Wednesday, December 23rd and flamingos

So today is our travel day from Hawaii. Steve and I have spent a glorious 10 days reveling in the lush, exquisite beauty here and enjoying one another's company. This morning we drank coffee and watched some flamingos unfold into a new day. (As a side note . . . I don't know that flamingos even belong in Hawaii but we are spending our last night in a Disneylandish hotel that has a beautiful outdoor water feature with, sadly, lots of contained wildlife). These flamingos began to wake up and unfurl their delicate necks. Then, I swear, they were playing like my dogs do . . . kinda nipping at one another, provoking one another to engage in play. One stretched it's magnificent wings and displayed a deeper, more provocative pink. I thought to myself how God's glory never ceases to reveal itself. I could go on and on about the beauty of their knobby knees and their sweet pink webbed feet . . .
Whoever invented those plastic flamingos seriously missed the mark. But, I digress . . .

I had the honor of attending several Anusara classes with the powerful and profound teacher, Skeeter Tichnor. Skeeter so eloquently reminded us that the guru lives inside us. As an extrovert I managed life by turning outwards to survive. This worked, in many ways, for a long time. No longer, Don't get me wrong. I will always be an extrovert and I LOVE people and being social. However, it is in my center that strength resides. As the sage Bhagavan Nityananda said, "The heart is the hub of all of sacred places; go there and roam."

We had the pleasure of attending an event with Saul David Rae and friends, Sri Sakti Activation in Haiku. It was a night of praising the divine mother through puja, kirtan, dance. It was lovely and a definite high point for Steve and myself. There was a time of offering intention and it came very clearly to me that my work this year is in supporting myself in the deepening of my relationship with my own heart and the power that resides within.

Winter Solstice marks the 12 days of Light as we journey towards Epiphany. In the Christian tradition this is marked by the birth of the Christ child. In the Pagan tradition this is celebrated by the coming of the Light within and without.

No matter what tradition we celebrate, we have the honor of being able to reflect on this past year during these 12 days. This is also the time of cultivating our heart's work for the New Year.

May we be sensitive and open to the epiphanies that are always opening to us and may we be open to seeing and embodying them.

Remember, New Year's Day practice and intention setting at 5 Points Yoga with me. WWW.athensfivepointsyoga.com to register, 10 a.m.-noon