:Lonely: in Cambrdige
Posted: November 23, 2015 Filed under: Kindness, Meditation, Mindfulness, Yoga | Tags: Black Friday, Cambridge, Camyoga, Comapssion, kindness, love, Mindfulness, vanity, yoga 9 CommentsSometimes I sit alone under the stars and think of the galaxies inside my heart and truly wonder if anyone will ever want to make sense of all that I am-
Tis the season for “thankfulness” posts, acts of appreciation and a warm glowing sensation of gratitude wafting in the chilly air outside. As if some magical switch is naturally flipped, our thoughts turn towards being grateful this Thanksgiving week. I have found myself thinking more about what loving kindness means, and how it relates to being “thankful” after a series of rather unusual events for me personally the past two weeks.
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I’m lonely and saddened here in Cambridge, by the idea, that we change how we feel, in order to fit a superficial idea of what kindness and thankfulness should be during this time of the year. Kindness to me, is a light that shines from the inside, every day. Loving kindness is the warmth we share with others in a cold yoga studio or stopping to offer your only spare tube to another rider walking home in the pouring rain (thanks mate!). Kindness can also be the simple act of touching someone’s shoulder, gently reminding them they left their umbrella on the bus seat while traveling home. Kindness resides in our heart(s). Kindness, is living with a deep sense of gratitude, giving sincere “thanks.”
What if this Thanksgiving we pause to give thanks for the compassion and kindness that surrounds us?
Daily Meditation:
When I’m able to do this? The loneliness that grips me will subside, and my true spirit will glow.
Sound the Alarm
Posted: August 4, 2014 Filed under: Meditation, Yoga | Tags: blogging, Comapssion, compassion, cycling, exercise, family, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, gratitude, Gravel Worlds, happiness, health, hipster, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, nebraska, Omaha, passion, recovery, Training, writing, yoga 4 CommentsVery occasionally, if you pay really close attention, life doesn’t suck-
Can’t separate yourself from preparing for the big event (Gravel Worlds) two weekends from now? Constantly checking social media for updates, even in the middle of the night? Are you suffering from a strange compulsion to browse Strava profiles, fitness blogs for hours at a time comparing your training program to the other competitors? Feel awkward if you’re not blogging training updates, texting pics of your dirty yoga mat and bike, live tweeting work out session(s), and creating a Vine as you down a recovery shake?
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Like helpless passengers aboard a ship violently broken from its moorings … We are adrift in a storm of angst, riding the waves of useless competing/bullshit/whatever, and I do the very same. More so than I like.
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Finding a balance between useful “information” input and informational quiet that I can live with, is hard. Which is why we need a lifeboat to gently guide us back to safe harbor.
Daily Meditation:
When I remember to climb back into my lifeboat, a lifeboat where I can do anything. A sturdy vessel where I can day-dream, and talk to myself about gear ratios (aloud) while pedaling down a back country road. My lifeboat is easy to climb aboard, and it shelters me from the oncoming storm … When I stop to remember that is.
Basic Space
Posted: July 18, 2014 Filed under: Meditation, Yoga | Tags: Afghanistan, blogging, Comapssion, compassion, crossfit, cycling, exercise, fitness, free range, friends, happiness, health, hipster, hope, Iraq, kettlebell, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, Marathons, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, pain, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, trail running, walking, War, whole foods, WOD, writing, yoga, Zen 4 CommentsIf you claim to be a real friend then be real in your soul. If you claim to be fake then be an enemy instead-
I was in my early 30’s when we first met. This particular marathon was in a beautiful and exotic part of war-torn Baghdad, Iraq. I did not like it from the start and it only got worse from there …
I nuzzled my way onto the starting line cocky, arrogant, and self-centered. I couldn’t stand the thought of having to run through the pack, outlasting the early sprinters and generally weaving through the pedestrians. Much to my dismay, I faded back 10 miles into this scorching hot race. This was just another marathon, but I was the same person.
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And there I was at the next big race in Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. The same person I was a year earlier followed me to this race as well …
It finally dawned on me, blonde hair and all, that it was I, who needed to change or else I would be my own worst enemy for the rest of my life. As I began to walk the path of meaningful change in my life, I came to realize my poor marathon performances were a metaphor for the way my life works. I can cast blame and run away from poor performances, although they will keep returning until I finally face them, and owe up to them.
Over the past three years of blogging. I tried at times, and failed more often than I like, to share with you, thinking out-loud, why these particular traits of me bother me so much.
Daily Meditation:
Once I set out to change myself all those years ago, I started to notice that the “old” me doesn’t come around as much anymore. When these feelings do arise out of nowhere? I tap deeper into my inner compassion and gratitude … Noticing that in some ways, I have been trying to help myself all along, I was just to cocky, arrogant, and self-centered to notice.
: Sa :
Posted: April 15, 2014 Filed under: Meditation, Yoga | Tags: blogging, Clarity, Comapssion, cultfit, cycling, exercise, fitness, freshly pressed, happiness, health, Intention, kindness, life, love, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, trail running, writing, yoga 11 CommentsA storyteller makes up things to help other people; a liar makes up things to help himself–
I have wondered about “something” for some time now. That our intention(s) and the effect of our action(s), don’t necessarily line up. In the coming posts, and with your thoughtful help and support along the way. I would like to set out exploring this gap in a variety of different contexts and disciplines – Internal, External and Relational.
I hope to awaken greater personal liberation for many of you reading this morning.
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Daily Meditation:
What is clear to me this morning, is that shifting our focus from the effect of our actions to their intention? Is a good place to start …
CultFit 