The Yogabliss, Two Rivers/RiverTree Yoga on-line Moving into Meditation classes met this morning.  Today we explored being present for what surfaces in body, heart and mind.  Abiding in stillness allows an intimate awareness of life’s continuous change.  When we feel safe, we can touch this vulnerability within. We can tend to our hearts.

We drew inspiration from poet Jane Hirshfield.  Jane’s poem, Standing Deer, poignantly touches the ephemeral nature of life.  She describes how our hearts fill and empty having to hold onto and then let go of what we love.  Her writing encourages us to bring our awareness and engagement to life so we can receive its fleeting blessings.  Her poem, Ripening, evokes the ease with which can let go and let ourselves care about the world.  As in Standing Deer, we ripen into opening our hearts.

We were encouraged by guiding teacher of Common Ground Meditation Center, Mark Nunberg, to ask questions about caring, belonging and loving.  In his talk, The Teachings in Brief for Troubled Hearts in Troubled Times, he affirms as truth that we are all deserving of these vital experiences.  It is that truth that inspires us to care about the human and more than human world. Continue reading →

The Yogabliss, Two Rivers/RiverTree Yoga on-line Moving into Meditation classes met this morning.  Today we reflected on the experience of sanctuary:  the inner and outer places where we can restore and renew our spirits.  We refill our hearts we and venture out into the sea of life.  We offer our protection and support to the human and more than human world.  In giving and receiving shelter we become more fully alive.

We drew inspiration from activist and writer Starhawk.  She is founder of Earth Activist Trainings which center round permaculture and sustainability.  She described circles of support in which we experience community.  In community we can speak our passions and be heard.  We can join our strengths to offer protection and support to the human and more than human world.

Mary Oliver’s poem asks Have You Ever Tried to Enter the Black Branches of Other Lives?  Her question is a wonderful invitation to explore stepping out of our domesticity and welcome the wild aliveness of the world.  The poem is from her collection:  West Wind: Poems and Prose Poems.

We also heard Maria Popova’s musings on the courage we can find knowing there are kindred spirits who share our struggles.  Maria is a cultural essayist who brings the wisdom of artists, scientists and writers to the contemporary concerns of our time.  This passage is from her book, Figuring, which is a compilation of her many essays. Continue reading →

The Yogabliss, Two Rivers/RiverTree Yoga on-line Moving into Meditation classes met this morning.  Today we felt summer fading and we contemplated the falling leaves.  Deep within every fallen leave is a promise of new life.  This insight blossomed as an exploration of how the leaves, the trees, our bodies are all part of a greater cycle of Life.  As Earth citizens we receive Nature’s gifts.  We have our own gifts to give in reciprocity and practical reverence.

We worked with the last of  Rhonda Fabian’sarticle, Engaged Ecology: Seven Practices to Restore Our Harmony with Nature. The seventh principle: Nature is a system of systems. The seventh practice is participating as citizens of the Earth.

We drew inspiration from Suzy Kassem’s book, Rise Up and Salute the Sun.  Suzy regards herself as a literary rebel.  You can find more of her poetry on her web-site and her blog site. Suzy’s work reminds us that we all have a little bit of the sun and moon inside us.

We drew inspiration from Toni Spencer’s beautiful poem Reciprocal Rhythm.  Toni is a Deep Adaptation Advocate, poet, mentor and teacher.  She “seeks to enable a richer engagement with the ecological, cultural and social issues of our times.”  You can learn more about Toni’s work and her seven week course, Living Deep Adaptation at her web-site.

We also received guidance from Robin Wall Kimmerer’s beautiful essay, Returning the Gift.  Robin is a “mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants.”  Robin’s essay writes Earth is calling for our gratitude, generosity and attention.  She reminds us that we have many gifts to give.

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The Yogabliss on-line Moving into Meditation classes met this morning. Today we felt the presence of all our relations.  We contemplated our human and more than human kin.  Nature functions cooperatively in the great community of Earth life.  We sustain our communities with caring. To care is to be vulnerable.  To be vulnerable is to embrace Life.  We plant seeds of caring.  We nurture them with acts of courageous vulnerability.

Our practice was informed by the sixth principle and practice of Rhonda Fabian’s article, Engaged Ecology: Seven Practices to Restore Our Harmony with Nature. The sixth principle: Nature functions cooperatively. The sixth practice is thriving as a community.

We drew inspiration from poet philosopher, David Whyte.  In his beautiful essay on Courage he reminds us that “courage is the measure of our heartfelt participation with life, with another, with a community, a work; a future.”

We heard Planting Instructions by Rev. Margaret Anne Ernst.  Reverend Ernst is a writer, community organizer, and minister ordained in the United Church of Christ.  You can find more of her socially engaged writing on her blog site:  Planted More Deeply.

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