Giving Up

Giving up: 

there's some wisdom in giving up, more so, there's a deep joy discovered through the act of letting go of our personal involvement with certain aspects of life. Of course this is contrary to all we're ever told, from school age on we're urged to never give up and to keep striving forward in order to get ahead and create a life worth living. But I'm talking about a different surrender here, of giving up the thoughts that keep us bound within a paradigm of false identity...

of letting go of every belief that only serves the ego.

or at least to hold them lightly.

the truth is, or so it seems to me, it that it's all made up anyway, concepts that any life is better than another keep us trapped in the illusion of gain and loss. It certainly feels better to get ahead and to have a comfortable life. Yet striving for this alone is only a hollow feeling, devoid of any true meaning, filled with counting achievements and possessions. To give this up doesn't mean to lose anything, there's no need to get rid of anything or even to necessarily change the outer appearance of our daily lives. What we do...

is simply give up the idea that we're the doer of it all.

any of it.

and that we're not really in charge of how life unfolds. 

this is what the Tao urges - to give up our exclusive hold on the qualities we believe we are, and to live a life if inner simplicity, free of the concerns of the outer world. What we're asked to do is to give up concepts in order to life the actuality of life. 

and in that letting go...

we discover what we truly are.

free.

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Everything is Yoga Now

Also, please visit to buy: Tao of Letting Go

Everything is Yoga Now

Everything is yoga now: 

my early morning yoga routine is immediately followed by writing, and seamlessly now, they have become much the same in practice and outcome, with a feeling of stillness achieved without any undue effort from myself - and most importantly a sense of grace and beauty, if only briefly in a certain pose or perhaps a single written line. This all seems to stem from meditation, a continuous flow from cushion to the yoga mat and then reaching my desk as I sit and write.

everything has become yoga.

meditation.

a stillness known just beneath activities of body and mind.

this is Patanjali's yoga, cessation of the motion of the mind, for me, lasting only for a moment or so, a brief immersion into a sure and greater silence. But it's enough, with aftereffects that linger through my day and carries me through with equanimity and grace, inspired, and grateful for the day. There's really no sense of achievement here, it's not a place that I've arrived to, it's been here all along. My mind was simply too busy to ever noticed.

until most recently, with everything slowed down,

for whatever reason, 

and however it has happened...

everything is yoga now.

if only for a moment.

~

Peace, Eric

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Curiosity

Also, please visit to buy: The Tree of Yoga

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Curiosity

Curiosity: 

above all it's been curiosity, consistently appearing as an important theme throughout my life, giving cause for me to continue every path I've walked along. I believe motivation is important, being the right tool to get certain jobs done. More so for me is inspiration, that I seek to live an inspired life of high ideals and creativity, believing that the things I do have a depth of beauty and meaning to them even if only for myself alone. Yet it's curiosity that carries me along, knowing that life is a mystery with just a bit revealed each moment - and that further on, no matter what path I walk upon, 

mystery shows a little more. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: To Live From This Point

Also, please visit to buy: Seek

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To Live From This Point

To live from this point: 

to simply live my life from the point of inspiration, that's what I aspire to, and right now, it seems to largely be reality - perhaps not always perceived to be so, but that my life itself is arranged in such a way for this to be true. It's only a matter of realization. What I mean with this is that the entirety of my life is inspired through some greater force than my own limited understanding, it's spontaneous, and honestly it feels gifted to me, that somehow, through no effort of my own, I find myself alive, aware, and able to live a life of deep joy and appreciation. 

I'm inspired...

by simply being here,

as if a larger force, mysterious, has breathed me into existence.

and again, it's through no effort of my own.

with this I see that I've always been inspired, we all have, it's like we're an idea in the mind of God that has awaken to this reality, a realization that we belong within a greater system than we could ever possibly imagine. We, ourselves, are an inspired thought, and that's the key to freedom. 

our very source is inspiration. 

inescapable. 

and there's no real choice here,

 but to live from this point. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: That's Always Been the Lesson

Also, please visit to buy: Inspiration: Your Ultimate Calling

That's Always Been the Lesson

That's always been the lesson

for much of spring I have been hopeful of capturing a short video clip of a blue jay, they're quiet common and I see them daily on my walks all throughout the year. Yet for some reason I've been unable to get more than a glimpse of one on video, flirting off just as my camera aligns, frustrating my every effort. I had this same problem with cardinals earlier in the year and then suddenly they become quite cooperative. And now it's much the same with blue jays, almost as if they're demanding my attention and literally posing for the camera. 

as if their energy has now shifted in my direction.  

and all I had to do was be patient.

I love when this happens, that it's only when I'm ready to perceive the true beauty and message of nature is it surely revealed to me - every effort in between is simply the preparation to receive. That's the lesson for me, always, readying myself for that which I wish for, being energetically aligned with nature. So for the entirety of spring I just wasn't ready, not yet matched to the spirit of blue jays.

Until now...

this when they reveal themselves to me, for whatever reason I'm deemed worthy. Yet still I have to be careful, never over eager, being patient and slow moving. My role isn't to film, or not merely so, but to match my spirit with the blue jays and only then does the camera play into the moment, it's secondary to the holiness of the occasion - that right now, I am graced by the presence of a blue jay. 

my only true role is to appreciate beauty.

everything else is secondary.

and perhaps that's always been the lesson. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Opening to a New Healing

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Opening to a New Healing

Open to a new healing: 

it has a long title, both English as well as Sanskrit, wide legged forward bend is rather unwieldy but most definitely gets the point across while prasarita  padottanasna is more poetic in its rendering. By either name it has become a most beneficial pose for me, another one that has been glossed over before yet now emerges into a new light since a back injury has caused me to reexamine my practice. 

prasarita padottanasna is a lengthening pose, stretching the back, inner thighs and hamstrings as well as opening the hips, and as the head is below it's an inversion pose as well, offering many of the same benefits holding a headstand without any strain on neck or need of balancing. This is a forward bend that doesn't seem to stress my injured area much at all and has promoted blood flow to the area. I feel grateful to these asanas that have gained a new place within my practice, no longer being mere poses. I'm rediscovering the energetic essence of these asanas and prasarita padottanasana promotes a deeply calming sense of emotional and physical healing to me right now.

in so many ways my injured back has been a blessing, not one I would have chosen of course, but it has reawakened my practice in some very important areas. Every posture is examined as to how it will heal me, and in this way I need to view them all dispassionately, able to place favored poses aside and introduce one that may have been previously ignored. 

nothing is allowed to serve the ego any longer,

as I'm only seeking to be healed.

and what's discovered is how deeply wounded I am, not so much physically, but that years of practice may have actually glossed over emotional pain through my satisfaction of being able to hold pose. I built an entire practice on avoiding the most challenging asanas -

the ones that provide me so little room to hide.

in this light,

and through every pose...

I am now open to a new healing. 

~

Peace, 

Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Yoga of Coffee Making 

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Yoga of Coffee Making

Yoga of coffee making: 

a few weeks ago I wrote about updating my morning ritual with a coffee maker, of finally leaping into the world of brewed coffee, being easier, and perhaps better tasting as well. The current news is that this is not to be - with no fault due to the coffee maker at all, it just wasn't meant for my morning routine. The idea was that it would allow a more seamless flow to my yoga practice, as before I would break for a moment to put water on to boil, instant coffee, organic, and it requires some mindfulness to prepare. It wasn't that the easy action of turning on the stove distracted me, but I thought that perhaps I could devote even that small bit of extra time to my practice, deepening my commitment. 

here's what I discovered...

it's all yoga.

my entire ritual of morning, 

and that nothing is separate from my practice, there's a yoga of coffee making and it fits seamlessly into my asanas, requiring me to hold whatever mindfulness and poise developed on the mat to every other position of my life. There are no real distractions, only possibilities of attention, and that I can always bring the quality of my practice to any moment, my entire morning being yoga.

what I found is that I missed the yoga of coffee making, the entirety of the experience, adding teaspoons of instant coffee to my ancient mug, the whistle of the teapot calling for my attention, and the aromatic steam that greeted me as I poured. This doesn't need to be updated, only appreciated for everything that it offers - mindfulness, grace, and poise - being the same as any asana.

so I'm back to instant coffee, 

yoga in essence.

and enjoying the taste of my practice right now. 

~

Peace, Eric

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: No Small Gift

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No Small Gift

No small gift:

within in the first few hours of my YouTube channel being monetized, the first stage now, where I'm able to earn donations, and I received a gift of $2.00. After some money was deducted, I'm left with $1.40 and honestly, I couldn't be happier, actually, I'm ecstatic, that I have earned income from someone who appreciated the creative effort and content that I'm sharing with the world. 

amazing really,

and to know that this was gifted from a friend pleases me even more, to have a connection with a person that clearly believes in my effort is truly the greatest value. Since this moment I have earned a little more, small donations and each has such great meaning to me - this is the belief and support of people who have chosen to acknowledge my effort, representing the care of a community that wishes me the best. 

no small gift indeed.

$1.40 means the world to me. 

thank you, thank you, thank you. 

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Firmly Established

Also, please visit to buy: Radical Compassion

Firmly Established

Firmly Established: 

patience isn't my strong suit, it's not something that comes easily for me, at least for things and events I'm most excited for, enthusiasm often causing my mind to rush forward to an anticipated future and miss the joy of the present moment completely. Through the years though, with over decades of meditation and meditation practice, it's now become somewhat of a default mode for me, a more natural expression of being at ease with what's present. 

honestly, I'm just happier now.

and for me, that's been the magic of my practice, that my asanas were impossible to rush through, there had to be a base established firmly in the present moment and only then proceed to a postures full expression. With it being the same for meditation, patience was key for revealing my natural state of mind, clear and peaceful, but only as I repeatedly returned here from incessant roaming, gently recommitting myself to a mantras vibration and allowing it to pull me back home no matter how many times I night stray. 

my first meditation lesson was to be kind to myself.

and with that,

patience easily followed. 

that's the true value of my practice, returning to me starting pain as often as it's needed, being unafraid of starting over, and most importantly, at ease within the present moment - even if the moment holds no small degree of agitation, frustration, or any of the myriad forms that impatience shows. I can always choose kindness, as often as needed, a base that's now firmly established. 

patiently so. 

~

Peace, Eric

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Just Missed

Also, please visit to buy: The Art of Patience 

Thank you. 

Just Missed

Just Missed  

yesterday seemed like a day of just missing, at least filming wise and as far as nature was concerned. From being unable to track the exact location of the woodpecker offering a quick glimpse before quickly darting out of view, to the red fox that leapt from the bushes in its final stalk of either bird or squirrel - I was unable to capture any of it with my camera, arriving home with nothing more to share than what I'm writing this morning. 

and of course that's entirely the point of it all. 

just missing.

but it's the experiences itself that matters.

a camera is a wonderful tool, and I've fallen in love capturing unique aspects of my time in nature and sharing them with others. My attention has sharpen considerably with camera in hand, an open awareness that takes in the landscape of my surroundings and then instantly honing into a single prospect of a wonderful shot, as if nature grabs me by the mind and focuses all of my senses to the task of filming what is offered in the moment.

my camera is a mindfulness tool.

a zen lesson.

and so every miss is simply an observation meant for myself alone, of being deeply engrossed in the experience of seeing, sensing, quietly moving closer to what I seek to capture with my camera. There really are no missed opportunities - the experience itself was complete, whole, an organic gesture that fits complete to the moment. Not everything is meant to be captured with my camera. 

and the lesson here is that's enough to simply be here, 

present, 

aware. 

appreciating the experience, 

just missing and all. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: My Only Prayer

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My Only Prayer

My only Prayer: 

at first it was a practice, meaning that I had to purposefully remember both words and feeling for the simple phrase "thank you' as I awoke each morning, it was a ritual designed to invoke the presence of gratitude for the beginning of my day. This was inspired by the German mystic Meister Eckhart who once stated that if the only prayer one ever said in their entire life was thank you, it will be enough. So imagine if I started each day by cultivating that attitude of gratitude? 

indeed, that would be enough. 

and it is, honestly, I love this waking ritual of gratefulness, and it's no longer really a practice now, more of a spontaneous greeting to the morning and a parting salutation to the night. I'm awake, alive, with an abundance of air to draw breath from, ample sunlight to guide me through the day, and an atmosphere that supports my very existence. My body functions well, strong, even if there's a few aches from a high mileage life. I'm inspired, and my mind runs freely with ideas and inspiration. Each morning I wake with this prayer of thank you eager on my lips, natural now, appreciative for all that will follow through the course of my day. 

whatever that might be, as it's always a mystery to me.

even if it's familiar in its form.

no day is really ever quite the same.

yet each is a gift given.

and as it is with every gift, nothing is required but acceptance, an acknowledgement of grace and that something truly exceptional has been given. At first my morning prayer was a cultivated practice used to help me appreciate the everyday occurrence of this grace. But it wasn't long before this ritual turned into a spontaneous act of pure exuberance and joy - so many gifts given, infinite, and impossible to ever count them all. 

and so sincerely, I say thank you...

my only prayer,

and indeed, 

it seems enough. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Discomfort

Also, please visit to buy: Meister Eckhart's Book of Secrets

Thank you.

Discomfort

Discomfort: 

it's very often my least favorite pose that garners my attention and commitment, perhaps with an innate awareness that through this discomfort there is something valuable for me to experience. Sometimes the very asana that holds the most challenge soon becomes a favorite of mine. This isn't limited to a physical challenge, in fact, I'd much rather push through the limits of my body then deal with some of the emotional blocks that can keep me from experiencing a sense of comfort within a pose - with child's pose being one of the most recent examples. Of course these aren't two separate issues, it's the body, as I'm holding a certain posture, that triggers an emotional response,

and it's through the same asana that allows for me to heal. 

utkatasana, chair pose, is an asana that offers both a physical challenge as well as working through some deep emotions that have surfaced as I hold this posture. It's important to me here to not rush the breath, a careful mindfulness that allows my breathing to settle on it's own, relaxing into the posture with a sure and steady commit to explore what ever the moment now offers - even if it's physical discomfort, a rising sense of fear, or as most often in utkatasana, both confronting me at once for the length of five to ten breaths as I hold the pose. 

I should mention that this isn't the physical pain of injury, no, it's the discomfort of a physical challenge that takes me to the edge of what the body wishes to perform and holding that point for just a bit longer than Id like to. It's here that I surrender, and it's also the exact moment that those fearful emotions sharpen and urge me to abandon the pose early. This is the place for me to explore, using breath as a vehicle of surrender, simply relaxing through the waves of anxiety as often as I'm able. 

sometimes it's only for a single breath. 

most often 

more. 

allowing breath and body dictate how long I hold the pose 

at whatever point of my surrender,

and then ease back into a more relaxing posture.

just a moment of discomfort...

utkatasana.

and then on to the rest of my practice. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: As Well As My Surrender

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As Well As My Surrender

As well as my surrender: 

through the course of winter and now entering late spring, my yoga asana practice has come full circle to almost the same sequence as before I suffered an injury to my back. There's still a few poses that my body isn't quite ready for, and my approach is different, geared more towards a vinyasa flow, yet slower and with a mindfulness of towards the spontaneous energy found through the approach, hold, and release of every posture. It's done wonders for my back, healing, and feels to be exactly what I need right now, perfect in its timing. 

this has been greatly inspired by Kripalu yoga as presented by its founder Amit Desai who taught a version of hatha yoga that was bases on firm foundation from the ground up, mindfulness of alignment with an easy concentration on the breath. This is an inward flow of yoga, mentally relaxed and with a focus on the prana that's ever present through the body. Established in this commitment, there arrives a natural surrender of the mind to body and then further to complete absorption into the pranic energy. It all becomes a beautiful, spontaneous, natural expression of yoga. 

I'm not a student of Kripalu yoga, just inspired by it, the awe inspiring beauty of its surrender. I aspire to let my practice go and then be consumed by the subtle energy that even now I feel present within me. It feels as if every single asana is an entire sequence, from firm establishment of base, focused alignment, and then the breath itself takes over, prana, guiding me through the entirety of the pose. 

this finally feels like my yoga.

and all it took was an injured back...

as well as my surrender. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: My Own Unique Expression

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My Own Unique Expression

My own unique expression:

I'm not the most creative person on YouTube, having just a small channel and producing mostly nature shorts, sharing my workouts, and doing a live stream session several times a day where I talk about the things I'm most passionate about - meditation, yoga, breathwork, writing and all things related to these topics. It's fun, and I don't give much thought into being a content creator, there's no editing involved, not a lot of forethought into the process. 

I simply show up each day and share aspects of my life. 

that's the creative process, the true content, 

being alive, everything happening spontaneously, 

including my wish to share. 

and so I do.

in this way it's been really freeing, my life handles the details and I give myself freely to the process, easily so, and with little concern as to how others might view the content I share. YouTube is a means for me to communicate my passion for the things I love, a social media venue that allows a creative platform to whoever wishes to offer their own unique expression to the world. And this really appeals to me, that in my attempt to live a quiet, creative, and contemplative life - I can simply share it, maybe even creatively so, my own unique expression too...

offered to the world.

~

Peace, Eric

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Earliest

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Earliest

Earliest: 

sunrise is earliest of the year now, growing earlier still for another few weeks before the trend reverses in its order. So I have just a little time to bask within this morning light, capturing moments of its subtle beauty with a photograph or two, but mostly, simply appreciative for the warmer reach of sun and the opportunity to be witness to the dawn. 

of course this happens all through the year, sunrise is never absent.

but seeking solitude, a more quiet time in nature, my morning walks are usually cloaked in the dark, with only the briefest stretch through a certain time of year do I actually find myself in early light. So this is a cherished time of year for me, and I greet the sunrise as a participant, feeling as if the months of walking in the dark have prepared for this show of morning colors and a brighter world. 

and then slowly,

 the curve of time again begins to offer darkness. 

and it feels like the morning light has readied for this as well, that fully charged by the display of dawn it's now time to retreat to the trend of nature and continue walking through the coming seasons, whatever it is they might hold for me each morning.

yet, from the briefest stretch of earliest dawn...

I carry this light within. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Rhizomatic Path of Yoga

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Rhizomatic Path of Yoga

Rhizomatic path of yoga: 

yoga asks for only a little faith, just enough to cause a stir of hope that we could live a more fulfilling life, an easier way to navigate through an often troubled world. What's amazing is that it's an rhizomatic path, that we may enter at any one point of its eight-fold structure and later emerge in the exact place we need to be in order to reach that fulfillment. It's a path of true connection, at least if we stick with it, perhaps believing that we're simply focusing on a healthy body, stretching and becoming limber, and yet the reality is that we're opening to a more subtle energy, life altering, and that this will lead us to the next step along the way - whatever that might be. 

yoga, at it's best, is spontaneous in its flow.

and that's how it was for me, circular really, entering the rhizomatic path of yoga as a curious child, teaching myself postures from a book and only glancing at the ethics and breathing methods that were offered. A few years later it was meditation and one-pointed focus that captured my attention. My life became centered on my inner-world, breathing techniques and asanas were employed to deepen my concentration, allowing me to sit for longer periods of time. 

eventually, rhizomatically, I eventually found myself at the very beginning of the path, discovering how the principles of an ethical life not only lead to a greater sense of fulfillment, but also increases my capacity to follow the entirety of yoga. 

this is just how the path of yoga has unfolded for me. 

a lifetime of practice.

there's no wrong way, rhizomatically, we'll all enter at a certain point that calls to us the most, perhaps with a focus on asanas and breathing, or we wish to gain the peace that's offered through the means of meditation. It doesn't matter, not really, as a rhizomatic pattern is one where every point is open-ended, connected to the very next we need to be - and that is where our faith places in, just a little, to know that right now, at whatever point we find ourselves...

it's connected to the entirety of yoga.

rhizomatically.

whole. 

~

Peace, Eric

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Softest of Awakenings

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Softest of Awakenings

Softest of awakenings;

it's enough for me that life has given cause for these softest of awakenings to occur, no grand enlightening experience, only a sense of brokenness, of having been on the keen edge of loss and sorrow, and that this has allowed insights to appear through my own spacious nature. That's it really, that life has broken me open and nothing of certainty was found within, no true and lasting self that had a permanent grasp on anything at all. 

just an openness for the entirety of life to flow through.

it's not enlightenment, but it's an enduring love that's been present to me all along, unconditional in its hold, compassionate, and it's through these softest of awakenings that I'm able to find myself here, having never strayed from this truest sense of home. 

the truth is, I don't need to be enlightened, it's enough for me to softly awakened to this love, knowing that it's always present, and that life has brought me to this awareness through my every greatest loss, through my sense of brokenness and sorrow. 

in this softest of awakenings...

I find myself at home. 

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Transitory Shade of Green

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Transitory Shade of Green

Transitory shade of Green:

as I was out with my camera yesterday, looking for a daylight spotting of an owl that I knew was nesting nearby, and I suddenly found myself awash in the greenness of the the world right now, being nearly overcome by the intensity of color and fragrance of the season. I love this time of year, above all other times I adore the richness of this shade of green that's soon to reach its peak. What immediately struck me was that this season of green is even now changing, that at this exact moment autumn is already present in these leaves -

so I find myself as witness to the transitory shade of green.

and recall the lesson on suffering offered from  the Buddha,

urging me not to cling to any season.

as everything is in motion.

always.

and my world is never settled.

at this moment, in the depth and thickness of greenness, it's an illusion - what I'm truly seeing is the wavelengths of red and blue, absorbed by the chlorophyll within leaves and then reflected to me as my favorite shade of green, a gift really, received by eyes and soul. In the fall, chlorophyll breaks down and exposes this illusion, showing the brilliance of autumn colors already present in the leaves. Change, motion, is the only reality of every season. 

it's the lesson from the Buddha.

and so as witness to this transitory shade of green, I embrace the moment, loving it's illusory nature through the very richness of its color,

 and knowing that even now reality is offering me its reflection.

 refusing to cling, 

my love only deepens.

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Tested

Also, please visit to buy: The Fragrance of Emptiness 

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Tested

 Tested: 

what I love most about yoga is the honesty of its path, that I'm not asked to believe anything on faith alone but to explore what each step offers and see if it holds true for me. After spending my formative years in a religious school and taught that I must believe certain things (and disbelieve other things without question) only because it was written in a book long ago, or an authority figure told me it was so. Yoga provided a path that wasn't meant for me blindly follow, no, it was to be tested all along the way. 

decades later from that first step on the path of yoga...

and it remains the same. 

everything is tested to see if it still holds true. 

and life provides me with the answers.

mainly, it's the psychology of yoga that's tested, specifically the kleshas, or the five causes of suffering that I'm so often asked to examine. And it's not a teacher or guru that has me considering these principles, it's my own life giving cause for me to investigate the nature of my suffering. The kleshas don't make any demands for me to change anything, there's no denying any experience, nor measuring its validity. What's asked is that I bring a situation, beliefs and opinions, or even a mere thought to the light of awareness and simply see if it remains true through the lens of my inquiry. 

that's all. 

yoga is the path of mindful inquiry. 

it's to be tested.

all along the way,

~

Peace Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: Beavers Have Returned

Also, please visit to buy: The Kleshas 

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Beavers Have Returned

Beavers have returned: 

yesterday morning, just as first light softly begins to shows my local pond, and finally I catch a clear sight of my neighborhood beaver, or one of them at least, as I don't actually know how many there might be. It was enough to see one, thrilling me to the core, as after a long wait, decades really, it seems beavers have returned. 

I've written of this before, how beavers had made their way here by following a local stream, establishing a home, only to be removed by neighbors concerned about damage to the trees surrounding the pond, and possible issues concerning their property. Valid concerns, although studies suggest, as well as actual practice, that we're capable of controlling many of these problems and that a small, but thriving beaver community only adds value to the ecosystem if their activity is kept in check. Yet still they removed and we haven't seen them here since. 

until now. 

beavers have returned.

we saw signs for many months, gnawed trees, branches and larger limbs gathered along streams, and my hope began to rise. There are larger lakes nearby that support a thriving beaver population, and my small pond is connected by many streams that would provide a viable path for their return. And that's just what they did, a few at least, taking their time, and eventually reestablishing themselves here. We saw the signs, the story they told of their travel and presence, and now my local pond is a home for beavers. Again, and maybe this time they'll be allowed to stay. 

and this seems to be likely, as we see wildlife management teams working with controlling the damage of a beavers work, protecting many trees with wired fences, and many neighbors are happy to have them here, trusting that nature and wildlife officials will keep a healthy balance. So far that's the plan, and I really hope that we continue to welcome their presence. 

as they're magical to behold. 

last winter a caught just the briefest glimpse of one swimming near the edge of the pond. I wasn't even sure that it was a beaver as they're presence here wasn't yet confirmed and winter mornings are still quite dark on my earliest walks. But I was pretty sure it was and neighbors began to share their own sightings and encounters. So my morning walks throughout the winter kept me watchful for beavers, as well as my always hopeful search for owls, foxes, and the always elusive coyote. 

and yesterday morning, 

finally, 

another beaver sighting. 

this time on land, a small island, and I just missed being able to capture it on film. But I will, as each morning holds a but more sunlight, and I'm vigilant, approaching each walk as a possibility for magic to appear. And of course it always does, even without the sighting a beaver, there's a mystery to the morning, always a hint of possibilities. That's what draws me from my bed so early, an excitement that this day will reveal just a bit more of life's mystery's. 

and it does...

sometimes, 

even in the form of a beaver.

Peace, Eric 

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It's Ours

It's ours: 

my morning walks have become something to share, a unique expression offered through my camera lens, filmed for a nature short that's shown on my YouTube channel. Just several months ago I wouldn't have thought that I'd enjoy this, or even wish to share this sacred time with others. But holding a camera has brought a different perspective to me, an expensiveness really, showing me that this particular view, whatever it is I'm filming at the moment and discovered through my own curiosity and patience, is meant for others to discover as well. 

these walks don't belong to me alone.

the entire universe is involved.

this is actually truly humbling to consider, for all of us really, knowing that we each have to be in perfect arrangement to capture what is shown right now. For me, this brings me in as a participant, convincing me that I'm not merely an observer to what unfolds, but that I belong to the scenery as well, part of the integral order of things, implicit, and that even though I might be alone in filming, everyone else belongs here too, the entire universe conspiring for this exact moment to appear. 

so there's little choice but to share it.

whatever is seen, any small and new discovery, 

doesn't belong to me alone.

it's ours.

~

Peace, Eric 

To read more from Headless Now, please visit: An Important Insight on Perspective 

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An Important Insight on Perspective

An important insight on perspective: 

this is a cautious time of year for me during my early morning walks, it's still dark, dawn not quite light not quite touching the eastern sky, and the geese that live on my nearby pond are now fully aggressive in protecting their newly hatched young. I've already had a few encounters with them this season, all of which ended with my full retreat from a hissing mother and finding a new route to complete my circuit around the pond. My goal, as I approach them, is to allow as much distance between us as possible, but sometimes the landscape narrows my choices and I'm forced  to quickly, ease my way around them. 

often they are most gracious in letting me pass through. 

while at other times, 

an aggressive stance is taken. 

I do my best to avoid this, not only because of a sincere wish to not be goose pecked and wing beaten, but mostly with deep respect for the geese, both male and female in full protective mode and willing to attack anything they perceive as being threatening. That's an important love they have, instinctive, an evolutionary response to keep their brood from harm. In comparison, my walk means far less to me, or at least the direction that I've chosen, a course that's easily altered with only a minor inconvenience. It just doesn't seem so important, and I would hate to waste a goose's precious energy on the false threat of my presence. 

it's easier more compassionate, to simply give them all the distance they deserve. 

and not force my way on nature. 

there's room for us all. 

this seems a keen to consider, that what might be taken lightly by me is an all important, indeed life altering to another creature, goose, human, or otherwise. A protective goose teachers me to see the world from the eyes of another, lessening my self-importance, and not insisting that every goes my way. Imaging having such devotion for your care that you would readily put your life on the line, confronting any perceived threat, no matter its size, and someone taking this instinctual love so lightly, being unwilling to even give an inch in your direction. Seen in this light, from the perspective of a protector - the most compassionate thing is to simply go around, providing them the comfort of space, and wishing every gosling a long and healthy life. 

it's an easy enough thing for me to do. 

and an important insight on perspective. 

~

Peace, Eric 

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Immediately Yoga

Immediately yoga: 

my day is almost immediately yoga, right from my initial smile of greeting a new morning, thankful for having awakened, I am then sitting in sukhasana, an easy pose for breathwork and meditation and the first asana of my practice. This is a gentle pose, a slight stretch of knees and hips while lengthening the spine for the rise of morning energy. Often, I feel like I could sit in this asana forever, as if Lord Shiva in full lotus, deep in meditation as the day begins to unfold around me. 

of course it's usually for only 30 minutes, and towards the end my knees are just then reminding me of age and a lifetime of many miles behind them. But I love this posture and how it's a reminder that my day is almost immediately yoga, an asana of instant transformation from a sleep-filled mind to the awakening of a brand new day. 

it's an asana of promise. 

an easy pose.

yet the posture itself is less important than the intent that urges me to sit in meditation - and with this in mind even the edge of my bed will do, or a straight back chair for greater comfort. There's no magical posture for awakening, although, yes, sukhasana certainly holds an energetic spell on me. But honestly, I think it's that initial smile that plays across my lips that is the true essence of yoga, it signifies a grateful shift from darkness to the morning light. This smile is the essence of yoga, most truly my first asana of the day, an easy pose too, spontaneous, and arriving instantly to my lips each morning.

immediately...

yoga. 

~

Peace, Eric 

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Silence, and a Smile

Silence, and a smile: 

a few days ago I was asked a curios question that's still playing through my mind, with new answers even now arriving as my thoughts expands long after it was initially posed. Those are the most important questions it seems, not being able to settle on a particular answer but having it as an inquiry that has us considering the infinite possibilities of the mysteries involved. There really are no answers to such opened ended questions, that's the nature of any inquiry, how we're always expanding through the profound implications of simply asking - and letting go of any need to really know an answer. 

and the question itself was fairly straight forward to consider - asking if I were able to communicate with my 25 year old self, is there any advice that I would offer, or message to deliver. Of course my mind immediately sought wisdom, what have I learned through the last several decades that might possibly make life any easier, or more successful. Reflecting more deeply, I began to dismiss every bit of advice I might give myself, no amount of information would enhance my life any further than it is right now, and there's little comfort in knowing what the future holds, even if it might seem brighter than where we are at this present moment. Why would I deny myself any of the experiences that have brought me here? They would only be replaced by other events, different tragedies, there would still be loss and sorrow, as well as all the joys and success that life delivers.

Here's what I would offer my former youthful self...

silence,

and a smile.

knowing that one day - 

he'll begin to understand this mystery. 

~

Peace, Eric 

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My Soul Expands

My Soul Expands:

it's a theory, not yet shown to be absolutely true, but I love to consider it just the same - that the earliest sounds that greet on my earliest morning walk, the dawn chorus of multiple songbirds, serve at a frequency that cause plants to expand their stomata - a mouth like opening - in order to receive the micro-nutrients that have settled on their leaves. It's a beautiful symphony of notes played at a specific vibration that brings the full ovation of a flowers bloom. There doesn't seem to be a consensus with any proof of this theory, and it matters little to me if the scientific community shows this to be true.

as my world expands each morning to their song.

this too is my cause to bloom.

what we know is that we're aligned to the fractal patterns of nature, our eyes instantly adjusting to these self-replicating designs and the brain producing an alpha-wave awareness that settles us in a peaceful state of mind. Stress has been shown to be measurably reduced as significantly as 60% within moments of our exposure to these patterns. So why not sounds as well? We're not removed from the dawn-chorus offered by songbirds, our own frequency shifting in delight with even the first few notes that our ears receive. My own observation seems to show that the entirety of my being anticipates this song, already expanding in a state of curiosity and wonder.

so,

what I know for certain is that the dawn-chorus offers me its song...

and in this certainty,

my soul expands in a joyful blossom.

~

Peace, Eric 

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