What's On My Mind...at 59: Roots of Love

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!!!

I'm sitting in the airport in Ft. Lauderdale waiting for a flight back to Baltimore. This is a photo of the "Kissing Booth" Southwest Airlines created right at B5 - my gate. I walked up to ask for a special blue pass to board early (first time I've ever done that) and the very nice and kind Southwest employee came around, pulled me under the kissing booth and gave me a big ole kiss on my cheek. Ha! He is about 25 years old and has soft, white, smushy cheeks like the Pillsbury Dough Boy. After he gave me a little smooch, I had to give one back. I looked to see if my little smooch had left a little indentation on his cheek. It didn't.

My hair is a mess because I can't reach up to fix it, I have hummus stains all over my black sweat shirt and I must have looked pathetic as I stood there explaining why I need to board early - I have torn some cartilage in my right shoulder, it's killing me despite lots of icing, icing, icing and Aleve and keeping it in the best alignment I can. The kiss was nice. The Orthodpedic Surgeon I'm planning to see tomorrow will be nicer... hope. Nice in that he will help me figure out a good plan for shoulder healing.

I tore the labrum in my shoulder at the gym. First my step slid out from under me (in mid December) and then about 3 weeks later when the speed on my treadmill flew up from 2.3 to 8.0 in about one second, I grabbed the side of the treadmill so I wouldn't fly off and that was that. Off to the ER, off for x-rays and an MRI and then.........off to Jamaica where I taught one yoga and one Pilates class a day. No problem mon - my husband helped by demonstrating "Double Leg Stretch" and "Warrior II" with lots of good form and I considered it a good opportunity to really think about my verbal cues. It worked out great and my students didn't seem to notice much.

Injuries really suck. I hate that word but it's a lot less obscene than the one that it rhymes with, the one I'd rather use (did you know that there can be one f- - - word in a PG 13 movie?? Who came up with that?).

Injuries are a good opportunity to look at your life and think about
a) Why did this happen and
b) What can I work on while this heals?

The first accident on the step happened because I didn't adjust my step right away when it went out of wack. I was just about to, just after a few more hamstring curls.......and bam, down I went landing primarily on my right wrist jamming my humerus. The lesson - I'm not as young as I used to be (313 days to my 60th birthday) and I need to take more care about preventing falls, etc.

My mother used to fall all the time - in her Robert Redford $800 cowgirl boots slipping off the back of her pearly white pick up truck cracking some ribs after flipping a bail of hay into the back. Something she had no business doing at 80 years old. With her many-carat diamond earrings and her flask of Segreams 7 VO in the glove compartment of that truck she'd take a sip while listening to Johnny Cash sing the blues going way to fast, near 80, hauling hay she was planning to feed her horses and goats and donkeys. Not a gray hair on her head thanks to Lady Clairol. My mother was a piece of work and full of love. I think of her often on Valentines Day.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

While checking my emails I found this writing from Bjorn Bostrom that I'd like to share with you on this Valentines Day 2012. I hope you enjoy it.

"Roots of Love"

by Bjorn Bostrom, D.C.

I hope this message finds you well and warm.

I'd love to share with you a grounding message:

We were put on this planet with purpose to be here for one another with compassion and support. Our roots are our gifts, resources, passion, inspiration, and our love... to share with others.

Are you in touch with yours?

It's that time of year when you might be seeking more romance in your life or creativity with your partner. No matter what your situation is, you have roots of value that are worth sharing. How can you creativily express your gifts with love to benefit humanity, your community and even nurture your partnership?

True healing comes with being willing to get more intimate with yourself. It's through an ongoing exploration of that willingness that we reveal our roots and how interconnected they are with each other, our belief systems and the world around us. Each day explore your creative essence and the love that is moving through you with everything you do!

I recently captured this photo from a cathedral of redwoods in Henry Cowell State Park. The most beautiful thing about these redwood "cathedrals" is their organization in circular patterns that begin to grow from a fallen tree due to the nutrient dense, decaying center. The missing center of the forest canopy from the fallen tree allows for light to enter the cathedral to provide growth... shown in the picture below as a heart! Despite their shallow root structures, redwoods are known for their strength and longevity due to their natural ability to share roots with their neighbors.

The whole (forest) is greater than the part (tree)!