My daughter gave me this 1,000 piece puzzle for Christmas, Faith Ringgold’s The Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles. I love Faith’s work, she is a highly honored Black writer, artist, quilter, speaker, and activist for racial and gender equity. Her celebration of some of the women heroes of the Civil Rights movement includes Sojourner TruthContinue reading “Puzzling one piece at a time.”
Author Archives: TerraLea
Face Yoga, anyone?
One of the best ways to boost our immune system is to do a lymphatic massage. The lymph system is how our body fights infection, and it is a system for removing toxins and waste from the body. The lymphatic system doesn’t have muscles or a pump like the heart. It relies on movement; soContinue reading “Face Yoga, anyone?”
I see the moon and the moon sees me.
In November of 2022, the world’s population reached 8 billion. I can’t imagine that number at all, maybe looking at a night sky filled with stars I can get an idea, or the grains of sand spread across my favorite beach. I can choose to feel foreboding, worry, anxiety, hopelessness about that unimaginable number, butContinue reading “I see the moon and the moon sees me.”
The Sacred No: Resist rather than resent.
I listened to a NY Times Opinion podcast interviewing a 19 year old teenager in Brooklyn who has become a leader in a resistance movement. What are these activists up to? NY Times, “ Started last year by another Murrow High School student, Logan Lane, the club is named after Ned Ludd, the folkloric 18th-century English textileContinue reading “The Sacred No: Resist rather than resent.”
A place of Maybe.
“You mock my pain!” Exclaims the Princess in that lovely classic fantasy farce, Princess Bride. Farm Boy/Pirate Roberts replies, “Life is pain, Princess. Anyone who claims otherwise is trying to sell you something.” This isn’t bad news. We are born into a life that will be marked by loss; impermanent, imperfect, and painful. But thisContinue reading “A place of Maybe.”
Let’s decide together to be Aliens.
When I was doing my student teacher training almost 20 years ago, I was mentored in a class of eight and nine year olds. One day, a student wrote me a note that started— Dear Ms. Alien, and he told me thank you for being his student teacher. The note was sincere, didn’t seem tongue-in-cheekContinue reading “Let’s decide together to be Aliens.”
The Music of the Pause.
As an independent, traveling yoga teacher, who spends a titch too much time on social media noticing all the events and workshops and retreats other yoga teachers offer, I put stress on myself by feeling the need to offer workshops and events in addition to the classes I teach. I do enjoy offering these eventsContinue reading “The Music of the Pause.”
Off the mat; into the world
The morning fog embraced the land, sun rays slowly colored the horizon a stripe of orange just above the mist as I drove eastward. My car gently swerved along the curling river road as I moved toward the sunrise. My eyes were drawn to the ever changing light show while my mind circled, organizing aContinue reading “Off the mat; into the world”
Ready to crack the cocoon?
I realize that people sign up for one of my yoga classes not because they are doing great, but because they are hurting. Maybe some sign up because they know the blessings that come from this ancient body wisdom, and want community and accountability. But mostly, people come to relieve tightness, pain, and recover fromContinue reading “Ready to crack the cocoon?”
What do I see in the blood red sun?
As I walked down the hall, a surprising light shone in the window, staining the floors with a streak of orange. I went to the window to investigate; the sun hung just above a bank of cloudy mist, a blood orange ball. I remember the sun appearing this way in the polluted skies of China,Continue reading “What do I see in the blood red sun?”