JoyList: things that made me think of you

Starting off with a rather heavy share, this piece is worth the read. Obituary for a quiet life immediately brought a beautiful wave of memories of my papa (my paternal grandfather). As I said in the sanctuary, it brought to mind a specific memory, a story that he loved to share.

We were visiting him and my nana in Florida and I must have been about 4. (That photo to the right is probably about the time.) We were at a small shopping area, and I was holding his hand as we made our way down the busy sidewalks. And every time someone passed and I caught their eye, I would pronounce, “ THIS IS MY PAPA!”

So yeah… be prepared for some big feelings when you read that piece. I can’t stop thinking about it and would love to hear what you get out of it.

Speaking of connections… I did it. I joined another social. But you know what? I’ve actually missed the old school twitter of 12 years ago. I had quite the following on there and it felt so authentically FUN and I could just be my silly self sharing silly thoughts. I didn’t use it for anything other than that level of connection and I’m going to use THREADS the same way. If you’re there, please be sure to connect!

Speaking of connections (and now I’m cracking myself up)… I created a new short about a really effective and gentle psoas stretch.

The book I’m currently reading, Little Gods, is freaking amazing. I’m only a wee bit in and I’m already in awe of the author, Meng Jin, especially since this is her debut novel.

I got a notebook specifically for the Re/Joy Project process that I talked about in yesterday’s post. It’s not journaling or gratitude listing. It’s noticing and naming. (Like I said, read that post.) I’ll be writing more about this as I experiment myself but I already love it.

I would be remiss if I didn’t note that a 4 week July session starts next week, the week of July 10th. If it’s been a while since you’ve taken a class, it would be most awesome to see you!

We went to the Dayton Art Institute last weekend, and it exceeded my expectations by far, considering its size. The building is WHOA! If you’re anywhere near there, I recommend it. (We’re looking at early October for a visit to Chicago and that art institute and Dayton’s just made me even more excited. It’s been too long since I’ve been to Chicago…)

I’m fully obsessed with tennis again after a couple of weeks of wonky weather and such, and if you play tennis and love those little skirts but also DON’T, look what I just found.

Finally, summer movies are, once again, FUN or at least BIG, and for the first time in a long time, I’m excited about them.

We just saw the new Indiana and I think it was actually a beautiful look at what age and life events can do to us and how there’s always hope. I’m looking forward to Barbie (it’s more than a fluff piece), Oppenheimer, and Mission Impossible (because I’m sorry but I grew up with Tom Cruise and I know he’s a nut but boy do I love him in action flicks).

What are you looking forward to this summer, movies or otherwise?

Re/Joy in this shitty time

Name one era when you think things were better, and I’ll be 100% correct that it wasn’t, no matter what time you name. History repeats itself, for sure. If one group isn’t marginalized, a whole host of others are.

When I was in college in the late 80’s/early 90s, things did feel like they were somehow shifting. Yet even that was an illusion: the economy was tanking, poverty was rising, homelessness was worse than ever (thanks, Reagan), incarcerations were on the rise and wouldn’t stop (and won’t stop), the war on drugs was targeting the wrong thing and the wrong people (for the most part), people were banning music (remember that?), the excess of the few was the leap off of the cliff that would start the real climate spiral, and I could go on.

Today things feel worse because they’re so much more on the surface and in our face pretty much 24/7. We had a toxic idiot of a President that made all hate acceptable in a very public way. (Some would argue we needed to see that … that too many of us were still living in denial… I kinda agree.)

So all times have, technically, been shitty times. For someone. For groups of someones.

And yet humanity keeps trying to move forward. Honorable or stupid? Some days I go back and forth depending on how exhausted and angry I’m feeling.

Most days… most days, I feel like we’re to be admired for a seemingly bottomless well of hope and effort and optimism.

Most days, I understand that those of us with access to hope and effort and optimism have to hold on to those things, if not for ourselves then for those who just can’t anymore.

To do this requires a certain kind of mental, emotional, and spiritual musculature. It’s easy, in this world, to allow that to atrophy, and then when we need it, to act surprised by its weakness.

In other words, we have to use some of our effort muscle to keep our hope, effort, and optimism muscles in shape. The world needs them.

How do we do this? What is the “gym” of this sort of workout?

It’s the very world that we can find so utterly reprehensible.

But we need to take that world in our hands and turn it every so slightly so we’re looking at it from a different angle: we need to look at it in better lighting so that we can see the beauty and love there. There are days that no matter how much we adjust the angle or the lighting that the beauty and love we find feels just about… microscopic. But that doesn’t matter.

It’s in this noticing and then in the naming that we work out. This is our gym. These are the weights we lift over and over for strength. The treadmills we walk and run for stamina. The stretches we use to maintain mobility.

And these sorts of workouts for emotional, mental, and spiritual musculature need to be as consistent as any we do for our bodies. You know full well that you can’t run a marathon if you’ve been sitting on the couch for the entire year leading up to it. You’re not surprised that you can’t deadlift some crazy amount if you’ve never picked up anything heavier than a soup can.

But we act surprised by our own exhaustion over the work of the world when we’ve done very little to maintain our healthy connection to that same world. We wonder at our anger and our rage that is paralyzing when we’ve done nothing to feed our joy that is mobilizing.

Start small, just like you would with any exercise program. Small steps, small amounts, build slowly but be mindful and intentional and persistent to the point of stubborn.

Start today: go outside with a small notebook and just make lists of everything you see that you love. Do this for… five minutes. Then do it tomorrow and the day after and the day after…

JoyMoves: the importance of weight training after injury

It seems antithetical, right? You’re recovering from an injury and then you should put weight on that injury!?

At a certain point, yes.

You know I suffered from two consecutive frozen shoulders over a year and a half. I ended up needing steroid shots in each a few months apart. I needed those shots so I could even do the physical therapy I was creating for myself.

Those shots let me gain range of motion back. I needed time when that was all I was focused on, but I got to a point where I felt stuck in my recovery. Nothing new was happening. Nothing was changing.

Then I got the helpful book below, and I only needed to read a few pages to understand that I was missing weight lifting… strength building

I’ve always talked about (if you’ve been around me enough) that mobility is flexibility plus strength (control).

When I was younger, I was super flexible and my joints were lax. I had no real idea of strength (control), so I was constantly suffering from free floating pain and minor injuries. I was young, so it would all heal really fast and I would continue with my circus freak tricks.

When I tell you that the very day I started doing (super light) weight training targeted at my shoulders that I felt an instant difference, I am not exaggerating. I’ve been doing it ever since and slowly building the amount of weight and the variety of movements.

My right shoulder is at 100% and I’d say my left is around 95% or higher. My idea of mobility in my shoulders is a bit extreme… again, I have lax joints… but now those joints are supported. I can still do things most people can’t do but I can feel the muscle activity more clearly. I also have an ever deepening ability to feel the precise moments when I am about to go too far. (That ability has been growing since I started to dance again at 40 but now it’s finding new levels.)

If you want to explore this but have some fears/concerns about it, remember that you can always ask me.

JoyMusic: Something new to move to

Definitely how I feel.

I love that we have musicians and composers right in the midst of our circles, including in the sanctuary.

I want to encourage you to, firstly, look for women, nonbinary people, and people of color when you’re looking for new composers in particular. There are so many amazing composers out there who don’t fit the usual stereotype and are NOT, of course, getting the attention or the work that they deserve. (Side note: If you have a local philharmonic, check out their schedule and see if they’re including any women. So many just do not. Then maybe contact them.)

Secondly, I encourage you to always be listening to new things… and MOVING to new things. It wakes up different parts of your brain and bodymind. It’s important. Nostalgia music also plays a part but new stuff is even more important in terms of brain health.

All of that said, today I bring you the work of Trista Hill, who happens to live near me in Columbus (but is someone I’ve been connected to for longer… I think… it’s hard to keep track!).

Trista plays the harp and here is her bandcamp for a project with a cellist. It’s not what you would expect. It’s quite exciting. I never would have thought of the harp this way.

Look to the right hand column and also check out Urban Elegance. (And everything else, of course.)

Next up is Helen Yee, whom I’ve definitely been connected to for many years, including having the opportunity to move with her in classes and a long ago, first attempt at a long distance choreography project.

She is a violinist and composer working in a field that both of us have a hard time putting language too… avant guard? Minimalist? Hmmm…

Here’s her soundcloud.

Let me know if you know of anyone different and exciting in the world of composing.

JoyList: Stuff floating my boat

Are you heading to any music or festivals this summer? We started off this past weekend with our neighborhood ComFest (community arts and music festival). It’s been going on in our park for 51 years.

Obviously, the stilt walker was at our festival. She was one of two. I can’t imagine. Even this bit of height would turn my stomach, but they were so happy and smiley.

Other things floating my boat…

Did you hear about this wacky and amazing science-y discovery that is blowing all the scientists brains this week? The papers were released on the 28th and wow! If you like time and space stuff, check it out.

OH! I have a new video of a super simple and highly effective psoas release that also works, of course, on your diaphragm and your nervous system. Go here and look under “shorts.” It’ll be the first one with me looking way up at the camera. And if you get something out of it, make sure to like, comment, and/or subscribe. (Thank you!)

Speaking of YouTube:

Something new from one of my favorite dance companies.

My favorite creator who talks about her different brain and burnout and how she’s healing that.

Have you ever watched any of the videos by this Chinese creator? She lives in the mountains on her grandparents’ farm and does every freaking thing by hand and traditional methods. Watching her cook or build something is so freaking soothing to me. She also practices traditional arts like calligraphy… just whoa.

For my Butoh loving peeps, here’s a short video of Kauo Ohno (one of the founders) talking about technique and motivation.

For my book lovers, here are a few of my recent faves, but you can always just look at my goodreads.

For specific books:

I’m about 2/3s of the way through Lisa See’s most current book. ANYTHING SHE WRITES is worth your time.

I loved Louise Erdrich’s most recent. She just never misses the mark.

And someone told me to read this Rebecca Solnit quite a while ago. I love her work and am loving this too.

What’s floating YOUR boat?

JoyBody: the collective body

The work we do under the name JoyBody doesn’t mean much if it’s just about our own individual bodies. That’s not even how humans work, right? We’re part of a larger ecosystem… or web. I am because you are. Period.

So I’ll be, here and there, highlighting communities that need our help and direct ways you can help, even just from your seat in front of this screen.

As you know, it’s pride month, and I want to highlight one part of the LGBTQIA+ community in particular: the trans community.

I’m highlighting the trans community, because I know and love some trans people, first and foremost, but secondly because I think their community is the most in need of our help right now. They are under attack in so many new and frightening ways.

I would start by getting more educated about all of this. Here’s a great article that explains the science of sex and gender and how complicated it is.

Here’s a great FAQ about gender and all the different ways one can identify and the issues that can arise (like gender dysphoria).

If you feel like you don’t have a deep enough understanding of these issues, start with what I’ve provided and then don’t be afraid to ask questions. (The sanctuary is a safe place for everyone so feel free to ask there or you can write to me directly.)

From understanding, we need to move on to action. What can we do?

Firstly, look for your own state specific organizations working on these issues. Like here, we have Equality Ohio. I follow them on TikTok to keep track of what’s happening in our state government. (It’s a lot and it’s AWFUL.)

You can always start by simply giving money to these organizations, but you can help by showing up at protests and writing emails and making phone calls. We all have comfort zones and we all have skills we can offer.

If you want to see what’s going on nationally and internationally, check out Outright International. There’s also the Trans Legal Mapping Report.

In the US, there’s the Transgender Law Center, the Equality Federation (which can help you find your state based actions), and the National Center for Transgender Equality.

The Re/Joy Project: Podcast

I want to start a podcast within the next two months so that it’s solidly up and running by the early fall. And I need to know WHO WANTS TO BE ON IT!

The concept centers on what I’ve been calling, for some time, The Re/Joy Project, which is multifaceted but includes the idea of changing our lives for the better after… a certain age. ((ha))

Like the whole midlife excitement thing. Like the fact that I returned to dance at 40 and completely changed my entire life.

I know there are so many of you out there who have done or are doing similar things.

I think it all stems from the fact that only at a certain age can you really and truly feel your mortality and thus feel the importance of living from a place of joy, which includes risk and adventure and leaping and rediscovering and uncovering and remapping and on and on!

I want to talk to women and nonbinary folks about this. So if you are someone who would be interested or you know someone you think would be perfect, respond to this (if you’ve gotten this in your email) or get in touch with me via Facebook.

JoyMoves: the obstacles are the path

“The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting. The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”

— Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

Or to put it more succinctly: the obstacles are the path, as I say in the heading. So freaking annoying and so true.

If the obstacles don’t become the path or the way, then you’re resisting the truth and reality of your own life and that, I think, is what we’re actually experiencing when we say things like “I’m stuck… I don’t know what to do next… I have no visions…” or even when we say things like, “I don’t have time.”

The work of the practice is devotion to the obstacles.

If we aren’t devoted to the obstacles, then we’re not devoted to the practice.

(I know… I’m even annoying myself here…)

I’m writing particularly today about your movement practice, but you know that movement is life and therefore all the things we do in our movement practices are just reflections of what’s happening our life and how we’re approaching obstacles. (SO. ANNOYING.)

Here are some simple ways to work with your obstacles instead of allowing them to rob you of the practices that support and rejuvenate you and bring you to your essential nature of joy:

1. Time: THIS ONE IS BIG. Stop telling yourself that you have to move at a certain time and stop thinking that only certain amounts of time "count." Look for opportunities that you're missing because of these stories. For example, when you're waiting on your coffee or tea in the microwave, you can stretch, wiggle, bounce. THINK MICRO MOVEMENT PLAY.

2. Space: stop telling yourself that you need a special space or a certain amount of space. Great movement can happen in the square foot right around your body, in a chair, in the car.

3. Clothing/shoes: this one is also big. You don't have to take the time to change your clothes if that's going to stop you. Do whatever *IN* whatever. (And just free your feet and work barefoot -- if you're not already.) I often work in my jeans because if I have to stop to change, I’m just not going to do it.

4. Finding music: don’t let feeling bored by music stop you. Check out my Spotify and just randomly pick a list, hit shuffle, and move no matter what.

5. Boredom with how you’re moving: this is a big one and it happens to all of us, even me. We all hit points where we just feel like we’re repeating ourselves or nothing is happening that is interesting. This is where my videos can help (which are free) or make sure you’re in the sanctuary (which is free) to ask questions and get inspiration or take a class with me or schedule a one on one.

What other obstacles are you running in to? I would love to help figure out a way to work with them.