Thunderstorm

It's thunderstorming today and I took full advantage of my newly found spiritual discipline, skipping:). I was in aggieville with girlfriends for lunch and the downpour started. We waited it out until there was a lull and made a break for it. The streets were so flooded we rolled our pants up, took our shoes off and ran through the street, I skipped. It was really fun and even more fun to be sharing this all with Correnta and E. As we were driving E back to work we saw students just playing in the rain, running through the streets, we even saw people laying in the flooded areas of the street. I made me laugh and brough joy to my heart.

Skipping through life

Today was one of those, "I feel like skipping" days. It was about 70, the sun was shining, I was wearing a flirty skirt, it just made me want to take my shoes off and skip through the grass. I didn't ever do it, but I sure felt like it, which in some ways was enough for me. I guess I think if acted on all the urges like that I have I wouldn't ever get anything done. I know I need to take the time to 'skip' a little more. It makes me wonder what if life was just like the feeling of skipping all the time (with out ever getting out of breath). When things get hard, just skip a little. When you feel things you can't put into words, skip a little. It feels both playful and restful and I want to do more 'skipping through life'. Tommorrow's forcast: rain. Skipping through some puddle sure sounds like fun-maybe I'll act on that urge or at least think about it.

NOW FOR THE FUNNY PART: I was thinking how fun it would be to put an image of skipping on this post. What I came across thanks to google is something called iskip.com. I love sub-cultures, but this one cracked me up! Seriously funny, people dedicated to skipping. I'm still laughing about it. Because I'm one of those girls that finds spiritual analogies in everything I had to include this excerpt from the website:

Skipping and Spiritual Fitness

Just like yoga, skipping provides exercise for the body, mind, and spirit. While this web site talks about the benefits of all three, it is dedicated to the joyful spirit that skipping represents. Even more than promoting skipping itself, we are encouraging the practice of listening to what your spirit says and building the inner strength necessary to set it free. Skipping isn't for everyone. Getting out of our comfort zones for a momentary skipping escape takes guts. It is much more difficult than many realize. Our ego likes to feel in control and is afraid of what others will think. It says, "Are you crazy? Everyone will think you've lost it. You're going to annoy people with your joy."..and lots of other self-critical stuff. At the same time, our childlike spirits long to feel the liberation and freedom that skipping provides. When we can learn to simply observe our ego's fear and then choose to skip on despite it, we develop the spiritual strength necessary for inner peace. There's another powerful benefit of skipping which is that it adds joy and positive energy to the world. Seeing adults consumed by the joy of skipping sends a compelling message about the power of the spirit over fear. When you learn to turn off your logical mind and get lost in the spirit of skipping, it's like exercising a muscle that will help you deal with other fears. As external events become increasingly intense, that kind of inner strength will be more important than ever.

So there you have it. Skipping is spiritual, but don't count on me starting a local branch of skipping and spiritual direction.

Skiing

Here are L and I skiing together. We had a great time, lots of laughs. My favorite moment was when Hans got booted off the ski lift (that thing had torque), went airborne with one ski in the air he ducked and the ski lift went over his head. It was hilarious to watch and amazing agility on his part. I was laughing so hard I fell down.

The Rockies

Ah, the Rockies. The day we skied was beautiful. 45 degrees, blue sky, puffy white clouds, and 5 inches of fresh powder. P and L, Hans and I skied together. Our big adventure for the day was skiing in the bowls (black diamond). It was incredibly steep, full of trees to dodge, hard work and so much fun!

Spring Break Pt.2

Here we are having a shared make your own
taco meal: Paprika, Hans, Aletha, Semit, Nadya, P and L.
(thanks to Paprika for organizing such great meals at such low cost).

The second half of spring break was so fun and relaxing thanks to the provision of the Loves and their condo. We had a great time together, relaxing by playing dominos, watching tv and movies (walk the line), eating, skiing, creating, shopping, and trying to get an internet connection. Check out the sweet song that was created while we were there.

Spring Break Pt.1

The first part of my 'spring break' was spent in Buena Vista, Co with students that I work with. A 31/2 day retreat at a young life camp set on the side of a mountain looking down onto the valley below. The natural beauty was highlighted when it snowed the first night and all the trees the next morning were icy and dusted with snow. It was beautiful. The great thing about this retreat is that is was actually restful. We only had 2 sessions each day with a speaker, Dieter Zander. The mornings were for personal reflection time and we'd have brunch at 10:30am (did they plan this for me?), then free time in the afternoon as well. I was personally challenged by some things shared by Dieter. You can check his messages out on the ksu challenge podcast on itunes. I was able to spend a morning hiking/running/walking, in that order. I was surprised at how much the altitude took out of me. It was exhausting but well worth it. This is a picture of one trail I ventured up-beautiful.

Artist Day

It finally happened! I hosted the first ever artist day. The vision has been there for awhile and is shared between a few of us that participated. It was the beginning of something for a lot of us in that room. I was able to offer a space for people to create, explore, enjoy, share, delight, play, reflect, and come alive. More than anything I just enjoyed watching other people creating, feeling the freedom to do so in the presence of others. Speaking from experience as a former closet artist this is hard to do, create with other artists around. I think it is because every artist is a critic of themselves and others, so being around other artists can be challenging. I didn't feel any of this today. There seemed to be this appreciation of one another's art, a willingness to give and receive inspiration and ideas. It's some of our dream to have a place (with some catchy name) where people can come and explore, share supplies and ideas, teach techniques, and learn from one another. Each person that came today contributed something, even those of you that weren't 'creating' in a technical way. You showed curiosity about what we were working on, that is what every artist longs for. Just a week ago, this was all talk and now the vision has been birthed. It's hard to explain, but seeing the dreams of people I love become reality fills me with such incredible joy and satisfaction. I feel blessed to be on this journey with you all.

Flowers are blooming

I love spring! There's something hopeful about it. I enjoy all the senses that are awakened. Sights and smells of spring...grass being cut, flowers blooming, rain, all of the colors that spring forth from the ground in a seemingly spontaneous way. Life just seems more enjoyable when you don't have to wear a coat and walk out side to newly sprung flowers, it makes me smile and hope it does you too.

blog pressure

I've been thinking about the 'blog run' that I sometimes get on, posting several times a week. It's funny because I love going to others blogs and seeing that they have new posts. Yet, I've been feeling 'blog pressure'. There seems to be this pressure to have something quirky, reflective, insightful and exciting to write about on a daily basis. Frankly, sometimes there's just not much to say. Other times there is a lot to say, but I don't want it on my blog. I think we've all had conversations with each other that are like, "Why haven't you posted this week? Everyone is waiting to hear from you." It just takes the fun out of blogging. So, I've now blogged about blogging because I have nothing else to blog about because I'm feeling the blog pressure (self-inflicted in this case).

Konza

Here's a sweet little bridge that kind of bounces when you walk on it-so much fun! If you haven't taken the time to go out to the Konza, I guarantee your soul will be refreshed after a visit.








Ah...the Konza Prairie. I love this place. I took a student with me today and we enjoyed the gorgeous weather. Check out that blue sky with whispy clouds! I just soaked all the goodness in.