When my mother learned that the Prince and the Duchess of Cambridge are going to visit Yellowknife as part of the Canadian tour, she said to me that it is a must that I see the Royals. My mother is a fan of the Royals. She loves the Queen Mom, her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth and the late Princess Diana. Just like many others, she stayed up late to watch the Royal Wedding of Princess Diana and Prince Charles, and she was heartbroken and was bawling when the news of Princess Diana's death was announced. So I know how much it would mean for my mother that I see the Royal Highnesses Prince William and Duchess Catherine. She told me so anyway.

I do not know why am I not a Royal fan as my mother. I truly do not know. Upon hearing that the Royals were coming to Yellowknife, I did not feel as enthused as I should be. But then the day of their arrival came, and it was a rainy day. The more I got discouraged of going. However, on the day that they will grace Yellowknife with their presence at Somba K'e Civic Plaza, the sun came out and gave us a perfect weather for the Royal event. And I did not have any more excuse. So I went.

One last shot. People talking about what just happened, sharing photos. I went by myself so I just decided to go home, still surprised as I did not expect to get that close to a real life Prince.

I was not giddy or anything but I felt it was an extraordinary experience. It was unlikely and yet possible at the same time. One lady came to me and said, so did you get close? I said yes. She said, "Aww lucky." And the woman went and stood at my spot hoping to get a glimpse of the Royals.

Earlier on the day of the event, I was getting bored and anxious and I said to Candice, the woman with a baby, " I hope this is going to be a life changing experience for me." She said, "Of course it is. Wait you mean after this?"

"Yes, after this."

And I guess she was right. I could not help but to think of the opportunities I had in terms of meeting people since I came to Yellowknife. I met a lot of fascinating people: poets, storytellers, writers, famous and award winning authors. Who knew I would meet a real life Prince in my lifetime? I didn't. But this experience taught me this: Surprises do happen if you just let it and they do happen in the most unexpected places and circumstances. The key is to appreciate the moment and let it teach you its lesson. In his speech, Prince William said, "This place is what Canada is all about - vast, open beauty, tough, resilient, friendly peoples, true nature, true humanity," the prince said with Kate seated beside him. "We've already sensed the extraordinary potential of this region and the irrepressible spirit of adventure that marks the people of the territories and defines the land. We are so excited to be here."

You know, the universe talks to us in mysterious ways... and I am thinking, that maybe.. just maybe, the universe talked to me through Prince William that day.

Death is one of the many mysteries that comes to my mind. Oftentimes, when I think of life, I think of death as well. I sometimes think of the day that I die and wonder what would I be doing, where would I be, who would be with me, and what would I be feeling?

I think that I am too sensitive for anything about life that even death affects me. I sometimes say to myself that I am too silly to feel this way, that I should not be too receptive of such things --- of anything about life, about why am I here, about why such things (good and terrible) happen. But at the same time I think that I am made this way for a reason. And plus, is it not because of death that makes living a journey to be experienced, to be valued and to be celebrated? Death gives essence to life because it is through death that we know that everything we experience in our human existence will come to an end.

Do not stand at my grave and weep

I am not there. I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow.

I am the diamond glints on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain.

I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning's hush

I am the swift uplifting rush.

Of quiet birds in circled flight.

I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry;

I am not there. I did not die.

Do not stand at my grave and weep is a poem written in 1932 by Mary Elizabeth Frye.

It takes great strength of mind and character to be a good mother. And to be a good mother it is helpful to have great faith so that we, the mothers of all the children, may handle our daily lives with grace and love. The best gift of motherhood to me is the gift of knowledge and the opportunity that I can spread love and peace through my children.

Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea:
But we loved with a love that was more than love -
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her high-born kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me -
Yes! that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud one night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we -
Of many far wiser than we -
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling -my darling -my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea -
In her tomb by the sounding sea.

–Edgar Allan Poe: Annabel Lee

This is the most entertaining slideshow I have ever seen. Well just because I felt it was talking straight to me.

Click on the link below:


The Eight Irresistible Principles of Fun

This song makes me emotional. It is such a sad state to be in when the three most beautiful, wonderful words become hard to say, when you know you have to go and leave the memories behind.

Load the car and write the note.
Grab your bag and grab your coat.
Tell the ones that need to know.
We are headed north.

One foot in and one foot back.
But it don’t pay to live like that.
So I cut the ties and I jumped the track.
For never to return.

Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.
Are you aware the shape I’m in?
My hands they shake, my head it spins.
Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.

When at first I learned to speak.
I used all my words to fight.
With him and her and you and me.
Ahh, but it's just a waste of time.
Yeah it’s such a waste of time.

That woman she’s got eyes that shine.
Like a pair of stolen polished dimes.
She asked to dance I said it’s fine.
I’ll see you in the morning time.
Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.
Are you aware the shape I’m in?
My hands they shake, my head it spins.
Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.

Three words that became hard to say.
I and Love and You.
What you were than I am today.
Look at the things I do.

Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.
Are you aware the shape I’m in?
My hands they shake, my head it spins.
Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.

Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.
Are you aware the shape I’m in?
My hands they shake, my head it spins.
Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.

Dumbed down and numbed by time and age.
You’re dreams that catch the world the cage.
The highway sets the travelers stage.
All exits look the same.

Three words that became hard to say.
I and Love and You.
I and Love and You.
I and Love and You.

Yoga, an ancient but perfect science, deals with the evolution of humanity. This evolution includes all aspects of one's being, from bodily health to self-realization. Yoga means union - the union of body with consciousness and consciousness with the soul. Yoga cultivates the ways of maintaining a balanced attitude in day-to-day life and endows skill in the performance of one's actions. ~B.K.S. Iyengar, Astadala Yogamala

I have been battling with myself and of course, just like in any battles, there is tension, madness, fury, and blood. And I've felt all these, maybe not the blood gushing part, but for sure tension, madness and fury.

Anyway, I promised myself that I will win this battle. I know and have learned that I feel better through the day if I have been a good person to the people around me (in this case my three children and my one husband) and most of all to myself. I find that if I do things that make me happy (like having a cup of coffee and a piece of chocolate, or reading a book, or going to a NorthWords meeting) it shows in my attitude that I project to others and for that I feel that the pleasant me is winning against the not so pleasant side. This I find easy only when I am being true to myself and part of me, actually the big part of me, this voice constantly say to me to make myself better everyday. And one of the many things that this voice tells me is to calm down, not that I am hysterical all the time (well I am actually most of the time--- just giddy inside) it's my mind that is just always and constantly talking and loud.

And that is why I signed up for yoga.

My very first time in yoga class was wonderful. For a yoga virgin, who has a 3 months pass that entitles me to go to any classes, I went to this class called Vinyasa - All Levels. Of course, I thought well, it must include the beginners level, right? Wrong.

Ohhh the stretches, the poses, the breathing: inhaling and exhaling they were all hard. My hamstrings. "Stretch your hamstrings, feel the strength in your core, mind the space in your legs, notice your fingertips, reach, reach, lengthen your arms, scoop your tail bone exhale..." I was like, what? What are those? But of course, the lady instructor with her smile and her soothing almost a lullabyish voice calmed my mind. So as I stretched and told my mind to shut up, I felt my hamstrings, my legs, my toes, and my fingertips. I began to feel calm but at the same time aware of my body movements, my breathing, and the strain and challenges of my body while I try to be fluid. For such a slow motion and quiet flow, I was sweating. She came to me and said, "You are awesome. You are doing it,"'as she helped me held my legs up high while I was lying and lifting my back.

I find that yoga is such a metaphor in achieving balance in life. In yoga you have to be aware of all your body parts, what they do, how they feel, and if you are aware of all this, you become connected to your being. It is then easier for you to feel calm and balanced. In life, I find that it easy for us to feel lost, to feel overwhelmed and not have balance in our life. Today, I realized that being aware of who you really are inside, what you feel, what you think, being in tune with your inner being, can help in finding peace, calm and balance. Thinking and noticing my fingertips, being aware of my breathing, minding my hamstrings helped me in getting through my first yoga experience. It was great. I thought it was like making love to my own body. It was calming, challenging and intense all at the same time but it is all this that made the experience worthwhile. I guess what I'm saying is, if only we could all take a moment to be aware of who we are, take a moment to notice our inner being, mind our self worth, life is not going to be as hard and challenging, and that balance and peace in our lives is achievable and doable. Just like yoga.

And I would like to end this note with this --- Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured. - B.K.S. Iyengar