Ever taken two children to a yoga ashram? For me it sure has been a fast track to enlightenment! The moment we arrived the incessant ramblings of my mind roared their way into my every breath. It took me hours to settle and after having a meltdown over having a plate instead of a bowl (this was the most logical problem i could grasp) i began to feel better! Most places I go I tend to feel like I am relatively calm, balanced and still. Arriving here I felt like my mind was going off like a frog in a sock and I certainly was not calm balanced or still. I really struggled to accept myself and was not in love with the opportunity, so i guess it was a perfect for me and the greater acceptance i am seeking.
We are at mangrove mountain which is about an hour and a half from Sydney. The ashram is nestled into a beautiful lush green valley, sheltered with enormous cliffs behind. Pearls response when she saw them “that’s breathtaking!”, and they are! There is a real rhythm here, it feels like there is a dance that gently pulls you in, if you can surrender. Last night in the dining area pearl said ” it’s so loud here, the music is beautiful”, I can only guess that is how she hears the silence cause there sure isn’t any music playing, apart from the chanting that wakes you at 5am. Hmmm Maybe I have forgotten how to hear? Day two brings a little more acceptance of how loud we are, that I can’t keep the girls quiet and that I have not kept to any of the hours of silence. There are no other children here, seemingly a lot of childless enlightened people though, or that is the story my mind tells. I remind myself this is the practice, bringing presence and acceptance to life as it is, not wishing for something else. This is where i sit right now.
There are a mixture of people here, some choose to live here, some come for planned retreats and others like us come for a few days to join in the daily routine of yoga, meditation and reflection. To be honest one of the highlights for me is the beautiful vegetarian food that i don’t have to cook that is served three times a day. Such a blessing for any mum. And the gardens are gorgeous. It Inspires me to get gardening when we arrive home.
As a side note i am mourning my phone. We have had a shocker with technology since we left. Freya’s sipper cup leaked and filled the cup holder in the car with water, rob and I then unknowingly put both our iPhones and my iPod into the water, robs phone died immediately, I managed to dry my phone and a week later my iPod worked again. A few days later my phone slid out of its case and fell from the car to the ground. It broke the motherboard. I lost all my photos etc as I didn’t sync it. So I am currently still phone less, I am hoping to get a new one when we get to Sydney, but for now please contact me on robs. (and maybe back your phones up or sync them to save similar suffering!
We visited my family at narrabri briefly, then went to dubbo zoo. We has a blast at the zoo with mum and aunty kare, it is much more spacious than any other zoo I have visited, the animals seem happier and pearl was most intrigued with the rhino that had died!
We have been so lucky to catch up with some of our special friends, I had hoped to be able to visit everyone as we travelled but have not been able to manage it traveling with the girls. So sorry if we missed you this time.
Being home was a great chance to look at myself, always a great revelation of how much I can grow in acceptance of life just as it is.
Will post some photos soon, need to download the camera.
Love to all xxx
