I read my tea leaves today...

and they say LOVE

A Thought About Yoga & Love

Much like they describe stretching in yoga, love grows when moving in opposition. Love is this guiding force that roots you down deeper and more firmly so that you can stretch, grow and extend upwards into lightness, into yourself, into stillness. It's a push and pull, opposition and union, you and the divine... all part of the same big gobbledigook of energy pushing to let itself grow & vibrate!

Just a Taste...

of the joys & wonders that are to come! :)
thanks to the best cloud kicker I know

The best piece of advice I ever got in high school

I was doing set design for one of the musical productions with Kristen, and we were painting a fountain in a park. I remember getting so frustrated and wanting to redo it. Ms. H came over in her eccentric artsy swagger, voice squealing (in an endearing sort of way), "What are you doing? It looks fine! What's wrong? Stop it! Come with me..." And she pulled us away from the set. I was so stressed & thought, What are we doing?! We have to work! Anyway, we walk to the back of the gym & she instructs us, "Ok. Turn around!" I turn, see the fountain, aaaaaaand it looks pretty damn wonderful. All I ever dreamed of & more! She says:

"Take a step back. You have to remember to take a step back. Take a break. Don't fret over the details, because it probably already is what you want."

Oh baby yes. I knew those words were gold, but being a 16 year old, probably didn't understand the weight completely. Now, I carry those words with me like a lap top on an airplane. They've saved me from so many stressful breakdowns and moments of self-doubt. Not just about my art, but about my general actions, thoughts, life! I'm a firm believer that if you have the intentions, put it out there boldly and with love, the universe with answer with a resounding HELL YEAH! Just have to remember why you were there in the first place and be prepared to lose yourself to giving to that moment.

Princess & the Frog

I finally watched it after waiting SOOOO long for it to come to the Philippines. I found it cute and an interesting twist to the story. I definitely enjoyed the music (Ne-Yo WHUT!!) but was disappointed it didn't seem to improve upon the Disney-animated musical formula. Meet the Robinsons and Enchanted, for example surprised me with how heart-warming & funny they were. This one... didn't. It did make me very happy to see the name of a friend-of-a-friend-but-I-do-actually-know-him in the credits as an animator (or was it an in-betweener?). Anyway! Hoorah! Props to Jules :).

I also find it interesting that I was disappointed in how they fell in love, for the same reasons I hated the ending of Garden State. Such a cop out to use falling in love with someone as the answer to your issues of self-doubt, self-sufficiency & balance. PUH! Haha, I may be looking into too much but still, don't teach kids that! They gotta stick it out!

A Divine World

I've been listening to my traveling mix to prepare me for the ENP painting and even though I've listened to this track hundreds of times (seriously... hundreds!), these lines from Smile Upon Me by Passion Pit get to me every time:

There's a place in this world
Where people like me are found by people like you
So find a place as this forever divine

Mmmm... so good! Perfectly encompasses how I feel about traveling. Except that the place is no single location, it's the playground that I call life and the divine is in everything. I see glimmers of everyone in everyone... from hearing Nobody by the Wonder Girls to the way someone says "DUDE!" I feel connected to the ones I love by being present and connected with everything around me.

I realized a system for myself to be happy: my heart must love, my mind must be present, my body must be aware & active in its practice, and all three should find harmony (as opposed to balance).... yes :)

Om Namah Shivaya

"I honor the divinity that resides within me"

I think I'd rather tell people that instead of Happy New Year or Happy Valentine's Day. These are both occasions for celebrating and I think there should be more holidays about honoring yourself. I was brainstorming drawings for the holiday but I churned out this instead. I was racing against the setting sun & my pen running out of ink (which it did) so it's unfinished but I think it still looks sweet. I think there are only two people on this planet (including me) who will understand completely what the drawing is about... just thought I'd say hello to the treehouse today.