Thursday, November 25, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving...

On a beautiful day in Morro Bay, California, it's hard not to be grateful to just be here. Add to that the yummy smells of cooking delights, the textures, the conversations, the pie and you start appreciating all of your 5 senses and all of the organs that go with them...If on a day like Thanksgiving you can't appreciate being a human, than you are really hopeless. You obviously need more yoga and probably a good therapist. Thanksgiving beats even Christmas in my book. Christmas has gotten a little warped into a gift giving mania, while Thanksgiving is about enjoying the gifts of friends, family and the bounty of the table, the bounty of  life.

Can't tell you the joy of eating freshly cooked cranberry sauce on a morning toast after a yoga practice! There are no words for that in the English language, but there are a lot of sounds such as "mmmmMMMmm" "ahh"...etc. Then off to figuring out how to make a procini risoto. Loved porcini, although a practically made myself allergic to them in Italy in September. I ate so much porcini that i was getting headaches. Goes to show you, less is more. Nevertheless, after a 2 month break, I am welcoming porcini mushrooms on the Thanksgiving table.

Hope all of you are as excited about this day of the year as I am. Also, somewhere between the tastings while cooking, the conversations, the setting up of the table, you make the time to reflect on the wonderfulness of your life and human existence. Instead of a second plate of food, get a second look at how you are on this day of your life. Watch this body glide through the kitchen, listen to the laughter of friends, barking of dogs, chirping of birds, delight in the taste of single spoonful of cranberry sauce, hug your kids, parents or pets, and just soak up the moments as they bubble up to the surface of time. You may not remember half of what happens on this day, but the delight in your heart will make you smile long after this day is gone. 

If this all sounds like too much Hippie talk, than you definitely need more yoga! Besides, all that awesomeness around Thanksgiving comes at the price of over consumption of goodness, which means, you definitely need yoga to process the holiday.

See you on the mat!
I am thankful for the opportunity to share this practice and this life time with all of you. I am assuming that my previous lifetimes have been equally worthy of appreciation, but this life time, so far, has been pretty awesome. Whatever may come ~ it's been great so far... and thank you all for sharing.