Circles and Cycles
On Beginning Again
If you are a regular or if you have landed on Tarantula: Authors and Art for the very first time, get ready to enjoy a little creative stretch! Our contributor, Karen Grace, an art teacher and historian, will take you on a little gallery walk and a mini yoga activity - we hope you’ll give it a try. If a friend forwarded you this article, welcome; if you like it, share it or why not subscribe?
Where am I going and which path should I choose? These questions regularly loop through my mind, but this season they’re always with me. Something is shifting, I think. I welcomed the Autumn and the equinox with a labyrinth walk but I seem to be still twisting around on that winding path.Â
Scrolling through recent photos, the clear Autumnal theme to my days emerges: bright orange pumpkins, gilt edged plates, twisty kanelbullar, steaming bowls of soup, glowing lanterns, and shiny red apples. In one shot there is a handful of tiny blueberries and in another some alarmingly large orange mushrooms. Candles cast pools of light at my table, a fresh mug of tea warms my hands, and my pockets are overflowing with conkers to twirl in my fingers. All things round and wonderful – full and ripe and plentiful. It must be fall.Â
With a burst of seasonal, back-to-school glee I too have gone back to class this year.  A yoga teacher training program (at Urban Om Center for Yoga and Meditation) has me immersed in deep exploration of the body-mind connection that has brought so much peace and joy to my life. I first came to yoga 25 years ago and it has kept me sane through all sorts of life events... suffice to say that much has changed, both with my body and my approach to yoga. Where once I focused on rigid alignment and precise angles in my trikonasana (triangle) and ado mukha svanasana (downward facing dog), now I see rounded edges and gentle curves. My hip bones do not point forward like headlights and my heels do not always make it to the ground – and that is just fine. Transitioning from the arched back of marjaryasana (cat pose) to the swayed back of bitilasana (cow pose) and back again offers fluid motion rippling along my spine without tension or force. This time around the breath moving through the body is so much more than an inhale and an exhale, but a sweet infinity loop to follow around and about. Time to trust the wisdom of my own body and follow these new curves where they lead.
Considering my preoccupation, it seemed no accident to be invited to view the work of Swedish sculptor Eva Hild at her exhibition at GSA Stockholm with Mia Nevado’s Look Up Movement.   The floating rib cage-like piece in the entry room (entitled Black Rib), with its loops upon loops of black ribbons melded with my many hours of practice and set my mind on the idea of following my breath. Wandering my way from room to room, I just wanted to breathe and flow my way around and through all the sculptures. The two shiny stainless steel reflective pieces, entitled Whole and Hump, appeared to me like playgrounds – visually and experientially. Tracing my eyes around their contours encouraged me to inhale and exhale along with their undulations. The visuals of being turned sideways, then upside down, then becoming tiny then expanding to larger than life offered a continuous loop of exploration and entertainment. (More than a little bit like a sun salutation!)  Hild’s work absolutely enchanted me.  I hope to see these sculptures in a natural environment someday so I can spin, round and round, with the land and the sky twirling about with the falling leaves.
I do so love the falling leaves, and I wander around like a child collecting the prettiest ones. People must think I am touched, as I stand on the sidewalk to study them carefully, but how can you not notice their breathtaking beauty? Most of the trees here turn golden or brown with the season – there are comparatively few that turn red or orange. And as best I can tell, the ones that turn red and orange are mostly imports and hybrids, not the native trees that have always grown here. They stick out, vividly.  And yet here they are. Â
As I think about those falling leaves, I realize that something new has taken hold in me. This is my third autumn in Stockholm and it feels... familiar. Yes of course I know what fall is supposed to be like generally, but I assure you fall in Stockholm is a very different affair from fall in Seattle. And this year I actually know a little bit of what to expect.  I know where to find those red and orange stunners around town. There are some pockets of Japanese maples and Staghorn sumac that simply glow with inner fire. I can visit them and say hello. And I know where to find the loveliest local golden leaved birch groves and I seek them out too. It’s almost like I’m feeling at home.Â
So, this time will you join me for a tiny homecoming yoga practice? Let’s just do one pose together and try to feel it with our whole body. Tadasana or mountain pose is a great starting point for any yoga practice or really just for life. In the pose your body is mostly arranged in a straight line so there’s a temptation to jump past it to something more complicated, but it’s sweet to linger here and notice both the softness and the strength, the fullness and the flow. And yes, if you are new to yoga this pose is mostly just like standing straight, but it is standing straight with intention and awareness, and that makes all the difference.
Stand up, with your feet on the floor about shoulder width apart. (If standing is not available right now you can of course be seated.) Allow your feet to be a wide and stable base, then let your hips be over your feet, your spine elongated, and your head in line with your spine and your hips. Let your shoulder blades draw down your back as your arms hang at your sides, gently rotating outward, thumbs pointing out, palms facing forward. Take a breath in and feel the course of it in your body. Does your chest lift? Does your belly expand? Allow your breath to be natural, just notice where it goes. Perhaps it brings a sense of stability and calm? Sometimes I like to focus my attention on my connection to the ground, with a wide base, rooted and rising strong. At home in the world, at home in this body. After a few more breaths and when you’re ready, go ahead and come out of the pose and step forward into the rest of your day. Thank you for joining me. Â
Here I leave you with some words I love from the poet Maya Angelou:
Only lovers
see the fall
a signal end to endings
a gruffish gesture alerting
those who will not be alarmed
that we begin to stop
in order to begin
again.
And here’s a little more for you about our artist of the month: These videos are in Swedish of course but I love watching Eva Hild work on her sculptures. This one is from Right Livelihood and here is one from Borås Stad – her hometown.  This one is from her studio and it provides a gorgeous overview of her work. Enjoy!