Monday, November 30, 2009

Bye-bye November

I can't believe tomorrow is December.

November was good:
brunch for my Mom's birthday
several sweaty step classes
another month gone with no yoga (this is the LAST)
STFM Board meeting and Practice Improvement Conference
new windows in my house
a good meeting for NAPCRG
an exhausting week of work in Montreal
an amazing week in Montreal
a lovely Thanksgiving at my in-laws (I really do have wonderful in-laws)
holiday lights up outside house (a surprise from Mr. Right)
tree up; train up; ready for Christmas festivities
a couple of long stroller walks this past weekend

Now on to December.
And then to 2010.
Where is it all going??

Montreal





Montreal was magical.
The work was tiring, exhausting.

But that city was amazing. I so want to speak French. Maybe that will be a goal -- speak French before I turn 50. (I refuse to have a "bucket list.")

And I can find chocolate ANYWHERE. On any street, in any city and in any country. Had to snap a photo (thank you new Blackberry Tour) of this chocolatier. Christopher E still owns my chocolate-loving heart, but these folks were pretty darn good. Tres yummy!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Thanksgiving is an inside job

Love this email I got today from Mama Gena about Thanksgiving.


Darlings,

What has the power to send a woman straight to bed with the covers pulled over her head for an entire week faster than the H1N1 virus?

Thanksgiving.

Not the ACTUAL Thanksgiving, but the Thanksgiving we are "supposed" to have. You know the one. . . the perfect family gathered 'round the perfectly set table, pumpkin pie aroma wafting through the air, children dressed in velvet playing nicely and sharing, handsome husband carving the turkey, grandpapa drinking brandy by the fire, while grandmamma and the aunties load the serving platters with all the trimmings. . .

WHAT?
That's not what you're doing?
Guess what?
No one is.
And the danger of this holiday season is that each of us have the potential to forget to celebrate what we HAVE and get stuck in the dark, destructive twirl of what we think we should be doing for the holidays, rather than being grateful for what we actually have- RIGHT NOW- and celebrating the light each of is in this world.

Is the scenario I described above enough to send you to bed with a box of Kleenex and a cold compress? Does it make you want to dive under the covers and emerge once this all passes?
Are you just gonna let it wipe you out and take you down?
Or will you rise up and fight back by having the most beautiful, blessed, outrageously thankful Thanksgiving of your life?

C'mon. Let me paint you a picture of what's going on for ME this Thanksgiving. My daughter is going out of town with her dad. My family is spread out all over the place and not getting together. A new guy I met and invited for dinner just canceled on me. And all my friends already have plans. Yep. Doesn't exactly look like the scene above, now does it?
Soooo, I could either join you in bed with the Kleenex- or triumph and choose to share this little light of mine bigger and brighter than it has ever shone before.

Because the truth is, no matter what I choose to do on Thanksgiving Day, I have got a lot to be grateful for. . .
I mean, c'mon- I just got back from Miami, with over 300 Sister Goddesses, celebrating every drop of what it means to be a woman. AND I had the incredible privilege of having my mama attend this World Wide event with me. This summer, after working non-stop for the last twelve years, I took time off to be with my daughter and work on my 4th book in beach paradise! I have an incredible team that I have the privilege of working with every day. My daughter is having a great school year in school. I am dating! (Not easy for a single mother/business owner!) AND I look and feel better than I have ever felt in my life. Not to mention, I get to live my dreams of leading the Pleasure Revolution every single day.

So, my plans for this Thanksgiving?
I have created a delicious day of thanks in honor of all I have been given. I'll be attending a Thanksgiving breakfast with some friends, and then I will be serving others dinner at a soup kitchen. And I've decided to take my alone time and spend it exploring parts of the city I have not had the opportunity to discover yet.

You see, it's not where we are going, or what we are doing, or who we are with that determines the way we experience this day.

Thanksgiving is an inside job.

You, me, any of us can decide to fall to our knees in gratitude for the gifts we have and shine our radiance on the world in any way we choose. We just have to remember- it's a choice.

So, now it's about you. I want to hear your Thanksgiving brags.
You can reply directly back to this email. I want to hear about your courage, your outrageousness, your hot, throbbing creativity as you design a day of days, filled with your magnificent, unique sacred light.

I am grateful to each of you for your part in the Pleasure Revolution. With you by my side, we will take this holiday season higher than it's ever gone before!

Happy Thanksgiving my darlings!
With so much love and pleasure,
Mama Gena

Monday, November 02, 2009

Bonjour November

It will truly be a month with a french accent, as I'll be leaving for Montreal in a few days and working like mad. Nearly 800 attendees at a convention. I am SO bringing my yoga mat and running shoes.

October ended in a flurry. I was so happy to attend Judith Lasater's yoga workshop "Moving from the Organs" and learn how healthy I'm getting from the inside-out!

Halloween was great fun with M as Baby Shrek. Went to visit my old neighbors, which always leaves me a bit lonely for that cul-de-sac of families.

Sunday was a gorgeous fall day and we had pizza outside at Pizza 51 to celebrate my stepson's 18th birthday.

Thank you October, for a month where I worked really hard. Adn for the milestones and celebrations.

I am still sad about the deaths of Kelly M and Ann W, 44 and 45 years old. For that I am glad to see October go.

November's shorter days are a mixed blessing. Like most of you, I love seeing the sun early and don't care so much for the darkness as I leave the office.

Here's hoping NAPCRG has an amazing meeting and November feels productive and like a month well spent.

and baby (shrek) makes 3




October 31st was Halloween. A happy, fun halloween.
It was also the 2-year anniversary of seeing that PLUS sign on a pregnancy test.
It was 5:15 am just before my fave 5:30 yoga class. Talk about pulling your brain together -- I had to really focus to teach that day!

That Halloween Mr Right and I dressed up as Shrek and Princess Fiona. This year we added a baby shrek.