rise and root

***

~*~*~*~



The Flame Haired Solstice Dreamer

Cold winter brings the Everfrost and jewels every tree
In a forest new as birth and old as old can be
A flame~haired dreamer wanders there and shelters from the wind
And spins her dreams around the trees to break the ties that bind
She takes her thread and spins anew and how the Greenwood smiles
As she spins a spell for freedom and for her spirit Wylde

The dreamer finds an ancient oak and shelters in his lee
In a forest new as birth and old as old can be
Tis summer now and birdsong weaves its magick through her spells
And humming bees drum drowsily in the foxglove's bells
The dreamer sits beneath the oak with yarn upon her knee
And spins and knits and weaves her dreams and sets her spirit free

***
"When birds fall from the sky and the animals are dying, a new tribe of people...shall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, who by their actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. they will be known as the warriors of the Rainbow"

Hopi Prophecy

~of soft things & yoga~


now i have been looking for the right shawl/wrap for ages

oh i have lots of scarves~i feel undressed without them~of different sizes and colours and patterns, but what i have been searching for was something huge that i could snuggle into~much like a large thin blanket~but that wasn't a blanket. something i could wear out and it not be obviously seen as a blanket.

in fact when i was in new york a few years ago i had found a wonderful wool paisley wrap in macy's, however when i saw the price tag i sadly walked away.

i have also seen some wonderful vintage ones on a certain online site but they have also been an awful lot of money.


but yesterday i found something soft, beautiful and blanket sized...




i wish you could feel it, it is so soft and the pattern and colour so beautiful~reminds me of the arts and crafts movement

but do you know something?

it's really a largish throw, maybe for artfully draping over a sofa or bed bought in ikea!

however in my mind, after seeing the colour, pattern and feel of it i knew it had to be mine and to be used as a large shawl/wrap.
and it wraps around and hangs beautifully and feels so cosy.

so remember~things can be utilised for use other than that they were designed for!

~*~*~*~

if like me you are somewhat eclectic then you may enjoy hel looks which is a 'street style blog from helsinki'.
when i came across this blog~goodness knows how, but i am glad i did~i think i spent a whole day going through the archives and seeing how much imagination is there on the streets of helsinki.
it made me want to pack my bags and flee to such a wonderfully creative place and sad to say it made me feel somewhat dis-satisfied in that these days, in this country, there are smaller concentrations of the wonderfully, eclectic.

maybe i am getting old but i find myself thinking back to my teens and early twenties when lots of different 'cultures' seemed to exist along with many different styles of music and looking eclectic was almost the 'norm'.
now when i walk through a town or occasionally a city i seem to be surrounded by a boring hegemony (i am not really using this in the right context but i think you know what i mean) and i am sad to say, but the new forest, especially my village, is not a place for the individual, the wild and wacky eclectic~and what few there are are not seen much.

here in the village there are two (not counting me~yes really, two!) people who do not fit into the general conservative mould and stand out like shining beacons of general oddness~one a man who has lived here many a year and has dreadlocks and a lady i passed one day as i was walking out of the village. she was generally dressed like me and maybe because of this our eyes locked and a little message, an acknowledgement of our differentness possibly, passed between us.

~*~*~*~

now there was something else i was going to pass comment on, but you know i have rambled on so much it has clean gone from my mind!

that will teach me for rambling...

solstice dreamer watches Le Tour while trying to remember...

ah i remember!

yoga

tina asked about yoga and i mentioned in comment that i had found a local yoga teacher.

i have been practicing alone for many years.

when i was about 15 or 16 i came across a yoga book of my dad's~a very funky sixties one~and i remember trying to follow the poses, not very well i might add, but fell in love with the whole idea of it.
as the years passed i dipped in and out.
in the late eighties/early nineties i found a book on yoga specifically for the different stages of a woman's life (i have searched my books high and low and cannot find it, i can only think it is with other books at my mum's) and of course then came videos' and following hot on its heels dvd's.

with the onset of m.e my practice wavered, stopped, started, wavered, stopped when my fibro started and then i started again.
slowly and carefully and with a few complete stops.

but yoga has never left my heart and i have always flicked through old copies of my different yoga magazines when the spirit seemed to waver.
recently my practice has become more regular again and with it the urge to find a local teacher and join a group of like minded people.

so i 'googled' once...

now there are plenty of yoga teachers and classes around here, some of them are held at one of two yoga studios in southampton and looking at their websites i have never felt i would be comfortable there.

but yesterday, inspired by my magazine i decided to 'google' twice, this time for 'new forest yoga teachers' and had this moment of serendipity

don't you think this is the most beautiful and welcoming web site?

so i e-mailed the teacher for some more information and so i am now waiting to hear back from her

and do you want to know the funny thing?

not only are all her classes within five miles of my little roundhouse but she lives only moments away from me!

~i feel so excited~




7 comments:

MorningAJ said...

Your new shawl/blanket looks lovely. I'm an Ikea girl. Love their stuff and not just as furnishings. I'm sure it'll give a lot of service.

Rowan said...

I'm glad that you've found your 'shawl', it will be great when the cooler weather comes.

Rose said...

I had to laugh when I read the yoga website, it so as if it was written exactly for you! I love the fact you are repurposing that throw, comfort is such an important thing....

I guess there might be a few closet alternative types around. I think I would fit that category... I look normal. I wear my jeans and polo shirt to work as specified but in my heart I look very different. Not just thinner but much more colourful too...

Tina said...

Wow, it is great that you found a yoga teacher that close to you! Looking forward to hearing from your lessons. Had searched for yoga on the www some time ago and thought I hadn’t found anything good, today this was totally different and I think I’ll give it a try with videos from the web. Thanks for giving that hint that is so obvious nowadays… don’t know why is was too blocked to give it another try.

Pixie said...

LoVE LOVE LOVE your blog, makes my heart all warm.
And wonderful to meet another birkie wearer, i shall be making myself some herbal tea later and have a good old read of your site when i can put my feet up and relax, lovley to meet and find you.
Also another Rima fan too...brilliant...
Pixie 'crafte nook' x

Lightly Enchanted said...

The yoga website looks wonderful, really hope it works out for you. I used to practise yoga as a child from an unused copy in my parents house too. Have let it slip lately due to ill health and very busy life but have been trying to reintroduce it in the form of gentle family yoga which includes the children... has been a lot of fun.

Really love your shawl / blanket, it is very beautiful :D

Unknown said...

oh that wrap/blanket looking very inviting and sweet pattern too.

so fortunate to find a local yoga teacher, i would love to have classes nearby.... not that icould attend right now, with a little one, but still...

All things share the same breath~the beast, the tree, the man, the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports.



Chief Seattle






Johney Gaul~1915

Johney Gaul~1915
1890-17 september 1918~France