Relinquishing Each Wish

~•Wishes•~ Photograph by my beautiful sister and best friend Laura Lujan

They blow to and from
carried by her breeze.
Hearts gush wish after
wish relinquishing each
to a forbidden sky.

~~» Felicia Lujan
~~» 5.18.2013

Butterscotch

Savor the tasty
butterscotch
a minute more
on Sandman’s
watch.

Melt away brown
sugar dreams.
Confections stick
and seal the seams.

Butterscotch is
smooth and sweet,
so take a sample
of that treat.

~~~» Felicia Lujan
~~~» 5.17.2013

Fitness is Curative

This afternoon I had a horrible headache. I really started feeling it right before I left work for the day. When I got home, all I wanted to do was lay down and pass out. I tend to over think things and it can really be mentally exhausting. My eyes seriously felt like they were going to pop right out of my head!

I figured I would turn in super early and try to sleep off the pounding headache. Sometimes it’s torture for me to insist on dealing with aches naturally. I put on my headphones and started with some slow music by Tank. While I laid there I realized that a good sweat may be better for the ache. With a flick of the switch~ Fire Hive by Krewella got me up and out the door.

I was so right. A good workout took my headache away. I actually cranked out an awesome outdoor workout using: the wall (stiff legged deadlifts); a scaffold (pushups and pullups); pieces of flagstone (hammer curls and kickbacks); rebar (straight bar curls); a swing set (external hip raises and squats); and a lawn chair (scissors and crunches).

Next time you feel bad, try a workout. Sometimes we need to move in order to feel better. Now I will listen to Tank again and peacefully slip off into dream land. Fitness is indeed curative.

A Visit to Villanueva State Park and the San Miguel del Vado National Historic District

Here are some photos from the trip we took yesterday to Villanueva State Park and the San Miguel del Vado National Historic District. This is a great day trip for anyone interested in history, nature and fitness!

“The church at San Miguel del Vado was built in 1806 at the principal vado of the Pecos river on the old Santa Fe Trail. This is where custom taxes on caravans, entering New Mexico, were paid to the Mexican government. The original church is still in use.”

Now I’m off to Tortilla Flats. Happy Mother’s Day to my beautiful mommy and my grandma Emily. Today I also remember my grandma Corine and my great grandma Lina.

A Healthy Hike

•~Villanueva State Park Visitor Center~•

Every Sunday we go to the track and eat right. Call it religious! Sunday is usually “get back on track” day. Since I’m meeting my mom and fam for lunch tomorrow I opted for fitness today in exchange.

We spent the day visiting Villanueva State Park. It was a good hike with a lovely ridge top panorama. I am always left in awe by the beauty of my state. On a rather challenging hike for a 7 year old, D didn’t complain once!

I am super tired. After finishing the hike, we walked along the river bank for a while. The weather was nice and moved from cool to hot to cool. Light sprinkles of rain were welcomed and invigorating.

I will close down the night in bed with my iPod. After an adventurous day I’m ready for some smooth beats followed by dream land and heavy Zs.

A Faceless, Fluid Dream

~Moment of Realization~ I gaze in the fish tank right at my bedside each night before I drift off to sleep. This glass dolphin in my tank is a symbol of fluid movement. He is glass. He is clear. He is faceless.

“We awaken when we
realize that the dream
is just a dream. The
dream is fluid and
can change at will.”

•~~» Felicia Lujan

Strength and Kicks

My new Nike Free kicks~ designed to let feet move naturally and to develop strength. Good 4 running!

“If you always put limits on
everything you do, physical or
anything else, it will spread
into your work and into your
life. There are no limits. There
are only plateaus, and you
must not stay there, you must
go beyond them.” 

~~~» Bruce Lee

Ending the Day in Heaven

~Ending the day in heaven (oh, I mean the bathtub) surrounded by my beloved candles and bubbles.~

Today was a good day. I got a lot of things done. Hopping from one thing to the next I stayed busy all day.

I started by completing about half of a newspaper preservation project I’m working on. It took a few hours to photograph and encapsulate the pages of a newspaper that is over 100 years old. I also completed research associated with the Battle of Puebla and Cinco de Mayo. Maybe if I’m lucky, I will finish the entire project by tomorrow night for my friend and her family.

Now that it is starting to warm up it’s nice. It was the first day I was able to hang clothes out on the line. Clothes are softer straight out of the dryer, but it wastes so much energy. During the winter I wait patiently for the chance to use my clothes line.

After that I moved from: planting sunflowers in just the right spot; to filling up a swimming pool equip with toys for D; to listening to Tank while getting my tan on; to grilling it up; to cleaning up; and then to washing dishes. See? No liquor on Friday night and eating right obviously payed off today!

I ended the night in sheer heaven (oh, I mean the bathtub) surrounded by my beloved candles. I don’t use the tub often because I feel bad about wasting water. Once in a while it is a glorious treat! It was great to close the day listening to my chimes in the wind while emerged in luxurious bubbles.

Time for some sweet dreams.

Avoid a Plummet Into the Fiery Depths of Carb Hell

•A Light Breakfast on Saturday Morning•

I have felt so much better since I moved from eating a cheat meal on Saturday mornings. After eating healthy all week, sometimes a Friday cheat night just makes me sick. Last night I made some delish spaghetti, but I just felt horrible after all the carbs (white bread and pasta) and olive oil. Opting for a lighter choice leaves me with energy and feeling good.

My new favorite food is pear paste. Rutherford & Meyer’s makes delicious New Zealand made paste. I have been topping multi-seed, gluten free brown rice thins (with sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and flax seeds) by Back to Nature with a small piece of Dofino creamy Havarti cheese and a slice of paste.

It took a while for me to realize that after doing good all week it is just silly to eat a cheat meal Friday night and Saturday morning. From now on it will be a one night party, and I will choose food that doesn’t make me ill.

If you get a chance, try this light breakfast with some coffee. I’m sure you will appreciate the taste and keeping energy that doesn’t plummet into the fiery depths of carb hell.

•Rutherford & Meyer’s New Zealand Made Pear Paste•

Taste Fire

With your mouth…
~~>feel flames.
With your heart…
~~>see destiny.
With your eyes…
~~>taste fire.

Felicia Lujan
5.2.2013

Guts, Heart and Glory: Get Serious

Good workouts rock! Now that’s a workout. When you go to the gym, either get serious, get out of the way, or go home! Those new Planet Fitness commercials make me laugh! Why do people who are in shape get called lugs on this planet? Oh yeah– I forgot- because Planet Fitness is “not a gym!” Hum? How can we get in shape there in that case? I have been in the gym for years and have yet to meet a man or woman fitting the image in those stereotypical commercials. People with no guts will have no glory and weak people find comfort in calling strong people lugs. It takes guts, heart and brains to train- so remember that! Smart equals sexy! Bring it!!

Spirit, Heart and Mind: An Interview with Miguél A. Tórrez

Aristotle once said “if you would understand anything, observe its beginning and its development.” I believe that the great Greek philosopher intentionally excluded “its end” when he said this. History has no end, therefore, there are constant developments. This quote could not ring more truthful for a lover of family history. There is something about knowing where we came from that makes us feel complete. When it comes to the art of research, there is a genealogist who grew up in Ranchitos that is making major contributions to our history. This man has a passion for traditional and scientific research, which makes him a well-rounded historian.

I have known Miguél Tórrez for many years. The first time I met him he was feverishly working on his genealogy with his small boys by his side. He has been interested in history since he was just a boy, but in his early 20s he was seemingly smitten by the history of those who came before him. This was just a few years after Miguél graduated from Española Valley High School. Growing up in Ranchitos, New Mexico, Miguél was near the historic Ohkay Owingeh (San Juan Pueblo). At that time he couldn’t imagine that several years later his maternal line would be genetically connected to this type of ancestry. He says “current data tells us that approximately 80-85% of all New Mexicans with colonial roots have Native American roots on their maternal lineage (mtDNA).”

The final week I collected photographs from Miguél for his feature piece he was preparing for Holy Week. His spiritual devotion bears the deep roots of tradition. As a genealogist, learning about traditions and even practicing tradition will foster a clear understanding of what shaped our people. Miguél believes that “knowing oneself through culture and language fosters a sense of pride” and this belief is evident when you hear him lecture. I asked him why he felt that our traditions were important and he said “no matter what culture a person belongs to everyone’s culture is important because it gives people an identity.”

~~Santo Niño in Espinosa, Colorado by DeSautel~~

By now I’m sure that Miguél has a family tree which extends further than I can imagine. He has done so much work and he is always willing to help others in need, which is admirable. Many people who don’t understand the breadth of family history are unaware of the vast collection of surnames they can be connected to. Miguél says that “just two generations back we can see our extended relations.” Between his grandparents and great grandparents he can claim the Torres, Romero, Madrid, Roybal, Rodriguez, Martinez, Medina and Trujillo surnames. He is proud to have discovered that some of his relatives were involved in very important historical events such as the Apache Campaigns and the Rio Arriba rebellion of 1837.

Miguél has tracked military service on his paternal (Torres) line back to Cristoabl de Torres who was born in 1641. He seems to appreciate the fact that a grandfather named Juan “loved to tell stories about his grandparents and all of his relatives.” This grandfather was born in 1915 and had extended family from Chimayó to Cordova, New Mexico. “As a child I was given a visual of life in the 1920s with his stories of travels he and his father would take on horseback and wagon to communities such as Mora where they would travel to sell their produce,” he said. Though his grandfather practiced oral history, Miguél has now harnessed the power of documentary evidence and genetic studies.

~~Three Generations of Torres Y-DNA~~

Miguél is currently in charge of about 100 paternal lineage (Y-DNA) kits. He collaborates regularly Angel Cervantes, the New Mexico DNA Project Coordinator/Group Administrator. This DNA project includes “the colonial expeditions of New Mexico by the Spanish in 1598 and 1693, by the Mexicans in 1821, and by the Americans in 1848.” This weekend Miguél will make a presentation titled “The Espinosa DNA Quest.” On Saturday (April 20, 2013) he will deliver a lecture at the Albuquerque Main Library (501 Copper SW~ Albuquerque, New Mexico) on the discovery of the Y-DNA genetic code of the Nicolás de Espinosa lineage (which includes 18th century branches of that clan). The presentation will run from 10:30~12:00 and is sure to be captivating.

When I asked Miguél what he wanted people to remember about him 200 years from now he said “I hope that the work I am doing will produce results that are worthy of scholarly articles and will serve as a worthy reference thus having historical relevance. As a young man I hope that I will have many successful years in doing so and that many generations will remember my name as having been a valid contributor to the preservation of New Mexican history and culture.” I guess as lovers of history we couldn’t ask for more than that right? Here is to one amazing man making a positive contribution to our communities and to the future through history.

Felicia Lujan: A Poet Through Time

Reblogged from We Drink Because We're Poets:

• 
• 

Good morning, everyone!  Have I the treat for you today!

I would like to introduce you all to Felicia Lujan, moderator of one of my favorite blogs, My Voyage Through Time!  The title of the blog speaks the truth of it, and on so many levels.  Felicia is an archivist with a very healthy love of history, a love that I can identify with. 

Read more… 623 more words

A big thank you to Sahm and Papizilla for this feature piece. Of course Sahm killed it. I think imagery of me drinking words was the perfect symbolic fit for their web site theme. We Drink Because We're Poets has been making poetic waves in the world of writing. If you haven't paid the site a visit, please do so as there is much to offer there. The special piece I wrote for the feature was uploaded to my YouTube channel. The bottle in my hand is symbolic of how thoughts, dreams, and fears enter my body as words. It is there that these words become cohesive and transform into poetry. ~~~~~~~Felicia

Sunny Breakfast

•Aloha Fruity Salad Rolls•

********************

Laughter is the sun that
drives winter from the
human face.
………..Victor Hugo

********************

There is nothing like breakfast in the sun. The rays of light are so invigorating. Coffee and my favorite vegetarian sushi rolls from Whole Foods go perfect together. Yum! When I eat right, I can’t help but want to throw on my killa purps and exercise. I’m glad the weekend weather will be nice.

Poet James Nave Battles Cancer With A Hundred Poems : NPR

Reblogged from We Drink Because We're Poets:

via Poet James Nave Battles Cancer With A Hundred Poems : NPR.

I met James Nave 25 years ago while working on a story for NPR. He was a whirlwind of energy, performing poems out loud in grade schools in his hometown of Asheville, N.C. He went on to perform all over the world, from La Paz to Paris to the Philippines.

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What an awesome way to battle! F