GLORIA ROUBAL'S DAILY HAND GENERATED TYPE PHRASE #176

Jack Kornfield is one of my spiritual teachers. His books and CDs have been so important and valuable to me in my spiritual path, especially when it comes to his guided meditations for difficult times. I take such comfort in his voice, his gentleness, his wisdom, and his great compassion. I have learned so much from him and continue to do so. I'm so grateful for Jack Kornfield and my other spiritual teachers.

For some reason I was thinking about him today, and I decided to search for poignant quotes. When choosing a quote for my daily phrase, I do tend to look for short ones for obvious reasons. This quote is really the beginning of a longer quote found on goodreads.com.

Here is the entire quote:

“Let go of the battle. Breathe quietly and let it be. Let your body relax and your heart soften. Open to whatever you experience without fighting.” 

        ― Jack Kornfield, A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life




Here is a photo of and brief bio about Jack Kornfield found on his website (jackkornfield.com):

a bow of welcome to you

Jack Kornfield is one of the leading Buddhist teachers in America. A practitioner for over 40 years, he is one of the key teachers to introduce mindfulness and vipassana meditation to the West. His approach emphasizes compassion, lovingkindness, and the profound path of mindful presence, all offered in simple, accessible ways in his books, CDs, classes, and retreats.

GLORIA ROUBAL'S DAILY HAND GENERATED TYPE PHRASE #175

Happy Birthday, Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone! He was born in 1814 on this day (November 6), which would make this his 201st birthday. He invented the saxophone in 1846.

If you look for a "holiday" on just about anything or for a particular day these days, you'll find it. Today I was searching for a holiday on today's date, and up came Saxophone Day (unfortunately spelled "Saxaphone Day"). So, at the dismay of my saxophone-playing husband, I'm recognizing the "fake" holiday of "Saxophone Day" in my daily phrase. It's really to honor Adolphe Sax. :)

For a little background for those who are interested, this is from today's Google Doodle blog:

"If you were alive in the mid-nineteenth century and had a particularly keen ear for music, you might have noticed a void somewhere between the brass and woodwind sections. Adolphe Sax certainly did, and being both a talented musician and the enterprising man that he was, he started tinkering and endeavored to fill it. The result was the iconic, honey-toned instrument still bearing his name: the saxophone.

The son of an instrument-maker, Sax was highly creative and had a deep understanding of brass and woodwinds. He started tinkering with instruments of his own, and upon bringing together the body of a brass and the mechanics of a woodwind created a hybrid that would revolutionize music. His eponymous saxophone had a sound all its own, a wonderfully smoky middle ground between the two.

The Saxophones that were popularized by the likes of John Coltrane, Lisa Simpson, and Kenny G constitute only a fraction of his impressive body of work. From the whimsical looking 7-bell trombone to the large and swooping saxtuba, Sax never tired of exploring, experimenting, and creating new—and sometimes unusual—instruments."

GLORIA ROUBAL'S DAILY HAND GENERATED TYPE PHRASE #174

This photograph, to me, is absolutely stunning. The phrase just quickly came to me in the first two seconds of seeing it. I don't even know what it is about this color in the sky that affects me so. It's also the beauty of the composition. The clouds, the trees, the moon... all of it. I have no idea what kind of processing was used, but I don't care. It's absolutely gorgeous and I could stare at it for hours.

That is all.

GLORIA ROUBAL'S DAILY HAND GENERATED TYPE PHRASE #173

I wrote this song some years ago, but I still play it live with my wonderful music partner, Paul Sabuco. I love that he loves the song; it makes it even more fun to play and sing.

Have you ever loved someone so much that you were willing to do absolutely anything for them, even at the cost of yourself? Not healthy, I know... but have you ever been there? Well, that's what this song is about.

LISTEN to "Shatter Me" on Reverbnation

"Shatter Me" LIVE at the Canopy Club VIDEO

Lyrics:

SHATTER ME (lyrics, music, and all recordings of the song—copyright Gloria Roubal, a.k.a. G. Lee)

You know I'd do anything you asked me to
I would even let you shatter me
Sun and moon shining down to comfort me
Very soon I will be on my feet again

Broken apart but gently reassembled
Makes my scars grow stronger every day
Every start comes with an ending
Battered heart still beating, still okay

Shatter me
Shatter me

I'm highly capable of putting myself together
But I would do anything to make this feeling last
I'm easily able to put it all together
But I would let it stay in pieces if this could linger on forever

Coming undone can be worth the feeling
Then I can get on and repair my sunken soul
I will leave a trail of crumbs for you to find me
So you can bury me once again

Shatter me (oh, I will let you)
Shatter me (I will let you shatter me)
Shatter me (Just pick up all my pieces when you're finished)
Shatter me (Pick up all my pieces when you're finished if you shatter me)

GLORIA ROUBAL'S DAILY HAND GENERATED TYPE PHRASE #172

Do you ever look up at the sky at night and get all caught up? Sometimes I do. It's so fascinating. It's really difficult—if not impossible—to fathom what we're seeing when we look at the stars. We're seeing things that happened millions of years ago. We're seeing things so far away, we can't even begin to imagine. One of the things I think about is what it must have been like for early people to look up and see these heavenly bodies, not having any idea what they were, which was a source of religious beliefs, myths, and other ways people came up with ways to explain the unexplainable.

I still love to find constellations. I only remember a few, but it's still so cool to see Orion's belt, the Big Dipper and Little Dipper, and a few others I can recognize.

So when you look up at the night sky, just ponder these things. And ponder the fact that we all see the same heavenly bodies when we look at the night sky. So beautiful.

PS Be sure to visit Unsplash.com when you can. There are so many cool photos there, and you can download them and use them free of charge, free of licensing! High resolution! :)

Gloria Roubal's Daily Hand Generated Type Phrase #171

Today my friend Miriam's dog, Frida, died. She died peacefully in Miriam's arms. I felt such sadness, such grief, such helplessness when I learned of her passing. I knew it was coming. Due to a common problem with Dachshunds' spines, Frida suddenly became paralyzed from the low back down, and it was a matter of days between this happening and today when she died. You just never, ever know how long anyone is going to be here. I hope Frida didn't suffer, and I send love and light to Miriam and her family. May Frida be at peace. I think I will cry myself to sleep tonight.

GLORIA ROUBAL'S DAILY HAND GENERATED TYPE PHRASE #170

Today is the very special Mexican holiday, "Day of the Dead," or "Día de los Muertos." I have always loved the art that I've seen associated with this day, but I've never (until now) researched it to understand the meaning of the holiday. It's really quite interesting and meaningful.

During this time, "the boundaries between life and death begin to blur. Men, women and children of all ages honor and celebrate their loved ones who have passed away, participating joyously in a festival that has roots nearly 4000 years old." (source: http://www.art-is-fun.com/day-of-the-dead/)

The purpose is to remember, honor, and show great respect and love to one's family members who are deceased. Elaborate altars are created, fancy food is prepared, and offerings of many kinds are placed out for the spirits of these ancestors.

One of the beliefs is that that Heaven's gates open at midnight on the 31st of October, and the spirits of all deceased children—angelitos—are allowed to reunite with their families for one day (24 hours). What a wonderful belief!

There is much more to this special day, including the history of the art associated with it, such as the sugar skull. Rather than try to summarize any more of it, just visit the links below if you're interested in learning more about Día de los Muertos. It's really cool.

These sites are worth checking out. :)

http://latino.si.edu/dayofthedead/
http://www.mexicansugarskull.com/support/dodhistory.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day_of_the_Dead

Image found on: http://www.crafthubs.com/browse?tip=day-of-the-dead