Category: Beautiful People

There are only few  dealers of high quality crystal bowls in California – one in LA and another … here at Mt. Shasta.  So thrilled to witness a true artist/musician finding the right sound … to add to her repertoire and provide greater range of ethereal sounds… Her strumming is so … breathtakingly beautiful.

Feeling honored to witness all these spiritual manifestations … Ms Naoe Amano is an accomplished musician, sharing her gift as a pianist, vocalist, crystal bowl player and a composer. She has released 2 CDs so far and she came all the way from Japan to perform her crystal bowls sound baths at Mt Shasta’s private label brand gathering. (Then she is off to 3-4 other cities on the Northwest to perform). I was amazed she brought her own 4-5 very crystal bowls as carry on luggage.  So precious they never left her sight. They are very fragile and just one little crack could ruin the sound quality so … it’s a labor of love to travel with them in tow … She said she had to leave behind as many as she brought since she was limited on how many she can lug over on an international flight.

She is so adorable with her sweet smiles and gentle laughs; quite delicate in appearance but you can tell that at the core, she is strong and … passionate about her music – Unphased by a jet lag or a long drive, here she is considering yet another addition to her crystal bowl collection. Luckily this shop had someone named Scott who can really speak her language (and I don’t mean Japanese- language of sounds and music 🎵 is an international language!), she even carried in her 4-5 bowls from our van to show him what she felt was amiss to explain what she was seeking to add. She wanted certain key/scale that balanced out the ensemble.

These alchemist bowls creates such magical enticing sounds, how can she resist getting yet another:)

I can’t wait to find out what she creates next with her range of sounds so expanded !

We are in the New Moon phase of this March Madness month …Golden Moon Gallery reopens March 21st. It’s one of my favorite places to visit, thanks to their beautiful style and eclectic offering  …it’s a “Warm Hug” of a place as I hope to make my own yoga class … The owners there are welcoming and … warm with lovely taste and style they share with ease and generous hearts.  The stencil moon phase at their entry way is a work of a local (East Bay) artist and, to me, a power spot:) As an artist, himself, he and his wife showcases local artists’ work.  It’s a lovely gallery.

No, it’s not a yoga lesson but a dance session taught by talented Shereen Malani. It’s not yoga but that’s just the point. Yoga helps us live a more uplifted fluid life “in the groove”, OFF the mat as well as On the mat.  Thanks to yoga practice, off the mat, I felt more ease flowing through the new unusual steps. More grounded with better balance and,,, lots of squatting and getting down to the floor .. yes, really gett’n DOWN in squats (called “malasana” pose on the mat:). Regular and repeated practice of yoga gives you the bounce in the steps and steadiness, muscle strength, and flexibility in the loosened and juiced joints to keep up with this super spirited and talented dancer. The beat of the live drums made us unstoppable?　Amazing syncopation !

The best birthday present is an opportunity to be really PRESENT, transfixed with a gift of new beautiful experience, borne out of precious soulful friendship – thank you to my lovely goddess BFF named Bright Radiant One. She is that.

Key Take-Away from Shereen Malani’s dance class – this dance is not about PERFORMANCE, rather it’s about CONNECTIONS – YOU connecting with those you are dancing WITH. It’s a revival of our innate communal and instinctive tribal proclivity.  Each piece tells a story and the dancers are moving more in awareness of those they dance with, rather than about performing for an “audience”  – so in that sense, there’s a common thread with yoga – it’s all weaved into this ocean of vibrations and deep flow .

Regular practice of yoga harnesses the power and energies within with techniques to source them, mine them… so there’s an outpouring of prana – energy – life force – when healing is found through mindful self-expression that leads to not a spotlight singularly onto you but a spotlight on the wholenss in  channeling and … connecting with fellow dancers.  Yoga would be such a rehabilitative and therapeutic practice for all dancers as I stayed on to eavesdrop about joint pains and pinched nerves and how they are dealing with chronic pain … with Epsom salt baths, acupuncture, herbs, and massages … add on to that list – therapeutic yoga – for the ultimate self-care to find more bounce and fresh vibrancy in our steps:)

Let’s dance through the flow and ebbs of life with more vibrancy, more buoyancy … Namaste:)