thanks, s.k.

wow. i love this song and didn’t fully listen until today. so great: “gentleness is everywhere” and “gentleness clears the soul.” it’s from “hunky dory.” makes me breathe lighter.

Fill Your Heart

Fill your heart with love today
Don’t play the game of time
Things that happened in the past
Only happened in your mind
Only in your mind, forget your mind
And you’ll be free, yeah

The writing’s on the wall
Free, yeah. And you can know it all
If you choose. Just remember
Lovers never lose
‘Cause they are free of thoughts unpure
And of thoughts unkind
Gentleness clears the soul
Love cleans the mind
And makes it free.

Oh happiness is happening
The dragons have been bled
Gentleness is everywhere
Fear’s just in your head
Only in your head
Fear is in your head
Only in your head
So forget your head
And you’ll be free

The writing’s on the wall
Free, yeah. And you can know it all
If you choose. Just remember
Lovers never lose
‘Cause they are free of thoughts unpure
And of thoughts unkind
Gentleness clears the soul
Love cleans the mind
And makes it free

(lyrics by biff rose and paul williams)

i am grateful for:

1) sleeping till waking, sans alarm, and lying there

2) the healing power of doing dishes

3) stevie wonder

4) cookbooks. so much possibility, hope.

5) fabric paint

6) sponges

7) sunday

8) sheets

9) the t-shirt i got at target that makes me feel superfly

10) supertramp, “logical song”

yes, i am listening to parts of “blue” on a saturday night alone. but it makes me so happy-sad. oh, joni.

(ok, whew, the next song is kool and the gang, but these lyrics are still gorgeous.)

“I remember that time that you told me, you said
Love is touching souls
Surely you touched mine
Cause part of you pours out of me
In these lines from time to time

Oh you are in my blood like holy wine
And you taste so bitter but you taste so sweet
Oh I could drink a case of you
I could drink a case of you darling
Still I’d be on my feet
And still be on my feet”

- joni mitchell, “case of you”

i am grateful for…

1) the lirr and how i spontaneously hopped on it to the beach today. even a couple of hours out there works wonders

2) the slow, real dawning that i really need a break–i was told i looked “exhausted” and “really stressed” this week

3) the night with j and linda goodman and the muppet movie. seriously. what more do you need? oh, i know–a blue marble hand-packed pint, and we had that too. yay.

4) bob’s health food store in long beach

5) the sea

6) the sky

7) cloud-gazing

8) sand

9) even sand in my teeth

10) target

11) the perfect weather today

12) talking with h. today

13) being reminded that “my heart came back to me.” thanks, lt.

14) being reminded by a. to not turn to negative thoughts after expressing my needs

15) having a home

16) t-shirts

17) making it to yoga this a.m.

18) moments of lucidity

from the crazy last week or so–from mung sprout farming to the yoga journal conference to the annual CT scan to pattabhi’s passing to love in the mail. all in a week’s (or so) livin’.

1) making a mix inspired by j’s–Songs That Save Me. 6.8 hours of tunes so far

2) kermit singing the rainbow connection

3) going to a book party at peter max’s gallery tonight. the colors. his potent wife talking about food and saying lots of cool things (too tired to quote)

4) that victoria signed her “love-powered diet” book to me by calling me a “love-powered woman.” which, you know, i’m sure that’s how she signed everybody’s but i love it. wanna frame it.

5) that i had a supercool email exchange with a graphic artist living in prague when i tried to track down an old design of his so i could use on the other blog: http://www.robsog.org. (see design at left, and now in green on his blog). the interwebs really rock sometimes.

6) my hot pink obe belt

7) amy winehouse singing the crap out of my name

8) having perhaps started a breakthrough of sorts

9) ani

10) my mystical connection to the berkshire mountains, which seem to come to me even when i can’t go to them

11) reminders to be present

12) brightly colored colanders at whole foods

13) that the bears are back. left their caves for another wild summer of loping and eating and feeding and protecting and playing and being cute and fierce

i am grateful for…

1) feeling grateful

2) whole foods for having such a great space to hang out undisturbed

3) that i kept a promise to myself today

4) that the universe seems to be flowing in amazing, unexpected ways

5) berkshire mountain rock

6) gold sharpie memos: this letter to ny magazine re the great article last week on distraction: “I began reading with a commitment to hold to the author’s challenge, but by page four I had toasted a bagel, twittered my remembrance of the victims of the Molasses Disaster, proclaimed to the world the name of my new punk band, and solicited suggestions for track titles. I then realized how distracted I had become, and with a gold Sharpie, I wrote above the function row on my laptop, “Are you procrastinating?” I then went back and finished the article.“

7) that i’m going to the peter max gallery tomorrow

8) friends who remind me to chill and be here now

9) sleep. even tho i keep having fights in my dreams.

i am grateful for….

1) b.–trees ARE nothing less than miracles

2) heartman. omg, love-bomb-o-rama

3) having a good clothing day

4) freeze-dried fruit from trader joe’s

5) for doing the next scary thing. and praying i don’t hurt anyone in the process.

6) m’s zen-jewish childrearing moments–when the kid is asking for what’s next (park, lolly), he’s been saying, “let’s just enjoy what we’re doing right now.” i love that. we are born futurists. if only we all had someone to remind us there are plenty of goodies in the right-now.

7) planning a summer vacation (ha! that’s not very right-now. but it will be right-now then and it will be fun)

8) my homegirls

9) silk

10) that my friends go to india so i don’t have to

11) remembering to smile at people in nyc now and again

12) homemade pizza for lunch

13) books. actual paper books. with pages.

14) listening

15) paul hawken’s graduation speech at the university of portland: “There is invisible writing on the back of the diploma you will receive, and in case you didn’t bring lemon juice to decode it, I can tell you what it says: YOU ARE BRILLIANT, AND THE EARTH IS HIRING. The earth couldn’t afford to send any recruiters or limos to your school. It sent you rain, sunsets, ripe cherries, night blooming jasmine, and that unbelievably cute person you are dating. Take the hint. And here’s the deal: Forget that this task of planet-saving is not possible in the time required. Don’t be put off by people who know what is not possible. Do what needs to be done, and check to see if it was impossible only after you are done.” whole thing here.

i am grateful for

1) a little bit of calm

2) ananda ashram

3) my tent

4) chanting. hare krishna!

5) trees. oh trees. your many shades of green chlorophyll love.

6) fuzzy little goslings

7) trains that lead to trees

8) jm and her porch and art supplies and luv

9) putting it on paper

10) making stuff

11) that i have homemade lunch for tomorrow! (thanks, w!)

12) mattresses that aren’t in a tent

13) flourescent pink pedicures

14) people who read my blog(s)

15) people who comment on my blog(s)

16) getting out of the city

17) long weekends

18) that brooklyn still smells like flowers

19) love

20) the awesome light backpack for terror pigeon dance revolt! that i met (with its creator) on the train tonight. think camping backpack wrapped with working twinkle lights, flourescent, multi-colored electrical tape, and a smiley-faced canister full of costumes (spiderman on top). why do i forget my camera at these moments? but thank goddess i asked “what’s that?” because it’s so damn cool. oh and “the idea is that you have all the lights you’d have in a club, but you can have it in the woods.” of course. sorry, hard to explain. here’s a start.