Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'

My homegirl Terra at the studio where I practice

Why is it that on the mornings when I have to get up early for practice, I am often fast asleep when my alarm goes off, but on the mornings when I practice later, I am often up super early? I don't get it.

But here I am, at 5:30 am, with MJ pumping through my head:

I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)

I do understand why he's he here, with this song, this morning. I was talking to my friend last night about the fact that I have enjoyed the down time with my kids this summer, and I've enjoyed the down time by myself, but now I'm ready for some more action. On the professional front. On the man front. On the friend front.

Bring it, Universe, MJ style:

Lift Your Head Up High
And Scream Out To The World
I Know I Am Someone
And Let The Truth Unfurl
No One Can Hurt You Now
Because You Know What's True
Yes, I Believe In Me
So You Believe In You
Help Me Sing It, Ma Ma Se,
Ma Ma Sa, Ma Ma Coo Sa
Ma Ma Se, Ma Ma Sa,
Ma Ma Coo Sa

Heal the World

Today's song selection is in honor of my firstborn, whose innate desire to protect nature and be kind to people helps heal the world every day. He is 12 years old today, a responsible middle schooler who gets his homework done without being asked.

Tonight one of his assignments was to write a paragraph about a woman who was similar to one of the women he is studying. "Could I compare you to Mother Theresa, Mom, since you're always kind to people no matter what?"

Love that kid, and although I'm still no saint, I can honestly say that I'm a whole lot more like Mother Theresa since he's been my companion on this planet. Like all children in their own way, he's making good on Michael's plea to:

Heal the world
Make it a better place
For you and for me and the entire human race
There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place for
You and for me

If you want to know why
There's a love that cannot lie
Love is strong
It only cares for joyful giving
If we try we shall see
In this bliss we cannot feel
Fear or dread
We stop existing and start living

So grateful to have made that transition from existing to living, and I'm not sure I would have done it without my babes.

Man in the Mirror

Last night I took a step toward realizing my dream of bringing yoga to teachers in schools where, for various reasons, teachers are stressed and not always open and receptive to all of their students. Teaching is such an incredibly difficult job, and so incredibly important -- the connections with kids that teachers have the opportunity to make every single day are critical to the students' developing sense of self. My belief is that offering yoga in schools will reduce teacher stress and increase their openness and receptivity to all students. Part of this path involves asking teachers to start with the (wo)man in the mirror and examine long held assumptions of which they may not even be aware. These beliefs, though often subconscious, can adversely affect teachers' ability to connect with students and the ability of students to connect with the material they are intended to learn. Often there are issues of racial bias that need to be uncovered, examined, and released, making room for an affirmation that we are all one.

I presented my idea at a school board meeting last night. Another group also made a presentation, and used this song as their final inspiring message. I've always loved this song, but I've never thought about how interesting Michael Jackson is as the carrier of this message -- a man whose reflection in the mirror got less and less black over the course of his life. I think there's a difference between changing your ways and changing your appearance, and I think the changing of his appearance is really about a lack of self-acceptance and about his (real or perceived) belief that somehow having lighter skin was preferable. I have no doubt that growing up, he received that message repeatedly and felt he had the power to change it. Sadly, in the end, after sharing so many amazing aspects of himself with the world, he seemed to leave it almost as a result of never having come to terms with the man in the mirror.

Here's Michael singing Man in the Mirror in 1988, after he'd pretty significantly cosmetically altered the man in the mirror. In my own life, practicing yoga with specific attention paid to cultivating awareness, acceptance and non-judgment has helped me more fully appreciate my own reflection, and coming from that place, I can more easily see the beauty in others. This is the power of yoga that I hope to bring to teachers.