Kerri On Down The Road

 Before I begin, I want to clarify that this is not a post I forgot to publish in January.  Last week we passed the Spring Equinox and if you look in the skies tonight you will see the first full moon of a new astrological cycle -- the new year is now truly upon us.  As I prepare to enter this new cycle of energy and growth, I have been reflecting on the past year and all that took place.  For me, the hardest part of this exercise is to sit in the seat of the witness instead of the judge and to look back through a lens of kindness and love for the person I was and the actions I did or did not take.  We are in a constant state of change and flux from day to day never mind year to year, and keeping that in mind helps to welcome some grace to the exercise.  One practice I have enjoyed is taking some quiet time to think back over the past year, wandering through the days and months that have passed.  As I look back I pay attention to the thoughts and feeli...

I have been enjoying daily lake dips for coming up on four weeks now.  What has really struck me during this time is the amount of unpredictability I have faced despite repeating the same actions.  My gear and setup have remained the same, as has my pre- and post-dip routine.  The lake is always there, and I have also become familiar with how the water feels on my bare skin at this time of year.  That is where the line of predictability is drawn.  Outside of those elements, the rest is always a bit uncertain.   The water is never the same two days in a row -- the weather may show high winds, and yet the lake is calm as glass, or vice versa.  I live close to the water, but not so close as to know what I am going to encounter until I am at the water's edge.  I like that because it requires me to deal with what I have in front of me.  This is something new for your author who is a planner at heart.  I will gladly spend the energy to me...

 I can honestly say that I did not expect to learn a lesson on meditation while tap dancing, and yet here we are.  My original desire to take tap again, after a 43 year hiatus, was simply to invite fun and movement into my life.  I tend to focus my energy towards activities that do involve movement that is related to technique and precision.  Fun has been missing and being able to feel silly and expressive has been phenomenal. Tap dancing has also proven to be a great way to engage my mind while being active.  My long runs and bike rides often lead to mental wandering, and although that serves a purpose, it is very different from the experience of learning new dance moves and choreography, and being shown sections of a dance routine and then trying to reproduce it while keeping time to music.   Last weekend we spent our entire class learning choreography for a short routine which we were aiming to have ready to "perform" by the end of our hour together...

March 1st marks five years since I moved into the apartment I now call home.  On the surface, this might not seem remarkable - people move all the time.  This statement does not capture the many decisions, concerns, and fears surrounding the decision to move in the first place.  It was a rather tumultuous time of my life, and although I knew that moving was the decision I needed to make, I also found myself second-guessing and doubting throughout the process.  I had no idea how things were going to turn out, and on several occasions, felt the draw towards what was familiar, even if deep down I knew it was no longer serving me. I was in tears the day I moved in, and I am forever grateful for the love and support of my friends and family who rallied around me to help me move past those moments of sadness and uncertainty, to ultimately arrive where I find myself today - settled, certain of who I am, and thriving in my space and my life.  Had I not made the move and...