2020 has been a year for the books. We have seen a lot of things come to light in 2020 vision and the ride is not over yet. While each of us have been clearing out the dense energies and emotions, the next couple of months will be like a highlight reel of the year so far.
Things you have already cleared will come up one last time to “say good-bye” and that’s exactly what you should do. Just wave and let it pass you by. If you find that these are bringing up deeper emotions try and just sit with them and watch them until they pass. What you don’t want to do is grab on and develop an attachment. Simply let it flow through you by focusing on your breath and recognize that this pattern presenting itself is an old version of you.
Mars is the planet of action and when it’s in retrograde your plans may feel like they are not moving forward. There’s a possibility to see people more frustrated during this time period because they are trying to push through this mud. To work with the Mars retrograde energy, it’s better to wait until the energy moves you forward. Sit in contemplation and re-evaluate your goals one more time. This year has been a major course correct for many people and even if you have already “Mari condoed” your life path or your home three times, it may be time to take one last sweep through to really focus and clean up. Come November, the train will start moving forward again at full speed ahead. You want to make sure that you are ready for this energetic shift.
Mars retrograde will also be bringing up anger issues. You may throw tantrums or see others throw tantrums. The best advice when you are witnessing this is to just hold this person in a compassionate way and wait until this is over. They are just letting go of anger and it’s important that you also don’t hold on to this release.
This is really good advice for the whole year and life in general. Humans are like a flickering flame, constantly in motion and never the same from one moment to the next. When someone is having an emotional reaction, hold them in compassion and when it is over, let it go with them. Holding on to emotions keeps us trapped in the past. We want to be continually showing up in the present moment and to do that we need to let go of our old selves.
This time will feel like the energy of the phoenix rising. The old will be burned off and the new you will rise up from the ashes. This will just happen due to the alignments at this time, just allow the energy to work on you and let go of your old self.
This summer I’m interning for International Solidarity for Africa – Mali. Their mission is to ensure a path of sustainable development for the people in Mali by supporting collective participation in several different projects.
Some of their projects are:
Revitalizing Communities Through Sustainable Growth
Restoration of Soil Degradation and Adapt to Climate Change
Providing Drinking Water and Sanitation by Installing Three Wells and Providing Sanitation Materials
Providing Support to the Association of Women of Magnambougou via Market Gardening
The objectives of this virtual internship are to spread awareness of their organization and raise funds for their various projects.
We have been working with the head of the organization Adama and another American intern, Ashley, in developing an English version of their French website so their organization can better reach an American audience. You can see the two sites here:
It has been a pleasure to work with the head of the organization, Adama, who has been incredibly supportive and grateful for our efforts. He has dedicated his life to this project and it really shows in all the good things they have accomplished already. To help them continue to mission, you can donate to a fundraiser:
All funds raised will be delivered to SIA for use on their projects, specifically on the ones related to women’s empowerment.
How does it work?
The fundraiser will run for the month of August, 2020.
For each $1 raised, 1 Origami Crane will be made.
Each $1 donated is 1 entry into a raffle. The raffle winner will receive all the Origami Cranes (shipped by mail).
Each Origami Crane has a positive affirmation written on the inside, like a fortune cookie, so you can continue to spread the love by giving them away!
There’s more:
You can tune in to the fb live event and watch the making of the Cranes! First we will do a short tutorial of how to make a crane, then we will listen to podcasts and YouTubes on the topic of sustainability!
Follow Firewalker Arts on FB to get a notification of when we go live!
After the fundraiser is complete, we will make a short video thanking all of the donors for their support.
This stretch is both amazing and challenging. It opens the hips and literally looks like frog legs. Because this is a more difficult hip stretch, caution is advised in entering and exiting the stretch. To get into frog pose, you will first need a yoga mat. Start in table pose on all fours. One at a time move a knee to the side, in line with the hip. When you have both knees out away from the center, check the angle of the bend in your knee. Adjust the angle to 90 degrees. Then come down on your forearms.
To adjust the difficulty of this stretch you can widen your knees. You can hold this position for one minute and work up to holding it for longer times. To exit this pose, crawl your arms forward until you are laying on the ground, then bring your knees in. This will avoid putting unnecessary strain on your groin muscles.
Variations:
Health Benefits:
Prevent Diabetes
Improve Digestive System
Relieve Anxiety and Stress
Strengthen Hips, Back, Knees, and Ankles
Reduce Fat from Belly, Hips, and Abdomen
Enhance Kidney and Liver Function
Treatment for Menstrual Cramps
Contraindications:
Pregnant Women
Ulcers, specifically Peptic Ulcers
Abdomen Post-Op (even if it has been several years, caution is advised
If you have ever read Louise Hay or studied the yoga postures, you probably came across the idea that we hold emotions and belief patterns in different areas of the body. It is believed that specific areas of tension mean certain things. I believe this is true in a very generalized sense. Every person’s story is a bit different, but on the whole human emotions occur on a similar spectrum. In this blog we are going to review the spectrum of emotions that can get caught in the hips.
Louise Hay is a huge person in understanding the metaphysical connections to the body. In her book “You can Heal your Life” she goes through the entire body to show you both the possible causes and the affirmations to heal certain emotional states. She believed that Illness however mild or severe is an indicator of your emotional state, caused by your thoughts and focus.
For Louise the Hip is about carrying the body in perfect balance. They are the major thrust in moving forward. If you have hip pain you may have a fear of going forward with major decisions or feel like you have nothing to move forward to.
Affirmations:
I am in perfect balance. I move forward in life with ease and with joy at every age.
What do affirmations really do?
Affirmations are a way to reprogram your mind. Whatever you focus on in life will grow. These phrases focus your mind to allow the feeling of “being in perfect balance” to grow in your life.
As a hypothetical example, if you wake up every morning with hip pain and also think “There’s really no point in getting up because nothing I do ever matters.” That is going to impede your desire to move forward. If you take the time to meditate on the above phrase and ask these questions: Is it true? Is it necessary? Is it kind? Does this improve the silence? If you answered no to any of these questions, it’s time to take control of your inner voice and focus it into a new direction. You probably wouldn’t say something like that to your friend so why would you say it to yourself?
You can take control of your thoughts and your outlook on life by focusing on positive phrases.
Our Spiritual Nutrition
One of my favorite quick reference metaphysical online resources is “Our Spiritual Nutrition”. It a comprehensive collection of psychological connections and metaphysical explanations for aches, pains, diseases, and mental health disorders. The only downside to this site is the lack of positive affirmations as remedies to the dis-ease, but if you take a few extra moments when reading you can create your own positive affirmations.
Here’s what Our Spiritual Nutrition Says about the hips:
Represent our comfort (or lack thereof) with letting go of the past Issues that can arise: Arthritis – Inability to move forward for fear of leaving someone or something behind. Unable or unwilling to release an out-dated belief system. Can be a fear of being left behind (abandonment) or of becoming useless Broken – Anger that one is being forced to change because of changes that occurred that were beyond one’s control. Victim attitude. Bursitis – Anger and distress about the constant changes that life brings
The Spiritual Meaning of Hip Pain
Fear of making major decisions.
Feel as though you have nothing to look forward to.
Feeling a lack of physical and/or emotional support.
Resistance to current experiences.
Fear of moving forward in life, career, relationship.
Fear of the future.
Fear of change.
Inability to let go of the past.
Feeling unable to stand alone.
Anger at parents.
Concerns about your life purpose.
Fear of intimacy.
Holding on to past hurt.
Withdrawing energy from a person or relationship.
Feeling as though you are on shaky ground.
Feeling insecure.
Feeling useless.
Wanting to move away from a person or situation.
Carrying too much emotional weight for others.
Finding it hard to be independent.
Conflict between moving forward and holding on.
Anxiety.
Fear.
Financial Fear.
It’s a good time to stop what you’re doing, pause, take an inventory of your life, and slow down before making any major decisions. Reevaluate the pace of your daily life.
Right hip: What you express, give out, and assert. Pain in this hip could be an unresolved issue regarding one of these topics.
Left hip: Represents the mother, family, nurturing. Pain in this area could be unresolved issues regarding these topics.
Other Affirmations
I am always connected to the infinite love and gratitude of the universe and no one can hurt me.
I honor it is not knowing the HOW but focusing on my desires.
I carry myself in perfect balance.
I am able to process, metabolize, and release all emotions.
I release any fear I have stored in my hips.
I release any anger I have stored in my hips.
I am free to move.
My hips are strong and healthy.
I allow myself to believe I deserve to heal.
I let go of the past with ease.
I am confident.
I am useful.
I am abundant.
You can create your own custom affirmations to heal whatever hip pain you may be experiencing. The easiest way to create an affirmation is to look at a phrase like “I fear change” and state the opposite starting with “I” or “I am”. For example: say “I allow change in my life” or “I adjust to change easily and effortlessly”
Comments:
Do you have any questions about the psychological and metaphysical connection between thoughts and hip pain?
Did you come up with some amazing affirmations you want to share?
Pigeon Pose was the first hip stretch I ever learned about therefore it is here marking the first entry in the encyclopedia. I was drawn to this yoga posture because you were encouraged to take the position and hold it for a longer period of time. I really enjoy long stretch holds because they allow me to breath more deeply into the posture and relax my frame at my own pace. This allows me to come to a greater understanding of what it feels like when I hold tension in my body and conversely what it feels like when I release. Essentially this posture taught me how I “let go”.
We can store a lot of tension and trauma in the hips so be aware that you may have strong emotions that accompany this position or come after. This is totally normal, just allow the emotions to flow out of you. When you consistently practice releasing the tension and emotions from the hips it will become easier for you to both let go and keep your energy clear.
The Benefits of Pigeon Pose:
Stretching the Glutes, Groin, and Psoas muscles
Stimulate Internal Organs
Alleviate Sciatic Pain
Relieve Impinged Piriformis
Help with Urinary Disorders
Improves Posture
Releases Stress, Anxiety, Fear & Trauma
Relieve Back Pain
Reduce Chances of Knee Injuries
Aids in Digestion
Builds the Mental Strength to Endure Uncomfortable Situations
Contra-Indicated for:
Knee Injury
Sacroiliac or Back Injury
Ankle Injury
Let’s Do It:
I like to get into Pigeon Pose from a downward dog. Be sure to practice with both sides. In these instructions I’ll just describe the right side. From a downward dog, swing the right leg through between your hands and then lower your whole body while laying your right leg in front of you. Line up your right knee with your right hand. To adjust the difficulty you can change the angle of your leg by moving the ankle closer or further from your torso. Once you have found a suitable position (not totally comfortable, but not too unbearable) you can bring your arms forward and relax every muscle in your body, letting gravity do the work of stretching the hip.
You can spend some time just hanging out in this pose. I like to listen to my favorite song, which is about 3 minutes long, to time how long I should hold the stretch.
Variations:
If you are not able to get completely into this stretch, use a yoga block, pillow, blanket, or whatever you can to brace your body. You don’t have to be a yoga master to get the most from this stretch. The most important thing is to go at your own pace.
Other variations are ways to make this stretch deeper. You can move your right ankle further away from the torso, bend your left leg and grab ahold of your left foot, and even lift your body up and bend backwards. All of these are different ways to get more out of pigeon pose.
Partner:
In the Thai Massage practice, I perform what I call a “reverse pigeon” pose with the client. Starting with the client face up, place your right knee outside of their left hip. Create a table for their legs with your left leg. Drape both of their legs over your left leg. Then figure 4 their left leg. Create a straight line from your right shoulder, elbow, and wrist through their knee and pointing to their left shoulder. (remember not to place your hand directly on the knee. I usually place my hand just below the knee on their thigh). Lean forward and let gravity do the work of the stretch. For more leverage, you can move your anchor knee (right) further away from their body. To bring variation to the stretch for them, you can adjust the position of their ankle with your left hand. (Do not apply downward or leaning pressure with the left hand).
Interaction:
Let me know how your pigeon pose journey is going. Do you have any questions or insights you’d like to share? Please comment below or send an email to: firewalkerarts@gmail.com
This Encyclopedia of Hip Stretches is intended to be a comprehensive look at the mechanics of the Hips and how to stretch them at home. As more information becomes available, new blog posts will be released so please subscribe to the blog to stay up to date on the latest information.
Creating this section of the blog was inspired by a desire to assist clients at home during Covid-19 and popular demand for at home hip stretches by Thai Massage clients. That being said, I prefer this to be an interactive platform. I want to hear your reflections on trying the stretches out yourself. Let me know what worked, what didn’t work. Ask questions that come up along the way and I will answer them as best I can either in the comments or through a new blog post.
We will cover:
Anatomy
Psychological/Metaphysical Connections
Chakra Connection
Static Stretches
Ballistic Stretches
Isometric Holds
Dance Moves
Disclaimer:
It’s important that you check with your medical doctor before engaging in any physical activities at home. Not all of the activities will be accessible for everyone due to medical conditions or physical limitations. Be an advocate for yourself in your practice and go at your own pace. I am not a medical doctor and cannot prescribe medicines or activities. The information gathered here is from research and hands-on experience with clients.
The most important thing to remember any time you are working with your body is to bring consciousness into the movements. Bring your awareness to what is happening inside your body. Describe the feelings in your mind to gain a deeper awareness of what it feels like to inhabit your body. Learn what your limitations are. Bring your breath into the art. Inhale positive energy, exhale negative energy. On the exhale lengthen and deepen your stretches. You will get out of the practice what you put into it.
The most ideal time to grow a new mint plant from a cutting is late spring and early summer. It is very easy to make a new mint plant from a clipping. Mint is a very prolific plant that will quickly spread and take over your yard. For that reason you may wish to keep it in a pot, or you can do like I’ve done in my yard and surround the mint with bricks. Whenever the mint starts to jump beyond the stone I simply transplant them back into the mint zone.
Before you start taking the cuttings you will want to gather all the materials:
Potting soil
Small planter pot with a drainage hole
Clear glass or vase with 1” water in the bottom
Scissors
Root growth hormone (optional)
Clear bin / Ziplock bag
In this video you will see me use chopsticks taped together to hold the mint slightly out of the water. This step is optional. You can just set the mint clipping into the glass of water and get the same results.
Now that you have all of your materials gathered, we will first show how to do the clipping directly in water.
Steps for Making a Mint Cutting in Water
Cut a mint clipping from the mother plant about 8cm (3-5 inches) in length from the top of the plant. You will want to cut the plant just below a node. A node is where the leaves are coming out of the stem.
Next you will remove the leaves between the bottom node and the top node. Use a scissors to make precise cuts and avoid damaging the plant.
(Optional) Tape the chopsticks below the first node to hold the clipping in the glass.
Place the clipping in a clear container with about one inch of water in the bottom. Make sure that none of the leaves touch the water because they may rot.
Set the clipping in bright, indirect sunlight. Replace the water if it becomes murky.
When the roots are a few inches long, plant the cutting in a pot with potting mix
Steps for Making a Mint Cutting in Soil
Put some potting soil into the small pot with a drainage hole. With your finger press a small hole in the center about 1” deep.
Cut a mint clipping from the mother plant about 8 cm (3-5 inches) in length from the top of the plant. You will want to cut the plant just below a node. A node is where the leaves are coming out of the stem.
Next you will remove the leaves between the bottom node and the top node. Use a scissors to make precise cuts and avoid damaging the plant.
(Optional because mint grows so easily) Apply root growth hormone to the stem of the plant. Do this by first dipping the stem into water and then into the root growth hormone mixture.
Place the root into the small hole in the potting soil and pack the soil in around the root. Add some water to the soil.
Place the whole thing into a clear bin or enclose it in a ziplock bag. This will provide the plant with some humidity to grow.
Set everything in bright, indirect sunlight. Water as needed but don’t over saturate. You can even water it by misting the plant with a spray bottle.
When you see new growth on your mint clipping that means it worked. You can either leave the mint in this pot, transplant it to another pot, or plant it in your yard.
Extra Notes:
Some gardeners suggest using a specific soil for clippings such as: perlite, vermiculite, peet moss, or seed starting mix. I find that mint is very very easy to grow clippings from so it’s not very important what type of soil you use. The first year I tried this I used local Milwaukee soil which is very clay dense. That worked out just fine.
Some blogs suggested using a heating pad underneath your clipping to stimulate growth. I think this is a fantastic idea, especially if you are gardening indoors in the early spring or even winter. Again, I find mint to be really prolific so this tool was not even on my radar for this project.
I prefer using the soil method for clippings. Transplanting the plant from soil is less shocking to the plant than transplanting it from water. If you transplant from water, you may end up needing to transplant more than once and that is more shocking to the plant.
Harrington Beach State Park Adventure (Belgium, WI, USA)
Due to the global pandemic and daily protests getting out of the city to reconnect with nature was absolutely necessary.
Milwaukee, the city I live in, is one of the most segregated cities in The United States and emotions have been high these last few weeks. As an empath the energies have been overwhelming. I really needed to get out of town for a while.
This was an amazing 40 mile bike ride to the Park. From downtown Milwaukee the Oak Leaf Trail runs north into the Ozaukee Interurban Trail. You ride these trails until arriving in Belgium where a right turn and 2 more miles gets you to the park.
I tried out some new camping equipment on this trip with the hope of finding lightweight gear for future trips abroad.
The main things to remember when starting a fire with a magnesium strip:
prepare your fire in advance. You want to have all the materials ready to burn when you spark your starter material.
Collect the magnesium bits on something like a stump, bandana, shirt.
Protect the bits from the wind.
Starting a fire this way will take some time, be patient.
Practice doing this in a non-survival situation so you are familiar with how it works.
I also tried starting a fire with my glasses. This did not work like in the movies. I was not able to create a pointed reflection of the sun. I think my glasses may be plastic. I also tried the mirror that comes with my compass. That also did not work.
What I would recommend for fire starting is bringing a lighter (or two) and matches. Put them all into plastic baggies to keep them dry. These tools will be able to start many fires for a shorter adventure.
The magnesium strip doesn’t have to be stored in a plastic bag. It can be used to start 100s of fires. This would be more appropriate for a long term adventure.
Air Mattress:
I did a lot of research before deciding on the “Legit Camping Sleeping Pad”. My only criteria was to find something light weight that packed into a small space. It is 57cm/22.4 by 188cm/74in fully extended and packs down to 9cm/3.5in by 26cm/10.24 in. It weighs 1.1lbs.
Honestly of all the things that happened on this trip, the air mattress was the least of my worries. It was super easy to blow up and maintained firmness for the two nights I used it. I have a Tempur-Pedic mattress topper at home and this air mattress is comparable to that. I slept like a baby.
No Tent:
10 out of 10 would not recommend camping with no kind of cover. I was rather naive in believing that this experience would be similar to camping under the stars in the Mojave. It wasn’t. It was wet and cold. I was woken up by morning dew on my sleeping bag and started a fire to dry it off.
Taking advantage of this time awake in the middle of the night, I laid down on the picnic table and looked up at the stars. The view was breathtaking. So many bright lights in the sky, so far away in space put life into perspective.
Why is star gazing so much fun? It inspires this sense of awe and wonder. What is really out there? Why is that thing shooting across the sky? Is it an alien? Are humans alone in the universe? Are aliens laughing at us? Are they considering jumping in to help or are they watching and eating popcorn? Am I an alien? Would I be from Sirius or Pleiades? Does my tiny little life matter? Are the things I worry about really that important? There are just no words for how beautiful the night sky is. It’s breathtaking.
Camping by yourself:
The urban life has made me soft. I was scared of the dark, making up scary stories in my head and kind of a mess. Fearing for your survival when you face the unknown in nature feels different than facing the unknown during a pandemic or protests.
In a pandemic the unknowns are:
Will I catch the virus?
How long will lock down last?
How will this change society?
The fears it inspires are:
What if a family member gets sick?
Is it actually possible to die of boredom?
What will I do if I loose my job during the pandemic?
In a protest the unknowns are:
What changes will be made?
Will the changes be enough to bring peace?
Will this escalate?
How long will protesting last?
How will this change life moving forward?
The fears it inspires are:
The possibility of all hell breaking loose.
More people getting sick and dying from Covid-19.
The possibility of a strong governmental response that puts us into an Authoritarian regime.
Solo Camping is quite a bit simpler. The unknowns are:
What just went bump in the dark? (either a human, a creature, or a plant)
Will that thing kill me? (highly unlikely because humans are scarier than animals and the humans here are all good nature-loving, bike riding types)
The fears it inspires are:
All in your head.
What is the take-away from these observations?
The take-away is that there is a place for society and a place for nature. Society actually protects us from the elements of exposure found in the natural environment. I’m not talking about animals eating humans, but the heat and the cold. Camping with other people also helps calm our fears of the unknown. For these things, I am very grateful for an operating society. I like going to coffee shops and starting conversations with complete strangers about everything and nothing.
Nature reconnects us to ourselves. Nature is a mirror that doesn’t scream back at you. It’s quiet, calm, mysterious, and silently working in harmony to grow. Imagine if humans were like that? Nature strips away all the labels and equalizes survival. This trip helped me put into perspective what really matters in my life. The people I have around me and the natural world. Paired down even further what’s most important to me is the company I keep and the essence of life itself.
How are you recharging during this time?
Please leave a comment or email: firewalkerarts@gmail.com
Last night’s celebration was the best birthday so far. They helped to arrange a real Lao style party. There was fire dancing with a very smokey lamp oil that burned forever. David, Eli, Zara, Nicole and I all had a turn with the fire. They all performed beautifully.
Nicole brought her fancy fans that were backlit with a laser pen. The whole show was very hypnotic.
Dinner was hand tossed clay oven baked pizza with a desert of banana ice-cream. The whole group was very happy to have a sweet treat and fire show.
Today we are dropped off in Luang Prabang to relax and get supplies. I was searching for a hot shower with no luck.
Walking through the dusty streets trying to find simple home items is quite the task. A small girl helped me to find the shop that sells medical supplies. I noticed that you can purchase a full round of amoxicillin over the counter for less than $5 USD.
Luang Prabang makes me feel so calm. The market and the people are similar to a river. The sounds of babbling and the pace of life is very slow.
I’m struck by how much the States are obsessed with safety. Home feels like such a sterile environment where you’re not allowed to touch anything without first washing your hands and applying hand sanitizer. In Laos there seems to be a “knowing” between the people on the street. They move like a school of fish with no signs or street lights maintaining order.
I’ve been completely disconnected from the internet. The people are hardly ever on their phones and I’ve only seen one T.V. since arriving.
The door fell off my bungalow but, David fixed it. The morning course was rather difficult with spinal twists and hip movements. All of the hip work is pretty intense. When we were working on the QL someone missed and pushed down hard on my floating rib that had been broken several years back – I cried after that and promised a swap back that probably won’t happen but, that’s ok.
Mali worked with me in the afternoon and we were playing around in Gecko pose. I have not yet worked with the same person twice in massage. There are about 30 people in the class so its possible to work with everyone a couple of times.
All of the meals were delicious again. The kitchen is a giant bungalow open air. I have no idea how they make the food so awesome. There are two refrigerators and they store all our drinking water in barrels under the kitchen.
The locals take the laundry into town two days a week but it takes too long to come back and I didn’t bring enough to use the service so I am still washing in the river.
I have started to read the manual for the circus and its very entertaining so far.
Today the german phrase was : What is for breakfast = was gibt es zum fruschtück. (probably not spelled correctly–edited in 2019). OISHI is the Japanese word of the day.
Fire spinning is definitely happening tomorrow. I worked it out with David and it will be at 7pm. It is the same day as the sauna and I’m excited to do that again. David and I talked about the logistics of how to set it up and it will come together quite nicely.
Whatever was bothering me after lunch (broken rib irritation) has passed but the feeling o being on a boat remains.
Chatted at length with Marty tonight.
Additional notes:
David is the general handy man at the circus. He is usually walking around through the circus with a hatchet in hand and a bounce in his step. When I first arrived he was working on the constructing a drain pipe for the sauna. He is the go to guy for fixing things at the land. I should note also that he is always wearing the baggy Thai style pants and is allergic to shoes.
