9.02.2013

summer's end















































Summer’s end. Life is but a dream. 
Reflections: relations. 
I know you. I know these hands, these eyes. 
I see you. 
We have seen each other through years, months, days. 
Love partners have come and gone, and we keep saying hello and goodbye to each other
And each fresh landscape that we pass through, make love with, 
Make Home 
Pass on 
Hello and goodbye 
Forever and anon 
The falling leaves 
That decay into winter whiteness 
Composting through death
Into the blossoming spring 
Ecstatic summer 
And now, 
Celebratory autumn harvests 

My cabin smells like mold and wetness 
Perpetual rain here in the northeast
I think of California and the desert southwest 
And I crave the dry air, big sky, and towering mountains 
There is a place called Home 
And it lies within 
But I want to create something 
Solid 

I light candles with you
And we read our fortunes 
Giggling over beautiful tarot images
Asking profound yet profane questions about our love lives 
To ancient spirits spiraling through our fingers and tongues 
As we surrender ourselves 
To the unknown yet known 
It all lies within
And we know the answers already 
Even as we choose the cards
With questions lodged deep in our minds 
We know
Already, we know 
The cards confirm our knowing 
And we smile and nod 
Sipping tea and looking into each others’ eyes across the firelight
Sitting on the piney blanket on the floor of my cabin 
Surrounded by all the beauty that I have created in this small ramshackle cabin 
Cleared of mouse poop and old mold 
This Home of a year 

I enjoy this laughter
The unchained freedom of old friendship and unconditional understanding
Borne of years of knowing each other
Though mostly apart
Yet together
I can tease you, 
Knowing all your shadowy and light bits 
Like the interplay of sunlight filtering through forest leaves 
You are mysterious, complex, beautiful, complete
We hike fast, eyes in wide angle vision to catch every snowy rocky gorgeous nuance of the alpine landscape surrounding us 
Summiting the highest mountain of my childhood 
The mountain I stared at everyday of my childhood 
As far back as I can remember
Watching the snow shifting on the mountain peak 
And now, climbing it 
You who know me 
We laugh at each other 
Practicing yoga in the most beautiful places
Bowing before the old pine next to my cabin 
Bowing before each other
Bowing to the swampy majesty of a summer’s worth of weeds gone wild 
All the bugs singing their final summer love songs to the blue sky 
As it turns grey with rainclouds 
Thunder rolls 
And I jump on the trampoline in the darkness of the night
Watching the flashing lightning 
And laughing as 
Raindrops hit my face 
And I know 
I know that 
This life is but a dream 
Life is too quick to waste time 
Every step I take is meaningful
As meaningful and delightful as I can make it 
I am sculpting my future as beautifully as I can 
While manifesting my dreams
With each conscious step 
Each leap on the trampoline 
Each bow before every trembling grass blade and lightning bolt 
As all the mossy knolls we barefoot boogie upon 
Is simultaneously crushed by our weight
As we disperse their seedy spores
Back into the glowing soil
Of infinite
Possibility 

Looking into your eyes
Your gnarled old hands holding mine
I cry 
I don’t want you to see my tears
To know my fear 
My sadness at parting ways 
Not knowing when I will return again 
Life could end for you soon 
You are old 
Life could end for me soon 
I am young, but life is unpredictable 
Our eyes are interlocked 
Our lives, intertwined 
I cry 
Tears of joy, sadness, 
Gratitude 

I watch you as you walk away 
And you watch me as well 
Our eyes catch one final time 
See you in dream time 

In dreams, you are the wise one
You are the elder
You are the trickster 
The lover 
The adventurer 
You who come in many forms 
You mirror my Self 
I wake, embracing the memory of your Being in my Dream 
Then realizing I am just embracing 
My Self 

I step out the door
Surrendering my senses to sweet summery flower perfumes 
I stand, stunned
I have watched this landscape 
From death to life, 
And now slowly transitioning back to death once more 
At the height of abundance, 
Fruit falling from trees, 
Goldenrod taller than me, 
This is summer’s end 
And death is around the corner 

Compass pointing north
Self reflected in the Sky
Where 
Am I going next? 

I feel 
Heartbeat rhymatics 
Slow dancing 
Waltzing with wind 
Bare feet gripping forest floor leaves
Swooping down into low balances 
Body arcing with tree limbs
Arms following eyes 
As I follow the treeline
The dancing squirrel 
As he darts about, gathering nuts 
Wave-like spine, undulating 
We pull and twist each other 
Laughing as I fall, rolling back to standing
Leaping and diving through the air 
You surprise me 
Tossing me out just far enough 
That I loop back 
Like a planet within the sun’s orbit
Our hips bump into each other 
Bone against bone, 
Muscles contracting and releasing 
Music carrying energies higher and further
I close my eyes and can see the lines of connection, lines of motion, lines of music 
The same line that the squirrel invisibly darts through the forest 
The same invisible line that connects us across the ocean and through the center of the world 
Taiwan, India, USA… 
All these little intersecting lines 
I open my arms, 
Billow out my chest, 
Release my heart,
Surrender my feet,
Raise my head, 
Extend my spine, 
Look up,
Eyes wide open,
And smile at the Sky, 
Feet firmly grounded into Earth, 
Tadasana 
Mountain pose
And, 
I bow 
Down 

critters

some local critter wonders... 

a daddy long leg (i just call them "daddy") eating some of my rose hip jam 
porcupine (called "gog" by the ojibwe folks) in the Adirondacks
mini tree frog ("spring peepers" in the spring, "tree frogs" in the autumn) on my shoulder in the 'dacks 
gorgeous butterfly in the 'dacks

8.24.2013

艾草, 夏天, 和高山的祝福


家人們好!

日子過得真快。 夏天已經差不多結束了。 陪星星跳舞的螢火蟲已經消失了。晚上越辯越冷。 我開始收藏木頭, 準備冬天的火柴。

來聽聽艾草的故事吧! 艾草的學名是artemisia vulgaris. 它來至亞洲, 歐洲, 和北非洲。 在美國東北部, 它像雜草一樣, 經常長在馬路邊。 它喜歡長子不肥沃, 被傷害過的土當中。 它的生存力很強。 如果你把它的根砍成小塊, 每一小塊根都會繼續長成新的植物。 它在許多地方的用處都相同。

艾草幫助消化, 月金, 和殺蟲。

它幫助消化, 因為它的味道是苦的。 在日本和中國的傳統料理, 會用艾草做調味料, 和給食物青綠色的顏色。 我和lucy老師也喜歡泡艾葉在醋裡面, 做沙拉醬醋。7song老師喜歡把很多不同苦的藥草泡不同的藥酒, 然後把它們融合成一個苦藥酒, 幫助消化。 如果有人消化不良, 我們就會給他們這個苦藥酒喝。 如果有人太愛吃甜點, 我們會推薦那個人隨身繫帶一小瓶苦藥酒。 要吃糖時, 喝下幾滴苦藥酒就好了。

艾草幫助硬起月金, 如果月金還沒來。 月金時, 它能幫助放鬆疼痛的肚子。 可以做艾草藥酒喝, 或是做艾草油, 插在疼痛的部位上, 例如順時鐘抹油在肚子上。

歐洲人會把曬乾的艾草放在衣櫃裡, 因為蟲不喜歡艾草的味道。 如果腸胃裡有蟲, 可以和強的艾草藥酒殺蟲。 藥草算是比較強的藥草。 不能常喝。 懷孕婦女不可以用艾草藥。

歐州古老的巫婆巫醫不只用艾草以上的方式, 但他們也用艾草來硬起特別的夢。 他們會燒艾葉香, 或是吸艾葉煙。 美國印地安人也會燒艾葉香來驅鬼, 消除負能量, 等。 我對巫醫的療愈方式特別有興趣, 特別是他們怎麼融合音樂, 身體, 植物, 和人與人之間互動, 人與靈之間互動, 人與大自然之間互動。 我去研究所, 也想要研究這個。

療愈師長輩們都同意我現在研究各式各樣的療愈方式很好, 幫助擴大我了解人類和世界。 但他們也推薦我選一樣東西, 把它學到特別好, 也變成我的特色。 雖然我還在探索當中, 感覺像慢慢越來越有方向感了。 家人們, 別擔心! 這隻飛翔的鳥兒不只在隨風飄哦!我的步驟是有儀式, 有意義的。

住在這個森林當中, 這是第一次我有這麼多朋友來拜訪我。 不知是否因為我離開美國太久了, 還是因為這兒很方便, 朋友們都能來拜訪, 但從四月到現在, 我已經有好幾個朋友來拜訪了。 又開心。。。 又累。 我一個禮拜六天都陪7song老師工作和學習, 所以時間不多。 練讀書的時間都不夠了!

這個月, 我們陪老師到紐約州最北部的山, Adirondacks, 去採藥。 這兒的山很老。 石頭都倒下來了。 整個山都綠油油的, 跟加州夏天的金黃色山完全不一樣! 這兒的綠山讓我想起和想念台灣美麗不停下雨的綠山, 蕨類, 瀑布, 溫泉, 朋友們, 等。 期待有一天再回台灣! 我想要找到或是創造工作讓我最少一年回台灣一次, 繼續培養我和台灣家人, 朋友, 土地, 文化, 和植物的關係。

Adirondacks 採藥太棒了。但氣候真的跟台灣很像: 天天下雨!  老師選了幾個超精彩美麗的地方採藥。 我露營在河邊。 每天早晚看水上和天中的日出和日末,聽風吹鳥叫, 和無線的游泳, 遊到遊不動了, 每天晚上完全滿足的睡著, 做最甜的夢。

採完一個禮拜的藥之後, 我自己繼續往北部玩, 跑到更深的森林和高山去閉關和冒險。 我想要分享兩個經驗: 我一個晚上露營在一條小溪邊。 附近有個小池塘。 旁邊都是植物。 我早上在池塘上的小橋練瑜伽和跳舞。 平靜的水像鏡子一樣的照亮我和天空, 樹葉, 的每一個動作。 我往上,往天空伸展, 再往下,往水, 往地伸展。 在水中, 同時看到天空, 樹葉, 水面, 水草, 魚兒, 和我自己的眼睛。 嫩住了。 突然, 蝴蝶夢: 水面水中世界時間夢。

水流到最低的地方去。 山是最高的地方。 我最後一天在Adirondacks 山中爬到那兒最高的山。 在高高的山上手自由自然的往上碰天, 腳穩穩的站在大石頭上碰地, 我慢慢的轉一圈。 彭鼓開天。 我住在天和地當中, 宇宙當中。 站在山上, 面前一座山接著一座山, 像大海一樣廣大, 生活變成一片無線的可能性。 我也是無線的大海, 高山。 什麼都可能。

從藥草, 小溪, 和高山的祝福當中。。。 祝福你秋天保暖, 多吃夏天新鮮好吃的收穫!

敬, 基玲

(還有。。。 看看我做的八月份小影片!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVjgGYDKdaA&feature=youtu.be

8.11.2013

Adirondacks fieldtrip

class photo, from 7song

I like these group photos, and watching changes as the class progresses. 
Fieldtrip notes and Artemisia vulgaris monograph coming soon! 

Racquette River

Adirondacks, NY
View from my camp, this morning.