Posted by: heather
on Aug 03, 2010
I used to study martial arts. I loved it. It was the ballast to my activist life. It was where I discovered my athletic self. Then, after about 18 years, I fell while hiking and hurt my back. There went my martial arts career. No more jumping, kicking, punching hard. After about a year of a modified schedule, I gave it up.
I decided to take yoga classes. For a few years, I moped. I went to yoga because I couldn’t go to karate. Yoga was just OK. I know many people love it with the enthusiasm I had for karate but for me it was a poor consolation prize. Now several years on,
Posted by: heather
on Feb 16, 2010
Ah! There is nothing like the feeling after exertion in nature. The day was cool, crisp even, but warm when the sun was out and I was getting myself uphill.
I am thankful for all the people over the years who had the foresight to preserve such great spaces. I benefit greatly whether from a local walk and ride path (Sligo Creek Park is my nearest greenway) or larger tracts like Catoctin Mountains or Shenandoah National Park or Red Rock Country. It’s one thing to see these spaces on National Geographic or Nature. It’s another to experience them firsthand. I am grateful that I have the wherewithal—physical, financial, time—to enjoy these places and I marvel at my luck. I feel fortunate to take advantage of them.
Posted by: heather
on Jan 20, 2010
Welcome to 2010, already in progress and already challenging in so many ways. Now, more than ever, I feel called to engage with community for peace and justice.
Posted by: heather
on Sep 24, 2009
Not long ago, a colleague described her four-year-old Blackberry as "ancient". In organizations, campaigns and projects come one after another and often overlap. There are changes in structure, technology, policies, and personnel, plus new demands from the environment. Leaders and managers are expected to produce results and people. It seems there's hardly time to run from one meeting to the next, let alone reflect.
Posted by: heather
on Sep 11, 2009
Actually, it’s after Labor Day, which always meant back to school for me. Although it’s been a while since I was in school, my internal rhythm is still set by that calendar. So, it’s a time of new supplies including blank notebooks and sharpened pencils, new teachers, subjects, and schedules. And let’s not forget, new school clothes.
