A Quick Note RE: Deliberately Floating from Past to Future & EXCERPT: “A Strenuous, Deliberate Life Photo” May 30, 2026
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Books, Faith, Healing Stories, Hope, Life, Loss, Love, One Hoop, Pain, Peace, Philosophy, Suffering, Wisdom, Writing, Yoga.Tags: 988, Commemoration of the Dead, Dolly Parton, Healing Stories, Henry David Thoreau, Journey
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Many, many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone observing the Commemoration of the Dead and/or just remembering someone who deliberately and strenuously lived a good life.
“At length, on Saturday, the last day of August, 1839, we two, brothers, and natives of Concord, weighed anchor in this river port; for Concord, too, lies under the sun, a port of entry and departure for the bodies as well as the souls of men; one shore at least exempted from all duties but such as an honest man will gladly discharge.”
— quoted from “SATURDAY” in A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers by Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau was a teacher and a writer, who is remembered as a writer and naturalist. He self-published his first book, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, today (May 30th) in 1849. It was the story of a trip he took with his brother John over 10 years before.
Click on the excerpt title below for more about Thoreau, his relationship with his brother, and where he went to write and “to live deliberately….”
“Our boat, which had cost us a week’s labor in the spring, was in form like a fisherman’s dory, fifteen feet long by three and a half in breadth at the widest part, painted green below, with a border of blue, with reference to the two elements in which it was to spend its existence. It had been loaded the evening before at our door, half a mile from the river, with potatoes and melons from a patch which we had cultivated, and a few utensils, and was provided with wheels in order to be rolled around falls, as well as with two sets of oars, and several slender poles for shoving in shallow places, and also two masts, one of which served for a tent-pole at night; for a buffalo-skin was to be our bed, and a tent of cotton cloth our roof. It was strongly built, but heavy, and hardly of better model than usual.”
— quoted from “SATURDAY” in A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers by Henry David Thoreau
Please join me today (Saturday, May 30th) at 12:00 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or by emailing myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “05302021 Speaking of a Strenuous, Deliberate Life”]
“Gradually the village murmur subsided, and we seemed to be embarked on the placid current of our dreams, floating from past to future as silently as one awakes to fresh morning or evening thoughts.”
— quoted from “SATURDAY” in A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers by Henry David Thoreau
If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.
White Flag is an app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.
If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).
Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.
Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.
You’re Invited to Bend… & To Take The Deepest Breath You’ve Taken — On Retreat!
September 25 — 27, 2026
A Joyful Practice 