Archive for August, 2017
Imagine
Thursday, August 31st, 2017
Imagine three plus days at a summer camp for adults. Image a summer camp for creative souls, entrepreneurs, and change-makers. Imagine a weekend of connecting, listening, learning, playing, creating, laughing, crying, painting, meditating, hugging, experiencing, and living with the fullness of our being. Imagine showing up as is – raw, vulnerable, happy, sad, worried, emotional, curious, anxious, hopeful, and playful. Imagine a weekend of community building, deep learning, reflective meditation, mindful conversations, and new friendships. Imagine a weekend of homecoming, soulful humanness, and joyful play. Imagine a weekend of being with allies of love, connection, and community. Imagine all of this – that’s Camp Good Life Project (CampGLP).
Imagine a weekend where conversations can be about loss and longing, place and space, love and liberation. Imagine a weekend where our day can start with meditation and end with a collaborative puzzle. Imagine art as a way to connection. Imagine art as a form of contribution and celebration. Imagine uplifting murals of hope. Imagine learning about how art can heal. Imagine a community mural with 400+ campers. Imagine getting a piece of that mural to take home. Imagine the other half of the mural going to an art project with refugees.
Imagine noticing what gives us purpose. Imagine noticing the hard things in our life right now. Imagine noticing what keeps coming back and letting it be. Imagine noticing the struggles and what makes it worth it. Imagine noticing what we can do to serve. Imagine possibility. Imagine creating possibility for others. Imagine showing up. Imagine shedding what no longer serves us. Imagine being in the home of our heart.
Imagine a conversation on race and liberation. Imagine knowing our whole and complete truth. Imagine giving up something in order to belong. Imagine belonging. Imagine settling down into being uncomfortable. Imagine beginning with our own liberation. Imagine reconnecting with our humanity. Imagine being curious about what we have lost. Imagine reclaiming our wholeness. Imagine not being defined by place. Imagine touching into the suffering of our own being. Imagine the desire to know ourselves. Imagine taking care of ourselves.
Imagine listening. Imagine where conversations can lead. Imagine being seen. Imagine celebrating. Imagine mourning. Imagine releasing. Imagine inviting. Imagine welcoming. Imagine welcoming ourselves home.
Imagine asking, “What If?” Imagine living with openness.
Imagine celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love with 400+ people from around the world at a summer camp for adults. Imagine CampGLP.
Imagine.
Much love and gratitude to Jonathan and Stephanie Fields, the Camp GLP team, crew, and volunteers for letting us live all of this and more.
I Sat with an Egret
Tuesday, August 22nd, 2017
I sat with an egret for a moment – just a few moments.
I watched as it sat still letting the breeze blow its feathers.
Slowly the egret reached down into the water and snatched a fish.
I watched as the egret sauntered lifting each black foot up and out of the water without a sound.
Its slow steady movement was meditation in action.
Each step reminded me to be present.
I sat with an egret and was reminded to be still.
I watched an egret for a moment and realized that’s all we ever have – this moment.
All Are Waves Are Water – Book Review
Friday, August 18th, 2017
All Are Waves Are Water by Jaimal Yogis is an expansion of his previous memoir (Saltwater Buddha) about his spiritual journey. Yogis, a surfer, journalist, and spiritual seeker, revisits his quest that blends his search for surf and enlightenment. Descriptions of surf sessions in Indonesia, Mexico, and San Francisco are beautiful pauses into the insight of the beauty of water and lessons of waves.
The depth and power of the book comes in Yogis’s description of “the seeking mind” caught in its own currents—and occasionally transcending them—in places such as the Himalayas, a Franciscan friary in New York, and the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Yogis lets us in on his personal struggles of relationships and spiritual doubts all while weaving together connections to the mystic, the magical, and the ordinary moments we all experience. Yogis shares scientific research, thoughts from religious scholars and poets, and the wisdom of surfers and monks. Each one has a lesson. From a Tibetan monk he learns how to reside in his own sadness. Later, he discovers that even a “tropical beach in Mexico with a beautiful woman, nothing much to do except surf, be creative, meditate, and eat tacos” won’t bring him lasting peace. On Ocean Beach, he seeks balance between life as a journalist and his spiritual path. Through all the struggles, doubts, and uncertainties, Yogis is able to find wisdom everywhere. Yogis reveals that the search for enlightenment is not much different from the search for the perfect wave.
The deeper you get into the book, the more you may find yourself asking some of Yogis’s deeper questions. Are waves deeply connected to both universal waves and the ones we surf daily within our mind? Ultimately, we discover that surfing proves a powerful metaphor for a Buddhist worldview, showing that life’s most turbulent waves are part of nature—and that wisdom means learning to ride the waves in each present moment.
Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Have You Checked the Expiration Date Lately?
Tuesday, August 8th, 2017
I found a Metrocard in my wallet last week and swiped it to see how much money was on it. The machine read, “Please see an attendant.” I walked over and asked the MTA attendant if she could check how much was on my card. After she swiped it and checked her computer she said, “Ma’am, this was a 30 day unlimited card that expired in March.” I thanked the lady and walked away with my expired card. After discarding it in the recycling bin, I realized that I had been carrying around an expired card for over five months.
Later, I decided to look through the rest of my wallet for other expired or outdated cards. As I finished reorganizing my wallet, I decided to check what else in my house had expired and could be thrown out. As I sat down feeling proud of getting rid of unnecessary items, I decided to check inside and see if anything within could be discarded. What else has expired in my life? Were there any thoughts, beliefs, and feelings that have expired that I am still carrying around? Could I let go of my disappointment and frustration? Am I carrying around anger that expired last month?
I invite you to check in and see if there is anything you are carrying (inside and out) that has expired. What has expired that is still living inside you?
Start with today. What are you still carrying around that you are willing to let go?
It’s time for a new 30-day pass.