"Consider the wizened man in India," my yoga teacher said last night. "Day after day, he spends long hours chopping tree bark into tiny pieces, so as to extract its essential oils. The work is arduous, but the old man doesn't suffer. With oiled muscles loose and fluid, he invites the axe to do its work."
Thank you, Megan Lurie McCarver, for this beautiful parable. It's a glowing candle at my writing desk, gently guiding me forward.
Me too!
I love it, too. My yoga teacher is brilliant, a natural-born teacher. Nothing illustrates a concept so well as a story, am I right? 🙂
She posted a picture of the woodchopper to my Facebook page. Here he is, doing his thing WITH EASE.
So great and inspiring! thank you for sharing!
I’m glad you liked it, Anabel. She told the story during class, and truth be told, it wasn’t all that effortless to remember it while focusing on my yoga poses/breathing. LOL!
A good candle for me, too, as I set to revising! Warmest thanks, Lorraine.
I’ll remember you this morning when I light my meditation candle. May your revisions be smooth and effortless.
(I’ve posted the woodchopper’s picture in this comments thread, on the off chance you might want a visual…)
Melodye! Where was my brain when I wrote this?! For some reason I thought it was Lorraine who told this story… maybe because it has the some wonderful feeling as the haikus she’s shared with us, but more likely because I was working on 5 hours broken sleep. So sorry for the confusion! I will now go one my way, red-faced with embarrassment, but grateful nonetheless for your offering. xo
Amy~
No embarrassment necessary, none whatsoever! Lorraine’s style of writing really speaks to me, too. And even at the time she shared it, my yoga teacher’s parable reminded ME of the lovely haikus Lorraine shares with all of us. So yeah, I took it as a compliment…yet another way in which we’re all connected. xoxo
Oh Melodye and Amy, this exchange just made my morning! Despite the distance I feel very heart-connected to you two and our LJ community. I think the axe is doing its work for us, no? 🙂
I love this, Melodye. You know it’s perfect for me, especially as I work with my mom through her lifetime of stuff and memories in these busy weeks. Thank you. xoxo
Ohmigosh, where was he last year when I was out in my back yard with a chainsaw?! 🙂
Ha!! Hiding, no doubt, like the rest of us.