Take your time. You are making progress.
Lesson from a Turtle
Love Fall Colors
Yellow, red and orange leaves captivate our attention. We stop on our walk to look. We drive on a Sunday afternoon to see nature’s vivid statement that autumn is here. Some of us visit New Hampshire or Vermont to see the leaves. They draw us there, to stop, look, admire and take photos.
The hours of daylight are decreasing; the temperatures are cooler so we put on our jackets. And many of the trees show us vividly that we are in the midst of change.
These photos are from northern Minnesota a few weeks ago, in the early stages of change. It is so calming to stare at the trees doing their thing. Good for the soul. They remind me of being a child in northern Illinois, when we raked leaves into big piles. I would run and jump into the pile scattering the leaves. Mom let my brother, sister and gather leaves with our little rakes. She made it fun and we loved it. And we learned to pay attention and admire the fall leaves.
Today it’s fun to stop and look because the trees and their leaves don’t disappoint.
Don’t forget the wildflowers, with their little purple or yellow flowers doing their thing. Stop. Pay attention. Enjoy the remarkable changes nature is offering us free. If we just look
Summer Light
What is special about summer for you? Many of us are eager to be outside, go for long walks by a lake or in a park, enjoy a picnic with our family, stroll through our neighborhood farmer’s market, attend an outdoor concert or a movie night on our lawn chair at a community gathering, watch boats glide along Lake Superior.
What do you like the most? The freedom of walking out the door in shorts and sandals, taking binoculars and camera to watch and listen to the birds, relaxing outside with friends over a glass of wine. All good possibilities. We think mostly about “doing”, being active because we have a sense of freedom to move around and go places when we know it will be light well into the evening.
We are in the season of Yang energy – activity, blossoming trees and flowers, bright colors, heat, light. While we are out “doing” we want to pay attention, enjoy the moment. Take it all in.
Recently my sister and I went to Starved Rock State Park in northern Illinois. It’s amazing to drive across flat terrain, rich farmland filled with corn and soybeans and then. . . huge trees, winding roads going up, up, up to a natural filled park. Looking out over a panorama of green trees as far as our eyes could see, we listened to a variety of singing birds, felt a summer breeze, marveled at small red berries we happened to see because we were still and paying attention to everything around us.
The sun shining brightly highlighted the various shades of green on the thousands of leaves surrounding us. It was mesmerizing, the stillness and calm of those moments. The light outside and how nature took it in, made it beautiful and we, in our stillness took it all in and thoroughly enjoyed the moments.
What moments of summer have made you feel this way?
Lesson for the Day
A good reminder.
World Tai Chi & QiGong Day
A lovely worldwide tradition occurs on the last Saturday in April — celebrating Tai Chi and QiGong across the world. “One World, One Breath” calls us to breathe and send our calm energy to others.
Get ready to participate — the energy wave starts at 10am on Saturday in Australia and travels across every time zone in the world. At 10 am on Saturday, April 26, stop what you are doing and focus on breathing. Focus your breathing and send its life and good energy across the world connecting with others who are doing the same thing. We can send calm and create unity with others who are in the moment, breathing, perhaps doing some Tai Chi and QiGong moves.
Let’s connect with our breath and our focus of sending calm energy across every time zone. Participate. I look forward to receiving your energy!!
World Tai Chi and QiGong Day
One World . . . One Breath. For many years the last Saturday in April is honored and celebrated as World Tai Chi and QiGong Day. It starts at 10 am Saturday in Australia and moves across the globe. At 10am in our own time zone, we breathe, move through gentle Tai Chi and QiGong movements and share our energy and peacefulness with others in close and far away nations.
This gesture is so important to stop, take time to breathe and move with the purpose of offering. positive energy and connection to others, most of whom we do not know. We are one in breathing; regardless of who or where we are.
So, take a moment to stop, breathe with the intent of sharing your breath and Qi with others. It can be a powerful force when thousands, maybe millions focus on spreading our life force energy with others.
