wow...if you ever want to be reminded of the sacred gift of food, spend an afternoon canning tomatoes.  its hot, itchy, messy work and worth every minute.  looking at the fruit close up, you realize the similarites between human form and plant form.  who could think that all living things are not related after really investigating the prize of a fruit, ripe and lovely...?  i see ovaries and lungs and muscle walls and on and on....all inside my prized tomatoes, just as they are within me.

beyond that, i am reminded of the chilly day, months ago, when my daughter and i planted the seed that bore this fruit.  i think again of the "transplant" day and weeding and waiting all summer.  what a metaphor for the human existence.  and, finally, the storing of this bountiful harvest, because reserves will be necessary throughout the long reflection of winter.

i realize now that truly harvesting a bounty requires discipline and effort, whether the bounty is tomatoes or your creative juices for activities like art, music, love, poetry...the universal creativity is available in abundance, but i must harvest it with discipline and respect.

today i put on krishna das and did some free form yoga...first sun salutations, then standing poses...but when the chanting became joyful instead of quiet, i let loose with some dance.  authentic- this is how i feel my body on the earth-dance.  the hips gyrated, the booty shook, and the spine rotated...it was delicious.  then once again, the chant became soft and reflective and i returned to classical poses, twists and forward bends and finally a restorative position.

i remember a time when i wouldn't allow myself that pleasure.  i thought it wasn't a practice unless it followed the course, was quiet, and was journalled religiously in my daily calendar. 

i'm soooo glad that my paradigm has shifted.