2008 September Letter
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Ryan, my youngest son, has aspirations to become a professional artist and animator. From the time he could first hold a crayon between his tiny fingers, he started drawing and never stopped. As a toddler, he would draw until he fell asleep – crayon in hand. As a kindergartner, the world was his art studio. Paper towel rolls, boxes, tape, spare paper and newspaper all sparked his creativity. Even with his art bin overflowing, he wouldn’t let me throw them out. He has innate talent and I am constantly amazed at what he creates. Recently, I found him out on the patio enjoying the rain and drawing. He was home on a hurricane day after his first day of middle school. With his new middle school as his inspiration, I was impressed by what I thought could be the cover of a yearbook. According to Julia Cameron in our feature article, Make your Life a Work of Art!, "art is the overflow of a heart-filled life." For Ryan it was the excitement from his first day of middle school that flowed from his heart onto the sketch book.
My creative outlet is dance. For the past few years I’ve studied ballroom and Latin dance. Often when my mind is most relaxed, it automatically slips into dance mode. I find myself perfecting moves in my head unconsciously. It is as if my spirit continues to dance even when my body isn’t. For me, dance is a form of meditation; I am focused, in the moment, and having fun. It is one of my two favorite de-stressors, the other is yoga. A yoga-break is the perfect prescription for an overbooked day. I keep several DVDs on hand so that in a ‘stress emergency’ I can just whip out my yoga mat and move into my happy space. Relaxing, centering, and peaceful – yoga can put my mind and body back in balance.
September is Yoga Month, highlighting a year-round grassroots national awareness campaign launched by the non-profit Yoga Health Foundation, to inspire a healthy and informed lifestyle. In this issue, Natural Awakenings celebrates Yoga Month by featuring our community’s instructors and yoga centers. It is a great time to try different styles and classes to find the one that suits you. Among these pages you’ll also find ways to reignite your creativity on page 29, nutritious recipes on page 20, and a new perspective on your workout on page 22. As you enjoy this issue I hope it inspires your creative outlet to help make your life a work of art.
Namaste,
Kris Urquhart, Editor
