Thirty Days of Thoughts: Day 2

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choreography, Dance, dance makers, dance making, heart, heart path, modern dance, spiritual, spirituality

There is a sweetness of awareness that has been happening over the past few months that have really been such a beautiful experience. As I dive deeper into the Five Element Theories of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), I am finding so many wonderful connections with all of the work I have been doing for the past thirty years creatively as well as spiritually. It’s nice to feel a sense of return in addition to the confirmation of what I have known and felt all along.

Coincidently my spiritual practice was revealed through my decision to dance. Back when I first started I was introduced to various movement practices through a seminar class that was required for our curriculum. It was through this coursework that Tai Chi and Qi Gong was introduced to my life.

Since then my creative and spiritual journey have been interwoven through the works I made and the philosophies that were the inspiration for that work. It seems there has always been a parallel of physicality and well-being throughout my early training practices.

dues to starting dance at a very late age all of this work and playing catch-up influenced the way I grew and developed my thinking and in many ways how I perceived dance and technique. I was never trained through the aesthetics of various forms but rather encouraged to explore, discover and play with how my body felt in motion. I felt ecstasy in movement and fell deeply in love with my soulful connection to my body.

Clearly the path I chose had a big influence on the rest of my life. I made choices to stay in motion even if there were “objects” interacting at times to thwart my momentum. The laws of motion somehow kept me moving and moving through me to allow for opportunities to keep diving deeper. It is this wonderful appreciation of fate that I owe a deep gratitude to for dance giving me the life it has. And what a life it has been!!

A Shield of Spirit

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heart, inspiration, love, love wins, loving, spirit, spiritual, spirituality

I am not like others. I have never been nor will ever be. I have always wandered through places in untraditional or conventional ways. I have traversed these places alone while carrying with me only a shield of spirit. Despite this, this chosen shield has always been porous letting in things wished for and also things unwanted. Some might ask “then what good is a shield of spirit when it doesn’t fully protect you?”. The point was never to be protected but simply to slow down the overwhelming amount of of love being given on a regular basis.

With this remarkable offering there is sometimes some of the unwanted that gets in alongside the wanted. The real magic is then watching the way in which love swallows the sorrow while transforming it into energy. Watching this alchemical transformation then reminds me why I picked that shield up as a little boy; this spirit that is one with all things is one with love, and in the end, love prevails.

Thoughts on an Open Morning

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arts, beleif, Dance, EBAS, journey, Mantra, open heart, path, quiet heart, quiet mind, shift, space, spiritual, wisdom

Quiet heart, quiet mind has been my mantra for calm and rest during the tumultuous past nine months of tireless travel, teaching and creativity. It has brought many of beautiful things to fruition and changed an otherwise anxious heart to one of spacious graciousness followed by a mind at peace. It has been the right kind of focus at a time when speed wanted to override the joy.

 

Now, I am realizing how much luxurious space there is in my life for the first time in a very long time. Exuberant, vacuous space full of intent and joy. My world has been blown open not by the removal of moments, but rather by the appreciation and sense of gratitude inside existing moments with a new found sense of clarity, quiet and calm. Courage resides in this space as my guide no longer a need for battle.

 

As I spend a quiet and cool morning at home with the boys, a cup of coffee and space, I wonder what it is I will carry as a mantra through the rest of the year and perhaps on into the rest of the school year. What keeps surfacing for me at present is an open heart. A heart that is permeable and porous free from fear and doubt; a heart that says yes “we” can share and yes “we” can give.

 

It seems to me that this is the time for extreme giving. This is the time for sharing what we have, what we do and what we can with others around us. If there ever was a time to be philanthropic and a supporter of the arts, healing and spiritual growth, that time would be now. This is the time of great healing and great bridge building. This is the time where we need to go deep within so that our explorations of ourselves might move out into the vat uncharted spaces of our world sharing all we have with others.  Now is a time for opening our hearts.

Joy as our Rudder

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courage, emotional congruency, faith, fear, heart, hope, journey, joy, laughter, light, merriment, passion, path, rudder, Soul to Soul, spirit, spiritual

We should let joy be our rudder and courage our sails. If we are to cast off towards our dreams on a sea of constant change, we should remain faithful to our journey with the most joyful heart and courageous spirit. If we have these two characteristics as part of our arsenal, we are sure to journey with much laughter and good spirit finding ourselves collaborating with the elements regardless of their intensity.

 

We should let love be our light and laughter our energy. If we are to encounter our deepest fears along our journey, we should let love from our hearts light the dark caverns and laughter echo loudly against those walls. If we have these two sources of power deep within the well of our hearts, we are sure to journey with much compassion and understanding in ourselves and for others that there will only be congruent steps full of merriment for have taken this path.