From Lululemon:

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 7

How to let go of anger

I’ve been reading O Magazine’s “101 Best Pieces of Advice” and #65 is a mighty long quote, but makes great sense:

“Anger is like a storm rising up from the bottom of your consciousness. When you feel it coming, turn your focus to your breath. Breathe in deeply to bring your mind home to your body. Then look at, or think of, the person triggering this emotion: With mindfulness, you can see that she is unhappy, that she is suffering. You can see her wrong perceptions. You can see that she is not beautiful when she says things that are unkind. You can also see that you don’t want to be like her. You’ll feel motivated by a desire to say or do something nice—to help the other person suffer less. This means compassionate energy has been born in your heart. And when compassion appears, anger is deleted.” 

—Thich Nhat Hanh, Buddhist monk and author of Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 7

Believe it or not, it took me a good two years (or even more) to finally "fly" into Bakasana, or Crow Pose the other day. I can now do it for about three seconds—versus not being able to lift both feet off the ground at all, or collapsing on my wrists. I've also never fallen forward, because I scare myself pretty easily and get into my head that I never fully go for it.

This video is what sealed the deal for me. What she said about going "in a horizontal plane" and "swimming in a lake" (1:22), instead of looking down, unlocked the pose for me. It was that one final element and tip that clicked, so now I am working towards truly embodying this pose and being able to spend more time to BREATHE into it.

Here's what she said:

"It's mostly a posture for your mind… because your arms will be sort of trapped from underneath you, and you have to lean forward to find the balance of this pose and sometimes that is the biggest hurdle to get over for this pose."

"As you come forward it is important to find a flat back in a horizontal plane. A lot of us get into Crow Pose and we think 'get your hips really high and set yourself down into this pose' …which is a lot of pressure going down. You want to be able to find, like you're swimming on a lake, or [going on] a horizontal plane.

"Keep your gaze up, keep your eyes up, and let the heart lead you forward. You will coast forward and you have to lean past the part that feels safe. You gotta lean like an inch past your fear and that's the part where your body will balance, and you'll see."

(I tried finding the name of the teacher in this Howcast video but it wasn't available. Sending many thanks to her, nonetheless!)

Interestingly, the same advice also applied to my rock and sportclimbing days: When I was afraid of heights, I found that looking up and focusing on the route—and not looking down—helped me get to the top of a wall.

Don't you guys think that this applies to life as well?! :)

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 6

Food for Thought

"Apologize when you are wrong; stand up for what is right. And (this one is from inspirational author and speaker, Dr. Wayne Dyer) when you have a choice between being right or being kind, choose kind."

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 5

Best. (Fish) Sandwich. Ever.

To make a really good fish sandwich, you’re better off making at home. (Check out my D.I.Y. Fish Fillet Sandwich post.)

But then again, enter, Dishes NYC’s sandwich special of the week, Filet of Sole

“Beer batter filet of sole with tortilla chips, kale jalapeno coleslaw, chipotle lime mayo, brioche roll.”

Best. Sandwich. Ever!

Mariel Jimenez | 30-day Blog Challenge 2013 | Day 4