September
   2006   

Mike Garofalo on the top of North Dome, Yosemite National Park, California

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September 1,  Friday,  2006

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September 2,  Saturday,  2006

"The secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all
the details of daily life, and in elevating them to art."
-  William Morris

Walking and Taijiquan at dawn. 

Mowing lawns, pruning shrubs, watering, and working on our Sacred/Medicine/Spirit Circle. 

Teach Taijiquan and yoga at TFFC. 

Studying for AFAA Personal Fitness Trainer Examination. 

Watch USC vs Arkansas football game at night.  USC 50, Arkansas 14. 

Continued work on Sacred Circle webpage.

T'ai Chi Ch'uan  
Yang Style  
Sun Style  
Sword  
Staff  
Saber 
Cloud Hands 
Valley Spirit Center  
Qigong 
Links  
Chen Style   
Bagua  
Yang 24  
Sun 73 
Cloud Hands Blog   
Bibliography  
 

September 3,  Sunday,  2006

"I you want to follow the doctrine of the One,
Do not rage against the World of the Senses.
Only by accepting the World of the Senses
Can you share in the True Perception."
-   Seng-ts'an 

Walking and Taijiquan at dawn. 

Working on our Sacred/Medicine/Spirit Circle, indoor and outdoor work projects,
gardening. 

Studying for AFAA Personal Fitness Trainer Examination. 

September 4,  Monday,  2006

"To be able to be unhurried when hurried;
To be able not to slack off when relaxed;
To be able not to be frightened
And at a loss loss for what to do, 
When frightened at at a loss;
This is the learning that returns us 
To our natural state and transforms our lives."
-  Liu Wenmin

Walking and Taijiquan at dawn. 

Working on our Sacred/Medicine/Spirit Circle, indoor and outdoor work projects, gardening.

Studying for AFAA Personal Fitness Trainer Examination. 

December 2006 
November 2006 
October 2006 
September 2006 
August 2006
July 2006  
June 2006   
May 2006    
April 2006    
March 2006    
February 2006    
January 2006   
December 2005     
November 2005  
October 2005  
September 2005   
August 2005  
July 2005   
June 2005   
May 2005   
April 2005  
March 2005  
February 2005   
2005   
2004   
2003 
Index  

September 5,  Tuesday,  2006

"I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails
to always reach my destination."
-  Jimmy Dean

Work for CUESD from 7:30 - 4 pm.

TFFC: lift weights, teach yoga from 5:30-6:45 pm. 

Watering then studying for AFAA exam. 

September 6,  Wednesday,  2006

"Compare the silent rose of the sun
And rain, the blood-rose living in its smell,
With this paper, this dust.
That states the point."
-   Wallace Stevens

The peony
Made him measure it
With his fan.
-   Issa

made to measure it
with a fan...
the peony
-  Issa

"The way in which the peony is considered as the active source of the measuring of itself is not merely good psychology, but shows us how Issa looks upon the plant world and upon himself.  Compared to that of the ordinary man, human beings and plants are much closer together in the thought-feeling world of Issa.  The flower stands there in its color and glory.  It does not bloom to be seen, nor does it wish to blush unseen.  It is not dependent upon man, but neither is it independent of him.  Its purposeless purpose is fulfilled in its blooming in solitude and silence, yet when no one is gazing upon it, it has no shape or color or fragrance.  The flower needs the mind, and the mind needs the flower for its fulfillment. Issa emphasizes the power and activity of the peony not only because we live in an egocentric, homocentric world, valueless and unpoetical, but also because he wishes to bring out the special nature of the peony, its power and magnificence, its lofty splendor.  Is this splendor in the flower?  Does Issa cause the flower to be measured, or does the flower cause Issa to measure it?" 
-  R. H. Blyth, Haiku, Volume 3, Summer-Autumn

Work for CUESD from 7:30 - 4 pm.

TFFC: lift weights, spin class, kickboxing class.  

Watering then studying for AFAA exam. 

Biographies    

Reginald H. Blyth  
Han Shan
Sun Lu-Tang  
Chang San-Feng  
   

September 7,  Thursday,  2006

Work for CUESD from 7:30 - 4 pm.

TFFC: lift weights, teach yoga from 5:30-6:45 pm. 

Watering then studying for AFAA exam. 

'Refining the self, and setting up the foundation are not a matter of forced control, forced effort, or austere practices. What the work requires is first to recognize the natural, innocent true mind, and then to use this true mind to refine the self. Then a point of celestial energy emerges within the darkness - this is called true consciousness.'
Chang Po-Tuan (commentary by Liu I-Ming)

Chad Hansen's Chinese Philosophy Pages

http://www.hku.hk/philodep/ch/index.html

September 8,  Friday,  2006

Reading and writing in the morning.  Posting to blogs and webpages.

Karen and Linda left for Los Angeles and their Bell Gardens
40th high school reunion. 

Spin class for 45 minutes with Tonya, lifted weights for 45 minutes. 

Mowing lawns, pruning shrubs, watering, and working on our Sacred/Medicine/Spirit Circle. 

Studying for AFAA Personal Fitness Trainer Examination. 

A Butterfly Flaps Its Wings
http://nothingness23.blogspot.com/

Writing Experiments
• 66 Writing Experiments by Charles Bernstein
• Cut-up Spellcheck
• 82 Writing Experiments by Bernadette Mayer
• 16 Writing Experiments by Jonathan Mahew

Writing Techniques
• William S. Burroughs Cut-ups
• Kerouac's Belief and Technique for Modern Prose
• Jack Kerouac's Essentials of Spontaneous Prose
• The Cut-Up Method of Brion Gysin
• Ginsberg's Mind Writing Slogans
• Rimbaud's Systematic Derangement of the Senses
• The Collage Technique of Ana�s Nin
• Salvador Dali's Paranoiac-Critical Method
• Free Association, Active Imagination, Twilight Imaging
• How to make a modern novel
• Cobralingus Engine - Metamorphiction Process
• Origins of a Dub Fiction
• Film-makers use jump cuts, freeze frames, slow motion.
• Automatic Writing
• Surrealism
• Dadaism
• Magnetic Poetry

Forms
• Halbun - the Japanese essay
• Poetic Forms Glossary

Articles
 
• Ezra Pound on Language in Poetry
• Hakim Bey's Poetic Terrorism and Wild Children

As I watched Londoners in the street going about their lives there appeared a Dark Luminosity within each being. Yet at the same moment there was a strange feeling that they were no more than sleepwalking robots utterly oblivious to that shining nature within themselves. The life force of each person was somehow entrapped within a dull dreaming shell which seemed to prevent any contact with the real and what could have been aflame with consciousness was gray and lifeless.
 

Yatri. UNKNOWN MAN: THE MYSTERIOUS BIRTH OF A NEW SPECIES. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988

Walking and Taijiquan at dawn. 

Mowing lawns, pruning shrubs, watering, and working on our Sacred/Medicine/Spirit Circle. 

Teach Taijiquan and yoga at TFFC. 

The Road Not Taken:"

“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, 
And sorry I could not travel both 
And be one traveler, long I stood 
And looked down one as far as I could 
To where it bent in the undergrowth.
 
Then took the other, as just as fair, 
And having perhaps the better claim, 
Because it was grassy and wanted wear; 
Though as for that the passing there 
Had worn them really about the same.
 
And both that morning equally lay 
In leaves no step had trodden black. 
Oh, I kept the first for another day! 
Yet knowing how way leads on to way, 
I doubted if I should ever come back.
 
I shall be telling this with a sigh 
Somewhere ages and ages hence: 
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— 
I took the one less traveled by, 
And that has made all the difference.”

-  Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken

Walking and Taijiquan at dawn. 

Working on our Sacred/Medicine/Spirit Circle, watering, indoor and outdoor work projects. 

Studying for AFAA Personal Fitness Trainer Examination. 

The Road Not Taken:"

“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, 
And sorry I could not travel both 
And be one traveler, long I stood 
And looked down one as far as I could 
To where it bent in the undergrowth.
 
Then took the other, as just as fair, 
And having perhaps the better claim, 
Because it was grassy and wanted wear; 
Though as for that the passing there 
Had worn them really about the same.
 
And both that morning equally lay 
In leaves no step had trodden black. 
Oh, I kept the first for another day! 
Yet knowing how way leads on to way, 
I doubted if I should ever come back.
 
I shall be telling this with a sigh 
Somewhere ages and ages hence: 
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— 
I took the one less traveled by, 
And that has made all the difference.”

"In the United States, every 8.4 seconds, another baby boomer turns 50.  From 1990 to 2020,
the elderly population is expected to increase to 54 million persons.  At the current rate of growth,
there will soon be more grandparents than youth.  Americans 50 and older control 70% of all
U.S. wealth, bring in $2 trillion in annual income, own more homes than any other age group,
account for 50% of all discretionary spending, and purchase 41% of all new cars.  16 million exercise
at least three times a week.  They spend more per capita on groceries, over the counter and other
health products, travel and leisure than any other age group."
-  Today's Senior Magazine, September 2006

Some people appear intelligent until you hear them speak, proving that light moves faster than sound.

The foolproof methods really don't work for fools. 

Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day.  Teach a man to fish and he will sit in a boat all day
drinking beer. 

Flashlight: a case for holding dead batteries. 

It is said that if you line up all the cars in the world end to end, someone would be stupid enough
to try to pass. 

A day without sunshine is like, well, night. 

I was always taught to respect my elders, but it keeps getting harder to find one. 

My wife and I had words, but I didn't get to use mine. 

Frustration is trying to find your glasses without your glasses. 

Hundreds of thousands of Islamic Fundamentalists were very happy that 3000 infidel Americans were killed.
Hundreds of millions of people of all religions and no religion were very saddened that such a tragedy occurred.  

The head of Iran's ruling fanatical religious party applauded a recent museum exhibit showing that
the Holocaust never occurred or was greatly exaggerated.  The exhibit supposedly was in
protest of recent cartoons making fun of the Prophet Muhammad.   Their logic is strange:
somebody else's donkey misbehaves, so you spit in your neighbors face.  You'd think they would have an exhibit
showing their thousands of cartoons making fun of infidels, Jews, Christians, and Americans. 
Radical Islam and Nazism ... does it all sounds familiar: dictators, rigid social and political rules, intolerance,
visions of world domination, ruthlessness, true believers, superiority complexes, taking delight in killing,
worship of uniformed male leaders, frequent political/religious rallies, festering hatred .... 

In my view, Christianity, Islam and Judaism are all tiresome, antiquated, and not very useful for living the good life. 

Here's a snippet from an excellent article from Intervention Magazine on the evils of the various Gods.

Religious fanaticism in all its forms leads inevitably to bigotry, hatred, and, too often, violent confrontations. Let's end it like reasonable human beings. How many more Crusades, Jihads, Holy Wars, whatever you want to call them, must we live through to see the light? Let's put belief in a personal God, who tells us that only we are right and that everybody else is wrong, on a dusty top shelf, out of reach, where it belongs.

Lyrics for “Let There Be Peace on Earth”
By Jill Jackson and Sy Miller

Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me;
Let there be peace on earth,
The peace that was meant to be.

With God our Creator
Children all are we,
Let us walk with each other
In perfect harmony

Let peace begin with me,
Let this be the moment now;
With every step I take,
Let this be my solemn vow:

To take each moment and live each moment
In peace eternally.
Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.



 

Worked for CUESD from 7:30-4: webpages, communications, library planning, EETT3 grant writing.

Go to TFFC gym: weightlifting for 45 minutes, then teach yoga to 18 students from 5:30-6:45 pm.

Every thing has a heart and an internal life.
By internal life we mean a developing connexion to subtle energetic aspects of reality.

When the heart connects it does so to another heart.

Every connexion also has a heart and an independent life – we call this the Third Heart.

To connect and then to maintain a connexion requires energy. It is the creative inspiration of the Third Heart that provides this energy.

The heartworker gradually stops being a solid mass of regulating experiences retrieved by memory, and instead becomes a trembling web of connexions, each dipping into a different source of energy. Memory is not required because the devotion and dedication with which the life is lived nurtures and keeps alive each connexion – each is eternally present.

A heartworked life – one ruled by the natural wisdom and generosity of the heart – takes on significance by virtue of it feeding so many other hearts. This significance itself has a heart – the Heart of Life – what we call destiny.

Tai Chi Heartwork, By Steven W. Moore

http://taichiheartwork.blogspot.com/2006/09/some-principles-of-heartwork.html

But now in September the garden has cooled, and with it
my possessiveness.  The sun warms my back instead of
beating on my head ... The harvest has dwindled, and I
have grown apart from the intense midsummer
relationship that brought it on."
-  Robert Finch

Worked for CUESD from 7:30-4: EETT3 grant annual report writing, ordering for grants, do Reading First
2006-2007 grant budget. 

Go to TFFC gym: weightlifting for 45 minutes, attend spin class led by Heather. 

Moving bricks and watering in the evening.   

"I am a firm believer in heavy bag and percussion training. I do not like my fighters to train on a bag that weighs less than 80 pounds. The bag should have a firmness consistent with that of softened rock. In other words, whatever the filling, the bag must be quite dense. A fighter must condition his hands, feet, elbows and knees to the shock of impact. Otherwise, all other preparations for combat become useless. When properly conditioned, a fighter has no apprehension about unloading a full-power strike on the opponent. Poor conditioning leads to a fear of injury.Kinetics must be studied and understood intimately by the fighter. You can be the quickest tactician alive, but if you don’t have anything behind your strikes, you will generally lose to the more powerful opponent.Each type of strike must be broken down and analyzed for the fighter to understand how the maximum efficiency of the blow can be attained. I walk my fighters through movements over and over again, making adjustments to their body alignment. The implication here is that the coach must truly understand what he’s doing. Guessing is best left outside the ring or platform."
 

The following is a long article written by Mike Patterson (turn down your volume or be bugged by the annoying “sitepal”) on fight training for IMA people, specifically for xingyi and bagua guys. It’s really one-of-a-kind in that no one else has ever written how to train IMA for competition fighting before or since. Since it’s so valuable and you never know when things on the web might disappear, I’m archiving it here. I apologize for the bizarre encoding and paragraph issues. This didn’t cut and paste well and efforts to clean it up aren’t working.

I would be particularly interested in hearing your comments on this article.

KUOSHU WINNING SECRETS

By Mike Patterson (First printed in Inside Kung Fu Magazine - August 1997)

Introduction

IMA Fight Training

Worked for CUESD from 7:30-4: grant budgets, ordering, website work, developing a instructional module for teaching students about webpages. 

Go to TFFC gym: weightlifting for 45 minutes, then teach hatha yoga to 12 students from 5:30-6:45 pm.

Waking, sleeping and dreaming are liminal activities, and the very act of breathing may be construed as liminal. Spirals, labyrinths, mazes, tors, mounds, stone circles, groves and sacred enclosures are liminal spaces opening into other realities and other modes of being and thinking — as are winding woodland trails, oak stands, clear streams and mountains (I find myself thinking of the Queen Mother of the West and the mythical Peach Blossom Spring here.).

We each approach the liminal in our own way and our own time, and the lens through which we filter our liminal experiences is a unique and very personal thing. For some of us, the gateway lies through church services and collective ceremonies — for others it is private prayer, meditation and silence — for still others, the way is through loving observation of the natural world, personal ritual, carefully crafted rites of passage and the old seasonal festivals. Sunrise, noon, twilight and midnight are liminal times of day when according to ancient lore, divination and magic could be worked by those skilled in such arts — such times would have been fearful and vulnerable intervals for those without magical gifts or the protections of the Craft.

By Kerrdelune, Beyond the Fields We Know

http://kerrdelune.blogspot.com/2006/09/beyond-fields-we-know-v.html

Acorn Bread Moon, Acorns Gathered Moon, All Ripe Moon, Arbitration Moon, Aster Moon, Autumn Moon, Barley Moon, Black Calf Moon, Blood Berry Moon, Blood Moon, Breeding Moon, Calf Grows Hair Moon, Cenqolew Moon, Changing Season Moon, Chrysanthemum Moon, Cold and Ice Moon, Corn Maker Moon, Corn Moon, Dancing Moon, Deer Paw the Earth Moon, Drying Grass Moon, Edrinios Moon, End of Fruit Moon, Falling Leaves Moon, Fruit Moon, Gathering Moon, Harvest Moon, Hay Cutting Moon, Her Acorns Moon, Holy Moon, Hulling Corn Moon, Hunter's Moon, Index Finger Moon, Leaves Changing Color Moon, Little Chestnut Moon, Mabon Moon, Maize Moon, Mallow Blossom Moon, Middle Between Harvest & Eating Indian Corn Moon, Moon of Drying Grass, Moon of Full Harvest, Moon of Harvest Home, Moon of Much Freshness, Moon of Plenty, Moon When Calves Grow Hair, Moon When Deer Paw the Earth, Moon When Everything Ripens and Corn Is Harvested, Moon When The Calves Grow Hair, Moon When The Deer Paw The Earth, Moon When the Corn Is Taken in, Moon When the Leaves Fall, Moon When the Leaves Change Color, Moon When the Plums Are Scarlet, Moose Moon, Morning Glory Moon, Mulberry Moon, Ninth Moon, Nut Moon, Papaw Moon, Rice Moon, Rivros Moon, Rudbeckia Moon, Seed Moon, Shining Leaf Moon, Silky Oak Moon, Singing Moon, Sturgeon Moon, Vine Moon, Snow Goose Moon, Wavy Moon, Wine Moon, Wood Moon, Yellow Leaf Moon

http://kerrdelune.blogspot.com/2006/09/septembers-full-harvest-moon.html

“…the spirit blooms timidly, and struggles to the light amid the thorns.” - George Santayana

Walking and Taijiquan at dawn.

Go to TFFC gym: weightlifting for 45 minutes, go to 45 minute spin class led by Tonya. 

Mowing lawns, gardening, and watering.

Massage in afternoon by Carol Borer.

Work some on Sacred Circle construction. 

SPIRITUAL GROWTH THROUGH DOMESTIC GARDENING
By Al Fritsch, S.J.

September starts with Labor Day when goldenrod are
in full bloom and the crops are being gathered.  It's harvest time
on farms, when entire families helps in an intergenerational
enterprise.  We hasten in anticipation of autumn chill and a
possible early frost.  The heavier mists now hang over the valleys
reminding us each morning that days are warm, but nights are cooler
than the temperature of rivers, lakes and ponds.  Work, even garden
work, includes beating the frost and a mutual sacrifice.

   The birds flock in the evening and nature seems to anticipate
what is in store.  We pick elderberries for pie, press cider, deep
freeze the grapes and continue to use the solar food dryer for
beans and apples.  We notice that the late tomatoes have a
different taste this month.  In the more even temperature of the
month the peppers seem to fill the stalks miraculously with each
passing day and hang heavy in yellows and greens and reds and
purples.  Butternut and winter squash are ready to store; we
prepare the greenhouse for the first transfers as frost approaches.
We trample the late summer woods nearby and find the acorns now
falling from the oak trees.  We taste the most exquisite of all
fruit in the wild, the wild plum.  And we hear the reports of
hunters -- fathers and sons and daughters bonding by bringing home
a mess of squirrel.  We see deer and rabbit and raccoon as well and
hear the gobbling of the wild turkeys.  Yes, this is September.

http://www.earthhealing.info/garden.htm#September
 

And Fall, with her yeller harvest moon and the hills
growin’ brown and golden under a sinkin’ sun.
Roy Bean

Graceland Farm Community Supported Agriculture

t may not seem that Summer is over, but the harvest season has begun. The field corn is being harvested, and Summer bumper crops of tomatoes and melons are waning. Hay is being cut for the final time this year. Fall starts before the mums and pumpkins begin to show up on the front porch. This seasons drought has probably pushed up the sense of finality in the season. Leaves are already falling and some large trees that look as if the leaves are turning brown are probably living their last Summer. When large mature trees give up hope, you know that it has been a long, cruel stretch. The remnants of tropical storms and hurricanes, that can so often cause so much destruction, are often the salvation for our area. The remains of these storms often mark the end of extremes and a return to our often beautiful Autumn. This week we have been planting lettuce, beets, cabbage and broccoli, hoping that shorter days and some overcast (rainy days) will be friendly towards our young plants. The peppers are finally beginning to show Fall colors. Peppers are a September bumper crop. Fall squash are bearing and the late planted cukes, squash and beans are nearly ready for harvest.

http://gracelandmidland.com/csa/?p=38

http://gracelandmidland.com/csa/

Slept in late - aaahhh!!

Teach Taijiquan and Yoga at TFFC. 

Garden and outdoor construction projects.

Watch the USC vs Nebraska football game on television. 

Yes, I'm an old fart,
facing the slipping that starts
unraveling me apart,
and shakes up my smarts,
slowly weakens my heart,
takes my friends to the grave.

I try not to take it to much to heart.
-  Mike Garofalo

Hatha Yoga Illustrated: For Greater Strength, Flexibility and Focus.  By Martin Kirk and Brooke Boon.
Champaign, Illinois, Human Kinetics, 2006.  Index, 231 pages.  ISBN: 0736062033.

Based on the exercise from Master Ni Hua Ching:

1. Centre the Mind in the cloud of golden light in the solar plexus. Each out breath, intensify and expand the light taking the Mind deeper until the body and breath are lost in the light.
2. Allow the cloud to drift up to cover the lungs where it becomes white like the clouds. With each out breath, intensify and expand the light as the Mind goes deeper.
3. The cloud moves down to cover the lower abdomen and turns a deep blue like the ocean. With each out breath, intensify and expand the light as the Mind goes deeper.
4. The cloud moves to the region of the liver on the right side of the body and becomes a deep green like the forest. Intensify and expand the light as the Mind goes deeper.
5. Let the cloud float across to surround the heart and turns deep red like a ruby. With each out breath, intensify and expand the light as the Mind goes deeper.
After one or more cycles, return the cloud to the solar plexus and rest in the golden light.

Written by Chen Yen Ling
Translated by Tchong Ta-Tchen

From the book "The Annotated Theoretical And Practical Tai Chi Chuan" by Tchong Ta-Tchen

Yi (mind) and chi (breath) are found inside the human body without form or colour. The eyes are unable to view but the chi has a very important role. Our bodies are full of chi circulating and cultivating the body. The chi is formed with fire from the 'ming men'. The fire refines the 'jieng' to become chi. The Taoists describe it as 'water and fire already present or the 'nei dan'. It is stored in the area of the dan tien. The Taoists value chi very much. Usually, people think the blood is the most important essence in the body, they do not know that chi is even more important than blood. Chi is the chief while blood is the assistant. We need blood that contains the essentials (vitamins, minerals, etc.) but chi is the transportation, making it more important. Chi is heavy while blood is light. If we do not have enough blood, we can still temporarily survive. Without enough chi, we die immediately. Therefore to cultivate chi is very important. The importance of Tai Chi Chuan is to concentrate in order to cultivate the chi. We always say, "External to exercise are the tendons, bones and skin. Internal is the breath." For those who practice Tai Chi Chuan, after practising the forms, push hands, roll back or two-man forms, the breathing is still smooth and natural, the face colour does not change and the internal chi flows through the entire body. The feeling is more comfortable than before the exercise. This is the result of cultivating the chi. After exercise, they never are short of breath or feel tired. When the chi fills up the body, the blood is healthy. As the blood flows through the body, the body is strong. A healthy body strenghtens the mind. A strong mind leads to a great spirit. A great spirit is able to prolong our life.

What about yi? Yi is the heart (mind) and heart is yi. In definition, there is a slight difference between heart and yi. The heart is the chief and the yi, the assistant. When the heart moves (intentions), the yi starts to work. The yi leads and the chi follows. Therefore, the heart, yi and chi are all interconnected. If the heart is troubled then the yi is diffused. If the yi is diffused, the chi floats. On the other hand, when chi sinks, the yi will be concentrated. When the yi is concentrated, the heart is stable. Therefore the three are melded together and cannot be separated from each other. The chi moves and can motivate the blood and the spirit. Then we can use the chi in practice. Chi is the principle and Tai Chi Chuan is the method. If we have a principle without the mthod, we cannot transfer it to the practical. If we have a method without principle, we give up the major and look for the minor. Therefore, yi, chi and Tai Chi Chuan have a interconnected relationship as well.

In Tai Chi Chuan, the use of yi and chi for the beginner is very difficult but not without a way to get to the entrance. When we first practice the Thirteen Postures, or even a single movement, we have to use our imagination. For example, if we use both hands to perform a push movement, we imagine there is an opponent in front of us. Actually, at the time, there is no chi in the palms to release. But when we start to imagine. Our chi rises up the spine to the shoulder, arm, wrists and palms, finally being released to the opponent's body. This kind of imagination, for the beginner is very dull. After practising for a long time, you will know how to use imagination.

The chi has two kinds circulating in the body. There is an upper level chi (post-birth) and lower level chi (pre-birth). When you exhale, the upper level chi exits from the nose while the lower level chi sinks to the dan tien. When you inhale, the upper level chi enters from the nose while the lower level chi rises up the spine from the dan tien to the hands and legs. When the yi moves, the chi follows to any part of the body. Practising Tai Chi Chuan, closing and opening while breathing in and out, is to exercise the chi to fill the entire body, to create the sensitive from the body, tendons, touch and even spirit. This is why "An Internal Explanation Of Training" by Wang Dsung Yueh says, "The mind should be concentrated on the spirit and not the chi. If focused only on the chi, one will be clumsy and not agile. If focused on the chi, one will become powerless. If one does not concentrate on the chi, one will be strong as steel."

Some believe that chi is useless. However, there is a misunderstanding. Such a belief pertains only to certains kinds of chi such as stiff chi, impetuous chi or brutish chi tha arises with anger. This type of stiff, impetuous, brutal chi causes both feet to float adnthe body to become unstable, indicating that both are without li. But the chi in Tai Chi Chuan is the chi from the dan tien. This chi is clear and calm. Because it is calm, the chi is fluid. Because it is fluid, the chi circulates without interruption. There is no relationship with the undesired stiff, impetuous and brutal chi.

In "An Internal Explanation of Tai Chi Chuan", many points can be found that describe chi. It says 'Use the mind to direct the movement of chi. The mind must be calm so that the chi can condense deep into the bones. When the chi circulates around the body, the chi must flow like a fluid and smoothly, then it is able to follow the mind easily,...The mind and chi must interchange and coordinate between substantial and insubstantial such that there will be no harm...The mind is the commander, the chi the flag...The abdomen is completely relaxed and the chi condenses into the bones." It is also written, "The yi and chi are the rulers and the body the subject." These words all talk about the importance of chi. The learner must discriminate between the clear, calm chi and the stiff, brutal chi. To cultivate the clear, calm chi and giving away the stiff, brutal chi.

Generally, the relationship between yi and chi is like the relationshiip between the driver and the engine in a car. The yi is the driver, the chi the engine. We cannot forget either of them.

The Human Body and the Mind

British Broadcasting Company

http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/

"Enlightment is not a fixed place. There is no fixed place. All one has to do is understand the chaos, the disorder in which we live. In the understanding of that we have order and there comes clarity, there comes certainty. And that certainty is not the invention of thought. That certainty is intelligence. And when you have all this, when the mind sees all this very clearly, then the door opens. What lies beyond is not nameable. It cannot be described, and anyone who describes it has never seen it. It cannot be put into words because the word is not the thing, the description is not the described. All that one can do is to be totally attentive in relationship, to see that attention is not possible when there is image, to understand the whole nature of pleasure and fear, and to that pleasure is not love, and desire is not love."

-J. Krishnamurti

There are many who do face circumstances of chaos and disorder.  War, natural disasters, famine, civil unrest, cruelty, poverty, familial oppression ... are all examples.  There are many who do not face these conditions.  They strive to create a stable and peaceful and respectful family and society so as to ameliorate and minimize these circumstances. 

We cannot thrive in chaos and disorder, nor can we achieve higher level states of consciousness.  We must first have some semblance of order in our lives, some peace, some stability, some safety, some food on the table, some friends ... then we can gain that clarity of mind to move towards enlightenment. 

If we cannot describe what lies beyond the ordinary, give some examples, relate it to experiences in our daily life, compare it to something, or provide metaphors and analogies to help us understand the state, condition, or experience of enlightenment then we have failed as spiritual advisors. 

Indeed, enlightenment is not a thing, a place, or a description of a thing.  It is more like a verb than a noun.  More like a process, a path to be walked, a way of living one's life.     

Simplicity is power.

The power to do less of what doesn't matter and more of what does.

(Bill Jensen)

“We must remember that one man is much the same as another, and that he is best who is trained in the severest school.”
- Thucydides

When you are not practicing, remember, someone somewhere is practicing, and when you meet him he will win” - Ed Macauley

“An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.” - Mahatma Gandhi

“We learn by practice. Whether it means to learn to dance by practicing dancing or to learn to live by practicing living, the principles are the same. One becomes in some area an athlete of God.” - Martha Graham

 "When you have a number of disagreeable duties to perform, always do the most disagreeable first." - Josiah Quincy

"The successful person has the habit of doing the things failures don't like to do. They don't like doing them either necessarily. But their disliking is subordinated to the strength of their purpose." - E.M. Gray

"It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell." - Buddha

Song of the Precious Mirror Samadhi
By Dongshan Liangjie (807-869)

The Dharma of Thusness
is intimately transmitted by Buddhas and ancestors.
Now you have it;
preserve it well.

A silver bowl filled with snow,
a heron hidden in the moon.
Taken as similar, they are not the same;
Not distinguished, their places are known.

The meaning does not reside in the words,
but a pivotal moment brings it forth. 
Move and you are trapped,
miss and you fall into doubt and vacillation.

Turning away and touching are both wrong,
for it is like a massive fire. 
Just to portray it in literary form
is to stain it with defilement.

In darkest night it is perfectly clear;
in the light of dawn it is hidden. 
It is a standard for all things;
its use removes all suffering.

Although it is not constructed,
it is not beyond words.
Like facing a precious mirror;
form and reflection behold each other.

You are not it,
but in truth it is you. 
Like a newborn child,
it is fully endowed with five aspects:

No going, no coming, no arising, no abiding;
“Baba wawa”– is anything said or not? 
In the end it says nothing,
for the words are not yet right.

In the hexagram “double fire,”
when main and subsidiary lines are transposed,
Piled up they become three;
the permutations make five.

Like the taste of the five-flavored herb,
like the five-pronged vajra.
Wondrously embraced within the complete,
drumming and singing begin together.

Penetrate the source and travel the pathways,
embrace the territory and treasure the roads.
You would do well to respect this;
do not neglect it.

Natural and wondrous,
it is not a matter of delusion or enlightenment.
Within causes and conditions, time and season,
it is serene and illuminating.

So minute it enters where there is no gap,
so vast it transcends dimension. 
A hairsbreadth’s deviation,
and you are out tune.

Now there are sudden and gradual,
in which teachings and approaches arise. 
With teachings and approaches distinguished,
each has its standard.

Whether teachings and approaches are mastered or not,
reality constantly flows.
Outside still and inside trembling,
like tethered colts or cowering rats.

The ancient sages grieved for them,
and offered them the dharma.
Led by their inverted views,
they take black for white.

When inverted thinking stops,
the affirming mind naturally accords.
If you want to follow in the ancient tracks,
please observe the sages of the past.

One on the verge of realizing the Buddha Way
contemplated a tree for ten kalpas.
Like a battle-scarred tiger,
like a horse with shanks gone grey.

Because some are vulgar,
jeweled tables and ornate robes.
Because others are wide-eyed,
cats and white oxen.

With his archer’s skill,
Yi hit the mark at a hundred paces.
But when arrows meet head-on,
how could it be a matter of skill?

The wooden man starts to sing,
the stone woman gets up dancing.
It is not reached by feelings or consciousness,
how could it involve deliberation?

Ministers serve their lords,
children obey their parents.
Not obeying is not filial,
Failure to serve is no help.

With practice hidden, function secretly,
like a fool, like an idiot.
Just to continue in this way
is call the host within the host.

-  Dongshan Liangjie (807-869 CE, China), Tozan Ryokai Daiosho (Jap.)

HOKYO ZAMMAI

Song of the Precious Mirror Samadhi

The dharma of thusness is intimately transmitted by buddhas and ancestors; Now you have it; preserve it well.

A silver bowl filled with snow; a heron hidden in the moon.

Taken as similar, they are not the same; Not distinguished, their places are known.

The meaning does not reside in the words, but a pivotal moment brings it forth.

Move and you are trapped; miss and you fall into doubt and vacillation.

Turning away and touching are both wrong, for it is like a massive fire.

Just to portray it in literary form is to stain it with defilement.

In darkest night it is perfectly clear; in the light of dawn it is hidden.

It is a standard for all things; its use removes all suffering.

Although it is not constructed, it is not beyond words.

Like facing a precious mirror; form and reflection behold each other.

You are not it, but in truth it is you.

Like a newborn child, it is fully endowed with five aspects:

No going, no coming, no arising, no abiding;

"Baba wawa"-is anything said or not?

In the end it says nothing, for the words are not yet right.

In the illumination hexagram, inclined and upright interact,

Piled up they become three, the permutations make five,

Like the taste of the five-flavored herb, like the five-pronged vajra.

Wondrously embraced within the real, drumming and singing begin together.

Penetrate the source and travel the pathways; embrace the territory and treasure the roads.

You would do well to respect this; do not neglect it.

Natural and wondrous, it is not a matter of delusion or enlightenment.

Within causes and conditions, time and season, it is serene and illuminating.

So minute it enters where there is no gap, so vast it transcends dimension.

A hairsbreadth's deviation, and you are out of tune.

Now there are sudden and gradual, in which teachings and approaches arise.

When teachings and approaches are distinguished, each has its standard.

Whether teachings and approaches are mastered or not, reality constantly flows.

Outside still and inside trembling, like tethered colts or cowering rats,

The ancient sages grieved for them, and offered them the dharma.

Led by their inverted views, they take black for white.

When inverted thinking stops, the affirming mind naturally accords.

If you want to follow in the ancient tracks, please observe the sages of the past.

One on the verge of realizing the Buddha Way contemplated a tree for ten kalpas,

Like a battle-scarred tiger, like a horse with shanks gone grey.

Because some are vulgar, jeweled tables and ornate robes;

Because some are wide-eyed, cats and white oxen.

With his archer's skill Yi hit the mark at a hundred paces,

But when arrows meet head-on, how could it be a matter of skill?

The wooden man starts to sing; the stone woman gets up dancing.

It is not reached by feelings or consciousness, how could it involve deliberation?

Ministers serve their lords, children obey their parents;

Not obeying is not filial, failure to serve is no help.

With practice hidden, function secretly, like a fool, like an idiot;

Just to do this continuously is called the host within the host.

by Dongshan Liangjie (Tozan Ryokai; 807-869)

http://www.berkeleyzencenter.org/texts.shtml

Hokyo Zammai/ Song of the Precious Mirror Samadhi

of Tozan Ryokai Daiosho

The dharma of thusness is intimately transmitted by buddhas and ancestors. Now you have it; preserve it well. A silver bowl filled with snow; a heron hidden in the moon. Taken as similar they are not the same; not distinguished, their places are known. The meaning does not reside in words, but a pivotal moment brings it forth. Move and you are trapped; miss and you fall into doubt and vacillation. Turning away and touching are both wrong, for it is like a massive fire. Just to portray it in literary form is to stain it with defilement. In darkest night it is perfectly clear, in the light of dawn it is hidden. It is standard for all things; its use removes all suffering.Although it is not constructed, it is not beyond words. Like facing a precious mirror; form and reflection behold each other. You are not it, but in truth it is you. Like a newborn child, it is fully endowed with five aspects: no going, no coming, no arising, no abiding.

"Baba wawa"-- is anything said or not? In the end it says nothing, for the words are not yet right. In the illumination hexagram, apparent and real interact. Piled up they make three, the permutations make five; like the taste of the five-flavored herb, like the five-pronged vajra. Wondrously embraced within the real, drumming and singing begin together. Penetrate the source and travel the pathways; embrace the territory and treasure the roads. You would do well to respect this; do not neglect it. Natural and wondrous, it is not a matter of delusion and enlightenment. Within causes and conditions, time and season, it is serene and illuminating. So minute it enters where there is no gap, so vast it transcends dimension. A hairsbreadth's deviation, and you are out of tune. Now there are sudden and gradual, in which teachings and approaches arise. With teachings and approaches distinguished, each has its standard. Whether teachings and approaches are mastered or not, reality constantly flows. Outside still and inside trembling, like tethered colts, or cowering rats, the ancient sages grieved for them, and offered them the dharma. Led by inverted views, they take black for white. When inverted thinking stops, the affirming mind naturally accords. If you want to follow to the ancient tracks, please observe the sages of the past.

One on the verge of realizing the Buddha Way contemplated a tree for ten kalpas. Like a battle-scarred tiger, like a horse with shanks gone grey. Because some are vulgar, jeweled tables and ornate robes. Because some are wide-eyed, cats and white oxen. With his archer's skill, Yi hit the mark at a hundred paces. But when arrows meet head-on, how could it be a matter of skill? The wooden man starts to sing, the stone woman gets up dancing. It is not reached by feelings or consciousness, how could it involve deliberation? Ministers serves their lords, children obey their parents; not obeying is not filial, failure to serve is no help. With practice hidden, function secretly, like a fool, like an idiot. Just to do this continuously is called the host within the host.

 

Last revised 04/02/2006.

Bodhisattva Precepts

Pure Precepts

I vow to refrain from all evil.

(Doshi) It is the abode and the source of all Buddhas, and the law of all Buddhas.

I vow to do all that is good.

It is the teaching of anuttara samyaksambodhi and the path of the one who practices, and that which is practiced.

I vow to live and be lived for the benefit of all beings.

It is transcending profane and holy, taking self and others across.

Prohibitory Precepts

I vow not to kill.

By not killing life, the Buddha seed grows. Transmit the life of Buddha and do not kill.

I vow not to take what is not given.

The self and objects are such, two yet one. The gate of liberation stands open.

I vow not to misuse sexuality.

Let the three wheels of self, objects, and action be pure. With nothing to desire, one goes along together with the Buddhas.

I vow to refrain from false speech.

The Dharma Wheel turns from the beginning. There is neither surplus nor lack. The sweet dew saturates all and harvests the truth.

I vow not to sell the wine of delusion.

Originally pure, don't defile. This is the great awareness.

I vow not to slander.

In the Buddha Dharma, go together, appreciate, realize, and actualize together. Don't permit fault-finding. Don't permit haphazard talk. Do not corrupt the way.

I vow not to praise self at the expense of others.

Buddhas and Ancestors realize the vast sky and the great earth. When they manifest the noble body, there is neither inside nor outside in emptiness. When they manifest the Dharma body, there is not even a bit of earth on the ground.

I vow not to be avaricious.

One phrase, one verse--that is the ten thousand things and one hundred grasses. One dharma, one realization--is all Buddhas and Ancestors. Therefore, from the beginning, there has been no stinginess at all.

I vow not to harbor ill will.

Not negative, not positive, neither real nor unreal. There is an ocean of illuminated clouds and an ocean of ornamented clouds.

I vow not to abuse the three treasures.

To expound the Dharma with this body is foremost. Virtue returns to the ocean of reality. It is unfathomable--we just accept it with respect and gratitude.
 

http://www.berkeleyzencenter.org/Texts/precepts.shtml

Ancient Dragon Zen Gate Chants

http://ancientdragon.org/dharma/chants

Work around house and yard, writing, PSA test, teach spin. 

Work from 7:30 to 4 pm for CUESD.  Lift weights then teach yoga at TFFC. 

"Genuine love and friendship is like hot charcoal that is covered by ashes; when you return back to it much later and poke it a little it is rekindled and reactivated anew." - Ethiopian proverb



"Life is a message – listen to it. Life is a belief – trust it. Life is a gift – accept it. Life is love – think about it. Life is an adventure – dare it." - Northern Sotho proverb from South Africa

Red boughs bursting everywhere;
Shimmering of seeded grass;
Hooded gentians all a'mass.
Warmth of earth, and cloudless wind
Tearing off the husky rind,
Blowing feathered seeds to fall
By the sun-baked, sheltering wall.
Beech trees in a golden haze;
Hardy sumachs all ablaze,
Glowing through the silver birches.
How that pine tree shouts and lurches!
From the sunny door-jamb high,
Swings the shell of a butterfly.
Scrape of insect violins
Through the stubble shrilly dins.
Every blade's a minaret
Where a small muezzin's set,
Loudly calling us to pray
At the miracle of day.
Then the purple-lidded night
Westering comes, her footsteps light
Guided by the radiant boon
Of a sickle-shaped new moon.

Amy Lowell, Late September

 

Work from 7:30 to 4 pm for CUESD.

Teach Wednesday night yoga class for the first time: 6:00 - 6:45 pm.  This will be an Power Yoga, active yoga
style of class. 

Work from 7:30 to 4 pm for CUESD.  Lift weight then teach yoga at TFFC. 

Attend AFAA workshop in Yuba City from 1-9:30 pm. 

"It has been said that if you could become another person for even a few moments you would probably become Enlightened. So strong is our attachment to the idea of who we are that even the smallest jolt out of it can have an immense effect." -Manjusvara
 

"Listen to all the teachers in the woods. Watch the trees, the animals and all living things - you'll learn more from them than from books."
--Joe Coyhis, STOCKBRIDGE-MUNSEE
 

If you want to find God, hang out in the space
between your thoughts.
-Alan Cohen

"Personality as such is false. The word “personality” has to be understood. It comes from persona ; persona means mask. In ancient drama the actors used to wear masks. Those masks were called personae—personae because the sound was coming from behind the mask. Sona means sound. The masks were apparent to the audience and from behind the mask the sound was coming. From that word persona has come the word “personality.”

All personality is false. Good personality, bad personality, the personality of a sinner and the personality of a saint—all are false. You can wear a beautiful mask or an ugly mask, it doesn’t make any difference.
-  Osho

"The circle is perhaps the most ancient of mystical symbols and the most universal of all dances. It is the earth and
The sun in eternal movement, an unbroken, unbent line symbolizing continuity and eternity. The circle dance represents
Wholeness. The dance brings life full circle."
- Sacred Woman, Sacred Dance

"When I despair, I remember that all through history, the ways of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and, for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end they always fall. Think of it...always."

~Mahatma Ghandi

“Often, when we are in the midst of turmoil, and all around us is spinning out of control, it is difficult to believe the storms of
life will ever pass. In such times as this, we can, it seems, do
nothing but tie a knot in the end of our rope and hang on. And this is all we need to do. We need only to hang on to love, hang on to light and hang on to truth. For when the storm has passed -- and they always do -- these three will remain, as strong and certain and invincible as they have been since time began. As Ghandi said, love always wins.”

~Kate Nowak

So many gods
So many creeds
That wind and wind,
While just the art
Of being kind
Is all the sad world needs.
-  Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Wise sayings often fall
on barren ground,
but a kind word
is never thrown away.
-   Sir Arthur Helps

Attend AFAA workshop on Personal Fitness Trainer from 8-6 p.m..  Study at night.  USC defeats Arizona 20-3. 

At the autumnal equinox (Sept. 23, 2006, 12:03 A.M. EDT), the sun appears to cross the celestial equator, from north to south; this marks the beginning of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere.

"Equinox literally means "equal night", day and night are equal in length - as if the scales are perfectly balanced. It is at this time the sun truly rises in the east and sets in the west., and the point at which we can observe the most rapid change in the Sun's apparent motion. It is now that the nights dip into the "below freezing" temperatures, while the days can still be warm and delightful and the trees increasingly change into their fall finest colors.Ê It is, as if at Mabon, the harvest erupts with overwhelming abundance, symbolized by the horn of plenty - the cornucopia brimming with bounty. The full moon closest to the Equinox is know as the Harvest Moon, for the simple reason that the full moon enabled folks to work into the night harvesting by it's gentle light. If the full moon closest to the Autumnal Equinox is actually in November then the September moon is typically named the Corn Moon.

Autumn Equinox is the second in the trilogy of harvest festivals. Mabon marks the completion of the grain harvest begun during Lughnasadh. Celebrations revolve around the gathering of crops and thanksgiving for the abundances of the harvest, and rituals to insure the success of next year's harvest are characteristic during this harvest time. The making of corn dollies from the last sheaf of corn that is harvested is a typical custom. She is kept until the spring - keeping the spirit of the corn, when she is ploughed back into the field to breath the life of the corn back into the soil.

A harvest supper, also known as a harvest home, a dinner of thanksgiving and celebration, is also traditional. The home is decorated with wheat sheaths, bundled together gold cords, corn stalks, cornucopias overflowing with seasonal fruits and nuts, gourds, pumpkins, garlands of autumn's colorful leaves, acorns and pinecones. A table full of stews, meat pies, hams, roasts, potato cakes, cheeses made from spring's milk, custards, cakes, fresh fruit tarts and pies, corn bread, caraway seed cake (it was said that caraway seeds kept a person from stealing), ale, poteen (a very potent drink - was banned in 1661 - legalized in 1997) and cider. Typical fruits of this time are apples, cranberries (original name crane-berries - named for the cranes in the marshes where cranberries grow), fen-berry (the American cranberries English cousin), grapes, hazelnuts, corn, squash, pears, and peaches."

Mabon - Overview  
By Christina Aubin

http://www.witchvox.com/va/dt_va.html?a=usma&c=holidays&id=3623

Mabon
By Asaka

http://www.wicca.com/celtic/akasha/mabon.htm

Mabon Sabbat

http://www.tylwythteg.com/Mabon.html

Equinox - Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equinox

Attend AFAA workshop on Personal Fitness Trainer from 8-3 p.m..   Take 1.5 hour written test and
20 minute practical test.  

Work for CUESD from 8:30 - 4 pm.  Writing EISS grant.  TFFC gym:  lift weights then teach spin cycling.  Stayed up very late till 2 am watching TCM movies:  Fountainhead with Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal (1949), and Last Picture Show (1971). 

I attended the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America (AFAA) workshop on Personal Fitness Trainer this past weekend. The knowledgeable and interesting workshop trainer, Ms.  J. Bale, kept us very busy studying and learning on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for over 21 hours.  I had read a couple of assigned AFAA textbooks before the training session.  On Sunday we took a 2 hour written exam and a 20 minute practical exam.  I believe I passed, but will need to wait for 5 weeks for the results and certificate.  The three day workshop was held in Yuba City.  

I'm sure all the health and fitness information I learned and memorized will help me in my work for the Tehama Family Fitness Center and Valley Spirit Center as a yoga, tai chi, qigong, and spin cycling instructor.  Hopefully, by January 1st, 2007,
I will be certified by both AFAA and ACE (American Council on Exercise) as a Personal Fitness Trainer. 

Ditch running at night and watering.

Work for CUESD from 7:30 - 4 pm.  Writing EISS grant, EETT3 grant report, and EdTech grant.  TFFC gym:  lift weights then teach yoga class (15).  Weight 268 pounds. 

Work for CUESD from 7:30 - 4 pm.  Writing EISS grant, EETT3 grant report, and EdTech grant.  TFFC gym:  lift weights then teach yoga class (6).   

"Hello, I am not trying to be rude ..however--- I suggest you study your physiology...namely the BOHR effect before making claims about O2 and CO2. Carbon dioxide is vital to our body's ability to use oxygen and deep breathing is NOT good for you as breathing off too much C02 means a tightening of the haemoglobin and oxygen bond, making oxygenation of the tissues very difficult."
-  Marlene Jantzi-Bauman

Work for CUESD from 7:30 - 4 pm.  Writing EISS grant, EETT3 grant report, and EdTech grant.  TFFC gym:  lift weights then teach yoga class to 15 students.    

Mowing lawns starting at daybreak.  Work for CUESD from 11 - 4 pm.  Writing EISS grant, EETT3 grant report, and EdTech grant. 

Among the blogs I visit on a daily basis is the excellent blog called “Beyond the Fields We Know: Wild Thoughts on the Journey” by Kerrdelune. Her comments are consistently of high quality, and her selection of photographs is outstanding.



“Connections are made slowly, sometimes they grow underground.
You cannot tell always by looking what is happening.
More than half the tree is spread out in the soil under your feet.
Penetrate quietly as the earthworm that blows no trumpet.
Fight persistently as the creeper that brings down the tree.
Spread like the squash plant that overruns the garden.
Gnaw in the dark and use the sun to make sugar.

Weave real connections, create real nodes, build real houses.
Live a life you can endure: Make love that is loving.
Keep tangling and interweaving and taking more in,
a thicket and bramble wilderness to the outside but to us
interconnected with rabbit runs and burrows and lairs.

Live as if you liked yourself, and it may happen:
reach out, keep reaching out, keep bringing in.
This is how we are going to live for a long time: not always,
for every gardener knows that after the digging, after
the planting, after the long season of tending and growth,
the harvest comes.”
-   Marge Piercy, Seven of Pentacles

Mick and April arrive from Portland at 3:30 a.m.. 

Walking at daybreak for 60 minutes.  Teach Tai Chi Chuan and Yoga from 10-12:15. 

The leaves embrace
in the trees

it is a wordless
world.
-   William Carlos Williams

Pulling Onions:

-  Pulling Onions, by Mike Garofalo