I awoke this morning knowing only that we would attend a spiritual service at Unity Of New Braunfels and an inclination to take the 4pm NIA class at Synergy Studio.
Doug had his cappuccino and I my latte as we shared excitedly our news from the previous day in our bed. He had a 5am - 10:30pm round trip to Austin the day before, where he attended an investment class and enjoyed dinner with the participants afterwards. I am amazed how much there is to say even though we have spent only a short time away from each other.
Rev. Karen Tudor encouraged us to move beyond believing in God to trusting in God. She asked us to think of God as a wall that we can lean against and trust that we will be supported when we are off balance. We got to put our spirit of generosity to practice by purchasing plates from Unity's youth of brisket, baked beans, green bean casserole (yes, just like the recipe on the can of soup) and cake.
Later, I found the motivation to join Adelle, Jan, Joanie and the other NIA instructors for a class they team taught. They were introducing a new theme to NIA's fitness expression: Clarity, form and freedom. I felt the intention of clarity the most as we did high kicks (well, high for me) to the front, back and sides with an emphasis on the heel. I became inspired in the cool down as Joanie had us lift to a bridge from a side can-can position. Early blog readers may remember my goal to get more cardio into my lifestyle this year and that NIA was how I aspired to do it. For those in the San Antonio area, Adelle's studio also offers Yoga and African Dance. There is an upcoming workshop on the Alexandra Technique. What I am most excited about is the Andalusi Dance class, a combination of Pilates, Belly Dancing and Flamenco! For those of you who would like to find NIA instructors in your area, visit NIANOW.
After class, I headed to my favorite market to pick up items for dinner. I saw Ina and Giada make shrimp recipes on the Food Network recently. I decided to tweak and merge their recipes to make something refreshing and in celebration of Spring.
I made a marinade/dressing of 1/4 c lemon juice, 1/2 olive oil, 3 minced garlic cloves and red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to taste. I coated shrimp and roasted in a 400 degree ove
n for about 5 minutes. I chopped cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, kalamata olives, marinated artichoke hearts, feta cheese, scallions and mint. A 1/2 c of orzo was cooked in boiling, salted water. I mixed all the chopped vegetables and cheese with the shrimp and orzo. I dressed it sparingly and served it over mixed greens with lemon sliced into halve moons. For dessert, I took 10 Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti that I had frozen in Glad Freezer Press N Seal when I made a batch over the holidays.For my recipe sources, have a look at:
Ina's Shrimp and Orzo
Giada's Marinade
Connecting with one's beloved. A chatty call with a daughter and sharing a church fundraising meal with an elderly mother in law. An offering to seek higher oneness with God. The pleasure and joy that comes with moving the body rhythmically and within a community of like minded women. Earth's bounty prepared creatively to nourish and sustain. One day unfolding as one dimension blended effortlessly into another. In Living in Balance: A Dynamic Approach for Creating Harmony & Wholeness in a Chaotic World, Joel and Michelle Levey wrote that it is impossible to live in balance. We are continually moving between states of balance and states of imbalance. They wrote, " Balance is not a static state that we find once and for all..." I am grateful for today, for a day that provided unexpected evenness.
"Take one small step to improve your current situation." - Joel and Michelle Levey
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