Summer's Slide Into Autumn

Thank heaven the 90+ degree heat seems (FINALLY)to be receding, along with the worse than usual humidity we've had since about May 1st!  With September nigh & the Jewish High Holy Days (Rosh Hashanah is also the Autumnal Equinox) approaching in three weeks, one hopes now for an uneventful hurricane season.

September is shaping up to be a busy month full of positive activities...and, heaven willing, far more pleasant weather.  

Agenda item numero uno is, as ever, getting myself back on track in terms of diet & exercise.  Sloth never does a body good; but fond as I am of being active, this summer's oppressive weather was a real downer for exercise; even indoors at the YMCA.

I have some obligations for the Daughters of the Nilew, which I serve as recorder:  an extra meeting on September 9th which will include an audit of the books, and a pre-audit audit next week to ensure we're ready for it.

We are both supposed to help mind our elder grandson September 17-21 while our son is participating in a work conference off the Georgia coast on Jekyll Island.  My yoga props will go, too...and I may teach him how to do Downward Facing Dog while I'm at it! 

Duality...or is that DO-ality?

Duality: an instance of opposition or contrast between two concepts or two aspects of something; a dualism

DO-ality: (fun, non-standard English!) the quality or state of doing 

As both a Pisces (two fish swimming in opposite directions) AND a Kapha-Vata dosha, it would seem the name of my lifelong game is BALANCE.  (Probably a major reason why the balance beam has always been my favorite gymnastics event, both to perform and to watch!)

Having embarked upon grandparenthood in 2019 and having retired from my full-time career in the fall of 2021, I've quietly begun practicing yoga (as a one-time gymnast, the stretches and inverted asanas feel heavenly!).  Since the passing of both parents (Mom 6/4/22 & Dad 4/15/23), I've also begun to expand my knowledge of yoga-connected fields.  Ayurveda (traditional Hindu medicine system of three doshas) defines my personal constitution as Kapha-Vata (the third dosha is Pitta, FYI).  Ideally, the goal is for one to keep all three legs of the metaphorical stool evenly balanced (sit on one and you'll understand why!).  

While I've now been retired for nearly four (4) years, this has been a gradual learning process for me.  So now that I am NOT touring South Carolina on a monthly basis, nor running to Greensboro, North Carolina anymore, I am striving on a daily basis to make the needed adaptations for improved overall well-being (the DO of my "do-ality" noted above).

With a laser-like focus on these new practices, I aspire to improve my overall mobility, lose  weight gained over the years of halfway living in a car, and spend more time outdoors (season permitting--I despise the heat and humidity of the Carolinas in high summer!).  Tune in July 4, 2026 for a progress update if you're interested.

Rhyme Time

Been pondering poetry of late, seeking to get back into publishing regularly on here & possibly in journals again.  

One rhyme I heard sometime in the past few days (on YouTube?  the radio?  Who can recall?) was a young father referring to his spawn as a "semen demon."  Crass, for sure.  But it DOES rhyme!  😂

As one who can vaguely recall the Flying Fickle Finger of Fate awards on Laugh-In (I was 4 when it was introduced), there are innumerable other such rhymes I've heard.  I just need to document them!

Fat Cat Hat

Camper Damper

Trees Bees Knees

Oven Lovin'

Lawn Fawn Spawn

Sleep, Fweep!  (this hearkens back to a weird card G gave me when we were dating)

A Non-Existent Secret (Place)

Once upon my youth, there was a grove of white pine trees than stood proudly on a hill above my grandparents' house.  The woods in which they were located had still been pastures for cows during my father's early childhood.  Once in the first few years I lived nearby, some local kids ignored the denial of permission from my elders and went camping in that grove.  A boy was burned while fiddling with their camp fire; when his parents tried to press a lawsuit, my elders' attorney immediately went after them for ignoring the firm "NO" that they'd been told when they asked permission to camp there.

After this incident and just before that family moved away, the grove gained the moniker of "the secret place."  It wasn't a well-kept secret, as every kid in our quiet rural neighborhood knew exactly where it was.  By the time I turned 11, I was the only one visiting it even occasionally, usually while taking the route through the woods to my grandparents' house.  It was quiet, peaceful, and the ground carpeted by soft brown needles shed by the trees.  (Looking back, it's a miracle the fire didn't get even more out of control!)  The grove, however, was merely the crest of a lower part of the hill.  The apex of this particular hill was a further 50-75 yards up, topped by a flat expanse of granitic gneiss, from which the construction project that became my high school alma mater (no longer standing as of this writing; the building was replaced circa 2023) was visible a mile away as the crow flies.  That rock sat at an elevation a modicum short of 875 feet above sea level.  Off to the left slightly down the hill from this expanse of naked rock was a fieldstone wall, before which my farming forebears had abandoned a horse-drawn hay rake decades earlier.

Today, the grove of white pines no longer exists; likely, it was removed at the behest of the first owner of that land not related to me (possibly due to the age of the trees, which were likely 100 years old or more when I was a child).  The hayrake likewise is long gone, as it'd now be in someone's yard.  The granite massif, far too large for any bulldozer to remove, likely remains at the rear of someone's back yard.

The secrets of the "secret place" are unknown to those who didn't live there when I did, and have long been forgotten to time.

CHAKRA WISDOM (for seekers including yours truly)

CROWN                     Sahasrara ("Thousand Petals")

                    Element = THOUGHT

                    Frequency:  741 Hz, OM chant, I Am Connected

                    Oils:  Cedarwood, Jasmine, Lavender, Rose

                    Gems:  Amethyst, Ametrine, Clear Quartz, Selenite

                    Affirmations:  Divinity Resides Within.  I am open to new ideas.

                    Information I need comes to me.  The World is my Teacher.  I am guided

                    by Higher Power.  I am guided by Inner Wisdom.

3rd EYE                       Ajna ("Authority," "Command," "Perceive")

                    Element = LIGHT

                    Frequency: 639 Hz, SHAM chant, I Am Now

                    Oils:  Clary Sage, Neroli, Peppermint, Sandalwood

                    Gems:  Amthyst, Blue Topaz, Diamond, Lepidolite

                    Surround self with and focus upon Brilliance of Trees; Mantras re: Intution

                    Affirmations:  I see ALL things in CLARITY.  I am open to the Wisdom within.

                    I can manifest my vision.

THROAT                     Vishuddha ("Especially Pure")

                    Element = ETHER (SPACE)

                    Frequency: 528 Hz, HAM chant, I Am Truth

                    Oils:  Chamomile, Lavender, Peppermint

                    Gems:  Blue Topaz, Sapphire, Turquoise

                    Singing, Chanting, Humming

                    Affirmations:  I hear and speak the truth.  I express myself with

                    clear intent.  Creativity flows in and through me.  MY VOICE IS NECESSARY.

HEART                        Anahata ("Unstruck," "Unhurt," "Unbeaten")

                     Element = AIR

                    Frequency: 417 Hz, YAM chant; I Am Love

                    Oils:  Geranium, Jasmine, Neroli, Ylang-Ylang

                    Gems:  Green Calcite, Green Jade, Clear Quartz, Rose Quartz

                    Meditate on Flowers, Spend time in Nature, Deep Breathing

                    Affirmations:  I am worthy of love.  I am loving to myself and others.

                    There is an infinite supply of love.  I live in balance with others.

SOLAR PLEXUS       Manipura ("City of Jewels" or "Lustrous Gem")

                    Element = FIRE

                    Frequency: 396 Hz, RAM chant; I Am Here

                    Oils:  Cedarwood, Lemon, Lemongrass, Myrrh, Sandalwood

                    Gems:  Citrine, Lemon Quartz, Tiger's Eye, Yellow Tourmaline

                    Drink Chamomile Tea or lemon H2O, Go out in the Sun, Eat Yellow Foods

                    Affirmations:  I honor the power within me.  I accomplish tasks easily and

                    effortlessly.  The fire within me burns through all blocks and fears.  I CAN DO                                        WHATEVER I WILL TO DO.

SACRAL                      Svadisthana ("Self," "Established," "One's Own Dwelling")

                    Element = WATER (H2O)

                    Frequency: 285 Hz, "VAM" chant, I Am Wanted

                    Oils:  Geranium, Sweet Orange, Rose, Red Mandarin

                    Gems:  Amber, Carnelian, Citrine, Sunstone

                    MINDFUL, SLOW EATING of Orange fruits/vegetables, Dancing & other bodily                                    movements, Getting Creative, TIME SPENT NEAR WATER

                    Affirmations:  I deserve pleasure in my life.  I absorb information from my

                    feelings.  I embrace and celebrate my sexuality.  My sexuality is sacred.  I move

                    easily and effortlessly.  Life is pleasurable.

ROOT                          Manipura ("City of Jewels" or "Lustrous Gem")

                    Element = EARTH

                    Frequency: 174 Hz, "LAM" chant, I Am Safe

                    Oils:  Myrrh, Patchouli, Vetiver, Ylang-Ylang

                    Gems:  Cuprite, Garnet, Red Jade

                    Walk barefoot on Earth, Wear Red, Eat red fruits/vegetables, drink red juices, meditate on                        Nature & the Earth

                    Affirmations:  It is safe for me to be here.  The Earth supports me and meets my needs.

                    I LOVE my body and trust its wisdom.  I am immersed in abundance.  I AM HERE,

                    AND I AM REAL.

Ballet of a Lifetime 7/25/37 - 6/4/22

Entree a Nouvelle York

Pirouette a Jackson Heights a l'age 1 de l'age 20

Elle a danse' pour beaucoup des annees

La television, le <<Merry Mailman>> et aux stages nombreux.

A l'age de 16, elle a petitionnee l'Organization des Triangles

Ou-t-elle a rencontre' son mari  Peter

Ils ont marie' le 10 Mai 1958;

C'est un aventure nouvelle

Maintenant, Connecticut entree de la vie pour les annees 45.

Les enfants arrivee a Nouvelle York et Connecticut

A NY, elle a maintenu une silhouette soignee;

mais a CT, plus de conduite signifie moins d'exercise.

Outdoor Code

The Outdoor Code

As an American, I will do my best to:

Be clean in my outdoor manners.

(I will treat the outdoors as a heritage. I will take care of it for myself and others. I will keep my trash and garbage out of lakes, streams, fields, woods, and roadways.)

Be careful with fire.

(I will prevent wildfire. I will build my fires only when and where they are permitted and appropriate. When I have finished using a fire, I will make sure it is cold out. I will leave a clean fire ring or remove all evidence of my fire.)

Be considerate in the outdoors.

(I will treat the land and other land users with respect. I will follow the principles of outdoor ethics for all outdoor activities.)

Be conservation-minded.

(I will learn about and practice good conservation of soil, waters, forests, minerals, grasslands, wildlife and energy. I will urge others to do the same.)

As the troop committee chair for hubby's Scout troop, I strive to live by this whenever I'm out and about in the great outdoors.  In my humble opinion, it all boils down to what I learned as a 7 year old Brownie:  Leave a place cleaner than you found it!