A Crunchy Life - February 2019 Newsletter
HAPPY FEBRUARY!!
What I am excited about
I am excited about Candlemas! February 2nd. Candlemas is the midpoint between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. We will spend the day making beeswax candles, eating homemade crepes, reading The Candles by Hans Christian Andersen, cleaning our hearth and starting a new fire, and celebrating the lengthening of the days. We have focused so deeply on reflection, reading, crafting, baking, cooking, drawing, warmth, and coziness while experiencing the snow and cold of December and January, that it is nice to begin to dream about seeds sprouting, summer gardens, and trips to mountains and oceans. Candlemas is that little glimmer of what is to come.
An ancient Scottish rhyme:
If Candlemas day be dry and fair,
The half o' winter to come and mair.
If Candlemas's day be wet and foul.
The half o' winter gane at Yule.
The English version:
If Candlemas Day be fair and bright
Winter will have another fight.
If Candlemas Day brings cloud and rain,
Winter will not come again.
What I am thinking about
Rise: From One Island to Another
“Sister of ocean and sand, Can you see our glaciers groaning with the weight of the world’s heat?”
“…Sister of ice and snow, I come to you now in grief mourning landscapes that are always forced to change.”
I had one of my most powerful and visceral responses ever to a video and poem when I watched/read Rise. It was as if something deep inside of me was being shaken and was calling out with recognition to Kathy and Aka's message. Here is a description in their own words:
"Watch this poetic expedition between two islanders, one from the Marshall Islands and one from Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland), connecting their realities of melting glaciers and rising sea levels. Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner and Aka Niviâna use their poetry to showcase the linkages between their homelands in the face of climate change. Through this video we get a glimpse at how large, and yet so small and interdependent our world is.
The science behind climate change and its causes has been clear for decades. And yet, it has not been enough to drive the change we need to see in order to salvage our planet. We hope this poem can spark the emotion and drive needed for more people to rise and take action.
This is an invitation to take a few minutes to watch this film, unplug from your daily distractions, immerse yourself in the beauty of our shared home, and let the poetry heal."
Check it out for yourself and I would love to hear your reaction to the video and poem.
Watch or https://350.org/rise-from-one-island-to-another/#watch
Read the poem or https://350.org/rise-from-one-island-to-another/#poem
What I am listening to
The entire family is listening to brain.fm. It's ambient music designed for the brain to enhance focus, relaxation, meditation, naps and sleep within 10 - 15 minutes of use. The team behind brain.fm are musicians, engineers, scientists, and entrepreneurs exploring and expanding music's relationship to the brain. Our one account allows the entire family to take advantage of the offerings. One daughter uses it for sleep. One for relaxing. It's great for focus and meditation, too.
What I am making
I enjoy making my own toothpaste but with this recipe I am branching out a bit. This month I am trying: DIY Remineralizing Toothpaste by Stephanie Gerber of helloglow.co
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 tablespoons baking soda
5 drops peppermint essential oil
15 drops trace minerals
1 capsule of probiotic powder
Instructions
Combine the ingredients in a small bowl and stir well until coconut oil and baking soda are well mixed together. Store in glass jar with a lid. Use twice daily, brushing teeth for 2 minutes.
https://helloglow.co/diy-remineralizing-toothpaste/
Be sure to check out her blog for more great recipes.
What I am practicing
Technology is here to stay it seems. I notice for myself that I fill time with my phone. I say fill time because I find myself checking apps in those moments when I'm standing in line, waiting for someone, or waiting at the doctor's office. In pre-phone life I would have enjoyed the found time to just sit, think, quiet my mind, look around. i would have experienced the moment. Now, I fill it with my phone.
I have been using two apps to lessen my inclination to go to my phone. The first app is QualityTime. It snaps you back into the real world, kind of the way your mother would say, "You have been watching tv for hours; find something new to do or you will rot your brain." It pops up with a message telling you how much time you spent on individual apps, how many times you checked your phone, and suggesting, not at all subtly, that it is time for a break.
Forest is the second app I have been trying out. When you want to focus on a project at the office, schoolwork, or just being in the moment you plant a tree - you set the time in the app. The tree grows while your phone is in the app but withers and eventually dies if you leave the app. If you stay focused for the time you set, then your tree will grow to maturity. You earn coins with each successful session. Then, the Forest team partners with a real-tree-planting organization, Trees for the Future, to plant real trees on the Earth. To date Forest has planted over 401,000 trees.
I want to hear all about you and what you are interested in so that I can tailor these newsletters to your interests, too. How did your first month of the year go? How are you being intentional each day? What are you doing to re-energize throughout this winter? This life is messy and it is all we have so let's support each other.
Love.
Karen