For The Next Five Minutes.

I yoga'd last Saturday morning.  At the end of the class, the yoga instructor said:  Lay down, close your eyes.  Relax every part of your body.  For the next five minutes all of your needs will be met.

That last statement really struck me and resonated long thereafter.

How often in life are we told:  For the next X amount of minutes / hours / days / weeks / months / for the next year, ALL of your needs will be met?  Stated with conviction its a precision eliminator for 90% of preoccupations.  Sure, we may still worry about whether our loved ones' needs are met, but afterall their needs are an extension of our needs in a way at least.

I need to say that to my five year old.  For the next 5 minutes et al, all your needs will be met.  I don't know that he will understand it yet though, as I'm not sure he grasps the concept of what his needs truly are.  He conflates his needs with acquiring the next pricey Transformer Rescue Bot toy from a retail store whimsical desires.

Also, I found some joy in a little, teensy something I accomplished.  You know that axiom about honey attracting?  My son is in kindergarten now.  Last year he was in preschool.  While in preschool, he had this teacher/school helper that was from Uganda.  Her son was also in preschool.  My son adored her son.  She, however, was quite cold to approach.  I projected my paranoia onto her and decided she did not much like non-Black people or had a distaste for our non-trad family dynamic.  That did not deter me from inviting her family over for a play date last year even though up to that point she had pretty much refused to even hold a conversation with me or reciprocate my smile.  She accepted my invite, however, and the day they came over I made some tasty chicken salad and some fresh heirloom salsa, bought fresh kaiser rolls and blue corn tortilla chips.  Our sons had a blast together that day.  Which resulted in me winning her over.  I'm not always a champion at killing with kindness, but I have my moments.  We haven't seen them much since that day due to a busy summer and loads of transitions.  But in the interim she searched for me (as I had changed my phone number).  Finally, I talked to her yesterday and she invited us over same day!  We couldn't go, but we made plans to see each other in a few weeks.  Yeah!