Poetry 2.0

You

by Ashleigh Roberts

If there’s a star for every person,

for you I’d pick the brightest one

The blinding sun could never outshine

its light, nor a cloud get in its way

For you, my love, you brighten even the darkest of nights 

and enlighten each day 

I’ve always been more fond of the 

stars above the sun

And, of course, you over everyone

Poetry 1.0

But

by Ashleigh Roberts

I love when people share for they plant a seed

I love books but I hate to read

I love the stars but favour the moon and sun

I love sleep but from my dreams I’ve run

I love aloneness but hate the loneliness 

I love people but hate missing them; nolstalgia is a mess

I love to sing but my tar-filled lungs don’t think too much of it

I love music but I gave up on it

I love to write stories but most of them get lost in my memory

I love travel but hate that it’s temporary 

I love happiness but hate that it’s something you choose

I love poems but they give me the blues

I love hitting the golf ball but hate filling each divot 

I love my life but distaste my inability to live it

How To BE in a Society That Can't Stop DOING

It's been a while since I typed up a storm, my apologies. With that being said,  here's an appropriate thought.

The other day I found myself with nothing to do, I ended up listening to the song quoted above by Passenger and I was inspired to write about my findings. This topic is something I've been leading up to at some point because there are few people in this world that can't be quiet with themselves, the world and can just stop for a while.

There is so much to get done, so much money to be made or perhaps so much hope of money-making. Either way, whatever we are doing; we are constantly doing...

When we stop speaking so much, we begin to hear. This was explored in my previous post. So to add to the idea of eliminating one sense to appreciate, let's explore allow all the sense to withdraw to notice the silence and the space where we can do nothing and just allow everything.
This is known as meditation, which can actually not be done. It can only happen if we create the opportunity. Through practice it begins to happen more and more where eventually we stop needing to do so much, we are able to quieten, feel, explore, relax for once and be.

When we push to do too hard, it pushes back. We fight so hard for work that cannot even find it. We want something so bad, we seek so hard and walk straight passed it. We get something we like and squeeze so hard it breaks.
The art of letting go and releasing the activity of doing, invites keeping and finding more. It's such a game, isn't it? But I've found it to be true.

Stress is the one of the biggest indirect killers in this world. Through stress, we find malnourishment, poor mood, ailments, dis-ease and disease. Making it the root cause of many problems today.

Why do we stress? Of course, when we are struggling to cope with how much we have to do, the people we have to look after and how will can succeed in doing so, how we will provide a life for ourselves, keep the wife/husband happy (and the in-laws :D) or keep the job you finally managed to secure (or is it?)... The list is endless. There are so many people suffering in our world and there is always room to stop, breathe and heal.

We were not born to stress. We were born to breathe, love and enjoy what this life has to offer. We don't allow ourselves the time to take a minute and appreciate all that we have and accomplished. We don't stop to rest and let our hearts and bodies heal.

We are merely humans trying to be, but we were born human beings. Let's get back.
1.) When you find yourself drowning in tasks, stop, sit down, close your eyes and breathe for 10 long breaths. You will find yourself more motivated and energetic to get your tasks done.
2.) When you are bored and have nothing to do, don't jump into doing anything too quickly. Don't go and watch TV or listen to music to fill up the space. (Music is constantly playing around me, so for me it's turning it off for a little while). Notice how it feels to sit in the sun or under a tree and remember that this is the best way a person can positively waste their time. You'll see how things start coming to you and all of a sudden, you have lots to do. But wondering around aimlessly will bring you nothing. Believe me.
3.) Rest. Lie down for a moment. Maybe even with your feet at the pillows and stare at a different part of your bedroom. Close your eyes for a second, without any intention of going to sleep, but just spending time looking within.
4.) Practice Yoga and Meditation. If it comes to you, let it come. If it's not there, let go and see what you find tomorrow. Every day is different. Rid yourself of what you carry and empty out to refill and renew on your next in-breath.
5.) Have a quiet day, speak less, do less.
6.) Procrastination is also doing, so I am not saying forget your responsibilities. Just merely, take some time to learn something about yourself and feel what's really going on inside.
7.) Is a great number.

Notice how your voice softens and quietens naturally. Maybe we will all stop shouting.

Love & light
Ashleigh

The Awareness Exercise

hello again, you lovely sets of eyes. it's time for a second entry! i hope this read may bring you something new and an opportunity for expansion in your life.

so speaking of new and expansive; i've been brainstorming about blog post ideas over the passed month. by brainstorming, i mean lying in my bed contemplating 'snoozing' my alarm, throwing some food around my kitchen and/or drifting away with the breeze on any given Thursday afternoon. out of all the crazy topics (and what not) that scramble through my head by this said 'brainstorming'; i've decided to let this topic be the allocated subject i'm going to share with you this month. 

firstly, i'd like to introduce the term "awareness", as well as, the term "you".

what do you think about the above words? what comes to mind? 

well, what i've found to be true is that these terms are one in the same. awareness is the pure essence of who we are. we are the awareness that perceives the world around us. practicing who we are really are is to practice awareness. it is often difficult to step into our true natures and step out of what distracts us from noticing the silence within and the awareness that we are. life just goes and we go with it. but what do we notice along the way? do you live your life aware of what is happening around you and in the hearts of others? are you really waking up each morning?

so for the crux- there are many ways to shift back into the space of who we really are, such as practicing meditation, yoga, breathing techniques, isolation for a period of time, getaways and retreats, deep relaxation exercises etcetera. 

there is one in particular, i was inspired to give a go after watching a series i've been hooked on for the passed month where (spoiler alert) the protagonist becomes blind in an accident and then regains her sight again. 

PAUSE. semi-review vibe for a second; it's brilliant. check out The OA. 

i was also inspired by a yoga class i attended where we were each blindfolded for the duration of the practice and had to rely on our other senses to flow through the sequence and not end up in the garden. let me tell you, balance is not a reality without sight. well, unless your core is a powerhouse of note! 

this brought to mind the exercise of isolating one sense and depriving myself of it in order to expand the awareness of my other senses. i've been dying to visit a sensory deprivation tank for a while now, but for now, i've been busy starving one and feeding my other senses around the house. 

hence, after experiencing an enlightening euphoria and awakening; i'd like to invite you to pick one sense to starve each day for five days until you've done all of them and notice how it feels to heighten your attention on the other four senses while the one is switched off.

personally, it was so rewarding to invite the chosen sense to wake up again and experience an intense gratitude, for example, to regain sight after being in the dark for a day. 

give it a try. 

try a blindfold, earplugs, fast for the day (fasting is also useful in switching on your body's natural ability to scan for any ailments or illnesses in your body and then heal them without the distraction of food and energy being used on digestion. #topic to be posted about soon!), a noseplug, numbing cream or an ice bath until you can't feel your skin- haha, i don't know! be creative! 

let me know what you think and how/if this exercise affects you. 

love, light & awakening. 

Introduction

welcome to my blog.

i can imagine blog-reading or reading in general is a tedious and rather reluctant activity for the most of you that have offered your support by opening this post. i know this because i am, too, a victim of how entertaining Facebook shares, memes, videos and Instagram posts are far quicker and satisfying than a long article on "how the grass is not always greener on the other side".
so i will do my best to offer quick reads yet informative and interesting (hopefully at least one of the two for the most part).

as i am a Reiki practitioner- soon-to-be master, Yoga teacher (200hr Vinyasa), health enthusiast, poet (if i may?), nature lover, self enquirer, hug dealer, vegetarian, South African and soon-to-be scholar; i would like to offer this blog as a platform where i may share my findings as a fellow human. excuse the soon-to-be's, the year has only just begun, remember?
through this blog, i do not intend to convince anyone, push anyone towards or away from any mentioned beliefs or truths. but to evoke your attention to certain elements floating around us. what are we without questioning? let this be the fine print. these are my opinions and my own truths until the next idea makes more sense or until death brings me awakening. all i really know is that i know nothing, which is probably the most exciting feeling in the world. we are all looking for answers, so as for the ones that may visit my tornado mind- i may as well express them somewhere. there are endless opportunities for us to expand through sharing. so here goes...

how are your plans, values and adventures for the year looking? did the New Years resolutions you spoke of at the dinner table scare you half to death or excite the living rainbows out of you? are you surrendering to what 2017 is bringing you or making your own plans?

as an initial post, i'd like to share a little on excitement. new beginnings, of course. January has just disappeared on me, i don't know how the rest of you feel? but whoa, can we stop for a quick smoke break or something?
as far as i'm concerned, the universe has proven yet again that i am not in control as much as i try to prove. university applications answered through guessing thanks to current affairs, a.k.a striking. my country is dramatic (to say the least). deciding on experience over money. taking a step backwards in order to move forwards. you name it!
confusing times arrive in a haste at the opportunity of a fresh start. the new year and the pressure to make it better than last is never an easy time.
however, in terms of excitement, it is a suitable season to be excited. now, i'm not speaking of the excitement you feel when you are about to eat a slice of chocolate cake or take a spontaneous road trip to the seaside. i'm speaking of pure, passionate excitement. not the type that calls for any conflict, confusion or contemplation whatsoever. we all know deep down that that piece of cake is not good for our cholesterol or the firm booty we've been working on. so go on and scrap that idea.

for a long time now- as an almost-21-year-old, it's obviously quite normal- i've been trying to figure out what i want to do with my life. we can't actual tell by the time we are are choosing our subjects to specialize in during High School nor until we are actually waking up to the task of actually doing it everyday. and i'm not referring to my childhood dream of becoming rich and famous. i'm talking about something that matters, something that is kind. the answer came to me when i reminisced sitting on a ferry from Koh Phangan to Koh Samui in Thailand last year when i was returning home from my Yoga Teacher Training course. i sat next to a man who mention such excitement to me and it later proved to be my answer.

here is a memo i saved on my phone the other day after remembering his provocative statement about an excitement that you can trust: (time to preach, whoop!)
if you want to find your calling then follow what excites you. don't follow false direction, especially money or pleasing those you allow into your space. don't be distracted by what you think is best either; follow what you know deep inside. don't look at the the external for help in finding what it is that you love, spend time with yourself and find the love from within. if you follow the excitement, you will always excel and you always be rich. the LIVING kind of rich. the universe will ultimately thank you for letting it- essentially you- do the work. trust and allow your inner vision to reveal to you where your true passion lies. the world will distract you; be a rebel- allow and follow your fire.

so the question is not about what you want to do with your life or with this year we so readily put a number on like we own it. but rather, how do you want to be this year? excited?... i know i do!

(sorry, i may have lied about the whole brief post thing, but that is subject to what you think is long ;D)
love & light.