Smelling the Roses

Today was a unique day for me. It was one of those “I-wish-I-had-time-to-do-this” kind of days.

It’s Wednesday morning, the morning after double days at Dancing with the Stars. It’s spring break, so I didn’t have to wake up at the crack of dawn and rush my kids to get ready off to school on time.

I slept in, had a civilized cup of coffee – which I actually finished without having to microwave it five times because I was running around like a fool, like I usually am in the morning.  Then I went to teach my Malibu workout class and because it was spring break, it was just my girlfriend and I. So instead of my usual sweat and burn I decided to put on some mellow music, breathe and stretch – which was exactly what my body was calling for. It’s not often that I get to tune in and really listen to my body and then deliver its needs.

Then I took my brother Tommy to lunch at one of my favorite Malibu restaurants with Rain and Shaya. I packed them a little picnic and beach blanket so that they could play in the sand just beneath where we were be dining.

Here is a picture of them, enjoying the waves and each other:

They’ve been fighting like cats and dogs lately and the sight of the two of them hugging and playing a game of tag with the ocean waves warmed my heart. It is amazing what a slice of nature can do for the body and a relationship.

I had a great conversation with my brother as we began to ring out the last days of his visit to California to spend some quality time with me. I found myself feeling much like the weather lately – partly cloudy and a bit gloomy. But today the sun came out and we soaked in every bit of its warmth.

I took Tommy and the kids up to a retreat and tried to share the beauty of our neighborhood with them, from a different perspective.