The great Reframe

The great Reframe

Reframing is an art. One that requires a lot of presence to make happen. Everything really goes back to a willingness to be here, now. Without that willingness you can’t discern what is right for you. I have never liked cleaning.  It has always been the chore I hate the most and I mean all cleaning.  For years I hired it out and then the pandemic and now all the cleaning all the time. With a toddler it is impossible to ever have the whole house to rights.  No matter what. No matter if I clean every day there will be more to clean. Give her a minute. The tricky thing is that when my house is dirty it brings me down. Like woe is me, down. Down below the ground down. So keeping my house moderate is a necessity and with toddler that means cleaning everyday. Every single one. This thought cycle was not helping me live my best life.  I felt aligned with drudgery every time I had to clean. So I did a deep reframe and redefined cleaning for myself. For me cleaning of itself was not a win enough – but what I noticed by wearing a tracker is that I burned a ton of calories when I cleaned. Far more calories than by doing yoga or walking – even purposeful exercise was no match for cleaning’s calorie burn. Turns out cleaning is exercise. I love exercise. Ergo I love cleaning. Now whenever I clean I set my tracker to workout and I get it done. I exercise and feel all the good endorphins and...
Further notes on Anti Racist Literature

Further notes on Anti Racist Literature

Our hope with this Anti Racist Literature List is that you are inspired to read one book. Read that one first.  Commit to that and see it through. And then ponder. Noodle. Sit with it. “White privilege has nothing to do with you being a good person or a bad person. It is from the fact that you have been raised in a racialized society that you might not have been aware of.” Christina Desimone After reading and pondering our hope is that you will choose to read another or maybe it will inspire you to go down a rabbit hole of podcasts or documentaries (lists to come).  But don’t wait on me. Google that shit and then do that. The thing is. Personal growth cannot be prescribed by anyone else. It is up to you to do it. You alone can cause the change. So as your own best expert. Look inwards. Push yourself to do this uncomfortable work. You will be imperfect and it will be awkward. Consider letting those mistakes become teachable moments. Remember those? Remember learning when you were young, how much repetition, how many mistakes, how many failures? It is only in agitation that we grow. IT is time. The time is now. I believe in...
An Afternoon with a Healer – Book Signing for Healing Footstep to Footstep

An Afternoon with a Healer – Book Signing for Healing Footstep to Footstep

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 24, 2017 Brianna Bedigian Quiet Winds, LLC 240-409-2722 info@briannabedigian.com  Spend An Afternoon with a Healer Book Signing and Sound Healing with Crystal Singing Bowls Saturday, April 29 in Davidson   Davidson, NC (March 24, 2017): Local author and healer Brianna Bedigian will be hosting a uniquely restorative reading of her book Healing Footstep to Footstep at Main Street Books in Davidson on Saturday, April 29 from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm. During this offering, Brianna will interweave excerpts of her writing with the pure sound of crystal singing bowls, aromatherapy and guided meditation. Crafting a multi-sensory healing that will leave guests refreshed from the experience. William Rollow, MD, MPH from the Center for Integrative Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine had this to say about Brianna and her book, “How do we heal? Although each path is different, some footsteps are common: intention, acceptance of responsibility, turning toward the eternal, practice, support, doubt and darkness and pain and fear. Brianna knows how we heal.” Healing Footstep to Footstep is for anyone suffering with an illness – emotional, spiritual or physical. The willingness and intention to heal despite exhaustion and pain are often absent in stories of healing journeys. The reality is that healing begins one step at a time, often slowly and with acceptance of the self. Through storytelling, recipes, yoga lessons and meditation exercises, Brianna takes us on a journey of Self, where all healing begins. Available April 25, 2017 on www.amazon.com. About Brianna Bedigian Brianna Bedigian is an author, artist, teacher and healer who utilizes her personal journey, and years of formal...
Breathing in I calm my mind

Breathing in I calm my mind

“Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is the only moment.” ― Thich Nhat Hanh, Being Peace I often return to Ticht Nhat Hanh’s beautiful teachings on presence and peace in times of personal unease. His words help me, to: calm myself, turn inward, tune in, and serve as a reminder to wake up. His simple teachings are a firm reminder to: be here, now. Recently, as part of my practice, I listened to an interview between him and Krista Tippett on: On Being As an aside, I listen to On Being, a lot – which is why I have noted it before. One of my self care rituals is to rest supine in a restorative pose and listen to this brilliant show, where beings – from many disciplines – wax poetic about their beliefs, their thoughts, their motivations. Its fascinating really. Its definitely worth discovering. An additional aside, self care becomes MORE necessary during difficult times. What simple things are you doing today to take care of you?   Right now, I am finding the energy of the world very chaotic. Currently, there is a lot of strife, upset, and intensity in our country and abroad. There is a lot of fear.  We are living in a very tense and intense time both politically and socially. For me, the landscape is proving more and more difficult to navigate. As a librarian and historian I am finding it challenging to wrap my mind around the notion of “alternative facts” or that one religious group should be the...

Mary Oliver

Whenever I am out moving through a beautiful landscape it is so much easier to feel at ease. There is an abiding peace that happens when I spend time with the waters, the forest, the desert, and everything else in between. Does that happen for you?   The world did not have to be beautiful to work. But it is. What does that mean? Mary Oliver Nature is my personal church. I find it easier to pray if I am outside. Usually I am walking. Sometimes I am dancing. After all, there is always a reason to rock out to the Joyful Song. Last night I listened to several interviews with Mary Oliver – she and Rumi are my most favorite poets. Much of the conversation was based on her love of a walk in the woods, both in reference to exercise and Walden’s beautiful book. Like him, her love of nature resounds throughout her writing.   For an entire year, at the end of every yoga class I read Mary Oliver’s poem Wild Geese. Arguably a repetitive offering to my students. But I often find that there is power by way of repetition. I have certainly seen that power in my personal practice and in my students’ practices. During the course of the following interview she speaks to the the necessity of repetition and rigor in her art. She touches on the many failed attempts and the requirement to keep going, keep doing, keep writing. Plus she recites Wild Geese: Mary Oliver On Being Question: Where have you seen the power of repetition in your own life? To...

Be a Glowworm

I feel as though lately that I light candle after candle. I name individual people, I imagine cities glowing, and I move through life with the taste of blessings continually on my lips. Right now, right at this moment, there seems to be an abundance of fear, anxiety, grief, struggle…To be honest, the energy of the earth’s peoples can be overwhelming and I feel reactive in a way I haven’t for a very long time. But I know my role is not to be angry.  My role is not to harbor ill will. My role is not to join the multitudes that are inadvertently aligning themselves with the darkness. My role, my job, my life’s work,  is to herald the light and to be as bright as possible. When I feel the darkness most, I remind myself  of my work. I interweave light practices into my teachings. I align with the light daily and I make a point of offering the light out. I believe that it is important it to become as light as possible, to literally: make of ourselves a light, as Buddha counseled.  There are so many simple ways to up our vibrations and glow just a wee bit more. We are all worms but I do believe that I am a glowworm. ~Robin Williams The more of us that are light the lighter the world will become. After all, we all ONE. It is we who are the universe. But remember:  You cannot be high vibration and exhausted at the same time. That is like being anxious and relaxed, which is physiologically impossible.  Treat yourself,...