Kite Running, Running Sweat and Running Off Thoughts


It would seem that the hot yoga class that I attended last evening had its desired affect. I laid my head down at 10 p.m. last night and slept solid until 4:45 a.m. This isn't ideal, but an improvement. So I have slept reasonably well the past two of three nights. I am hoping this is an indication of better times on the mattress to come…

For those of you who are interested in Yoga, I must say I am really hooked on this Moksha style. Essentially you do yoga in a heated room (roughly the temperature of a sauna). I lose at least 5-8 lbs in water each 90 minute class, but it opens and challenges the body unlike anything I've ever experienced. I use a space heater when I practise my Yoga at home, but the temperature in my area hovers around 23˚c as opposed to 45˚c. The affect on how deep I can go in my practice is vastly different and I feel the hot Yoga is beginning to spoil me.

I finished reading "The Kite Runner" last night. Definitely would recommend it. It's a bit predictable, but it also fosters a sense of gratitude for one's life. I oppose the war in Afghanistan in many ways. If I truly thought we could help the Afghan people being there, perhaps I would condone the violence as a defensive measure. My sister in law is presently serving over there with the British Army and I think of her often, and definitely support the brave men and women who are serving over there from all the Coalition nations. Ultimately I am a pacifist who believes that violence should only be used as a last resort to defend one's self, family or community (and yes, many will argue that Afghanistan is doing just that – my question to them is if you support the war, why haven't you enlisted and gone to fight yourself instead of relying on other people's children. Many folks joined the International Brigade to fight Franco's fascists in Spain after all!) I just don't see the present course of action as being a solution to fanaticism and tribalism. The more blood that is shed, the deeper entrenched the hatred becomes and this breeds a new generation to carry on the hate. Perhaps it's that I simply can't understand such hatred. Even working in a maximum security prison with inmates who had committed atrocities, my feelings were more oriented at eliminating the worst of the offenders (pedophiles rapists, etc.) to ensure the safety of society (I wouldn't put my child in a room with a grown lion, so why would I put a pedophile back into my child's community?). There were elements of disgust, but, ultimately, I believe that they should simply be eliminated so that they could no longer prey on the innocent. I know that capital punishment is not very Buddhist of me, but the execution of a pedophile, in my opinion, is the same as taking antibiotics to kill an infection and heal a body.

Wow, where did that come from?

Anyway, it's an overcast but temperate day here. Don't know what my daughter and I will do, but it's time to go and get cracking.