I'm sure both of you have noticed that there have not been any posts for a while and really no real posts* since the beginning of the year. The truth is I have been torn with how to start back up again.
The past several months have been just over burdened with high stress, heavy subjects and bad news. Honestly I thought I had reached my breaking point and if I was going down in flames, I decided I wasn't going to chronicle it for the world to see. The world can be depressing enough on it's own, I wasn't about to add to it. Every single time it seemed like a good time to start writing again something would come out of the blue that would take away from the writing time. How was I supposed to be funny and clever if i was losing my mind from worry or stress or heart ache? Well, the honest answer is, I wasn't going to be funny. So I chose not to write anything.
The funny thing that happened is, while I was faking my smiles and hiding my emotions, a positive energy would occasionally, if I gave it the opportunity, help me through my days... sometimes i felt like my sanity was down to my last minute... I thought I was falling apart... but I wasn't.
Do you remember my story about trying hot yoga for the first time?
http://canigetthatcoveredingravy.blogspot.com/2012/01/remember-to-breathe.html
I continued my yoga practice and through that, got to know some very inspiring and positive people. One in particular was Miss Julie Wilkes, who in a nutshell, is a Powerhouse Yoga Woman and a Motivating Machine! She was in the process of putting together an event based around fitness,wellness and community called Inspire the World Day and after a brief conversation with her** I had volunteered to play live music for one of the yoga practices at the event. I had never seen nor heard of playing live music for yoga. I couldn't have been more clueless as to what I was going to play. I did know that I could use a little positive karma in the in-box of life.
I recruit my good friend Mark Vance, who is an excellent percussionist and all around good guy and convinced him that he needed to be a part of this.
Then, more stuff gets in the way and literally the day before the event Mark and I get together in my living room with an acoustic guitar and a drum kit and we stumble on to something... I don't want to over describe it but what we came up with was right. It just felt... right.
So we show up for the gig and I have to admit I was a little nervous. I'm not exactly a virtuoso guitar player (actually the exact opposite is much more accurate!) and with really no rehearsal to speak of we just ...play. Mark and I tried to follow Julie as she lead the class. Match the intensity of the movements with the music we were playing.
It. Was. Amazing.
I'm not saying we were amazing but what we were attempting to do was awesome. I've been playing music for over twenty years and have never felt anything like that. It was sort of like dancing with 100 people at the same time. It was very powerful. Since the event I have had several meetings and conversations with Julie about future Inspire the World Day's and am now officially sanctioned to help spread the good vibes. If you are interested, here is a highlight video of the event:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTOWX9Da7IU
That brings you up to speed with the last 8 months or so. All of that stuff, both good and bad... Still here and still mostly sane.
What got me through this was focusing on what is good in my life and what I was thankful for. Before this recent life lesson session I maybe was not specific in what I was thankful for. I can tell you now: I am thankful that I have some great stuff coming up on the creative side, I'm now involved with Inspire the World Day and that I have the greatest family. Ever.
* I did a few blogs just to do them but they weren't up to my normal standard of being a goofball.
**Julie is SO positive and generous that it is contagious. If Julie asks for help with one of her charities you can't stop yourself from helping!
listening to Wheatgrass Revival
