Every once in a while I venture off the yoga, breathing, stress relief subjects to something that has very little (at least at the onset) to do with yoga. This is one of those cases.
Several years ago, my dear friend who lives in Juneau, AK introduced me to Margaret Feinberg’s books: Organic God, Sacred Echo and now this, her latest creation: Scouting the Divine. Whether you call yourself a Christian or someone who’s spiritual or maybe someone who is seeking, exploring, learning about God, life, what we’re doing here…this is a treat!
Margaret spends time with a shepherdess, a winemaker, a beemaker and a farmer to really explore all those analogies and images in the Bible about sheep, vines, honey and working the land. The nuisances and discoveries she finds by sitting down with and getting into the daily lives of these modern-day versions of ancient vocations are rich and insightful.
I read Scouting the Devine on my Kindle while we were away in this little town in Missouri…ironically, we visited a winery on our trip which made my reading all the more timely. I can’t tell you how many times I yearned to have a physical book that I could bend the corner and make notes in…(lesson learned for you Kindle folks out there – sometimes you need the paper book still)
So…how is this like yoga? First of all, I guess it doesn’t have to be…I reserve the right to blog about things non-yoga. But if I really ponder the comparisons…Margaret’s book is about taking verses and stories that some of us have read numerous times and some of us haven’t read at all…and turning them over, around, upside down and looking at them in a different way for an “ah-ha” or an insight that we didn’t have before. Each time we step on our yoga mat, it’s a new day, a new moment. Hopefully, that means that something about that experience feels new and unique as each day and each one of us is unique.
Maybe you get a new insight or feeling in a pose.
Maybe a new idea or thought comes to you as you’re quiet and still with your breath.
Maybe you feel a new sense of acceptance and peacefulness with your body, its strengths and limitations…
Maybe it has nothing to do with yoga. Go ahead and explore Scouting the Divine….and you tell me (fyi – you can get the best deal on a hard copy autographed book at her website).
I have one in the morning to give me a boost, especially when I have morning classes to teach. When I was on a cleanse, I would have a couple of hemp powder smoothies a day and they really kept my energy level going. I know some may have some questions about hemp — here’s more information for you who may be snickering:
