Author: Ki McGraw

Across the street, the helicopter beats out the sound of warning for our district. Crime scene? Cops in pursuit? No- a major gas leak due to construction destructing a gas line, threatening the local businesses and residents.

So there easily could be a good reason to not be blogging! Yet, the habits of doing so carries me forward. The evacuation order is for my neighbors, across the street. I do taste the slightly metallic gas. And I have sequestered my cats, in case we need to exit in a hurry. Meanwhile, I’ve learned more about my new devise! And I’m using it now to reach out.

This emergency isn’t mine. I’m safe, even as others hurriedly close stores and restaurants. We’ll continue to teach classes and listen for updates. Otherwise, I’m celebrating the calmness in my nervous system. The lack of drama in a dramatic situation. The ability to stay present and safe even as the emergency vehicles block the streets and all traffic is diverted.

How are you in an emergency? What close calls have you escaped? How is your gratitude reflex? Ki to Happiness encourages the practices that will sustain you in case of such…

just got a new devise. may be challenging as I find my way to use it correctly. testing here. seems ok so far!

what newness is challenging for you? how well are you adapting to all the devises in your life? May Ki to Happiness allow us all to continue to support one another as we learn, grow and evolve!

Today is my 20th blog at Ki to Happiness! I set out to open this space for inquiry into all that Fall brings forth. I wanted to inspire warmth and light as we face the chilly dark. Along the way, I sought to share ideas, ways, and tools with which to do so.

Ultimately, what is lost in the physical may become a doorway into what may be found in a subtler realm. Letting go into this process repeatedly evolves us into confidence in the universe and its rhythms. Surrendering into cycles and seasons, our part in it is revealed.

Utilizing life’s material this way is to be celebrated! Out of the ashes, the Phoenix rises! Compost nourishes the sleeping roots for Spring’s awakening! Crucifixion of the ego preceeds rebirth in eternal life. These metaphors indicate the wisdom and guidance of the ages.

What are you willing to release now? What blessings have you experienced within sorrow? Facing darkness, how have you witnessed the internal light? Ki to Happiness celebrates you…

Loosely translated as happiness, perhaps the name of this Blog website could be Ki to Eudaimonia. The good self and efforts at living into the good self certainly are the focus of these efforts. In Aristotle’s time, it was the thrust of civilization.

We’ve progressed. Yet it is hard to keep up with the progression on all levels. Clearing out unprocessed material, like cleaning the house, reveals the shelter of our hearts, the beat of life, circulating throughout. Bodies evacuate waste products, and healthy hunger returns. Amidst all the progress, what needs to be cleared for the the good self to come forth?

What clutter in your home can be reduced?What food gunks up you digestion? Who in your life requires too much energy for you to be your best self around? Which past trauma can be recycled, gleaning the lessons for soul’s growth from the ashes of the experience? Ki to Happiness supports eudaimonia…

The cold deepens and the dark encroaches. In the northern hemisphere, this cyclic shift is perceptible, signaling our animal instincts to gather nuts, batten the hatches, jam the berries.

The soul similarly cycles as it evolves, spiraling ever upward, like our DNA. Challenges, failures, defeats, limitations humble the ego, humiliating grandiosity. The great need for assistance brings forth the bended knee of prayer, reaching out to something beyond ourselves, yet within. Asking, pleading, crying out for assistance is met with a peace. The dark tunnel has delivered us to the light.

Repeatedly journeying thus, Higher Power is experience. Coincidences, synchronicities, signs, symbols, miracles are felt again and again. The possibility of relief and grace grow into faith in this process and trust in the Universe. Seasons in nature reflect this cycle. Spring will come again. The macrocosm mirrors the microcosm.

Recognizing such, why delay in bending the knee? Reach out first! Let your needs be know to the Satisfier. No present needs? Reach out anyway, in gratitude! Like all habits, what we practice ritualistically we’re more likely to do in crisis. Keep practicing! Ki to Happiness is …

And then, the shocking call of impending death…the hard cold reality of all that autumn heralds…the awareness that on the physical level, all is temporary. “Take nothing for granted” the voice on the other end of the phone says.

My take away is gratitude for all the one life, about to end, has brought to the planet. The blessings of knowing one person, the love shared woven into the stories of life, begins to dance across the stage of my awareness.

In Bali, death is greeted with three days of open altar interaction with the dearly departed. Favorite items, meaningful objects, symbolic foods and drinks are all arranged as if the deceased were about to arrive for a surprise party. The soul is invoked and communed with by all who pay their respects. We living are encouraged to say what hasn’t been said, to complete unfinished business, to express the love, as well as sadness, anger, fear, remorse and all that is necessary. Repeatedly. After the three day window, the altar is cleared. The body has been cleaned, blessed, and buried and awaits the cremation fire, when the auspicious time comes.

What business is left unfinished in your life? What have you been taking for granted that wants to be appreciated now? What rituals will assist you as you continue living, even as others pass? Where can you set up an altar? As Ki to Happiness stimulates these areas of consideration, reach out here if you could use some support dealing with the daily death that happens all around us in this and any season…

As the chilly wetness continues, Sweater Weather insists on dressing in layers. Soft warm thickness protects skin from the elements. Flannel sheets and down comforters grace the bedding. Appreciating the different fabrics, tactile sense of touch is stimulated.

Warm baths and showers, application of moisturizers and lotions, massage from self or others all further this sense, hydrating dry exposed areas and revitalizing our largest organ.

Greetings of handshakes and hugs convey human warmth through touch. Hearts thrive when embraced 10+ times per day. How many have you had today?

What touches your heart? How would conscious touch most benefit you? Enjoying a touch of Fall, like the Earth when the next leaf comes down, gentles the soul for what comes next. Ki to Happiness reminds…

Walking in the autumn air is so rewarding. Bringing attention out of doors, away from the little boxes of home and work spaces, opens awareness to that which is greater. Big sky, solid earth, with trees connecting them, as birds fly between them invites consciousness of nature. Legs and arms swing, pumping lymph, cleansing organs, restoring overworked immune function.

Chanting or singing while walking gives voice to intention, rhythmically pulsing the intention into cells. Stimulating the vagus nerve restores nervous systems for better function. With so many on electronic devises, likely chanting or singing will go undetected. This spiritual practice is private even as it is practiced in public spaces.

What song wants to be sung? What issues could benefit from walking and chanting? Obstacles? Call on Ganesha! Bodily concerns? Lakshmi loves to be invoked! Mental concerns? Saraswati reliably increases mental focus. Ki to Happiness has lots of ideas about ways to assist you sing your way Home.

Joyous sensory stimulation at the local farmer’s market today! Fruits, vegetables, fresh baked goods, food trucks, buskers of all varieties playing harmonicas, guitars, saxophones, drums, typists ready to compose poetry, portrait artists, face painters, jewelry makers, basket weavers all on display. Scents wafting up hot food in the cool air, red pepper roasters, coffee makers, tea blenders, cider-hot, cold, hard or soft all add their essence to the sensory smorgasbord.

Men, women, trans, LGBTQ, babies, kids, teens, adults, elderly, Black, brown, white, yellow, red, rainbow races, and mixes, hair of every hue and style, tall, short, fat, thin, on foot, in wheelchairs, on walkers, bikes, skateboards, with canes, or dancing, juggling, working, playing, chatting, eating, drinking- humanity on parade!

The skybluepink dawn has simmered in the low sun into a puffy clouded deep blue against which the leaves are glowing deep purples, reds, oranges, goldens, greens and browns. These dazzling arrays come with the season for all who come to browse, shop, sell, serve, or gawk.

How happy are you in the crowd? Alone? With your intimates? Associates? Pets? In nature? Explore with Ki to Happiness your happy place…

When the senses are stimulated repeatedly and completely, deep sleep is desired for processing. Cell phones and computers benefit from “sleep”, resetting them back to normal functioning. Similarly, humans recharge during deep sleep which is more available with “good sleeping weather”. Cooler temperatures and cloudier skies contribute to slumber, chilling the brain and calming the visual cortex.

Instead of pushing beyond these natural rhythms with caffeine, sugar or electronics, bombarding our senses with more stimulation, allowing downtime has many benefits! Assimilating information, integrating the lessons gleaned, and eliminating the waste products of stress are all more efficient. Like the digestive system, fasting at night allows these processes to occur without more input slowing the works.

Awakening refreshed, a new day awaits! Breaking the fast, taste buds delight! Sunlight is welcomed! Bird songs call the soul! The smell of firewood burning warms the heart and hearth. Smoke rising from chimneys against the autumn sky brings the awareness that others join us in these simple rites of the season.

This new day awaits! Enjoy it! And also enjoy the urge to nap. Turn in earlier like the sun. Happily heal into this, here now. Another Ki to Happiness suggestion…