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13 Powerful Phrases Proven to Help an Anxious Child Calm Down
From “When Nietzsche Wept”, by Irvin Yalom:
First will what is necessary. Then love what you will.
There’s a profound insight there that I’ve tried to live by, long before I read the quote. Life asks many things of us that we don’t want to do. Some of them are distractions, but some of them are necessary. It’s so easy to be full of resentment toward things that we feel are keeping us from our joy. Finding joy in what needs doing is magical. Learning to love the things that are necessary—like daily chores—is the secret of happiness.
Positive and negative Poisson ratios in clothing!
These small innovations may not seem fashionable, but reducing the amount of clothing created is critical to reducing the environmental impact of the dyes.
This clothing will stretch as the child becomes bigger. Very creative!
On Children by Kahlil Gibran
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.
Hat Tip: http://www.katsandogz.com/onchildren.html
Green Lady Bug on Sunflower
Geothermal Cooling and Heating
A recent spinoff from X, Alphabet’s innovation lab: Dandelion is offering geothermal heating and cooling systems to homeowners.
(Pictures from https://dandelion.co/)
Plum Village Songs
Plum Village songs have long been a source of joy and practice for Sarika and I. Here is one I particularly enjoy:
Breathing in, breathing out.
Breathing in, breathing out.
I am fresh as the dew.
I am solid as a mountain.
I am firm as the earth.
I am free.
Breathing in, breathing out.
I am water reflecting
What is real, what is true,
And I feel there is space
Deep inside of me.
I am free, I am free, I am free.
A Getaway before Baby – Beacon, NY
Sarika and I have been on somewhat of a scheduling “kick” — whatever we want, we schedule it in and make it happen.
Before our baby girl arrives, we wanted to take one last trip together. We decided this is not a trip for just the two of us, but the three of us, so throughout the trip we decided to take some video for our baby to be, and we figure we will share it with her one day.
Enter Beacon, NY:
We debated renting a car, but did not want the hassle, so a quick trip on MetroNorth Rail brought us to the lovely and historic town of Beacon.
Pro tip: Buy the ticket at the station and you can purchase discounted tickets to Dia: Beacon, the stunning art gallery built from in the former Nabisco-factory.
Day 1: Arrive in Beacon
We booked a room in this lady’s home on Airbnb.com – the Beacon Bamboo Forest – it was quaint, cozy and simple. By saving some money on room and travel, we feel comfortable enjoying ourselves a bit more for lunch and dinner.
We wander main street, enjoy looking into all the quaint stores and have a pastry at All You Knead. Next we go to Denning’s Point Distillery and I enjoy a bit of a tasting — I never thought I would be much for gins and whiskey, but these were actually very good.
We then enjoyed a little stop at More Good, a syrups, bitters and tea manufacturer in Beacon, NY. I have a feeling these folks may disrupt Coca Cola, and other major companies. They are pitching better tasting and healthier drinks to speciality restaurant chains, and grocery companies. At some point, the world will need to move onto a better tasting soda and after trying their drinks — I think that day is coming.
We continued down Main Street until we arrived at Gino’s Italian Ice and could simply not resist a cup of italian ice. I think it is the best treat — tasty, but not too heavy. We continued our walk until we arrived at the water fall, where we enjoyed the sound of the water and the heat of the sun.
For dinner, we went to Towne Crier for some dinner and live music from The Whispering Tree. We stuffed ourselves with a veggie burger, grilled cheese and black bean soup.
We came back to our Airbnb, popped in a DVD (Queen to Play) and enjoyed a nice foreign film. I have to admit, it was the first time — in a long time — that I had watched a DVD and I loved it. Each time Sarika and I watch something on Netflix, there is an option to back out, but not so much with a DVD…there is a joy in committing to a movie and enjoying it for its art — whether you like it or not.
Sarika and I fell asleep as we enjoyed seeing and feeling crazy baby kicks in Sarika’s belly.
Day 2: Dia: Beacon
The next day, we woke up and enjoyed a coffee, waffles and eggs at Homespun Foods. From there, we got ready and took a nice walk to the Dia: Beacon.
It is hard to describe the gallery, but it is a very unique experience — some of it is larger-than-life and some is so subtle. The joy of the gallery was the public tour, which is incredibly worth it.
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Running away from a spider! |
After Dia: Beacon, we walked back to Main Street. Sarika pushed through walking up-hill despite being 8 months pregnant. I was, as always, very impressed.
We enjoyed some tasty Mexican food at Tito Santana and recalled are gratitude for the day we had already enjoyed.
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Tito Santana’s Tacos = Tasty. |
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normal Sarika shenanigans |
To end the evening, we went to Howard Cultural Center and enjoyed flamenco…
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and, Sarika bought an origami nest with two doves….
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she was so happy to have her little doves nest… |
Beacon: Day 3:
On our way back to the train station, we enjoyed a quick stroll at the Long Dock Park before catching the express train back to NYC…
My foundation in love – my parents

–Thich Nhat Hanh, Present Moment, Wonderful Moment