Side lying, flexion and extension, all in the same game

Lie on your right side, Have a pillow under your head

and a small pillow between your knees.

Have your knees pointing forward

which is the direction your chest is pointing

take it easy

let your left arm be straight out from your shoulder

on the floor

1. Practice flexion,

which is the rounding of your back,

by the contracting of your stomach muscles

Bring your stomach in

and your left elbow down toward

your left knee

which comes up toward it

then come back to the starting position

do this many times

not far

not trying to reach the knee with the elbow

rest

2. Practice flexion with your knee moving forward

so that you bring your knee forward

with your knee coming up toward your face

as it moves forward away from your chest

as you round your back

and pull your stomach in

and push your middle back backward

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

Practice flexion with your arm moving forward

and slightly down

forward and down

stomach in

back rounding

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

3 Do both together

Knee forward and a bit up

Hand forward and a bit down

stomach in

back rounding

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

4. Extension

(always lengthens the body)

As per yesterday,

Move your hand forward and up

arch your back

and pushing out your belly

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

And as per two days ago

bring the knee forward and down a bit

push the belly out

and arch the back

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

5. Combine these two movements

so the arch of your back is

sending your hand forward and up

and your knee

forward and down

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

6. Let's go backward, just in extension

Bring your left shoulder back and up a bit

pushing out your belly

and arching your back

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

Now, bring your left hip back and down a bit

pushing out your belly 

and arching your back

and then come back

many times

aware

ease

pleasure

rest

7. Now, a fun project,

both ways are going to be in extension

Move your hand forward and up

push your belly out

and bring your hip back and down

(those are the same, back arching and belly coming forward)arching your back

return to neutral

and then go into extension

and keep going so that 

your shoulder comes back and up

as your belly pushes out

and your knee goes down and forward

as your back arches 

go back and forth,

arching each way

and then relaxing in neutral

and then arching again as the shoulder 

and hip

move in opposite directions

go slowly

if you don't "get it"

go slower

and play around with some variation

you feel in your body

any movement with awareness

is

good

you are 

good

life is good

Move as If Your Life Depended on It: Movement #4, toward the floor

This is too hard for you
But it's to show off something for certain people
Don't worry
The lesson below "just" gets your back twice as easy and your brain three times as smart and adds at least half an inch to your height and has you feeling five or ten years younger

That's all


Movement is life

Lean down toward the floor

DO NOT STRETCH
Just reach for the floor
Let your knees bend
This isn't yoga, you aren't trying to be good, this is just reaching down for something on the goddamn floor

It's fun

Try NOT to reach the floor
Just down


Good

2.
Put your hands on your knees
Bend your knees
Have your arms straight

Do the cat and cow,
the most intelligent "pose" in yoga,
since it's not a pose
it's a movement

Goes like this:

Arch your back ( belly forward)
As you tilt your asshole toward the ceiling
As you bring your eyes toward the sky

As if your head were going toward your butt
and your ribs and pushing the other way: forward

That's the cow:
Mooo

It's also the lion:
ROAR

3. Alternate that with the cat
Hiss hiss

Ribs up and back
Middle back toward the sky
Belly in
Head down
Nose toward your crotch
Crotch toward your nose:
Pelvis rotating under

4. Back and forth
Slowly
Deliciously

Do it a couple of times
Simple feeling the pelvis and lower backs'
participation in this

Do it a couple more
noticing the ribs going up
and the ribs going forward

Oh, wait:
Notice and enjoy

Oh, wait
Notice and enjoy and
FIND SOMETHING DIFFERENT AND INTERESTING EACH TIME

Oh, wait:
Go slower
slower than you want to go

And then a couple of times
The neck and your head
Do all the "oh, Wait's" with that

And now the whole back:
Enjoy it
It's you
Alive
In motion

5.
Then stand up straight

Feel how you feel

6. Reach down for the floor again
Notice the difference

Enjoy the difference

7 , Put both hands up in the arm
above your head

Rotate them in a circle

Feel this in your heels
Watch with your eyes
allowing your head to move as it follows
your hands

Feel this in your pelvis
Which goes backward when your hands go forward in the cirlce
and
the other
way around

Stop
Breathe
Do all the "oh, wait's"
And reverse the circle

8.
Hands down
How do you feel

9 Touch the floor again,
No wait,
Reach down toward the floor

Easier?
Farther?
Funner?

10. Stand up and skip around the room or lawn or park or riverside

You are moving
You are using your brain
You are enjoying having more attention

Good

the importance of fatigue

at times , the theory goes,
you build up muscles
by pushing to the point of fatigue

that this is done stupidly,
tightening neck and jaw and eyes
at the same time,
is another issue

now , today, here
this idea:

push "too far"
now and again
and build up....
something

last night
after a very full and "turned on"
turn on group,
where many of us
were much closer to our real and honest
selves

I went to the ten o'clock showing of
Lincoln,
the movie

it was amazing
and I got out at 12:30
and was reved
and got up at 6:15
and that left me exhausted

and
and
and

here's the deal:
the part of us that loves to be awake
doesn't give a fig
about feeling really really good tip top
rested

it can be aware of being
tired
and slow
and gorggy
and that's just fine


enuff said...
tiredness
is a good excuse for
both types of laziness:

the fear of doing beyond the comfortable laziness
and
the sinking back into the indolent bliss
of
JUST
BEING

not totally,
but somewhat
we can dial which percentage of the laziness game
we
want to play which way


at any time

and now is the time
to wish you a fatgued
or energized
or even happy/ unhappy day

just be there with it

experience your experience

that is the source of
all
miracles


love Chris

meditation on reality or on self image

back in the days when I used to give a hoot
about meditation

I'd do this:
have a "wow" moment
and then spend the rest of the meditation
preparing and rehearsing the description
of my "wow" moment to someone else

ah, ego:

since it doesn't exist
does need constant propping doesn't it

and let's dance:

hello, God
not the beard one,
but the shimmering Life stuff,

hello Life stuff
in us all
slithering and wiggling
and lusting for out
for union
for play

God let us have each
day
our daily silliness
love
touch
dance
and
de
light


Good

Loving What Is

we are going to die... can ya love that

some people aren't perfect to us,..
can ya love that

we aren't perfect to our image of "sposed to be"
can ya love that

the missiles fly, the people die..
ugh
can we love that

hard, and if God is Everything
and all is one,
is that like ALL is one,
even the ugh, yuk?

could be

could be

could very well
BEing is
all we got,

this life aware of itself
being a very varied show
as it goes
down
around
up and
down
into the depths
up the skies

flies to the next level
which is here
now

wow

ciao

Chris

10 Ways to Love yourself a bit more

What comes first: happiness or loving yourself more?

Who knows?
Not I, and have fun with this list I jotted last Monday when doing one of my favorite "life flowing" activities: setting the timer for 22 minutes and writing "whatever."


1. Walk. Mindfully. Outside.

2. Sit at the edge of your chair, relax, rock your tush/ pelvis/ belly forward and back and let your spine follow. Enjoy this.

3. Think about flying. Not in a plane, but as if you had wings and could do the flying thing for awhile.

4. Say thanks to 3 things every hour. Aloud.

5. Play with your attention. Shift from awaring your right hand to awaring your left foot. From right knee to left elbow. From nose to toes. Play with choices and the magic of moving attention. See if you can go a step back from this and be aware of having awareness.

6. Wonder: who am I, really?

7. Do #2 above and add some sort of breathing pattern that feels good.

8. Think of things you like to do. Make a date with you know who to do one of them soon.

9. Write a love letter, to yourself.

10. Mail it. (Mindfully)