Haiku Ellipses...Invitation...Response...

SPINNING VORTEXES spinning vortexes different and connected flowing energy the chakras (pronounced "chuck-rahs") are spinning vortexes shaped like spherical-funnels that begin inside the body and extend past the skin as depicted in several eastern religions/philosophies (e.g., Hinduism and Buddhism)...each chakra is associated with a different color...herein i show the main chakras along the central axis of the body...there are many more minor chakras located throughout the body...note the interconnectedness of the chakras that allow for the flow of energy (chi or prana). visualize each colored spinning vortex of energy from the violet colored chakra at top of the head at the crown, to purple between the eyes, blue at the throat, green at the heart, yellow at the solar plexus, orange at the navel, and red at the genitals and perineum...bring conscious attention to these areas with the appropriate colors one by one for 5-60 seconds each...then, allow and feel the energy flowin...

CO LO RE D B AL LS colored balls galore swirling vortexes reveal chakra alignment many individual balls can be swirling in our lives...all at the same time! attempting to manage and juggle the various balls is challenging...stepping back from observing each individual ball to the wider constellation of balls, there is some sense that the colored balls are interconnected, each spinning in relation to the others, many micro orbits creating a one macro orbit (which is in turn, part of another larger orbit, ad infinitum)...in this case of the many colored balls, there is a chakra alignment of energies within the body. take a few minutes to read about or watch a video, by a credible source with education and experience, on the chakras...meditate a few minutes on how your individual chakras FEEL, and then on how they FEEL together as a whole system of energy...do any of the chakras feel "out of alignment"...if so, what simple thing can you do in the next 5 mins to bring one of them...

GEMSTONE inside the gemstone cut in 1/2...exposed to all bright rings of color have you ever seen a gemstone that was cut in half? exposed and vulnerable to all? revealing all its brightness and color? there are times when we might feel "cut in half, exposed, vulnerable"--can you see all the colors revealed by the cutting? what is the lesson here? time and life experience do their own cutting and revealing...some try to force or encourage this cutting through different methods of enlightenment like kundalini awakening through manipulating the breath, visualization, and postures...so far for me on the journey, i'm opting for the more natural path of letting life experience and time do its own cutting and revealing...life provides ample opportunities for growth through suffering, pain, illness, depression, and so forth...no need to intentionally add more cuttings. in circumstances where you felt cut, burned, otherwise injured, what life lesson s emerged...and if none, have ...

GRANDMA'S DOILEE half of a circle holding hands with the other half see grandma's doilee my grandmother on my father's side used to make doilees...i have one such doilee that she gave to me in my meditation space...the first half of the doilee circle in the haiku represents my grandma, and all of my ancestors from the past, the other half of the doilee circle represents myself in the present, intentionally reaching out to hold hands with the ancestors, one of which is my grandma...who i am reminded of with gratitude and love every time i see the colorful doilee. what item(s) remind you of your mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, or caretaker? choose one item that symbolizes your connection with them...hold this item in your hands for at least one minute, feel the timeless connection to them, and gratefully acknowledge their presence in your life by placing the item in a prominent place where you can see it each day, and send them love and gratitude, for a week or more...

INSIDE THE COSMIC EGG 2 dialoguing  cool water and warmth of sun in the cosmic egg 2 colored figures stand facing each other, above is warm sun shining on their dialogue, below are blue waters of cool nourishment, ebbing and flowing in rhythm to their dialogue, and surrounding them is the cosmic egg, containing their dialogue, connecting them to the entire universe... consider adding some warmth, some sunshine to your next conversation...also consider ways to refresh and invigorate the conversation like cool water (lemonade on a hot day), allowing for ebb and flow, give and take, nurturing and being nurtured, recalling that we all share the same home, planet, cosmic egg...

CORKSCREWING AROUND corkscrewing around 1 following into other doesn't seem to end corkscrewing around reminds me of the phrase my grandfather used to use, putzing around, or the phrase the writer Kurt Vonnegut used, farting around...a kind of meandering, with a loose intent, but mostly just being in motion, alert to whatever appears, following one desire to the next, and the process of corkscrewing doesn't seem to end (not like uncorking a wine bottle)...until you're called for dinner... do you have any moments in your life where you can simply explore without an agenda, open to whatever arises, pursuing whatever catches your fancy...take time for such a mini-adventure sometime this week...plan only the place and allow for ample time...let it be simple...in your house, backyard, neighborhood, park, forested area, beach...any place will do, the spirit of the exploration is what matters...

FLOWING COLORS from the golden beach  flows colored waves moving out to meet the black line the golden beach is the playground of life...on the beach, we soak in the sun, meditate, read, draw, play volleyball, hacky sack, or frisbee, build sand castles, chase crabs, chat with folks, build a fire, sing songs, roast marshmallows...i can also imagine all the colors of the activities that we engage in on the beach of life drifting out into the sea of memory, absorbed by the black line, near the horizon, the point at which everything drops into the depths of the sea. what is the color of your life? the color of each of activity you engage in? where does their memory go? do they empty into the depth of the black sea, the place where all colors blur into blackness? what is the process of accessing the depth of the black sea to engage, work with, and transform the subconscious? there is not enough space here to write about this process...I recommend Anna Wise's book,  Awakening the Mi...

APPLEFACE is it an insect? could it be an apple face? insecto-apple at first blush we observe and think X, then considering/reflecting further, we think Y...sometimes, it's possible to combine the two perceptions and arrive at a synthesis, an XY or YX...reminds me of the Platoian idea of "thesis, antithesis, synthesis"...how many conflicts could be managed better if we considered a synthesis instead of taking one side. the next time you feel conflicted, consider the possibility of both sides being true to some degree, and that there is the possibility of a synthesis, however odd it might seem or sound, like the insecto-apple face!

ATOM tiny stars, dots, swirls what in the world could it be? some kind of atom beginning in the center with stars, rippling out into dots, and ending with swirls on the periphery...all multi-colored and in movement with each other, the dancing atom... the atom is supposedly the building block of the universe, but it is made of components, and each of these components is probably made of other parts, all swirling and dancing in relationship to each other...all entangled to use the quantum physics term...feeling amazed at the complexity and beauty of it... what stars twinkle at your center...what are your  core dreams...your purpose in living...how do the dots of life punctuate these dreams, flaring out into swirling activities in the service of your dreams... start with writing about one dream that is percolating inside your body when you bring it to mind...move out from that center creating dots representing different parts/aspects of your  dream...consider one small concrete ...

ECTOSKETCH ectosketch spirals meet the interior frame of infinity t he red framed "etch a sketch" is a drawing/doodling device that was first available for purchase around 1960, having two white knobs that controlled a graphite type line on the screen which could be erased by shaking the screen and beginning anew...the spriograph was another device consisting of a frame with teetch on the inside and plastic circular pieces with teeth on the outside that connect and swirl around the inside of the frame to create different geometrical shapes...hence the play on "ecto sketch" as a combination of the above... the contact between the inside of the outer frame and the inner part of the circle create spirals of infinite variety approaching mandala status in what ways are the outer boundaries and circumstances of our lives in contact with our inner motivations and intentions...are we creating beautiful spirals that bring meaning,  purpose, joy, and enliven our lives and tho...