i know. . .

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

A free bird leaps on the back of the wind
and floats downstream till the current ends
and dips his wing in the orange suns rays
and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks down his narrow cage
can seldom see through his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing. 

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill
of things unknown but longed for still
and his tune is heard on the distant hill
for the caged bird sings of freedom.
The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped
and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill
of things unknown but longed for still
and his tune is heard on the distant hill
for the caged bird sings of freedom.

healing waters

so today i headed up the mountains with my boy and friend and her boy to idaho hot springs. . .

i've never been and i loved it!

the water felt SO good. . . i kept singing this. . .

then we stopped at mother cabrini shrine. . .

i had to get home and paint. . . i'm filled with spirit.

i painted today

feeling a little heart sick today. . . i didn't even realize the heart i painted looks a little sick!
". . . a final comfort that is small, but not cold: the heart is the only broken instrument that works." t.e. kalem

self with flowers. . .
flowers growing out my mind.

stuffed shells

i made cashew ricotta stuffed shells last night. it was yummy. and a spring minestrone soup and a salad too.
1 c. raw cashews soaked over night
1 package firm tofu (get out excess liquid)
salt
2 tsp. dried basil (i think fresh would be awesome)
3 roasted garlic cloves
2 tsp nutritional yeast
couple drops liquid smoke
1/4 c. lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
frozen spinach (thawed and drained)
small onion chopped
shells
jar of tomato sauce

so drain cashews, put in food processor. add olive oil, salt and lemon juice. then i added basil garlic, yeast and liquid smoke oh and the tofu. then i tasted it. it tasted good so i added the onion and spinich. cooked the shells, put 1/2 the sauce down, stuffed the shells and topped them with the rest of the sauce. bake at 350 for 30 minutes. it was yummy!

byron katie

i've been doing a lot of work. . .
if you haven't heard of byron katie and her work it's really amazing.
at buddhist temple they talked a lot about suffering, attachement, delusions. . . etc. . .
i never REALLY got it until i started reading and doing her work. it's really been very helpful for me. all of the resources are available here. . . i've been doing one belief at a time work sheets and judge your neighbor work sheets. i got i need your love is that true? on cd and have listened to it over and over while i've been driving. it's amazing how we are attached to our thoughts/beliefs and how that causes suffering. how i've been delusional (still working on it!). . .

i want these

super cute! i want falcon enamelware!
found them here

gratitude

thanks soule mama

march: opportunity

The opportunities this month:

You could experience life from a different parallel.

You could feel neutral about situations and events that were previously charged.

You could reach new levels of power, understanding and transformation.

You could manifest great prosperity and luck.

You could get your body in gear and bring it along for this fabulous ride.

You could turn all of your challenges into opportunities.

You could eliminate fear through action and risk.

You could become free.

Helpful practices:

See everything as an opportunity and remind yourself of this every day.

Be patient, listen, and wait for things to shift in their right timing.

Take some action every day that shows you are serious about doing something towards your intentions and goals.

Make a plan and be willing to adjust it frequently to meet the elastic nature of the times.

Talk to your body, pay attention to it, work with it and give it what it needs.

Do something every day that shows the spirit you are serious about your practical transformation and that you are willing to move forward and into opportunity instead of backing away. Take a risk, don’t look back.

my friend cadee shared this with me