sunday grace: solstice

december morning sun in the kitchen on gypsy hill

the winter solstice arrives this week on december 21st (for those of us in the northern hemisphere).  it is one of my favorite times of year, this point in time when we teeter on the edge of darkness and light.  from the latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still), solstice is a moment to become still and reflect on the past, release that which no longer serves, and prepare for what is to come.  we see and hear the wisdom of nature:  darkness relieves us of our capacity for busyness, animals rest, snowfall brings its exquisite hush.

there are so many ways to recognize this tender transition.  here are a few of my favorites:

• create a tiny solstice altar with candles (symbolizing light), photos of ancestors (symbolizing the past), and bits of spruce, pine, or juniper (evergreens symbolize life during winter).
• reflect in your journal:  what were your accomplishments, lessons, and losses during the past year?  what are your best hopes for the year to come?
• burn a solstice fire.  on a piece of paper, write down something you would like to let go.  put it in the fire and see it dissolve in spark and smoke.
• join a community celebration.  we will be gathering with our local waldorf cooperative at a community potluck, solstice spiral, and bonfire where the children will be reading their poetry.
• no matter the weather, place your bare feet on the ground outside at night.  simultaneously sense the solid support of the earth and vast unseen possibility of the dark sky.

happy solstice friends.  i wish you just enough darkness to see the stars and perfect light to illuminate your beautiful life.

sunday (equinox) grace: how to spring detox

how to detox•mixed media on wood•lisa parks

i'm already seeing them:  the inevitable reminders that now is the time to detox our bodies with three-day juice fasts and foregoing coffee (um, no way).  i understand there are good intentions here and that some humans may benefit from these measures, but when i am inundated with these reminders, i often start to buy into the myth that there is something very dirty about me.

i'm wondering if you are like me and get really excited about the idea of a clean slate.  you may also be like me and get very motivated on "official start days" like january first, any given monday, or the first day of the season (tomorrow is a double:  a monday and the beginning of spring!).  you may also be like me and notice a rapid decline in said motivation about four days in...

i have to figure out ways to stay present with my "improvement projects".  i prefer to greet the change of seasons with a transitional approach, rather than the burn-it-all-down-and-start-anew tactic.  (plus, for many people, radical nutritional plans and even mainstream juice fasts are not designed for or are healthy for their particular body.)

for me, this softer transitional approach is needed.  here are some possibilities:

• the most critical poison to eliminate from your body, heart, spirit, mind, and life is the toxic human. you likely know who they are, but sometimes it's hard to tell.  pay attention to that inner whisper of "that feels weird"/"hmm, they said that, but did this..."/"well, now i just need to take a big ol' nap and never talk to another person ever again"/"maybe it's me....."   there is no better time than now to set the boundaries.

• write a farewell haiku to winter.  or write a story about something beautiful that happened this winter.

• unhibernate.  unfurl limbs.  move the body.  scrub the skin.  breathe the air.  see the light.  dip your toes in a running stream of melting snow.  find the blossoms.

• turn hope into action:  plant wildflower seeds, collect or purchase books for a children's club in an underserved neighborhood (here are some great recommendations), donate useful and beautiful things to your local domestic violence shelter.

• ask yourself, how can i be more awake?  the spring equinox heralds physical awakenings, but what about the awakening of the mind and spirit?   explore limiting beliefs.  conduct a values inventory (if that sounds weird to you, hit me up in person, facebook, etc. and i'll share a simple way to clarify personal values that i teach in workshops).  are there areas of knowledge and discernment that could use fine-tuning?  how do you value and respect and love and express in this sea of humanity?

• consume the foods of spring that celebrate where you live.  if you live in an area without a year-round farmers market, attend opening day.  i'm inspired to make a grilled flatbread pizza topped with arugula and kale pesto, appalachian cheese, garlic scapes and morels.  or maybe roasted radishes.

• ponder the ways you can bring more lightness to your life.  that may mean switching out flannel sheets for cotton.  that may mean giving all the windows in the house a good cleaning. that may mean wearing clothing that is lighter in both texture and color.  that may mean transforming that mass of heavy long hair into a pixie cut or coloring your hair robin's egg blue. that may mean losing five pounds.  that may mean beginning a process of releasing a pattern of thought or being that keeps you heavy and dark.

• make space.  this could done be in your physical environments such as your home or yard or office by editing out stuff and curating a more open space. or it could mean opening up your body; you might have the tendency to curl in and hug tight during colder weather so your body wants to expand.  warm up your body and try some yoga postures: pigeon to open the hips, ardha chandrasana to give your body that amazing wide open feeling, supported supta baddha konasana to open the heart and the hips.  

have a magical spring moonbeams.

sunday grace: a new practice

when i started this blog seven years ago its primary purpose was to serve as a spot to ground me in the beauty and living of ordinary life.  the first few years i posted like a crazy person and i've noticed the posts have become fewer and fewer in the past years.   i want to reintroduce the practice of using this space as a reflection of my days, checking in with life practices i've chosen (to make sure i am doing them, not just thinking about them), and serving as a weekly benchmark to move me forward.

so i thought i would use this sunday post as a reintroduction of this practice, organized by some of the things that are important to me.  i want to reflect how i am doing with actively including them into my day to day life.

f l o w e r s

s k y  g a z i n g

n o u r i s h m e n t

cantaloupe with urfa biber chile.  and all of a sudden, tomatoes everywhere.

a r t

this is a little doodle i did while participating on a 16-person conference call.  when you are an introverted intuitive, the purpose and effectiveness of a conference call tend to escape you (so much of the context and nuances are missing), so you engage your brain however you can while you listen.

this is a new piece i'm working on in its early stages.  i like to capture the layers of the work as they move and change.

we had a bit of rain this week.  i took the piece outside and let some showers inform the direction of the work.

i experimented with some chemical movement on the same piece as well (drops of alcohol).

in a future layer, a full moon is going to be central to the piece.  just layering some understory here.


c o m m u n i t y

we spent part of saturday at an art fair held in a barn.  several of my favorite local artists and farmers were there.  it was so delightful to see them.  i especially love seeing their children play and work alongside them.

is there anything more quintessentially summer than a children's lemonade stand?

m e a n i n g f u l  w o r k

i put a few pieces of my work up on redbubble and am so grateful for the response.  stuff like this...putting work out there...is challenging for me.  i ordered one of the phone cases and am very pleased with the quality.  i also love the sweet doodled box it arrived in.  (there is a link on the sidebar if you are interested.)

i also taught a class this week filled with new child abuse workers.  they were eager, energetic and soaked it all up like sponges.  this makes me happy.

also, painting.  lots of painting.

y o g a

i did two group classes this week and one practice at home.  i also took a group meditation class and meditated at home five days this week.

s t o r y

i am reading turning the mind into an ally for an upcoming training.  it is a wonderful book about meditation and i highly recommend it.

we watched still alice last night.  this movie is haunting me.  my grandmother descended into alzheimer's quite quickly, so i've always been aware of its presence in the world.  but this story about a woman experiencing early-onset alzheimer's really hit home.  see it.

h o m e

did i mention the rain this week?  this is a view from my kitchen at twilight.  the forest outside is wet and lit.  inside it is dark and cozy.  i will never ever get tired of this view.

and while i am loving my new practice of moving out into the world a bit more frequently, i always love coming home the most of all.

thank you grace.

vibrant nourishment

when good food and amazing color come together, i am happy.  this week i made beet hummus.  you guys, it is incredible.  it is beautiful, happy and tastes fantastic.

i took artistic license with the recipe from splendid table.  what i changed from the original recipe:  i roasted an entire head of garlic and lemon along with the beets; the garlic was mellow and buttery and sweet, the roasting gives the lemon some depth while maintaining its brightness.

b e e t  h u m m u s

• 3 medium beets, trimmed, roasted and peeled
• 1 head garlic, roasted
• 2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 5 tablespoons tahini
• 2 lemons, one roasted and juiced, one left fresh for zest
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• chopped parsley and nuts and a splash of olive oil for garnish

roast beets, garlic head and one lemon at 375 degrees.  the lemon and garlic will roast for about 45 minutes.  the beets will take a little over an hour; they need to be fork tender.

once cooled, peel the beets and rough chop and place in food processor.  

squeeze the roasted garlic cloves into the food processor.  

add the chickpeas, tahini, salt and the juice from the roasted lemon and give everything a whirl until smooth.  you may need to adjust with a tablespoon or two of water.  adjust salt and acidity (add more lemon juice from the fresh lemon if needed).

garnish with chopped parsley, lemon zest and chopped nuts.  serve with crackers, toasts, pita or veggies.

i mean, look at that color.

a week of color and making and goodness

oh loves, spring has finally arrived in all her glory in virginia.  this week has been full of so much beauty and color, i can barely stand it.  i hope you are seeing and living the same.

this week:

i rescued these fallen camillas on a walk in my neighborhood.

while the forest outside is still lingering in its winter bed (the big trees don't really explode with spring for another few weeks), the kitchen window is all about spring and sunshine.

the cherry blossoms.  they kill me.

ditto, the lilacs.

downtown loveburg is plastered with local art.

cyndi's studio is opening this week!  she is the calm in the midst of the storm pre-opening.  yoga goodness is such a beautiful space with amazing teachers.  i'm honored to have my photographs grace the website.  it was so inspirational to capture the beauty and grace and strength of some of cyndi's students.

more yoga goodness.  when we arrived in loveburg fourteen years ago, there was no yoga other than the kind you did by yourself at home.  today there are so many beautiful yoga studios and teachers to choose from.  such abundance!

i was feeling blue on saturday and ken said, "let's go to the art store."  i love him.

this paintbrush is like gold.  i was curious about its $405 price and tried to convince inez at the shop to break out some paints so we could see what it could do.

i had to be satisfied with my $10 brushes at home.

for easter brunch i made two dishes for the first time that were amazingly beautiful.  persian jeweled rice is saffron basmati rice with apricots, bayberries, pistachios, almonds, pomegranates and mint.

these easter egg radishes were roasted with brown butter and pink salt.  is there a more appropriate easter side-dish?  i don't think so.

like everyone else, i have spring cleaning and organization fever.  i gypsyhillified my ikea flat file chest for the art studio.  it will give all those thousands of bits of collected ephemera and papers a lovely home.  and the giant buddha head planter on top will hold rolled paper.

spring is off to a lush start on gypsy hill.

around here

class cancellations due to snow left happy me with lots of time to create.  i am trying to avoid new art supply purchases until i use the things i have, like these caran d'ache colors.

something came over me and i painted with white, yellow and orange; rare choices for me.

is rumi like the sexiest 16th century man ever?

i'm optimistic about color and other things this spring.

i've wanted to cook with matcha for a long time, so i made some green tea and almond muffins.

the verdict:  they tasted yummy, but i wanted way more of that green matcha color for the (very high) price of the tea.  i'll try ice cream in a few weeks and use more than the recipe calls for to see if i can get that amazing spring green.

we started spring cleaning and organizing.  our local health food store has majorly upgraded their bulk spices, herbs and dry pantry staples.  i'm finally putting to good use all those jars i've hoarded away like a crazy grandma.  

i finished this piece last week and i am so in love with it.

i'm daydreaming of herbs and succulents on the sill and a meadow of wildflowers on that facing slope.  

another hoarding endeavor that is paying off:  mismatched carnival glass.  i'm thinking about a midsummer party...

these guys.

another thing i've wanted to cook:  lotus root.  i made this soup with lotus root, carrots, purple sweet potatoes, spring onions and asparagus.  the lotus roots are pretty and have an odd taste. the rest of the soup just tastes like spring.

saving me right now

greenhouse ranunculus.

rose tea.

hydrangeas and poetry.

easter egg radishes.

the wintry forest.

the romping simon.

the frolicking luca.

these jasmine and their promise of spring.

using all the colours.