A MEDITAION FOR THE LITTLE ONES - RAINBOW

This is a meditation for your little ones. It is best done before nap time or bed time or whenever your child is feeling most relaxed.

I based this meditation around the seven main chakras of the body. Each chakra has a different vibrational frequency, corresponds to certain organs and represent different emotions and feelings. It is said that when the chakra wheels are spinning with ease and vibrancy then you will be physically, emotionally and spiritually very well.

This is a nice way to introduce the chakras to your children or just an awareness of the different states we can be in. No matter what, this meditation will make your child feel lovely and relaxed and intrigued by this magical rainbow. Enjoy!

RAINBOW

Lie down and snuggle into your bed and get comfortable. Softly close your little eyes and lips. Start to take some big deep breaths in and out of your nose. Feel how the cool air goes in as you breath in and then how warm air flows out as you breathe out. Your deep breathing is making you feel very relaxed. You start to drift off to a wonderful dreamy place.

You are lying on a grassy hill underneath a big shady tree. The golden sun trickles through the leafy branches, warming your face and body. The sweet smell of wildflowers is all around you and in the distance you can here a gentle river flowing. As you watch puffy white clouds pass by a beautiful rainbow stretches out from the sky and lands at your feet. All the colors begin to flow over your body sending a feeling of relaxation and peace.

The red swirls up your legs making them glow with lovely healing warmth. The red that's like the colour of a shiny apple makes you feel safe, nourished and grounded.

Just below your belly button the colour orange glows radiantly out of you. The vibrant orange that's like the soft inside of a mango makes you feel strong and creative. You feel as though you have the power to be whatever you want to be.

Your tummy now beams with a yellow as bright as the sun or a juicy lemon. The lovely yellow colour all around your tummy makes you feel confident and worthy of all the love and kindness the world has to offer.

Creeping up to your chest you see the colour green radiating out of your heart space. The green is bright like the leaves on the trees and the grass in the meadows. It fills your whole body with deep love and joy. It makes you feel very peaceful, from your head to your toes.

Now imagine your throat glowing blue. The blue is as magnificent as a clear blue sky on a summers day. The blue flowing over your throat makes you feel as though you can say and express yourself in any situation. You feel able to tell people your when you are feeling good and when you are feeling bad. You feel free to speak your truth.

See the space between your eyebrows shimmer with a beautiful purple. The purple is like the soft purple you see on the petals of wildflowers or a sweet plum. This purple shimmering out of your third eye ignites your imagination and intuition. You feel confident and trusting of yourself.

Imagine the top of your head is radiating out a brilliant violet colour like the violet shade of a bunch of succulent grapes. The violet streaming out the top of your head brings you a feeling of utter bliss. Any worries or fears you have are left behind as this beautiful colour brings you a feeling of connection to every living thing in this world.

As you lay on your grassy hill beaming with all the colours of the rainbow you cant help but smile. All these wonderful colours make you feel so content and peaceful. The energy of these colours are very special to you and you can imagine them flowing over your precious body whenever you need to feel more relaxed, joyful or loving.

Now start to wiggle your toes and fingers. Take a few deep belly breaths, then slowly open your eyes and move around as you feel energised by the rainbow shining bright inside of you.

Astrid xx

MIDNIGHT KISSES

I have always loved the stillness of night. I often wake around midnight or even three am and lay there listening to the creatures who seek prey or the ones who just share their beauty with a soft song under the snowy moon. Most of all I love the stillness. Rugged thoughts and tired bones feel as though they have dissolved with what little sleep I've had. My heart beats at a slow rhythmic pace and feels light and open. Perhaps I'm a woman of the night. Destined to always wake and have my blue veins bathed and turned silver by the light of galaxies far far away. The darkness seems to evoke an energy and a passion in my spirit. 

I use to love making love in the dead of the night. Sleepy intertwined bodies heavely and slowly would drape on top of each other. Half awake kisses trail along eyes still dreaming. Murmurs of passion are exchanged as we would lull each other with rhythmic rocks. No words spoken, we would be guided by only feeling and the energy of this sacred time. With sweat stained cheeks we would fall once again into the mould of each others bodies, skin on skin, and back into the theta mind. Perhaps a whisper of "I love you" somewhere or perhaps not..

I have a new love in my dark nights. They are my children. sometimes I creep next to them and stare into the cherub faces. I try to etch every crease, curve and detail of their innocent beings into my mind. I stroke their little noses and kiss their teeney toes. I hold them and cradle them and whisper promises of joy and that I will be a better mama tomorrow. Sometimes I drip sad tears onto their downy soft heads as their youth shows me how delicate and immortal this life is. The invincibility of my own childhood has been drained away and replaced with a deeper respect for birth and inevitable death. I see the veil between these two worlds become thinner and thinner as i become older. I then fill with gratitude and pride as I realize these children will be my greatest achievements. I bask in moonlight and in motherhood. 

Darkness is for reflection and reguventaion. We arrive earthside into darkness and are stationed in the watery portal of our mothers womb. Dark envelops us as we grow. It always fascinates me that the heart is formed in the embryo before any other organ, even before the brain. The heart then, should always come first in life. I do not believe in coincidences. This was meant to be. And what is last to go as we fall into the dark void of death? Our heart.. Darkness is woven in life and in death. It holds a power as bright as our light side. Do not fear the inky black skies or the parts of you that you shun away into the shadows of your subconscious mind. 

Embrace it all and howl to the moon wild woman! In your darkest hour something amazing is being born. You will shed and you will reform into the magnificence you were always meant to be xx

A MEDITATION FOR LITTLE SOULS - MAGICAL ROCKPOOL

Meditation is a wonderful tool to bring into your child's life. With their imaginations at their peak, calming and beautiful imagery can evoke peace and also drop pearls of wisdom into their precious minds. Through these types of meditations we can empower our children and work through issues that may be occurring in their waking life. 

This is also a beautiful way to bond with your child and please feel free to massage your children or add your own loving words. 

This meditation is apart of a series I am developing called YOGA FOR THE TRIBE. I want to bring yoga and meditation into families as a way of healing and bonding. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

The magical rockpool of your soul

MAGICAL ROCKPOOL

Lie down on your back and stretch your arms and legs and then relax fully. Let your feet flop open like a big open book and rest your arms by your side with your palms facing up towards the sky. Begin to breathe big deep breaths in and out of your nose. Feel all the tension in your body start to disappear like magic as you do this. Your body now feels relaxed and heavy. You are safe and comfortable.

Imagine now sitting on a sandy beach as you watch the ocean. The orange sun is warming your back and a soft breeze tickles at your cheeks, keeping you cool. You watch the waves rising and crashing onto the shore and you breathe in and out deeply and slowly. You feel very relaxed and calm.

The water begins to lap up against your feet and you like the feeling of it so much that you decide to go for a swim in the nearby rock pool. As you walk over to it, soft white sand squeaks between your toes. 

You sit on the edge of the pool with your legs dangling in the water. You take another deep breath in and as you breathe out you slip your body into the crystal clear water. The water is cool and silky on your body. You feel so refreshed and peaceful. 

You look down at the water all around you and see that at the bottom of the rockpool are pink starfish, pearly white pipis and rainbow coloured fish. Can you see all the beautiful creatures? 

Then something else catches your eye, something sparkly. 

You reach down and pick it up. Its a precious gemstone and you move it around your fingers feeling its smoothness and admiring its unique shape and its color. What color is it? Imagine it to be your favourite color. You sit and rest in the rockpool with the water cleansing your body and holding the gemstone against your heart. It feels apart of you and something to be treasured and looked after. You breathe in and out of your nose with a slow steady rhythm. You feel deeply peaceful and happy.

Just like your special rockpool, you too hold many amazing gifts that are unique and precious to you. You are a very special part of this world with many wonderful talents to offer. When you express the beautiful being that is YOU then you allow others to shine too. 

Know that at any time you can visit your rockpool to discover and remember the gems that you hold inside of you. 

When you are ready, begin to wriggle your toes and fingers, then gently open your eyes and focus on your surroundings. Stretch your arms and legs. You feel relaxed, secure and happy.

Astrid xx

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PACING HALLWAYS

It's 3am as I pace my long dark hallway. A little babe is tucked against my torso. Knees pulled up, arms curled tightly against his chest and pressing on my heart, his little head is cradled in the space between my shoulder and neck. His sweet milky breath is warm against my skin. Its not the first time we have walked down this hall with its creaky floorboards beneath us and walls alongside us that sigh with sleepiness and restless bones. We have been pacing for much of the night. The gentle vibration of my steps and my heartbeat against his body have become the only source to his slumber. In the depths of our exhausted minds and among desperate shushhhhs I begin to imagine my little baby, my son, as a grown man. 

I begin to wonder what he will look like and who will comfort him in his times of need. 

I pull him a little closer into me. 

I wonder if there will be times in his life when he will need someone in the night to kiss his face, hold his body and tell him everything is going to be OK. 

I breathe in his baby smell and keep pacing.

I wonder if he will ever feel loneliness and pace his own hallway one day. Searching for an answer or a guidance beyond this physical realm.

I kiss his little head a hundred times. Then a hundred more for the times I cant be there.

I wonder if he will ever lie awake at night battling his swirling thoughts and feel helpless. Silently crying out for help. For some comfort.

I rub his little back and sing a soothing lullaby that I hope echos in his mind forever.

I drift to a memory of seeing a homeless man sleeping on the sidewalk. His face was pressed against the hard cold concrete and his body was supported by a paper thin blanket. His dark lashes twitched with dreaming. And, I wondered if his mother once held him warm and close. Whispering promises and murmurs of love. Where is she now? Or perhaps he has always slept alone, exposed and abandoned. 

I tuck my sons feet into my dressing gown so he feels no cold. So his body is enveloped by me.

I wonder if he will know that I am always there for him and even as a tall, strong, grown man I will hold him, pace with him and speak kindness and hope into his soul.

For once I am not resentful towards this tiny nocturnal creature and his relentless night waking. In this moment I feel I could spend eternity holding his body and comforting him as we pace hallways engulfed in a quiet darkness. I tell him that as long as I am his mother he will never be alone. He will always have comfort in the dark times. I tell him that I love him, I love him, I love him. I tell him that in his darkness he will meet me. A young mother, tired but full of love, holding his weight with a strength that surpasses any emotional hurt or life's hard knocks. We will pace these long sometimes endless hallways together my son. Sleep now, you're safe and I'm here, always. 

Mama xx 

WHATS YOUR WORD FOR 2015?

My fearless flyer. My teacher. My daughter

Time is a natural part of this human life. We live in the now and at every moment we leave behind a past and move into a future. Every second can be used as a time to reflect and to change. The new year brings a great opportunity to reminisce on the year that has passed (where did it go?) and how we would like to shape the year ahead. 

One year ago I stood under stark florescent lights in a long line of hungry, suppressed and struggling people. A man in front of me stood barefoot, smelling of urine, weed and oppression. The two guys behind me bantered about their latest stint in prison and the crack they had smoked that morning. I stood in my middle class white clothing holding my baby and asking myself what the fuck I was doing here. Why had I let my family get to this point of being so broke we had to collect emergency food parcels. Tears sprung to my eyes and then I felt something shake inside of me and break open like an earthquake splitting the earth apart. An enormous amount of courage and determination burst out of my brokenness. 

No more. 

This was the last time I ever allowed my family to get to this place. I prayed to God for change and a pathway out of this. Something shifted. A calm flowed over me and I knew what I had to do and what was ahead. 

The sun is streaming through my new little apartment, casting light into dark corners in the City of Angels today. Fresh produce is stacked up in our fridge and my family is happy, healthy and for the moment at peace. A year on and life is very different. It has been a long road, with a lot of hard work and sacrifices have been made. I think about standing in that line often, as it reminds me of where we have come from and what can be achieved with a shift in your mindset and some self education. Every single moment in life can be either met with "woe is me" or "teach me". Every emotion can be fought against or we can be kind to ourselves and take a quiet space to nurture those hurts and breathe compassion and love into them. However, some shitty, cruel and relentless suffering happens in this world. I would like to acknowledge those who have very little choice and have been born into war, unfathomable poverty and who are at the hands of broken, evil humans. I will never understand the pain and suffering that these people must endure. All we can do is look to those who are trying to carve out change by rising up against the warped ideas of power hungry individuals. It's the Nelson Mandelas, the Gandhis, the Malala Yousufzais, the foster parents, the environmentalists and all those wonderful souls who are working towards a better, more peaceful world.

These inspiring people got me thinking about what my word for 2015 would be. I have decided it would be COURAGE. To have the courage to take risks, to go against the norm and be fearless when it comes to going after my dreams. To have the courage to be honest with my family and ask for their help when it's needed. To be courageous and speak up more for myself and those who need a voice. Courage is deciding to step off that cliff of uncertainty and fall into an undiscovered ocean of challenges and opportunities. 

What is your word? What will you be threading into your year?

Wishing everyone, all six billion and something souls on this earth, on this damn beautiful mess of a planet, a happy, loved up, COURAGEOUS and blessed new year.

Love Astrid xx

MONDAY MOTHERLY WISDOM

In the blink of a tired eye our children have grown. Little heads coated in snowy white hair have turned into full blown cascading ruby red locks. Instead of being cocooned against your chest they seek the freedom of the fields and magical hiding places were they can be whoever they want. A fairy, an explorer, a mummy, a mystical creature dreamt up by their lucid minds.

As mothers we wish for for them to never grow up and to always be untouched by the whiplash of lifes hard hits. To not ever feel broken. At the same time we claw our hands into our frazzled hair and beg for long arduous days to be over. To not have to deal with another little person who will tear her own hair out if she doesn't get the purple cup. Who needs constant care and cleaning up after. Motherhood is quite tantric in a lot of ways. Full of dualities. We are essentially beings who are seeking answers and comfort, looking after beings who are also seeking answers and comfort. That in itself is something we must remind ourselves when we feel we are failing at this parenting gig. We are learning, always, about ourselves, the world and how to deal with all the experiences that flow into our life. We may be mothers, but we are also women, dreamers and souls wanting the fullest and most enriching lives possible. What a task this job is!

Lets try to savor the precious younger years of our children by taking an extra moment at night to nuzzle into their little heads as they fall asleep and inhale their sweet innocent aroma. Perhaps we could play one extra game of This Little Piggy and admire those teeney toes that once prodded you inside your tummy. We could spend one day a week where our phones are turned off and pack a bag with enough coffee and good food to keep us energized for a day of play outside. Include a rug and a good book for curling up under a tree when naps are needed. On the flipside, ensure you are getting that alone time with yourself. When I say alone time, I mean no one else around to talk to, not even your facebook friends. Settle into a little nook in a cafe and write out your anguish, read something that nourishes your soul and sip on a bottomless pot of deeply warming and nurturing tea.

Be good to you mama,
Astrid xx