Pay Attention – You’ll Feel Better. ~ Via Holly Troy | elephant journal

Pay Attention – You’ll Feel Better. ~ Via Holly Troy elephant journal

Change is What’s Happening – Do You Feel It?
What is it we relish about summer? Long days; the sun warming our skin; the chance to be outdoors and connect with nature; enjoying activities like sailing, hiking, bicycling, swimming; vacation; fresh fruits and vegetables . . . it’s a time when our senses are delighted, when we find ourselves easily in the moment. Hopefully we have all had the chance to watch the sunset at least once this season! It’s natural that we slow down and pay attention to the world around us.
Is it any wonder that summer is a great time for romance? Our senses are lit. We are having a relationship with the world around us. We want to be out in the world, touching grass with our toes, immersing ourselves in water. The lingering rays of the sun at the end of the day are like soft kisses on our skin. The sound of the breeze in the trees is soothing to our ears. We are awake, and the world is awake with us.
We know we love the chance to slow down. In fact, it is essential that we do take time to slow down for our physical, mental and spiritual well being. In the summer, most of us naturally do it (or at least crave it). By autumn though, it’s easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of what to do. It is harvest time, school is starting, and/or projects at work pick up. Many of us are already planning for winter holidays. Before we know it, we get caught up in our plans and tasks, taking care of our to-do lists (that somehow get longer and longer day after day), and we scurry around doing “stuff” as if we’re trying not to notice the days getting shorter.
We get busy and stop paying attention. The natural world gets colder and darker and it’s as if the need for more clothing – is a signal to “close down” the connection to the world around us. We stop connecting outwardly; we stop connecting inwardly. That disconnect is uncomfortable – so we begin the cycle of busy-ness. That cycle creates more disconnect and we stop noticing ourselves until something forces us to slow down again – we “catch” a cold, we have a fender bender, we slip and fall, the summer romance breaks up.
Change is always happening, but being jolted into paying attention isn’t always so fun! Being mindful is helpful in easing the stress of change, and it is also a way to stay connected and enjoy the subtle shifts in the world around us and within us. We might even realize that there are things that need changing. For instance, maybe winter is really hard on you, you might decide to relocate to Tucson; or maybe it’s time to take steps toward your dream of being an artist; or perhaps you realize you need to set some boundaries with your boss, partner, etc.
There are many simple ways to have pleasant awareness. For example, when you bathe or take a shower, focus the mind on your breath for a few inhalations and exhalations. Then, pay attention to how the water feels on your skin. Do you perceive your bath differently now?
My yoga philosophy centers around noticing the subtle shifts that happen in the body as we slow down to pay attention. What happens when we focus on the breath? How does the body feel after a particular asana? What happens when we deliberately pay attention?
At the beginning of my yoga classes, I have my students lie down on their backs in savasana (corpse pose) – arms a foot or two away from the body, hands open and palms facing upward, and feet mat-width or so apart. Mouth, teeth and tongue relaxed, eyes closed.
Then, I ask them to breathe.
Breathe normally, but notice the breath. Is it fast or slow, jagged or smooth, shallow or deep? Are there any thoughts passing through the mind?
There is nothing to change. There is nothing to do but notice . . .
Tell yourself, that for this practice, you are willing to let go of the past and let go of the future. There is nothing to do but to notice the breath . . .
Pay attention to your skin. How does the skin feel where it is against the mat . . . the fabric of your clothing . . . where it is exposed to the air? How does the scalp feel? Does your hair tug at the skin?
Beginning at the top of the head, slowly scan the body.
Notice any places that are tight or tense, just simply notice . . .
There is nothing to change, just notice . . . And breathe . . .
Noticing the crown of the head, the forehead, the eyebrows . . . Noticing the eyes, the nose, the cheeks, the lips, the mouth, the teeth, the chin . . . Noticing the jaw, the back of the skull, the back of the neck, the throat.
Noticing the collarbones, the chest, the space between the shoulders . . . Noticing the shoulders, the arms, elbows and forearms . . . Noticing the wrists, the hands, the fingers.
Noticing the middle back, the ribs, the belly, the lower back, the spine . . . Noticing the hips, the pelvis, the genitals, the thighs.
Noticing the knees, the shins, the calves . . . Noticing the ankles, the heels, the feet, the soles of the feet, and the toes.
Noticing the breath.
For a few moments, allow the body to experience being noticed.
When you are ready, with eyes closed, begin to wiggle fingers and toes. Then, stretch the arms overhead and feet away from the body. Draw the knees into the chest. With hands clasped behind or in front of the knees, gently rock from side to side, massaging the lower back. Then drawing little circles with the knees – massaging the lower back and sacrum – first in one direction and then the other.
Keeping the eyes closed, place the feet on the floor so that your knees are still bent, and gently roll onto your right side into a fetal position. Take a few breaths, and then, pressing off with a hand, bring yourself into a comfortable seated position.
Once you are seated, lengthen in the spine and tuck the chin in slightly. Keeping the eyes closed, again, notice the breath. Notice the body. Notice if any feelings or thoughts of tightness or tension have shifted. Just notice.
This noticing prepares the body and mind to be grounded in the world. Our movement in space becomes more certain, relaxed. The feet now notice the mat, the floor. The skin now notices the air, your clothing. The spine now notices the lungs, the ribs. Perhaps your gut, your heart, now notices the subtle (and perhaps, not so subtle) energies in the room.
Consciously paying attention creates a deep shift in how we relate to the world around us and within us. As in any relationship, the more nurturing we give, the more we receive. Body scanning only takes three to five minutes, it can be done in the morning or at night, and can be a very pleasant way to begin or end the day. Try it before your meditation or yoga practice, before a stressful meeting or presentation, or even on the subway on your way to work.
How many of us have closed our eyes on the train anyway? You can just sit or stand and scan your body.
Think of paying attention, noticing yourself and the world, as a vacation from busy-ness. I challenge you to intentionally notice your subtle connection to the world throughout this next moon cycle (and beyond) – I am certain you will be happier for it.

Holly Troy, former lead singer for The Halfbreeds, is a psychadelic punk rock yogini, artist, writer and musician currently based in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Readers can follow her at her blog or on Twitter at SacredFolly

Escuta as vozes da terra

Escuta as vozes da terra




Durante a infância, o meu avô era o meu melhor amigo. Quando estávamos juntos, tudo me parecia perfeito.

Gostávamos ambos de passear pelos bosques. Nunca íamos muito longe, nem andávamos muito depressa. Escolhíamos caminhos sinuosos. Enquanto caminhávamos, eu fazia imensas perguntas:

― Avô, porque é…?

― O que se passaria se…?

― Será que às vezes…?

Um dia, perguntei:

― Avô, o que é uma oração?

O meu avô ficou em silêncio durante muito tempo. Quando chegámos junto das árvores mais altas da floresta, respondeu-me com uma pergunta:

― Alguma vez ouviste o murmúrio das árvores?

Pus-me à escuta, atento, mas foi em vão.

― Vê como as árvores sobem até ao céu. Tentam subir sempre mais. Querem chegar às nuvens, ao sol, à lua e às estrelas. Procuram elevar-se até ao céu.

Pensei nas árvores, procurei ouvi-las. Enquanto reflectia, sentei-me numa rocha velha, coberta de musgo. O meu avô explicou:

― As rochas e as montanhas também falam connosco. A sua calma e o seu silêncio inspiram-nos tranquilidade.

Depois de ter reflectido durante bastante tempo, peguei numa pedra e coloquei-a no meu bolso. Caminhámos um pouco mais, até junto de um ribeiro. A água borbulhava, cintilava, e viam-se pequenos peixes a nadar.

― Avô, os ribeiros também murmuram?

― Claro. Bem como todos os lagos, rios e cursos de água. Às vezes, correm tranquilamente. Espelham as nuvens, os pássaros, o sol ou as estrelas. Outras vezes, escoam-se em redemoinhos, lançam-se no mar ou evaporam-se no céu. E o ciclo recomeça… Também se riem e divertem com os seus amigos rochedos. Dançam, saltam, tornam a cair…Mas a natureza conhece outras formas de se exprimir. As ervas altas procuram o sol e as flores exalam o seu perfume doce. Quanto ao vento, sussurra, geme, suspira, e sopra-nos as suas palavras. Escuta o canto dos pássaros de manhã cedo, escuta o seu silêncio antes do nascer do sol. Consegues ouvir a melodia do pintarroxo ao cair da tarde? Os animais correm pela floresta, tornam-se reluzentes com a água, escalam montanhas, voam até às nuvens, ou refugiam-se na terra. É assim que todos os seres vivos participam na b eleza do mundo…

Calámo-nos os dois. O meu avô olhava o horizonte e eu reflectia no que ele me tinha dito sobre as rochas, as árvores, a erva, os pássaros e as flores. Acabei por lhe perguntar de que modo rezavam os homens. O meu avô sorriu e passou-me a mão pelos cabelos. Respondeu:

― Tal como a natureza, os homens têm a sua linguagem própria. Podem inclinar-se para cheirar uma flor, ver o sol despontar no horizonte, sentir a terra mover-se docemente, ou saudar o dia que começa. Pode-se passear num bosque coberto de neve num dia de Inverno e ver o próprio sopro confundir-se com o sopro do mundo. A música e a pintura são também formas de expressão, de linguagem…. Às vezes, sentimo-nos tristes, doentes ou isolados. Então, repetimos as palavras que os nossos pais e avós nos legaram. Mas é preciso que cada um encontre as suas próprias palavras. O que é importante é dizer o que verdadeiramente se sente, o que nos vem do coração.

Passado algum tempo, o meu avô disse que eram horas de regressar. Mas eu tinha uma última pergunta:

― Será que há respostas para as nossas orações?

Sorriu.

― Se as escutarmos atentamente, as orações contêm as suas próprias respostas. Nós somos como as árvores, o vento e a água. Não podemos mudar o que nos rodeia, mas podemos mudar-nos a nós mesmos. É evoluindo que transformamos o mundo.

Depois deste passeio, ainda voltámos a passear juntos. De cada vez, tentei escutar as vozes da terra, mas creio que nunca as ouvi. Um dia, o meu avô deixou-nos. Continuei a pensar nele com todas as minhas forças, mas ele não voltou. Não podia voltar. Rezei até mais não poder. Depois, deixei de o fazer. Sem ele, tudo me parecia sombrio. Sentia-me muito só.

Alguns anos mais tarde, durante um passeio, sentei-me debaixo de uma árvore enorme. Os ramos mexiam e as folhas sussurravam. Ouvi o murmúrio de um ribeiro e o canto de um pintarroxo, pendurado numa madressilva. Ouvi também um ligeiro sussurro, misturado com o sopro do vento, com o canto dos pássaros e com o marulho da água.

Tal como o meu avô me ensinara, a terra falava comigo. Então, também eu murmurei, docemente:

― Obrigado pelas árvores grandes e pelas flores, pelos rochedos e pelos pássaros. E, sobretudo… obrigado pelo meu avô!

Foi então que algo aconteceu.

Senti – outra vez – o meu avô perto de mim…

E, pela primeira vez desde há muito tempo, tudo me parecia perfeito.



Douglas Wood

Grandad’s Prayers of the Earth

Paris, Gründ, 2000

(Tradução e adaptação

lição do Ernst

“O segredo, na verdade, é não fazer. Tudo está sendo feito pela própria natureza, a gente só tem que observar e assumir uma parceria com ela, entrando num sistema de co-criação. Tudo o que precisamos fazer é descobrir nossa função junto àquele ecossistema para que ele possa se desenvolver melhor. E seguir o princípio do Tao, o fluxo da própria natureza.”

Ernest Götsch

Espinilho

Nesse ano o espinilho (Acacia caven) floresceu mais cedo, talvez devido as bruscas mudanças de temperatura. Seu perfume é intenso e atrai abelhas e vespas. É uma planta típica do Rio Grande do Sul ocorrendo na Barra do Rio Quarai onde há o Parque do Espinilho.

Tive uma grande colheita do Cara Aéreo, uma planta que impressionada pela beleza das folhas e pelo formato de suas "batatas" que crescem no caule.

Muitas folhas para a salada

Wild Edible Yards

Wild Edible Yards


Americans currently spend more than thirty billion dollars, millions of gallons of gasoline, and countless hours to maintain the dream of the well kept thirty- one million acres of lawns. An estimated sixty-seven million pounds of herbicides, fungicides and insecticides are applied around homes and gardens yearly. Commercial areas such as parks, schools, playing fields, cemeteries, industrial, commercial and government landscapes, apply another 165 million pounds.



Lawn grasses are not native to the North American continent. A century ago, people would actually pull the grass out of their lawns to make room for the more useful weeds that were often incorporated into the family salad or herbal tea. It was the British aristocracy in the 1860’s and 70’s, to show of their affluence that encouraged the trend of weed free lawns, indicating one had no need of the more common, yet useful plants. Homeowners were encouraged to cultivate lawns that would serve as examples to passerbys. These types of lawns also lent themselves to the popular lawn sports, croquet and lawn tennis. From the 1880’s through 1920’s in America, front lawns ceased to produce fodder for animals, and garden space was less cultivated, promoting canned food as the “wholesome choice.” Cars replaced the family horse and chemical fertilizers replaced manure.



It has been estimated that about thirty percent of our Nation’s water supply goes to water lawns. In Dallas, Texas, watering lawns in the summer uses as much as sixty percent of the city water’s supply.

On weekends, we increase noise and gasoline consumption to mow down the grass we have worked so hard to grow. Lawn clippings are put into plastic bags and have been estimated to comprise between twenty to fifty percent of our country’s overcrowded landfills. Running a power mower for one half hour can produce as much smog as driving a car for 172 miles (“E” The Environmental magazine, May/June 1992.) Bizarre customs, are they not?



The definition of a “good” lawn has come to mean, a plot of land growing a singular type of grass, kept mowed, maintaining a smooth even surface, uniform in color, with no intruding weeds. The United States Department of Agriculture, the United States Golf Association and The Garden Club of America have promoted this type of lawn. Lest a weed appear, it was to be destroyed at once. Manicured lawns have become an opportunity for rivalry between neighbors and an example of man’s domination over nature.



Pesticides are defined as any chemical designed to kill a living organism and can include herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and rodenticides. Pesticides enter the body via the lungs, mouth and skin. They are tracked into one’s home, and once inside can last for years. In a 1987 grant from the National Cancer Institute, it was revealed children were six times more likely to develop leukemia in households that used lawn pesticides. Children have faster metabolisms and more likely to be in the outdoors, and put their hands in their mouths, making them vulnerable. The elderly, those with compromised immune systems, and chemical sensitivities are also at risk to having their immune systems further disrupted by exposure to lawn chemicals. A 1991 report issued by the Journal of the National Cancer Institute revealed that dogs, which lived where the lawn herbicide 2,4-D was applied more than four times yearly, were at a greater risk of developing canine malignant lymphoma. Chemicals when sprayed, can drift to other neighbors, kill birds (who eat insects), and endanger precious water supplies. Pesticides can also reduce earthworm populations, which help aerate soil, by as much as ninety-nine percent, for up to twenty weeks. Many insects are beneficial in lawns. Ladybugs, preying mantises, and ground beetles all consume aphids, mites, mealy bugs, mosquito larvae and caterpillars. Honeybees provide valuable cross-pollination and without their help many fruits, vegetables and flowers would cease to exist. Substances designed to kill things are unlikely to be totally safe. Frolicking in one’s yard should not be a health risk to anyone.



What would happen if you stopped watering, fertilizing, pesticiding, and mowing your lawn? You would certainly have more free time. The grass would grow a bit higher or lower depending on weather conditions. And then the wild things, which are naturally adapted to be hardy, and require no special care, would grow. For two and a half years in the 1970’s, I lived in The Ozarks in a teepee, totally subsisting on all the wild edible fruits, roots, leaves and berries that was provided in the untamed wild. All without watering, fertilizing or spraying. It was a very healthy time.



We do not need to fear wild plants. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, ““What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.” Dandelions look like rays of sunshine and have edible leaves and roots. The dreaded lambs quarter is really wild spinach and far more nutritious than its cultivated cousin. Malva and violet leaves are refreshing additions to the salad bowl. Even the prickly thistle can be dug up, its roots consumed, as Lewis and Clark once did when traveling. Purslane is one of the richest sources of heart healthy Omega-3 fatty acids. One should focus more on our education of “weeds” and less on eradication. It has been said that the average American recognizes over a thousand logos and the products they correspond to, yet less than five plants in their area.



A few ideas on environmental lawns:

1. Compost. Use organic fertilizers such as manure, rock dust, and wood ash. Do a soil test and find out what your land requires.

2. Choose plants that tolerate dry conditions.

3. Learn to use wild plants that grow easily in this area that are not water demanding, low growing and might even provide salad fare or herbal teas. Turn your lawn into a wildflower sanctuary specializing in sunny well-drained dry areas. Consider buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum), bugleweed (Ajuga reptans), Roman chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile) chickweed (Stellaria media), dwarf cinquefoil (Potentilla species), clover (Trifolium pratense or T. repens), English daisies (Bellis perennis), pearly everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea), pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium), penstemon (Penstemon species), pineapple weed (Matricaria matricarioides), plantain (Plantago major), pussy toes (Antennaria neglecta), scarlet pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis), sheep’s sorrel (Rumex acetelosa), strawberries (Fragaria species), thyme (creeping, lemon and wooly) (Thymus species) and yarrow (Achillea millefolium). Periwinkle (Vinca species), speedwell (Veronica officinalis), uva ursi (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) and violet (Viola odorata), grow well in dry shade.

4. Mulch around plants, using grass clippings, shredded hardwood, dry leaves or wood chips to retain moisture.

5. Group together plants that require similar amounts of water. Use a drip system or soaker hose that waters a plant’s roots, rather than sprinkles the air. Frequent watering encourages shallow roots. Water in the early morning before the sun is hot, to give the plants more benefits. Watering during the heat of the day is wasteful, as the water quickly dries.

6. Collect water from washing vegetables. Recycle rainwater. An ancient Hindu proverb says, “If you have water to throw away, throw it on a plant.”

7. Don’t water, don’t fertilize and in many cases you won’t need to mow. Let the

wild things grow and learn to use them. Learn to eat dandelion, malva, purslane and violet.

8. If you do mow, keep the mower’s height around three inches, or the highest setting. Have sharp blades. The taller the lawn, the more drought resistant it will be. Tall grass shades the soil and helps keep it moist.

9. Use a non-gasoline push mower. (Lots less noise and pollution). Leave clippings on the ground as mulch and fertilizer.

10.Use an organic landscape service. Find out what products they are using and tell them you want to look at the labels.

11.Boycott places of business that use lawn pesticides. Write them a letter and tell them why you are no longer giving them your business.

12. Those that live in condominiums and apartments can organize the neighborhood to create edible landscaping and community gardens. Let the maintannace managers know you would rather have a few weeds than be subjected to sprays.



A healthier environment begins with you. Business including parks, schools and industries need to set a better example and not buy into the harmful hype about a chemicalized lawn. Make all your actions conscious of conserving, nurturing and honoring the earth. Resist conformity and allow your ecological lawn to flourish, and flower, celebrating life and diversity!



Brigitte Mars, a professional member of the American Herbalist Guild, is a nutritional consultant who has been working with Natural Medicine for over forty years. She teaches Herbal Medicine at Naropa University, Hollyhock Retreat Center, Boulder College of Massage, and Bauman Holistic College of Nutrition and has a private practice. Brigitte is the author of twelve books, including The Sexual Herbal, The Desktop Guide to Herbal Medicine, Beauty by Nature, Addiction Free Naturally, Healing Herbal Teas, and Rawsome!. Click here for more healthy living articles, raw food recipes, videos, workshops, books, and more at brigittemars.com.