Sparkle

  Sparkle is yang qi.  Yang is the energy of sunlight, heat and movement.  Function, you could say.  In your body this is called respiration, digestion, metabolism.  Qi is a relationship, the energy of connection, unheard, unseen but evident.  Sparkle is the combination. 

Sparkle begins in the lower belly.  It begins as a sensation, a little river of movement that makes you want to stretch your limbs, rotate your joints, reach and wave your hands.  Sparkle shows up in icicles, in snow, in rain even, as you see the remnant of water on the grass, trees, bushes when sunlight hits them.  And it shows up in your thoughts as you begin to imagine how you might re-paint your office, buy a new lamp or a new pair of shoes, how you might cook a special meal or sing a new song.  All of these are sparkles. 

And sparkle can happen between people as new ideas percolate, or bodies dance together.  Here in the smack middle of winter, the very spark of life is moving, bringing forth your essence, your inspiration, your knowing from the very darkest, deepest places. 

Things get very sparkly this time of year.  The sunlight is so clear, so strong as the days grow longer.  While the trees are still bare, there is a sense that you can see farther, feel more space, a heaven space, a vision space.  Each year for this mid-winter point, I reflect on what I can see for myself in the coming year, what I intend, what I can commit to.  I sit in the space of stillness, the quiet and let the light shine deep into my being, listening, feeling carefully for where the sparkles are showing up. 

For now all that I feel remains vision, imagination, a sparkle in my eye, but I will water that spark with my intentions, with my commitments.  Intentions connect us with longing, with our hearts, starting somewhere in our solar plexus and rising up into our chest.   Commitments connect us with our guts, with our deepest knowing, starting somewhere in our lower belly and rising up to the throat, the place where we are willing to speak to what is true. 

You can make a practice of this; setting down your vision, your intentions and your commitments for this year.  If a year feels daunting, you can set a shorter time frame, maybe 3 months, maybe 6 months, some time.   Give yourself an hour, an hour of daylight.  Sit still for some time.  Bring your colored pencils or markers or your phone to record your thoughts. 

Begin with your vision. 
     Remember that vision is big and loose, open and spacious. 
Add your intentions. 
     These are the things you have aspiration to do, things you think about.
Then, make your commitments. 
     These are the things you WILL do. Each day, each week, each month.
What will you do to make your vision manifest,
     to put your intentions into practice? 
          What will you DO?
Be realistic.  Be gentle.  Be strong. 

What can you see for yourself this year? 
What do you intend?
And what can you commit to? 
What will you grow in your garden, in your home, in your spirit this year? 
What is sparkling?