Stepping Out of Time by Joanne Guidoccio #yoga #romance #WRP

MUSE MONDAY

Please welcome back Joanne Guidoccio. What a great post about yoga, my favorite activity and one that I've gotten away from in recent years. Yes, years! I'm now inspired to hop back on the wagon. Thanks, Joanne.

A non-athlete, it took me a while to find a preferred physical activity, but once I discovered yoga, I was hooked.

That was ten years ago.

Since then, I’ve gone off the “yoga wagon” several times—interestingly enough right before prolonged writer’s blocks—but have now settled into a practice that both center and challenges me.
In the early days, I struggled with some of the poses and wondered if I could ever duplicate (or even approximate) the pretzel-like abilities of the lithe and limber instructors. Thankfully, an early instructor, who also exuded a Zen-like calm, encouraged me not to give up. I can still recall her advice: “A yoga pose is a journey, not a destination.” How reassuring to learn that I didn’t have to get it right the first time, the second time, or the fourteenth time. What matters is that I find the courage to keep trying and failing.

Relaxing into the slow movements and poses, I have experienced gradual stretching of muscles and improved range of motion. I am amazed by the difference yoga has made in everything from my flexibility to my posture to my enhanced creativity.

Yoga has taught me to be still when I’m uncomfortable and to breathe through the twinges of pains I experience in some of the poses. If the pain persists, however, I know when to stop and try alternate poses or reach for a bolster, strap, or foam block. With my writing, I’m becoming more aware of my limits, realizing when to stay at the edge and when to back off and rest.

The meditative quality of yoga has also helped with my moods. The life of a writer is filled with ups and downs—good and bad reviews, contracts and rejections, flows and blocks—that can be alleviated by a short session on the mat. Those twenty minutes or hour I spend on the mat help quiet my monkey mind and imagine possibilities beyond my present circumstances. At times, the session acts as a writing prompt, and I find myself rushing back to the computer.

I still have my personal challenges, but I am less reactive and more inclined to let things go. Instead, I gravitate toward that beautiful place where I can step out of time and leave all my concerns behind.
Namaste

About the Gilda Greco Mystery Series 

A cross between Miss Marple, Jessica Fletcher, and Cher (Moonstruck), protagonist Gilda Greco brings a unique perspective to the amateur female sleuth.

The teacher-turned-lottery winner returns to her hometown, only to find herself embroiled in a series of murder investigations. Before you start imaging thrillers with high stakes and police chases, pause and take a yoga breath. The three novels in the series—A Season for Killing Blondes, Too Many Women in the Room, A Different Kind of Reunion—are cozy mysteries, written in the Agatha Christie tradition. All the crimes take place “off stage” with very few graphic details provided.

While the pace may be more relaxed than that of thrillers and police procedurals, there are no steaming cups of herbal teas, overstuffed chairs, or purring cats in these contemporary cozies. Prepare yourself for interfering relatives who don’t always respect boundaries, adult mean girls, deserving and undeserving men, multiple suspects, and lots of Italian food.

Buy Links

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Joanne-Guidoccio/e/B00FAWJGCG

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/guidoccio

The Wild Rose Press: https://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/1239_joanne-guidoccio 

Bio

A member of Crime Writers of Canada, Sisters in Crime, and Romance Writers of America, Joanne Guidoccio writes cozy mysteries, paranormal romance, and inspirational literature from her home base of Guelph, Ontario. 

Where to find Joanne Guidoccio

Website: http://joanneguidoccio.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/joanneguidoccio

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorjoanneguidoccio

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7277706.Joanne_Guidoccio

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joanneguidoccio

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jguidoccio/

The Baby Arrives: A Story of Heaven and Hell

 2012 On the plains in Northern Arizona, two families joined forces and began the trials and tribulations of building a small family farm with nothing in the bank but love.

The last time I posted was March 4th. On March 5th all hell broke loose, with a big piece of heaven to balance it. According to the birthday book we have, March 5th is the day of heaven and hell. Our sweet Sadi Belle Whiteside, my first grandchild, entered our lives that day, and her birth date lived up to the hype.

All farm matters went on hold. All writing projects were suspended.

My daughter-in-law started labor at 6:00 am, March 4th. They admitted her into the birthing center that night about 10:30. We hung by the phone, but the night passed. On March 5th, we joined her parents in the waiting room vigil at the birthing center.

Proud Daddy wheels Sadi out

A little background: this had been one of the easiest pregnancies I'd ever witnessed. But then Christie is in amazing shape. She is a yoga practitioner, walks every day and eats incredibly healthy. She was bound and determined to have a total, no drug, natural delivery. Every indication was that she would.

Lance got zzz's while Grandpa rocked

First bottle during Mom's surgery

Okay - so - by the afternoon she was not progressing. Her back pain was so great she couldn't relax enough. She and my son finally agreed to an epidural. She quickly went from four to ten. Labor continued with my son coaching and Christie pushing. Then the contractions lessened, a side affect of the epidural. Unhappily, they consented to an inducing drug. But after over three hours of pushing, Sadi was stuck. The doctor rushed her in for an emergency C-section. At 5:24 pm, we had a beautiful granddaughter. The doctor said he'd never encountered this problem before. Christie has an odd shaped bone which turns in instead of out restricting the birth canal. Sadi's head stuck and she had the bump to prove it afterwards. Once they had her out, all seemed well. She immediately nursed, and Mom was beaming. An hour later, hell broke loose. By the time Christie made it back into surgery, she'd lost half her blood. It took eight units to get her through this. She'd pushed so hard she'd torn her cervix in two places. The surgeon did an amazing job of saving her and her chances for future children. We nearly lost her, and each day one of us tears up with the memory.

After several days in the hospital, Mom and daughter are home and doing fine. Christie has many weeks of recuperating to get through, but she's looking stronger each day. Sadi is a happy baby who is gaining weight and already has grandma and grandpa wrapped around her finger.


Yesterday was the first day we'd been able to turn some attention to the farm and me to my writing. I've just about finished trimming the blackberry rows. Frank and Lance got the supplies to build the green house. The watering system is on order. We couldn't wait any longer so we're funding it with credit. We hope to have two commercial crops, and I'll elaborate on that in future blogs.

For sure, life on Tortuga Flats Farm will never be the same!

Yoga to Rock - Saving Money #19

Working in the garden out front

I planted twenty trees with the help of Frank. He helped me dig some holes, and he dug out a couple of the stubborn suckers. The apple, peach and apricot trees all had suckers. I managed to get twenty of them out and planted. They have a 50/50 chance of survival but if only ten survive, I've saved hundreds of dollars.

Many of the trees are budding out. Last night we (well not we - the guys) covered several of the trees. The temp dropped below freezing again. This climate is a challenge. The wind has been hellacious so the flowers could get blown off too. Lots of challenges. All part of the fun this first year. We'll see how we feel about these challenges next year.

Lance tilling the garden

A neighbor walked by one day, Eunice, and offered to help in anyway she and Dave could. Turns out they're from Buckeye, Arizona and knew the Gillums. The Gillums, now deceased, were good friends of my parents and have the statue of Hobo Joe on their property. The Hobo was made by my dad and there's a plaque on it dedicated to him. I love when these connections happen. That's another subject I should elaborate on one of these days. So Lance has been using their tiller in the garden. We were going to rent one for $70 a day. We had no idea how long it would take and now that we know - wow! have they saved us some money. In fact, I don't know if we could have done it. Lance has been at it for four days now and still not done. People are great out here. Bob and Jeannette, more neighbors, have brought us two truckloads of horse manure for the garden.

We did pay to have the area on the other side of the blackberries cleared where we will plant potatoes and corn. Doug brought his tractor out and had it done in three hours. It was worth the $145. Hand clearing would've taken a couple of weeks more than likely.

We pick and choose our expenditures. We had the flagstone debate. I really wanted flagstone for our needed walkways around the property. First off, Frank and Lance pointed out - who the hell is going to load and unload and carry slabs of flagstone around the property???!!! Okay, guys, I see the point. So we've (no they) came up with an alternative plan. In certain areas we will use stepping stones like are already here in a couple of areas. We have to have an area for the dogs to inhabit while the grass is seeding and growing. Frank has sectioned off and is fencing a spot behind the garage. So they are going to put a walkway of gravel-stone from the house to the dog run. We can get ten tons of gravel for $260. We have no idea how much that is but it sounds like a lot! We need it out front anyway. There is an area between our fence and the dirt road that is pretty much mud for weeks after rain or snow. Can't wait to see our mountain of gravel when it arrives.

Christie keeping it simple for me

I have a built-in yoga teacher. Christie has been practicing yoga for a few years now and can put her body in positions that would make a yogi proud. She'd like to teach some day, so I suggested she practice on me. Yes, I'm saving money! And she's more than willing. So we have 'class' on Mondays and Thursdays at 10:30. On those days, I write until class and, after, go outside to work in the gardens. Yoga class in the middle of the living room has its drawbacks - the dogs sometimes want to join in and the males in the house don't always respect our time. It's hard answering questions when you're in downward facing dog position.