July 7--Yes, You CAN Dance!

Dance till the stars come down from the rafters! Dance, dance, dance till you drop!  --W. H. Auden

    On very rare occasions, I have invited my yoga class to dance, simply move the body to music as a change of pace. I would have probably received the same response had I dropped a bomb in the room. "You want us to do what?!!?!" "I can't dance!" "Someone might see me." "Well, if you insist, I'll just sway a bit." I dearly hope when they are alone that they do some boogieing. I love to dance in my clutsy sort of way. Don't you love to see a toddler shaking her booty? Where did we get the idea that moving the body needs to be evaluated as some sort of performance? 

    Get out there and twist the night away!!

        Leta

July 6--Roads Travelled

The road was new to me, as roads always are going back.  --Sarah Orne Jewett

    I find this prayer by botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer to be comforting, suggesting a road taking us back to being a good steward of others, our earth and our Creator: 

Today we have gathered and when we look upon the faces around us we see that the cycles of life continue. We have been given the duty to live in balance and harmony with each other and all living things. So now let us bring our minds together as one as we give greetings and thanks to each other as People. Now our minds are one. . . .

We are thankful to our Mother the Earth, for she gives us everything that we need for life. She supports our feet as we walk about upon her. It gives us joy that she still continues to care for us, just as she has from the beginning of time. To our Mother, we send thanksgiving, love, and respect. Now our minds are one. . . .  

We now turn our thoughts to the Creator, or Great Spirit, and send greetings and thanks for all the gifts of Creation. Everything we need to live a good life is here on Mother Earth. For all the love that is still around us, we gather our minds together as one and send our choicest words of greetings and thanks to the Creator. Now our minds are one.

    We are all in this together... let's act like it!

        Leta

Kishacoquillas Valley, PA

July 5--How Are "Yes" and "No" Working for You?

If you come to a fork in the road, take it!  --Yogi Berra 

    Here are a few more great quotes from Yogi:

• Baseball is 90% mental and the other half is physical.
• Always go to other people’s funerals, otherwise they won’t come to yours.
• I never said most of the things I said.

    We are about four weeks or so from being grandparents for the first time. We are reaching that point where any phone call from our son could be the "big news." That will be a huge fork in the road for our family, one we are all wildly excited to take--first-time parents, first-time grandparents, first-time uncle. 

    Where will adventure take you today? 

        Leta

July 4--Gratitude and Freedom

There is a time for departure--even when there's no certain place to go. 
--Tennessee Williams

    Today on Independence Day, I am grateful for freedom, and hope that we can retain the freedoms that so many have fought for. I offer these words of Henri Nouwen:

Gratitude...goes beyond the “mine” and “thine” and claims the truth that all of life is a pure gift. In the past I always thought of gratitude as a spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but now I realize that gratitude can also be lived as a discipline. The discipline of gratitude is the explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and have is given to me as a gift of love, a gift to be celebrated with joy.

Gratitude as a discipline involves a conscious choice. I can choose to be grateful even when my emotions and feelings are still steeped in hurt and resentment. It is amazing how many occasions present themselves in which I can choose gratitude instead of a complaint... The choice for gratitude rarely comes without some real effort. But each time I make it, the next choice is a little easier, a little freer, a little less self-conscious... There is an Estonian proverb that says: “Who does not thank for little will not thank for much.” Acts of gratitude make one grateful because, step by step, they reveal that all is grace.

    Celebrating freedom,

        Leta

July 3--Keep Moving

If you want to conquer fear, don't sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.  --Dale Carnegie

    I did a lot of self-talk during my recent beach-baseball tour, reminding myself to not be afraid. I also had a few "Notes from the Universe" to remind me of that. After I did three MLB games in three cities (Atlanta, Tampa, Miami) on three consecutive nights, I told myself, "That was a little nuts." Fear could have easily stopped me from undertaking the trip. My every-MLB-stadium quest gets me out and keeps me busy. 

    Fear is no fun,

        Leta

Braves--Atlanta

Rays--St. Petersburg (Tampa)

Marlins--Miami

July 2--Be A Hero

We all live in suspense, from day to day, from hour to hour; in other words, we are the hero of our own story.  --Mary McCarthy

    If you live in Kansas, you can be a hero for yourself and the women you love by voting NO on August 2. Let's stop the madness of the Republican agenda to keep us sick, dumb and poor. Let's not go backward any further. 

    Leta

July 1--Today's Adventure

Cease to inquire what the future has in store, and to take as a gift whatever the day brings forth.  --Horace

    Yippee!!! The theme for July in "Daily Gratitude" is adventure, one of my favorite things. (ICYMI, my latest travel adventure (beach and baseball) is recounted in the June 10-27 posts.)

    I had another first in life yesterday. I witnessed a hole-in-one. My cart partner teed off on #12 at Auburn Hills, and we all agreed that her shot would put her in a good spot on the green. We did not see the ball go in the hole. She discovered it when she couldn't find her ball, and finally looked in the hole. Yelling, hopping around, hugs and shots (alcohol) ensued. It was her THIRD hole-in-one. "Please, golf gods, let me have one before I die!" 

    More fun on the way,

        Leta