Peony Parties

The peony was in full bud and ready to burst, yet I was so surprised by the first bloom that my squeal made the cat jump.

Timed for the May 24 long weekend, the occasion was the perfect excuse for invitations, "Come see the peonies!" 

The peonies and their scent made for the perfect transition as our guests made their way into the backyard.  Alex and Penny; Liz and Darcy; Kaarina and Mike... three different evenings of small gatherings. 

In Covid times and good weather, we enjoyed our cocktails in the back garden.

Gin Fizz with Empress Gin

Bees Knees with Ungava Gin

In the mornings I've been sitting on the front steps with my coffee and opening the window in my home office so I can smell the flowers while I work.

It's been a week and they are still offering their pretty petals. 

Trying to fend off the inevitable under the threat of rain, Rob was inspired to get an umbrella for cover, which we then secured with a line to keep it from crashing into the tree's fragile branches. Luckily the rain passed. We then removed our temporary structure due to increasing wind. How sad it would be if the umbrella came crashing down to destroy the very thing it was to protect? 

Likely just two to three more days until the peony parties are over for the year. 

 

By May 31, the inevitable:

Full Flower Moon May

Flower moon! So much is in bloom. Peonies, poppies, lilacs, bleeding hearts, forget-me-nots, lily of the valley. Such dizzying perfume.

Rooted in Practice

The six day sadhana with Abhijata was called Rooted in Practice. and a chance to explore some new approaches to familiar postures. Although the pandemic was at new heights in India, she was still able to teach from the Institute in Pune. 

In my daily routine I usually do 30 minutes in the morning, whereas the sadhana offered two hours at the start of each day.  The additional practice time helped warm up my body and psyche to go a bit further and find the benefit of greater ease where it may not have existed before. 

Taking quarter day vacations was a treat, if not a full retreat, as four of these days was followed by a work day.

Time flew...  Abhi would instruct different versions for 'youngsters' and 'elderly.' I found myself going back and forth between the two categories, depending on my energy level. As gratifying as it was to keep up with the youngsters in full arm balance, I was more than happy to choose the modified version for the standing split pose (Urdhva Prasarita Eka Padasana). At least my ego proved flexible!

The connection between breath and asana is so rich! Using breath on the exhale to power full arm balance, using breath on the exhale to go deeper on a forward bend, using the inhale to go deeper in a forward bend.

Twists. Ugh. They were really not agreeing with me on Day Two. I had no strength to call on but persevered, perhaps to my detriment (they totally wore me out)! 

Day Three and Four, really loved moving from down dog to up dog; and also from to Parsvottanasana/Intense Side Stretch to Warrior Three.

There were some great reminders on how to use props to go deeper. And an important new insight for seated forward bends, to place a blanket down on the sticky mat so your legs don't grab the surface and can enjoy more freedom of movement (what a difference!)

I will be working on Paschimottanasana (Forward Bend) for awhile. It's a pose that has always been challenging. Using a chair to slightly exaggerate the angle invited gravity to ease a bit further: first, sit forward on the chair (place a bolster to help the chest meet the leg); next, sit on the floor in front of the chair and bend forward; third do the forward bend on the floor, applying the lessons learned from the first and second attempts. 

Recordings of the classes are only available for a short time and I've already gone back to redo Day Four - a potpourri of different poses.

I find myself once again grateful for the virtual opportunity to study with Abhijata. 

May flowers... and ferns

For the first time I noticed small flowers and keys on the Japanese maple.

So happy to be working at home and able to soak in the view.

Every day a wonder and something new to see. 

 

Grain Bowls

Caro shared an introductory offer for Chefs Plates - a meal kit service that delivers your menu  choices to your front door. I was surprised she was using the service as I had previously thought it was intended for novice cooks.

I gave it a try and enjoyed the reprieve from menu planning and grocery shopping. Having everything come packed and proportioned for dinner is a huge assist and welcome break. I will probably keep up with the service but choose something for delivery once a month versus once a week.

Menu selections tempted me to try new dishes that weren't in my regular meal rotation. Especially...

Grain Bowls!

• Farro, chicken, broccoli, kale, pickled onion salad, orange slices and feta with Middle-Eastern spices (Middle Eastern Spiced Chicken)
• Sticky rice, pickled cucumber and carrots, fried ground pork and Asian spices (Japanese Pork Spice)
• Sticky rice, pickled cabbage, peas and mushrooms with gochujang drizzle (Mushroom Bibimap)

It was a pleasant surprise to discover a few hacks preparing these meals 

• Using mayo as a base to prep a quick dressing for Asian bowls (mayo + siracha + rice vinegar + hoison; or mayo + ginger blend spices). 
• Making a quick pickle of carrots, cabbage or onions (red or green) to enhance overall flavours 
• Adding a soft boiled egg for protein

Endless improv = choosing vegetables for crunch and colour + grain (farro, sticky rice, jasmine) + protein (egg, chicken, ground pork, lentil) + spice family (Japanese, Korean, Middle Eastern, Indian).

Summit: Science and Wisdom of Emotions

The four day summit of The Science and Wisdom of Emotions helped to commemorate the dialogue held twenty years ago between the Dalai Lama and Western scientists that explored destructive emotions and how to cultivate our best human qualities. That original discussion was attended by a privileged few in a closed room in Dharamshala, India. On this occasion, more than 90,000 people registered and attended online from six different continents.

The lineup was incredible, and featured his Holiness the Dalai Lama as the keynote speaker. More than thirty international thought leaders shared their insights, including neuroscience researchers, mindfulness and compassion experts, psychologists and contemplatives. Incredibly inspiring! There were hours of programming each day, and I listened to them all, trying to absorb as much of the wisdom as possible. 

The guided meditations were mind bending experiences of how perceptions and intentions shape our world. In Beautiful Monsters, Tsoknyi Rinpoche confronted difficult emotions to offer compassion; in the Four Pillars of Wellbeing Mingyur Rinpoche explored awareness, connection, insight, and purpose; Four Elements with Sebene Salassie focused on the earth, water, air and fire within and around us.  There were at least two former monks: Thupten Jinpa (the Dalai Lama's translator and founder of the Contemplative Compassion Institute); and Kaira Jewel Lingo (an ordained nun of 15 years in Thich Nhat Hanh’s Order of Interbeing, now a lay Dharma teacher based in Washington, DC). Jon Kabot-Zinn also led a mindfulness session and keynote Q & A. 

My friend Linda gifted me with a pass to the recordings and transcripts, however I still took a tonne of notes and captured references to works I can savour and study in more in depth later:

• Mattieu Ricard, Buddhist monk, photographer and teacher (photo book on wonder), book on Altruism
• Atlas of Emotions, Paul and Eve Eckman
• Kaira Jewel Lingo, audio talks
• Ana Teresa Fernandez, artist and film maker
• Thupten Jinpa, A Fearless Heart and Contemplative Compassion Training
• Tsoknyi Rinpoche, Fully Being (online course), Open Heart, Open Mind (book)
• Mingyur Rinpoche, Joy of Living (online course) and Secret and Science of Happiness (book)
• Laurie Santos, Happiness Lab podcast (I have taken the Science of Wellbeing course and loved it!)
• Heart Sutra
• Seeds of Happiness and Sorrow, Thich Nhat Hahn
• 10% Happier (some meditations on You Tube)

The Dalai Lama's culminating keynote dialogue is available to view free of charge.  He reasons compassion is a natural human quality; not an emotion, but a state of being we can choose to embody.

Catbird

What is that bird?

Very elegant looking with a unique call, we looked it up to find it's a Gray Catbird. Although we've heard it in the back, we've not seen it until this year. Several unrelated groups of songbirds are called catbirds because of their wailing calls, which resemble a cat's meowing. The genus name Ailuroedus likewise is from the Greek for "cat-singer" or "cat-voiced". 

According to All About Birds, catbirds are secretive but energetic, hopping and fluttering from branch to branch through tangles of vegetation. Singing males sit atop shrubs and small trees. Catbirds are reluctant to fly across open areas, preferring quick, low flights over vegetation. Look for Gray Catbirds in dense tangles of shrubs, small trees, and vines, along forest edges, streamside thickets, old fields, and fencerows.The Gray Catbird is able to mimic the vocalizations of several other birds, and even other animals. Males with the most variety of sounds may be the most attractive to females because large repertoires demonstrate they have already survived many breeding seasons. Listen to a Gray Catbird with a particularly extensive repertoire—he even samples sounds from a Pacific chorus frog.

There's also the catbird seat.

"The catbird seat" is an American English idiomatic phrase used to describe an enviable position, often in terms of having the upper hand or greater advantage in any type of dealing among parties. The phrase derives from the common catbird's habit of making mocking calls from a secluded perch.

Here's this entertaining short story by Thurber, first published in the New Yorker in 1942: