. I think the outer banks would win. Or I could go for a villa in Tuscany!!!!

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Ireland and have a pint and listen to other people’s conversations!

Which language do you want to learn?
Italian.

What is your favorite quote of the moment?
“Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly and leave the rest to God.”

What are your favorite colors?
Periwinkle blue, cobalt blue, bright pink, flashy orange

What song would you like to learn to play?
Anything by Mozart.

What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe?
If shoes count I would have to say my Nato flip-flops. Otherwise I’d say the blouse I got when I was in Greece last summer.

What is your dream job?
I have it. I always wanted to be a mom first, artist second and yoga teacher third. I am blessed.

If you had an extra $10,000 now, what would you spend it on?
I’d save it for my sons college education.

What are you going to do after this?
Start dinner.

What are your favorite movies lately?
“13 going on 30”.

What's your favorite fruit?
Blueberries at this moment. If you ask me five minutes from now I might say cherries. I love all kinds of fruit!

What inspires you?
Photographs, nature and certain colors like blue.

What is on the walls in your bedroom?
The color of our bedroom is light taupe, our ceiling is really dark taupe and I added crown molding in ivory to separate the two colors. I have hung tree branches for my curtain rods (they fell down in a storm a few years ago so I recycled!) and draped white fabric over them. I have bookshelves mounted on the walls and 3water color paintings. I love what is on my walls!

Your favorite book?
I learned the most from “The Four Agreements”, had a blast reading “Twilight” because it is something I would never have read before and my favorite classic is “Pride and Prejudice”.

Do you collect something?
Anything by Mackenzie – Childs of Aurora, NY and I love to collect quotes .

What a Great Friday!

My day started out early as usual at 5:15am. However on this day I did not head out the YMCA to workout and teach yoga, instead my friend Cindy and I picked up our coffees, got gas and headed out of town to the Mackenzie-Childs Annual Barn Sale in Aurora New York through the fog and rain - can you tell we are “Die Hards”? When we got there it was packed, so much for thinking we would be one of the first ones into the barn. Next year we will be one of the crazy ladies who will spend the night in line and will be one of the first ones in - I think the experience alone will be a hoot!

Well 2 1/2 hours later of standing in the rain with lots of fun women, (some were singing, most of us were laughing as we ran in and out of line for coffee and to use the bathrooms and stating we couldn't believe we were all standing there getting wet - however none of us left mind you), we made it into the barn and we were not disappointed at all!

In the barn we hunted through tons of merchandise looking for our treasures and let me say we found many! Too many and had to start doing the math and putting some things back so we wouldn't break the bank. In the end Cindy and I were very pleased with what we selected and headed off to the next line - The Check Out Line - and waited another hour or so for them to take our money! By this time the sky was bright and the sun was shinning beautifully. We packed the car and raced home to beat the buses -we made it!

Next came the mad dash to get the kids snack, clean the house, and cook because my friends were coming over for book club! We affectionately call ourselves "Twilight Freaks" and were discussing book two "New Moon" from the "Twilight" saga that night. Well I am happy to announce that I made it and by 7:00pm all was ready including the staging of the bonfire!

Needless to say we all had a riot! My friend Teri from yoga class got best dressed that evening, my friend Kathy had the best quote, and Lorraine made the best pepper dip - which we now need the recipe! We discussed the book around the fire, and made up our own "New Moon" chat pack questions game and laughed our heads off! All in all a fantastic Friday evening!

Remember our friends are a blessing.

Namaste.

Wow!!!!

Well I did it! My first Triathlon was amazing. This is me before the race as we were getting our gear prepared in the transition area. I had a smile on my face from start to finish. I kept joking that I felt like I was on vacation in some foreigh country because this was all "Greek" to me! The spirit around me was electric. The weather was wonderful around 69 and overcast which was perfect. I guess last year it was sunny and in the 90's - oh my! My boys and husband were there to cheer me on! As I was coming back from the biking towards transition, my sons ran next to me and cheered me on - it is still bringing tears to my eyes when I think about it! As you know I have been having problems with my leg and that has been preventing me from running. Well I am proud to announce I ran the entire time. While I was running I was saying the "Hail Mary" - my mom's favorite prayer and thinking of her and the next thing I knew was I could see the finish line. I became very emotional but kept on going. My family was there to greet me including my sister-in-law Meg! All in all a great day. More to come.

Namaste.

The boys and I after I finished

Tomorrow is the Day!!!!

I am writing on Saturday evening, taking advantage of having the house all to myself since my husband and sons have gone to the "Red Wings" baseball game downtown. I am very excited about my very first "Triathlon" tomorrow. I just finished packing the van with our bikes and equipment. I am doing this with my friend Marcela and a group of people from the Eastside YMCA.


This has been lots of hard work and loads of fun. The people I have met during this time have been unbelievably helpful, encouraging and kind. I now look at tomorrow as a great social event that I don't have to shower for! Talk about freedom!


In any event I keep thinking how blessed am I that I get to try something as cool as a triathlon! At this moment I am filled with so much gratitude for my health, the way I can move, my family and friends. Tomorrow will be a wonderful experience that I will share with you all afterwards. Meanwhile keep me in your prayers!


Luck is when preparation meets opportunity.

Namaste.

What Will Matter

Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end. There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days. All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will
pass on to someone else. Your wealth, fame, and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.

It will not matter what you owned or what you owed. Your grudges, resentments, frustrations and jealousies will finally disappear. Your hopes, ambitions, plans and to-do lists will expire too.

The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away. It won't matter where you came from or what side of the tracks you lived on. It won't matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant. Even your skin color will be irrelevant.

So what will matter? How will the value of your days be measured?

What will matter is not what you bought but what you built. Not what you got but what you gave.

What will matter is not your success but your significance. Not what you learned but what you taught.

What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion or valor that encouraged others to emulate your example.

What will matter is not your competence but your character. Not how many people you know, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you're gone.

What will matter is not your memories but the memories of those who loved you.What will matter is how long you will be remembered by whom and for what.

Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident. It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice.

Choose a life that matters.

My friend Cindy sent this to me and I thought it was beautiful. It really makes us reflect on the question: When I am gone how do I want to be remember and by whom? That should keeps up making effort to do better. As the old saying goes...Know better, do better!
Namaste.