Quotes on Relaxation and Harmony

"A woman in harmony with her spirit is like a river flowing. She goes where she will without pretence and arrives at her destination prepared to be herself and only herself." --Maya Angelou

Tension is who you think you should be.  Relaxation is who you are.  ~Chinese Proverb

The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself." - Anna Quindlen

Quotes on Stress and slowing down

Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.  ~Etty Hillesum 

Don't underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering.  ~Pooh's Little Instruction Book, inspired by A.A. Milne

The time to relax is when you don't have time for it.  ~Attributed to both Jim Goodwin and Sydney J. Harris

Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.  ~Ovid

F or fast-acting relief, try slowing down.  ~Lily Tomlin

found on internet, stress quotes

Follow your Bliss

I first heard this in Joseph Campbell's book, the Power of Myth, but I also have a Zena Moon candle that has this lovely phrase and the following quote:

Don't ask what the world needs.
Ask what makes you come alive and go do it.
Because what the world needs is people
who have come alive.

Friedrich Nietzsche

Lovely reader, what makes you come alive?

musemother

Burying the dead twice

unlocks emotions tucked away
stuns the feet into stumbling along
with no understanding.
Normal gets lost when the other half is gone,
one side of your body goes numb,
the harness empty where a pair was.
How to relearn walking working waking
alone in bed at 2:00 am,
no sound of breath or snore to wake you
to comfort or discomfit you,
relearning snow tires, car rentals, traveling
without a navigator, groceries, hammer and nail.

To keep company with the dead, listen to their prayers
whining at the door, like a dog wanting in.
I’m afraid we’re all in the same boat.
No leaving before it hits shore.
No staying past your time,
very little say in the matter.

The coming and going of each breath
is a blessing, he said.
Count your blessings.


Jennifer Boire

A Thousand Kisses Deep

Don't you love Leonard Cohen's voice? so deep and passionate, so wise and admitting of vulnerability. Hearing a poem read is So much better....

This one,just found on Facebook youtube link, is also a song. The words alone are very poignant and moving.



Love the day!
Jenn/musemother

Song for the Heart: Mount Royal Park

Tonight I call to my heart to return,

to give flesh to the dry beanlike

thing in its place. I dance looking out

over the mountain at dusk, small lights

bright on the hillside – a whole city turning

dark – close my eyes and sing to it,

feel a flutter of wing beats,

like spring returning. One star sighted

just above the horizon. Feet planted on

wooden floor  feel   small   yet part

of   sky  stars  mountain    breathing

rocking on soles of my feet.

Outside the window, streetlamps

line Park Avenue like pilgrims on their way

to the cross, light.

In Mount Royal park, an angel

spreads her wings over the dark.

Jennifer Boire

Inspiring quote for today

The boat I travel in is called Surrender. My two oars are instant
forgiveness and gratitude — complete gratitude for the gift of life. I
am thankful for the experience of this life, for the opportunity to
dance. I get angry, I get mad, but as soon as I remind myself to put my
oars in the water, I forgive.
 
I serve. I do the dance I must. I plant trees, but I am not the doer of
this work. I am the facilitator, the instrument. I am one part of the
symphony. I know there is an overall scheme to this symphony that I
cannot understand. In some way, we are each playing our own part. It is
not for me to judge or criticize the life or work of another. All I know
is that this is my dance. I would plant trees today even if I knew for a
certainty that the world would end tomorrow.  
Balbir Mathur