GRATITUDE

I did not forget to write a Thankful Friday post. I just ran out of time last week. Michael has returned to work and the Cabbage schedule is back to an every other weekend schedule. This also means that I am back to a weekly evening chore schedule and every evening last week, after dinner, I would do some sort of activity. One evening activity was bike riding to ice cream, but the other evenings were devoted to cleaning out the chicken coop or cleaning the bathroom. One chore an evening to keep me from spending all of Sunday doing all of the things.

The back-to-school schedule also means a return to getting up early on Saturdays to do the grocery shopping. This part of the routine begins with a breakfast sandwich, coffee and some writing, while sitting in a quiet corner of one of my favorite bakeries. For the past two years or so, all of my Saturday morning writing has been done in my Fortune Cookie journal. I have to admit that I have not opened that journal in many months, but this was not the journal I took along with me on this particular Saturday morning. Instead, I took a journal that I started writing in during our last camping trip. I started a story there that I just keep adding bits to when ever I get a chance to sit down and write. I know this sounds antiquated. I am potentially writing something that could be a book and instead of sitting at my desk and typing it out, I’m writing it down with pen and ink and paper. There’s two reasons for writing a story this way: no distractions and no commitment. Paper journals do not have access to online distractions like Facebook or Google searches about Ben and J.Lo. It also means that I am under no obligation to do something with this writing. Maybe I’ll do something with it some day, but for now, it’s something just for me.

Today, I’m cooking a large pot of brothy beans. I’ll sauté some cabbage and Italian soysage to serve on top of the beans along with some good crusty bread. Our friend, Heather, is coming over for Sunday dinner and because I did most of my chores before Sunday, I can spend the day leisurely cooking beans and putting together a simple meal filled with heart. I might also spend some more time with my journal. I don’t know, but even though back-to-school scheduling tends to mean more work for me, I am grateful for a return to something a bit more structured. The structured part of my time keeps me anchored, which keeps me from spinning out during my unstructured time. The gratitude comes in finding a balance between structured and unstructured time.

So, my Thankful Friday post may be a little late. I just like to think that I needed to marinate a little bit longer on my thoughts of gratitude. That’s part of that unstructured time.

YOGA IN A TINY SPACE

On the last day of February (my true love gave to me), I was the most productive I’ve been on a Sunday in months. I woke up and made myself some cream eggs, which I ate while watching CBS Sunday Morning. Then I cleaned the kitchen, watched an episode of Alias Grace while I made up the calendar for March and then I cleaned the chicken coop. I came in from cleaning the coop and boiled eggs for the week while stripping the sheets off my bed and replacing them with clean bedding. Then I made two dozen mini egg cups for morning snacks, cleaned up the mess I made in the kitchen and started a load of laundry. I had the egg cups cooling on wire racks by 12:30 in the afternoon. I even took a shower and brushed my teeth, two activities that may not happen on a Sunday.

Who is this person?!?!

The Cabbage sat on the couch playing MineCraft while Michael snored on the other end and I created an event page on Facebook for my next virtual yoga class. Despite my poor video/lighting setup, my first Zoom yoga class appears to have been a hit. People enjoyed it and asked for more. I learned a lot about technology and how not to setup for virtual yoga. As a result, I purchased a ring light and played around with a setup in my bedroom that is not perfect, but feels more comfortable. This also means that Michael will not have to leave the house while I’m teaching a class. He was very helpful in setting me up for the first class and it was his idea to move me out to the living room where he pointed every spare lamp at my face. It worked, but I felt distant like I was on a stage. Josephine was crazy and spent the first five minutes of class hitting me with her toys or flopping against me. I had to put her in time out so I could teach. It did not help that it has been a year since I’ve taught an actual yoga class. I was rusty, but I think of last Thursday as my first pancake. It wasn’t pretty, but it was edible.

So if you are interested in doing some gentle, beginning yoga with me on Thursday evenings at 6 central time, shoot me an email. I’ll send you the Zoom link and ways to make a donation for class. This Thursday we will focus on our feet and building strong foundations for standing poses.