Loving Kindness and Mother Earth

After traveling to Barcelona in 2007, Javier and I were sitting in our rocking chairs on the roof with  coffees and watching a beautiful Baja sunrise. That trip ignited a spark and led to wondering how we could pool our resources and do something about the visible litter around town. We are surrounded by beauty. The bright night sky, colorful transitions from day to night and back to daylight. Clear water. Jumping mantarays. Moutain ranges. Magic of the desert.

We decided to create a grass roots organization offering education and participation with our main focus being Environmental Awareness. We organized town clean ups, hired dump trucks, got permission to work with children ages Kindergarten, Elementry School and Junior High. Talking, walking, working with and listening to the kids at school, one thing became very clear: It all starts at home, under each individual roof. In the words of Mother Theresa, "If you want to change the world, go home and love your family."

It all starts at home. Our familial environment plays an imperative part in our outlook on life, how we treat ourselves, each other and the planet. 

Deeper still, how we live within our only home on earth, our bodies, affects how we see and treat the earth. When I see everything around me as an extension and reflection of my own heart, body, mind and soul, then I can see the connection between how I live my day to day and how that affects the ground I walk on and air I breathe, the family and pets I live with, community I am part of. When I care for my own mental and emotional health and take resonsibility for its upkeeping, then I can see the consequences of my actions.  How I do one thing is how I do everything. The benefits as well as the damage is cumulative. Everything I do adds up. When I feel good, I want to do good. 

November 14, 2013 marked the opening of Healing Winds Holistic Center, four years after opening the yoga studio. We pressed pause on town clean ups. Yes, the town was and is cleaner. And, the town's first recylcing organization was formed and sheltered by the umbrella of UVERDE for it's first years. There was progress. Kids had big ideas. But I was still seeing kids and adults throwing trash out their car windows. How do we go beyond when the basics haven't settled in. I felt like we were  moving trash from one place to another. From roadside to landfill. Talking in circles. I did feel good about litter removed from arroyos and keeping any amount from drifting int the sea. I felt like we weren't making the long term change I longed to see. I wanted to work at a deeper level. At home. 

Through the practice of yoga and care of healing arts, I have changed my lifestyle, one that slowly continues to evolve so I may feel a sustainable best, keeping a perpetual creative fire lit beneath the heart, aiming to maintain clarity of mind, strength and flexibility in this body. My home on earth. The best that I humanly can. One day at a time. By slowing down, I have the time to look inside my refrigerator and notice what there is to eat, prepare healthy meals. Food rarely goes to waste because I am not working so many hours that I can't keep up with the basics, the first reason to work: to sustain a life, feed a family, put a roof over our heads. 

2008-09

Where creative ideas come from is often a mystery combined with a series of events. The beauty of Antoni Gaudi's architecture in Barcelona and his inspiratation drawn from the wisdom of nature clearly inspired both creative endevors above: UVERDE, A.C. and Healing Winds. 

This body is my first skin, the second skin being the dwelling I live and sleep in, the place I work with myself and others. The home we all have in common is our shared humanity and Mother Earth. We all have a heart, body, mind and soul. Regardless of our beliefs, conditioning, cultural or socioeconomic backgrounds, lifestyles, we are all connected to each other, the ground we walk on, air we breathe. Sky above, earth below. The more we recogize this interconnection, the more motivated we may be to care for own health and wellbeing. Kindness begets kindness. Peace begets peace. When I care for my own health, I am caring for the wellbeing of my family so I can offer the support and presence I wish to offer them, the creative projects I undertake, my part in a growing community and care for Mother Earth.

 "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." Gandhi
UVERDE, A.C. 2008 at the local Elementry School

In the practice of Loving Kindness, Metta or Maitri, there is a three part aspiration, borrowed from Pema Chodron's book: The Places That Scare You. This practice is a reminder of starting at home and then extending acts of generosity into the world. Loving Kindness is good for the heart and can inspire happiness.

May I enjoy happiness and the root of happiness.

May you enjoy happiness and the root of happiness.

May all beings enjoy happiness and the root of happiness.