Zoya's Hot Topics

(So many thoughts running through my mind tonight as I munch on the piece of chocolate that Patrick rationed to me...he gave me a few bars for christmas and I asked him to ration a few squares every night so I don't storm through it. Talk about horrible self-control with chocolate)

Upcoming Inauguration
Patrick and I are going to have an Inauguration party on the Saturday following Barack Obamas Inauguration. Cid Blase and Fritz Ferrante are hosting it with us and I"m VERY excited for it. Cid has so much awesome, enthusiastic energy and it was at her house where I watched Obama's acceptance speech along with 40 other people. Cid came up with the idea of having people bring a dish with an international flair---from a country that will like us a little more now that Bush will be out of office (and Obama will be in). So, pretty much every country in the world is fair game for food choices.

I love the energy accompanying the inauguration-energy of change. This morning on KMXT I heard NPR's discussion about the inauguration, and lately there has been discussion about who is going...and I found out on Facebook Katie Oliver is attending! Tonight I talked with Katie, who said she will take photos and I asked if we can have them as a slide show on our computer during the party. She said "yes-- of course!"

It will be fun to get a taste of what the swearing in ceremony will be like from the perspective of a Kodiakian in the crowd! I"m so excited for Katie and can't wait to hear her stories upon her return at the party. The party is open to people who are as excited about the inauguration as us. And yes-its on a Saturday, not Tuesday...but its best to not have a celebration of that calibar on a work night, right?

Baby Fever of Sorts
With my new business, I've had a touch of baby fever. Not to have one of my own, but to help moms in this community with having babies. I'm going to start teaching a natural childbirth preparation class this weekend and can't wait for it to begin. There is cool energy with working with pregnant moms who are excited about childbirth and who want ideas/inspiration going into the big day.
For me, the birth of my two kids was one of the most amazing experiences of my life and I did a lot of prep before hand as well as having lots of friends with me during labor. I appreciate how supportive Patrick is of me teaching the course and we had a long discussion about it last night. (I believe he would much rather see me help moms with having babies over us having another baby....that could be why he is so supportive-he knows I need to get the baby energy out of my system).

I've got a couple of other baby/labor/delivery related things in the works for this winter--starting to do doula (labor assistant work) as well as working with another Kodiak health care practitioner to start community conversation on midwifery care and birth options for women, starting postpartum class and post c-section class...


Ten thousand Joys and Ten Thousand Sorrows
In my Buddhism for Mothers book (by Sarah Napthali) that I"ve been reading lately, there was a quote "As Any Zen Buddhist will tell you: Life presents 'ten thousand joys and ten thousand sorrows'. We must meet pain as well as pleasure, so we can't afford to hook our happiness to external circumstances." I appreciated this saying because its not about a tally board of "positive experiences vs. negative experiences" and trying to increase the positives and reducing the negatives. Its looking at life from the angle that there will be an equal number of positives and negatives. To take the good with the bad. And to not respond extremely to each. (Thats my watered down interpretation of it, at least.)
Today at work I had a negative experience with an insurance company and instead of feeling like I had failed or that the insurance company had failed me, I reminded myself that it is just one of the ten thousand sorrows that I can knock off my tally. No big sweat. And I appreciate the fact that my job allows me to be in direct contact with insurance companies and for me to be on the front line of what is being paid and whats not being paid-and learning why. This will make me a more effective health care provider-so there won't be any surprises with what insurance companies will or will not pay for physical therapy. And I think people appreciate that.

The Buddhism for Mothers book has been a slow read for me in the sense that it has so much useful information-it is like a bar of REALLY dark chocolate-or a REALLY RICH chocolate truffle--the kind you can only have 1 of because it is so rich (or because Patrick hid the rest). To read it quickly wouldn't do it justice-- the book is packed with information, ideas and thoughts on parenting and how to apply Buddhist principles to life and family. I'm not buddhist nor do I study any 1 particular religion. That said, I've always enjoyed reading Buddhist principles of living. Simple things like listening techniques, speaking softer, slower, more deliberately--thinking about what you're going to say before speaking. Power of the breath, finding calm in moments of chaos, etc...It is just what I need right now in those moments when Stuey is screaming and throwing blocks around the room and Nora is having one of her moments...these applied principles makes the highs not so high and the lows not so low.

Zoya