Author: Ki McGraw

I awaken at 4 AM. In the darkness, I see thick fog. My first foggy moment here in Seattle was 21 years ago. Although it was in October, it felt like Christmas. I hadn’t planned on being here for holidays, or for decades. It was as if I was seeing the future.

I’ve lived that future. I’ve loved this fog before. I remember. In doing so, it is as if time collapses into the eternal present. I am that eternal present. As are you.

Have you experienced this timelessness? Are you aware of the present your presence offers? Ki to Happiness is here now.

Our governor has announced that our state wide restrictions have been extended to January 4, 2021. This has been anticipated after the Thanksgiving surge.

Hatha Yoga Center will continue on its course to offer daily yoga classes and weekly meditations on our Facebook live streaming group page. Private sessions with me are also available. My practices reliably sustain me.

How are you handling the restrictions in your area? What will change? Ki to Happiness hugs her practices.

When I was an undergraduate, I volunteered for the suicide hotline. As my education and skills developed, I chose to work with a less dramatic population. I honored my boundaries and limitations to offer what I could.

In this Covid environment, everything is becoming much more dramatic. Suicide, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse and all other addictions are epidemic, if not pandemic. I’ve been enlisted to resume skills learned on that hotline 40 years ago.

Are you taking care of yourself? Can you reroute self destructive urges toward something constructive? Ki to Happiness know where there’s life, there’s options…

In the northern hemisphere, we have just entered into the darkest month. In two weeks we will have winter solstice. The darkest day will then herald the returning of the light. Two weeks after that we will be back to the same amount of light we will have today.

In our home and studio with only a northern exposure, we have no direct sun for about nine months of the year. At this time, instead the sun bounces off the neighboring apartment building windows. The effect is brilliant! We are flooded with light on clear days. Our darkest month is our brightest month.

How do you do with the darkness? Are you finding enough light for your physical and mental health? Ki to Happiness welcomes the light.

Today is the feast of one of the most beloved saints around the world. In our culture, Santa Claus is the symbolic representation of Bishop Nicholas of Myra. Giving gifts to kids is one of his many attributes.

Perhaps today there’s a good girl or a boy you would like to gift in his stead. He can also be petitioned to help kids be good and do good, correcting their behavior and attitude. There are many other attributes for this well renowned saint, as he is generously available for any and all needs.

Are there good girls and boys on your holiday list? What token of your love and appreciation might be suitable to gift today?Ki to Happiness champions the good inner child within each of us.

Part of my daily routine includes taking particular supplements. My doctorate allows me to submit tissue samples to a lab I’ve been working with in Texas for decades. I do so for myself, as well as my clients. In addition to following their recommendations, I like to stay abreast of new developments and suggestions.

The Fabulous Fungi movie inspired me to add a combination of therapeutic mushrooms for broad immune support. Right now, I am specifically taking lions mane. It has shown to help with cancer, which we are all clearing from the body daily, keeping up with errant cell development.

Do you like mushrooms? Have you experienced their health benefits? Ki to Happiness loves the fungus among us.

Fantastic fungi is the correct name of the movie…

Since February when my stepson left for our home in Bali, things started slowing down here. The beginning stirrings of the pandemic had us all watching the news from China, and we prepared with handwashing and abstaining from touching our faces. In the 10 months since then we have been moving in and out of the phases of shutting down and re-opening, slowly.

Yesterday, it was revealed to us that his return is eminent. Suddenly, the need presents itself and I quickly move into preparing a space for him to quarantine safely. Moving personal items, clothing, shoes, furniture, bedding to make room in our strange and small living area required I change gears.

Are you able to slow down? Can you just as easily switch into high gear? Ki to Happiness has more than one speed.

During this time of the coronavirus, global economic downturn, and tremendous political division I reflect on the caste system. Here and in India, as well as many other places on the planet, the effort to control the dominant narrative is eroding, despite the backlash to reassert its power.

In psychotherapy, private sessions and group classes, my mixed healing arts approach is toward integration of body-mind-spirit. Empowering the witness state of consciousness brings choice, freedom and responsibility. Sometimes, it feels like a drop in a tumultuous bucket. The Buddha says “do not disregard the accumulation of goodness, saying, “This will come to nothing.” By the gradual falling of raindrops, a jar is filled.”

Are you willing to take responsibility for your freedom in choosing consciously? What practices empower your goodness? Ki to Happiness witnesses the raindrops gradually filling the jar.

We are all in the process of accommodating the restrictions imposed on us due to Covid. Many are reporting hitting a limit. Without hugs, visible smiles, handshakes, or gatherings our sense of belonging is challenged. Touch deprived and lonely, some are seeking comfort in old familiar ways, not necessarily the best ways.

Recognizing that is real progress. Making use of this time, we are invited to look within. Learning something about ourselves may connect us ever more deeply to others, even at a distance. Choosing again, once we let go of the old familiar, provides the opportunity to experiment with new options.

In this process, what are you learning? Can you see this as progress? Ki to Happiness knows they go hand in hand.

The temperature cools. The air clears. The eclipse pattern resolves itself. Things shift. Internally, there is greater safety. Externally, one neighbor moves out. Another one is about to move in. My stepson and his broken arm are about to return to Seattle, as soon as his passport is back from the immigration officials, who tortured him and threatened him with 5 years in jail, or deportation.

He is likely to move into the neighboring suite. The cats will love having their big brother back. His presence will ground my husband into his parental role, and I’ll do the “step dance” I know so well- stepping in and out of parenting as I’ve honed in my 24 years of interacting with them.

What has the eclipse pattern left for you? Are you feeling safer and steadier yet? Ki to Happiness is!