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

Also, please visit to buy: The Shaman's Body

Thank you. 

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 

Also, please visit to buy: Emotional Yoga

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

Also, please visit to buy: The Coffee Bean

Thank you. 

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

Also, please visit to buy: Seeing With Your Own Eyes

Thank you. 

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.