When it comes to determining the beginning of the spring season, I never look at my calendar. I look at my garden. After all, a calendar is nothing more than a man-made construct created to frame a natural sequence of events. Assessing what is taking place in the natural world is a much better indicator of seasonal changes than the date. So today, when I entered my backyard to "feed" my compost bin, I was greeted by warmth, sunshine and an explosion of new growth all over the garden. The daffodils and tulips are quickly pushing themselves up through the thick layer of leaves that have mulched and protected them through the winter cold. Tiny crocuses dot my front garden and, in my shed which acts as a surrogate greenhouse, my winter hardy pansies are in fragrant full bloom. Essentially, Mother Nature has given me my marching orders. This weekend I begin pulling back the mulch, cleaning out the garden and amassing plant pots and containers to replace those that have outlived their usefulness. Spring has officially arrived and begs to be welcomed in grand style.
This gardening season promises to be abundant and fruitful. Starting now, I'm preparing to enjoy it to the fullest. As is my custom, I will be posting photos of my garden as it progresses during the seasons. Check out my Photobucket to see past photos and get an idea what to expect later this year.
And make sure to stop once in a while and smell the flowers.
Namaste.
Ballo ergo sum,
Always and all ways,
- Gitana, the Creative Diva
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Timing, Rhythm and Golden Moments
Life can be hectic and in the rush to finish one task to begin the next, one can miss the beauty to be found in slowing down. When you slow down, I mean really slow down, from the inside out, you begin to notice the invisible aspects of life. If you're paying attention, you begin to notice that many of those invisible aspects are lurking right inside of you just waiting for you to take notice. I've been doing a lot that lately, slowing down and paying attention, and without fail something mystical occurs. It is as if time and space move to accommodate my needs. Occurrences that I use to attribute to good fortune or a happy coincidence are really a reflection of my consciousness, as if my inner energy is manipulating the outer world.
Take, for example, a round of small errands (replace a battery, pick up this, drop off that, etc.) that I had to complete recently. Because of the heavily trafficked areas I had to drive through, they could have potentially taken a relatively long time and I knew that street parking would be an impossible nightmare. Regardless, I got into my car and drove on, mindful of my tasks but focusing instead on the rhythm of traffic, the green of a newly sodded playground, the blue of the sky. As I travelled in this manner, I noticed that in spite of heavy traffic, I seemed to be moving effortlessly through the streets. At every stop I made, a parking space was miraculously waiting for me just around the corner. One of these spots had 16 minutes left on the parking meter. This was enough time to walk around the block, descend into a subway station, purchase a new Metrocard, stop at a store to replace a watch battery and return to my car with 10 minutes to spare. Everything I did that day flowed effortlessly as if it was a choreographed dance. It was golden.
True, everyone has moments like these but as I said before, most are chalked up to good luck. But I'm discovering that "good luck" may really be good karma in disguise. More importantly, I realized that the more I slowed down from within, the faster and more smoothly things moved without.
My golden moments are occurring more frequently these days. So slow down, feel the rhythm of life as it moves around you and go with the flow.
Ballo ergo sum,
Always and always,
- Gitana, the Creative Diva
Take, for example, a round of small errands (replace a battery, pick up this, drop off that, etc.) that I had to complete recently. Because of the heavily trafficked areas I had to drive through, they could have potentially taken a relatively long time and I knew that street parking would be an impossible nightmare. Regardless, I got into my car and drove on, mindful of my tasks but focusing instead on the rhythm of traffic, the green of a newly sodded playground, the blue of the sky. As I travelled in this manner, I noticed that in spite of heavy traffic, I seemed to be moving effortlessly through the streets. At every stop I made, a parking space was miraculously waiting for me just around the corner. One of these spots had 16 minutes left on the parking meter. This was enough time to walk around the block, descend into a subway station, purchase a new Metrocard, stop at a store to replace a watch battery and return to my car with 10 minutes to spare. Everything I did that day flowed effortlessly as if it was a choreographed dance. It was golden.
True, everyone has moments like these but as I said before, most are chalked up to good luck. But I'm discovering that "good luck" may really be good karma in disguise. More importantly, I realized that the more I slowed down from within, the faster and more smoothly things moved without.
My golden moments are occurring more frequently these days. So slow down, feel the rhythm of life as it moves around you and go with the flow.
Ballo ergo sum,
Always and always,
- Gitana, the Creative Diva
Sunday, February 17, 2008
What a week!
My life may not always be what I want it to be, but gratefully I am never bored. I'm just too busy. For example, these past week has been one of those that was jammed packed from end to end. I spent last weekend nursing a sick husband, indulging a teenage daughter's need for a trip to buy some bling at the mall, listening to my teenage son's latest adventures as a fraternity pledgee (he has to memorize the Greek alphabet, among other things), and that was just the prelude to this week.
Monday: Late morning I cooked a large meal, enough for two days, because I was scheduled to go to Albany on Tuesday to lobby at the state level for equitable distribution of arts funding for cultural organizations of color. Spent the afternoon at a meeting designed to help me with networking skills in preparation to move my home business forward.
Tuesday: I leave midtown Manhattan at 7 AM on a bus filled with others committed to lobbying for more cultural funding. We are briefed on our mission, given instructions, sorted into teams and scattered throughout the NYS Assembly and Capitol buildings, meeting with our local politicians, representatives and members of the Black and Puerto Rican Caucas. It was a scary, exhilarating, enlightening and empowering day. It was also a very LONG day. We returned to NYC at 8:30 PM after nearly four hours on the road driving through heavy snowfall. I didn't make it back to my own home until a little over an hour later.
Wednesday: I spent the whole day in bed sick with a miserable cold that my husband passed on to me. Suffice it to say that Nyquil was my friend for the next 24 hours.
Thursday: Valentine's Day. Feeling rested and energetic after so much sleep, I decided to do some laundry. That was bad move number 1. After two loads I was wiped out again. I put in a third load and lay down for a nap. That was bad move number two. The hose broke on the washer in the middle of a rinse cycle. When I woke up and went down three hours later I was greeted by two inches of water on my basement floor. The ENTIRE basement floor from front to back was underwater. It took five hours, three buckets, two mops and 10 beach towels to finally soak up the mess. During this whole episode, my telephone lines went dead. Thank goodness for cell phones. My husband picked up Boston Market for dinner. That was the extent of my Valentine's Day.
Friday: In the middle of the continuing basement clean up, I receive a call from my mother to tell me that my nephew, who lives in Switzerland with his mother, was at her house and would only be there for a very short while before having to leave again. In what amounted to a minor miracle, I managed to contact my two children who were travelling home from opposite directions, re-route one to my mother's house, intercept the other one en route and land at my mother's house in less than half an hour. (Again, thank goodness for cell phones.) After a short visit with my nephew, my brother and my folks, it was back home to cook a belated Valentine's dinner and continue the clean up.
It is now Saturday. Day Three of drying out the things that got wet in the basement. In spite of how messy things became, I am grateful it wasn't worse. My computer and nearly all of my crafts equipment and supplies were spared. It's still too soon to tell what else may have been damaged but I'm sure it was nothing of great value. I actually took time out to rest and watch some movies with my family. I'm still fighting a cold but that, too, shall pass. All in all, this has been an eventful week.
And guess what? Tomorrow is Sunday. I'll get to spend another week sorting through all sorts of adventures, misadventures and minor crises. Frankly, I really hope I'll be able to do this sort of thing for a long, long time. Like I said at the beginning, my life may not always be what I want it to be, but gratefully I am never bored.
This is my life.
Ballo ergo sum,
Always and all ways,
- Gitana, the Creative Diva
Monday: Late morning I cooked a large meal, enough for two days, because I was scheduled to go to Albany on Tuesday to lobby at the state level for equitable distribution of arts funding for cultural organizations of color. Spent the afternoon at a meeting designed to help me with networking skills in preparation to move my home business forward.
Tuesday: I leave midtown Manhattan at 7 AM on a bus filled with others committed to lobbying for more cultural funding. We are briefed on our mission, given instructions, sorted into teams and scattered throughout the NYS Assembly and Capitol buildings, meeting with our local politicians, representatives and members of the Black and Puerto Rican Caucas. It was a scary, exhilarating, enlightening and empowering day. It was also a very LONG day. We returned to NYC at 8:30 PM after nearly four hours on the road driving through heavy snowfall. I didn't make it back to my own home until a little over an hour later.
Wednesday: I spent the whole day in bed sick with a miserable cold that my husband passed on to me. Suffice it to say that Nyquil was my friend for the next 24 hours.
Thursday: Valentine's Day. Feeling rested and energetic after so much sleep, I decided to do some laundry. That was bad move number 1. After two loads I was wiped out again. I put in a third load and lay down for a nap. That was bad move number two. The hose broke on the washer in the middle of a rinse cycle. When I woke up and went down three hours later I was greeted by two inches of water on my basement floor. The ENTIRE basement floor from front to back was underwater. It took five hours, three buckets, two mops and 10 beach towels to finally soak up the mess. During this whole episode, my telephone lines went dead. Thank goodness for cell phones. My husband picked up Boston Market for dinner. That was the extent of my Valentine's Day.
Friday: In the middle of the continuing basement clean up, I receive a call from my mother to tell me that my nephew, who lives in Switzerland with his mother, was at her house and would only be there for a very short while before having to leave again. In what amounted to a minor miracle, I managed to contact my two children who were travelling home from opposite directions, re-route one to my mother's house, intercept the other one en route and land at my mother's house in less than half an hour. (Again, thank goodness for cell phones.) After a short visit with my nephew, my brother and my folks, it was back home to cook a belated Valentine's dinner and continue the clean up.
It is now Saturday. Day Three of drying out the things that got wet in the basement. In spite of how messy things became, I am grateful it wasn't worse. My computer and nearly all of my crafts equipment and supplies were spared. It's still too soon to tell what else may have been damaged but I'm sure it was nothing of great value. I actually took time out to rest and watch some movies with my family. I'm still fighting a cold but that, too, shall pass. All in all, this has been an eventful week.
And guess what? Tomorrow is Sunday. I'll get to spend another week sorting through all sorts of adventures, misadventures and minor crises. Frankly, I really hope I'll be able to do this sort of thing for a long, long time. Like I said at the beginning, my life may not always be what I want it to be, but gratefully I am never bored.
This is my life.
Ballo ergo sum,
Always and all ways,
- Gitana, the Creative Diva
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Ear Infection, Take 7... or is it 8?
Remember that pesky right ear infection that just wouldn't go away? (View previous posts for background info.) Well, after several months I was finally able to get rid of it. Now it has returned... in the other ear! This is my only functional ear. I absolutely can not afford to have anything happen to it. The fact that I lost hearing in my right ear due to an infection does nothing for my peace of mind.
I recently had my annual physical performed which includes blood work. My doctor was reviewing the blood work and was concerned with the level of something-or-another and wants to repeat the blood series at the end of February. He mentioned that my borderline level of something-or-another might be a warning sign of lupus and if the repeat blood work bears out his suspicion, he will refer me to a neurologist. He said it may be the link to all the things that are going on with me.
I was just told this a few days ago. Needless to say my mind is racing. I know nothing about lupus (but you can bet I'm going to find out), but just the thought of it has me worried. I haven't mentioned anything to my family so as not to alarm them prematurely.
I'm hoping that this is all an anomaly that will blow over in due time and I'll just be a little bruised and banged up when it's all over but none the worse for wear. In the meantime I'm keeping fingers crossed.
This all comes on the heels of my taking a step towards fulfilling one of my resolutions for this year...returning to dance classes. I had just begun a tap aerobics class with a wonderful teacher in Manhattan and was looking forward to developing my rhythm again. Now I'm taking another leave of absence from school so I can concentrate on my health. I'm so damned tired of this never-ending treadmill.
Ballo ergo sum,
Always and All Ways,
- Gitana, the Creative Diva
I recently had my annual physical performed which includes blood work. My doctor was reviewing the blood work and was concerned with the level of something-or-another and wants to repeat the blood series at the end of February. He mentioned that my borderline level of something-or-another might be a warning sign of lupus and if the repeat blood work bears out his suspicion, he will refer me to a neurologist. He said it may be the link to all the things that are going on with me.
I was just told this a few days ago. Needless to say my mind is racing. I know nothing about lupus (but you can bet I'm going to find out), but just the thought of it has me worried. I haven't mentioned anything to my family so as not to alarm them prematurely.
I'm hoping that this is all an anomaly that will blow over in due time and I'll just be a little bruised and banged up when it's all over but none the worse for wear. In the meantime I'm keeping fingers crossed.
This all comes on the heels of my taking a step towards fulfilling one of my resolutions for this year...returning to dance classes. I had just begun a tap aerobics class with a wonderful teacher in Manhattan and was looking forward to developing my rhythm again. Now I'm taking another leave of absence from school so I can concentrate on my health. I'm so damned tired of this never-ending treadmill.
Ballo ergo sum,
Always and All Ways,
- Gitana, the Creative Diva
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