Your true home

"Your true home is in the here and now.  It is not limited by time, space, nationality, or race.  Your true home is not an abstract idea; it is something you can touch and live in every moment.  With mindfulness and concentration, the energies of the Buddha, you can find your true home in the full relaxation of your mind and body in the present moment."  ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Turning a new leaf, using "the new year" as a point upon which to pivot even as I chuckle at the arbitrariness of it all.

I don't know from Buddha, by the way.  As with spiritual words and ideas from other traditions, the forms of "god" or "higher power" do not compute for me.  Energy and balance, these things I can feel and know.  Spirit and sacred, I have felt and known these, too.  But, there is no structure, no hierarchy, for me, per se.

I guess there is no way around calling these resolutions.

• practice Qigong

• go outside

• eat Paleo

• play music

Every day.  For one year.  Relieving myself of having to think about it for one year.  Getting through each "special" circumstance that comes up over the course of a week, month, year: Fridays, PMS, birthdays, sometimes seemingly anything and everything, that can dissolve my resolve to do with thoughts of wish and wash.

I practiced Qigong this morning.  Toe dance, kick forward and kick backward.  Dragon-stands-between-heaven-and-earth.  A half hour of energy work.  The kick backward kicked my ass, my standing leg, on each side, burned and felt like it was going to snap by the end of the counts.  Dragon-standing gave me the usual challenge of my mind overcoming everything like a molasses flood.  A paltry three minutes.  More later before I check myself off for having practiced today.

There was heat generated and hopefully, released, there is serious heat inside of me.  Alchemy.

At a basic level, our bodies are our true homes.  How we function in, what we contribute to, the world around us, is determined by how optimally balanced we are in our bodies.  Peace of mind, flowing energy, happy hearts...it all germinates from healthy bodies.

Peace and love.