Everyday Yogini

Late Sunday night, we arrived home from the little town of Ascea, in the Campania region of Italy. Erick had made mention of the Amalfi coast, and I erroneously thought that was where we were going. As Erick said, “We’re going deep…” Ascea is south of the Amalfi coast, south of Salerno, even. If you look at a map of this region of Italy, you see nothing but mountains for miles- and mountainous country it is! The agriturismo we stayed at is within the borders of an enormous national park that encompasses a huge parcel of land in that region.

It was stunningly beautiful, quiet, and serene.

Our host-family has lived on that property for god-knows-how-long. They have olive trees that were planted by the Greeks over 2,500 years ago. Do I have to tell you they are gigantic trees? Absolutely enormous. The property is studded with these giant olive trees (how many people and animals have been fed over the years by these trees????), fig trees, citrus, and wild mint grows everywhere- all you can smell as you walk through the grass is warm mint. All of this, on a cliff overlooking the marina of Ascea- a beautiful beach and a working community with a slow pace of life and some of the most delicious food I’ve had since arriving in Italy. Seriously.

For those of you unfamiliar with agriturismo, they are working farms that have opened up rooms to visitors. They often serve food that is grown on their property and cooked in their kitchen. The one we stayed in was fairly large- they had, I think 10 rooms- and served both breakfast and dinner every day. The rooms aren’t luxurious, but with a three year old? It’s perfect. Dragging dirt and grass inside? No problem. The floor is tile! And plus, I don’t travel to sit in a nice room with air conditioning to watch Oprah. I’m there to visit the place.

We spent a good deal of time on the beach, which, being from the coastal region of the Northwest, I have sorely missed the ocean! We also drove up into the mountains and saw some of the really stunning countryside that is Campania. However, for me (as usual), the food was the star attraction. We arrived later than anticipated, but our guests stayed up to greet us and make us a delicious dinner: fresh baked bread with olive oil and balsamico, pasta with asparagus and garlic, steak and salad, served along side oven fries, and zucchini with garlic and mint.

Let me stop here to tell you, I am still not eating dairy or gluten. I was really worried about the visit, as Erick refused to tell them before hand that I am not eating gluten. I explained when we arrived and they were so gracious. They prepared special dishes for me that were gluten and dairy free. Honestly, it made me want to cry. It was so wonderful. The son even went on a search for gluten-free pasta (on a holiday) because he felt bad that I was having rice every night instead of pasta!

In any case, every place we ate was delicious. One little local place down in the marina was, no kidding, the best grilled veggie plate I’ve had here. I don’t know what they did, but it was like a little slice of grilled heaven. Erick says that the pizza was some of the best he’s had here, too.

Clara was in her element. The family that runs the agriturismo (it is a Mother and two sons, one married, one single and their cousins and extended family live on the adjacent land) have two children, so there were toys and a swingset (buried in mint) and goats to feed (seriously, how fun is that?). It was a throwback to Colorado- Clara could go outside without us and run around and explore. No fear of being run over or abducted… she was free to explore, with other kids. The adults would wander out to check on the kids once in a while, and there were times Clara ended up playing with the grandma while we ate.

All in all, it was a really beautiful vacation and I am looking forward to visiting again…

On Monday was the first meeting of a holistic Mom’s club. After dropping Clara off at school, I headed off for my friend Linda’s house for the meeting. I was surprised to find myself excited to be back in Rome, back home. Six months have passed, and, as many promised, everything is feeling a lot less weird and more like my life. For now, I am home. And grateful as all get-out that this is the life I get to lead.

This week is our long-overdue vacation… we are heading down to the Amalfi Coast for some time on the beach and in the nature preserve. No internet, I don’t even know if our phones will work. I will be back with you next week.

In exciting (to me, anyway) news here in Rome, asparagus has shown up in the markets full force! Young, tender shoots just begging to be eaten. We have been complying, and this delicious marker of summer days to come has been gracing our dinner plates each night for the last three nights. Concurrently, juicy, ripe, strawberries are also here- and we’ve been eating a lot of those, too!

Compliments of one of my favorite cookbooks, here is my absolute number one way to prepare asparagus. Enjoy!

Sauteed Asparagus with lemon and garlic

1 lb asparagus, *trimmed, and cut into 2 inch lengths
1-2 T olive oil
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1-2 T fresh lemon juice
1/2 t salt

*tip from my Dad on trimming asparagus: take a hold of either end of the asparagus and bend. It will break off at exactly the right point to rid the asparagus of the tough bottom!

Heat olive oil in a large skillet with garlic. Warming until garlic is fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add asparagus and saute until crunchy-tender, about 5 minutes. Add lemon juice and salt, cooking for a minute or so more. Enjoy immediately!

Dealing with health issues is no fun. That being said, I am blessed beyond belief to have good health insurance and a healthy skepticism of what doctors can and cannot do. I am also extremely grateful to have the support of my husband and the ability to create for myself a total healing program that includes: nutrition, bodywork, accupuncture, homeopathy, Yoga and meditation, and breathing.

Breathing? Yes, in fact, the Heart Breath has become one of my most powerful allies in calming my body and mind into a relaxed, healing-inducing state. This breath exercise is easy to use, can be done virtually anywhere, anytime, and is very effective. Give it a try and see how relaxing and centering it can be.

The Heart Breath

Begin by taking a deep breath. On the exhale, sigh, exhaling through the mouth. Release tension around the shoulders, neck, jaw, and belly.

Counting silently to yourself, slowly inhale, to the count of five. Exhale slowly, to the count of five. Repeat, breathing in for a count of five, exhaling out for a count of five. Continue as long as you like. Feel the waves of calm focus wash over you as the breath rises and falls.

To learn more about the benefits of a regular practice of deep breathing (Pranayama), a good place to start is here.

My friend Monica is a health counselor and has given me great tidbits and morsels of very practical, useful advice regarding my diet. She regularly hosts tele-classes on different topics and this one caught my eye as something some of you might be interested in. For any of you out there who struggle with feeding your family nutritiously, check out this class:

Super Nutrition for Moms!

Are you a parent struggling to eat healthy?

We’re here to help you bring more to the table.

Please join Health Counselors Monica Silvestro and Rebecca Pilot for a teleclass* while we discuss:

– Eating for energy: why do I crave sugar and caffeine?
– Super nutrition for you and your family
– How to help you make it all happen!
– Bonus: Eating to support lactation

Tuesday, April 22nd
8:15-9:30pm Eastern Standard Time

The cost is $15.
To register, email yourintuitivehealth@gmail.com

*A teleclass is a 75-minute interactive conference call on a health topic.

My Dad and I share a deep and abiding love of food. I think I’ve mentioned that we get on the phone and we end up talking recipes and menus, with nothing but a cursory discussion of weather, children, and events. Food IS the main event. I love it.

I have no idea where he gets most of his recipes, but he sends me some great ones. Since getting serious about my dairy intolerance and also avoiding gluten, food has been less pleasure and more work than I care to admit. But last night, I finally pulled out this recipe that my Dad sent. It was quick and easy, but more important, it is supremely delicious. I served it with lentil pie, compliments of Dreena Burton and mixed greens, finished with possibly the most delicious brownie recipe I’ve ever tried. (Erick was begging me to make these… they are that good!)

In any case, this recipe has no measurements, it is “per serving” and should be played with. I made ours on the mild side, but it could be hotter…

Dad’s Curried Waldorf Salad

Celery, chopped
Apple, chopped
Pecans, chopped a bit

per serving add:
pinch of nutmeg
pinch of allspice
pinch of tumeric
pinch of mild chili powder

~tsp lemon juice
~tsp Coconut Milk Powder

Sweetener (I used agave syrup)- enough to make it sweet
Mayo as preferred

Mix up and enjoy!!

This morning I put 19 little slips of paper in a hat and Clara chose one. Commenter number 8 is the lucky winner!! So, the book will now make it’s way back to my adopted home state and find itself being read by Erin. Congratulations, Erin! I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did…

Speaking of great books, recently Kristen wrote about staying up all night reading a book on doing art with kids: The Creative Family. Seeing as I can’t possibly let Kristen out-book-buy me, I got my copy this last weekend and, not being a very crafty Mama, I was surprised to find myself excited about getting all arty with Clara. We now have a loose “art schedule” for the week, with different activities lined up each afternoon. It’s a big hit with Clara and I’m enjoying it as well.

As part of our artful family time, this last weekend we went on a nature hike to look for things we could glue, trace, press, or, just get dirty with. We had a wonderful time with Clara running around looking for birds, trees, leaves, flowers, etc. etc. I will leave you with a picture of Clara and I finding treasures during our hike.

I love the word cultivate. Maybe because as a little girl, we would cultivate our garden every year: till the soil, sew the seeds, water the rows… as those of you who grow gardens know, you do the work you need to do and hope and pray that circumstance is on your side.

Just last week I joined an online Buddhist study group, Open Circle through Wildmind, one of my very favorite online (very practical, down-to-earth) Buddhist resources. The Open Circle group is studying the book,

Buddhism: Tools for Living Your Life

, which so far, is a fantastic book. I’m having to hold myself back from “reading ahead” of the assigned reading!

One of the first things that struck me about the book (besides the cover- which really appeals to me) was the use of the word cultivation. Cultivating the qualities that you wish for yourself, cultivating the life that you want to have- which includes responding skillfully to circumstances beyond your control.

I need this so badly. I want this so much.

To be frank, I have a love/hate relationship with Rome. I am having a difficult time reconciling myself with the things I dislike and, due to my terrible language skills, there is very little chance that I will ever feel “integrated” into the culture here. I often feel isolated, and I am frustrated with my dependence on my husband’s fluent Italian. I am acutely aware of my ongoing grief related to leaving “home” in Colorado: my friends, Clara’s friends, our home, our community. Intellectually I “get” that this is such an amazing opportunity, but my heart hasn’t gotten the memo. My heart wants to go home and get a double tall Americano in a to-go cup to carry around with me all morning while I chat with friends and Clara plays on the playground with her little friends.

Don’t get me wrong. On weekends, when we are busy exploring the city or we go out of the city (even better), I love being here. No country does countryside and small villages like Italy. I love being able to walk everywhere, the food is to die for. I love the density of people and the energy of the city. I adore living a block off of Villa Ada, one of Rome’s largest green spaces. I like entertaining people, I like getting to experience the intersection of different cultures through my husband’s position. There is a very interesting community of American folks here, so I can make friends. I love our gorgeous apartment with the tall, sunny windows. I see the good things, I do, I really, really do.

This is the thing. Erick’s job will, at least for the near-term, mean living a transient life. This means that circumstance dictates where we will live. We really have little control over this. The only thing I have control over is my response. The mind that I cultivate in reaction to this ever-changing landscape of homes, schools, jobs and cultures. It seems like precious little to be in charge of, but then again, it seems like everything. Cultivating my own heart and mind to be filled with openness and wonder, energy and curiosity, love and kindness- a heart big enough to love many different places and people and a mind spacious enough to accept impermanence. An ability to appreciate what is here right now, instead of clinging desperately to a place in the past that feels more like home that the present moment.

Because the irony is, when we finally go back to Colorado, I will miss things about Rome and all the other places that we will have lived. And Colorado will not be the same place, nor will we be the same people. It will be just like showing up in a new place all over, except some of the faces might be familiar. At least I hope so.

As Spring arrives in your corner of the world, it’s a natural time to think about cultivation. What habits are you strengthening through your actions and thoughts? Are you moving in the direction that you wish to be moving in? The beauty of thinking in terms of cultivation is that it implies that we can all change if we do the work. We can water the seeds, pull the weeds, and nuture the seedlings. This is a great gift- the gift of choice. I am honored to have choices. May we all cultivate our lives wisely…

If you are interested in Open Circle, registration is ongoing. As the group grows, it will split into multiple groups. The facilitator is a fellow Mom-Blogger, Shrijnana. She asks really terrific questions and is very engaged with the group. I feel so fortunate to have found this group at this time in my life.

A month or so ago, I was contacted by Anne Cushman to spread the word about her new book, Enlightenment for Idiots. What great good fortune that the book arrived from the publisher the day I was struck with the flu! Double good fortune that the book is a page turner. Funny and poignant, with a heroine that you can’t help but love and root for as she stumbles towards enlightenment.

Here is the write up that you can find on Amazon:

From Publishers Weekly
Cushman, coauthor of the nonfiction From Here to Nirvana and contributing editor to Yoga Journal, has written a hilarious take on the quest for truth that manages to respect the journey while skewering many of the travelers. Amanda, a 29-year-old fledgling yoga teacher, ekes out a living as a freelance writer in San Francisco and seizes the chance to go to India when her editor assigns her to research a guidebook about enlightenment. Soon she’s traipsing around India pursuing trendy gurus and yoga masters and scoring insightful encounters with ordinary folk along the way. She also collects a traveling companion: the sweet-natured, celibate truth seeker Devi Das, who, upon viewing the polluted Ganges, advises Amanda to Think holy, not E. coli. The discovery that she’s pregnant makes Amanda’s quest for meaning all the more poignant, forcing her to review her choices while she struggles to uncover the elusive secret to happiness. Cushman brings devastating wit and a thorough knowledge of her subject to her first novel, evoking an India that fills the senses and stirs the spirit even as it occasionally turns the stomach, and making it possible for the reader to both laugh with and root for Amanda as she comes to terms with her messy life.
(Apr.)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The book is being released April 15th, but you can get yours simply by leaving a comment. I will choose a recipient for the book on the 15th - the day the book will be out in stores- and will send it immediately. If you enjoyed Eat, Pray, Love, you will definitely want to read this!  

I have been fighting off the dreaded stomach flu this week, which has made my desire to blog exactly zero. I am ready to feel well, especially as the weather turns lovely and warm here in Rome.

Over the course of careening in and out of sleep (between stumbling in and out of the bathroom) this gatha of gratitude came to me:

When a virus takes over my tummy,
I vow with all beings,
To say thank you to my dear husband,
Who takes over while I care for me.

Tomorrow I am going to post a book review and giveaway of a terrific book that I have been reading! Don’t miss it…

I mentioned last week that I’ve recently been introduced to Speaking of Faith, a public radio show that is available (free) on the Web. This week’s show is not to be missed by Mommies!

Here is the intro to the program, from the website:

“More and more people in our time are disconnected from religious institutions, at least for part of their lives. Others are religious and find themselves creating a family with a spouse from another tradition or no tradition at all. And the experience of parenting tends to raise spiritual questions anew. We sense that there is a spiritual aspect to our children’s natures and wonder how to support and nurture that. The spiritual life, our guest says, begins not in abstractions, but in concrete everyday experiences. And children need our questions as much as our answers.”

As Clara grows older, I struggle more and more with how best to introduce spirituality to her- and integrate it into our everyday experience- in an authentic, real way. The podcast provides a lot of really great ways to think about this. Tune in for yourself and let me know what you think!