JoAnn Saccato

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10/23/2019

Treasures from the John Muir Trail (Pt. 2)

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Lembert Dome at Tuolumne Meadows. Yosemite National Park. July, 2018.
I pulled into the familiar bustling village at Tuolomne Meadows. Here, tourists and backpackers of all levels converge to take advantage of the camping, park information, day hikes, store, grill and post office. It's a popular resupply spot for hikers on the John Muir Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail.  I grabbed a fifty-fifty softie ice cream cone and chatted with some hikers at the picnic tables under the tall conifers outside the grill. The day was spectacular--crisp and clear--but a young woman cautioned of the upcoming cold spell due that night that was to last for three days. As I headed out, I verified the expected temperatures with the weather report posted on the message board--lows in the mid to low twenties. Hmmm, last year I was there in July and hadn't really thought about the potential difference in the season.

After I picked up my back country permit, I took a leisurely walk around the flat meadows. I witnessed a large hawk on the ground near the creek bed tearing at the flesh of a small critter. I'm always conflicted when I see a feast --I'm sad for the critter but happy for those that get the meal. It's always a good reminder of the interconnectedness of everything.

I perused the store for any last minute items I could have forgotten or not known were even in existence, as is my wont, and headed up to the backpacker's campground. I loved this campground, as right next to it was the amphitheater where nightly ranger led programs around a big fire pit came to life. I was thoroughly impressed with last year's programs--I didn't recall being as fascinated when I was young, and certainly hadn't noticed that the rangers were deep ecologists. Had they changed or had I? Or both?

I'm appreciative of the fact that backpackers can camp the night before their wilderness permit starts so we can get a fresh start on our journey. It's also a great opportunity to make sure we have all the equipment we need and to test whether it's in good working order. Being in the back country is not the best time to discover that your stove or water purifier isn't working properly.

I pitched my tent and stashed unneeded supplies and equipment in the car. At least I thought they were unneeded for the night. I hadn't prepared for super cold weather--my gear was rated for three seasons--so I rifled through the car and found a bulky pair of wool gloves/mittens and grabbed my jammies I used at the Airbnb the night before. They were way too heavy to take with me on the hike--my pack was weighing in at about 36 pounds--but I'd at least have extra warmth and comfort for the first night.

After the engaging and entertaining campfire program that included poetry and song, I tucked myself in for the night. Clothed only in my base layers with a scarf  around my neck, I climbed into my 30+ year old down sleeping bag. The bag was rated to 30 degrees, so I felt pretty confident I would stay warm through the night. Rarely do I have to 'mummy it up.' In fact I mostly use it as a blanket and sometimes in the wee hours of the morning I'll need to zip it up.


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10/28/2018

Natural Gratitude

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Is there anything more gorgeous than the fall colors of nature? When we see beauty, our hearts open and gratitude naturally spills forth. We can also cultivate a deeper connection to gratitude through mindfulness, reaping benefits like reduced stress, growing joy and deeper appreciation for those in our lives.

I invite you to take a few moments the next time you witness beauty and consciously pause to notice what happens in the body when it registers beauty. Then, invite this response to grow and linger in your heart, mind and body.

When we align our hearts, mind and body, seeming miracles unfold. And when we focus on the beauty around us, the subtle and magical wonders of life seep into our heart and experience, leading to a more fulfilling and rewarding life.




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9/1/2018

What Mindfulness Offers for Living with Present Day Stress

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Tiger stalking prey. Photo by Nikhil Nagle
Stress is our body's natural biological response when triggered by a threat of imminent danger or a demand. This response has evolved over the millennia (and continues to!) to a perfected system-wide series of chemical releases and reactions for optimizing our survival.

Our typical reaction includes:
  • Increased focus and attention
  • Increased heart rate to optimize oxygenation
  • Shift of energy and strength to particular areas of the body
  • Suppression of the immune and digestive systems. (Who needs to fight off a cold or finish digesting that meal when we ourselves may become a meal?)
  • Converted energies for strength and stamina
  • Released cortisol

After a threatening event, our systems return to normal and we carry on digesting food, fighting off potential illness, and planning our next steps.

All of these reactions, honed over tens of thousands of years, support an appropriate response for physical danger--fight, flight or freeze. It is only in our most recent generations that our experience with stress has shifted from a real need to protect our physical bodies to a perceived need to protect our sense of self.

But our biology automatically responds the same--whether there is an actual threat or a perceived threat--and today, it can lead to chronic health problems.


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8/26/2018

Wilderness Travel in Yosemite 2018: Of Fire and Thunderstorms (Pt. II)

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Vogelsang Trail, Yosemite National Park, July 23, 2018.
(This is the second part in a three part series. Read Part I Here)

I'm attracted to older, decaying, dying and dead trees. The fascination began as a youth when first seeing a leaf skeleton. Who knew leaves had bones! When I first hiked in the Sierras in my early twenties, it was the twisted remnants of the Foxtail Pines and hardy weather worn cedars that drew me. They have so much more character than their healthy younger relatives!

It was late July for this trip, which is springtime at the higher elevations of the Sierra Nevadas. At about 9,200 feet, the forest was familiar: mixed conifer with granite boulders and grasses. Occasional patches of color dotted the trail as chipmunks scurried about doing their business. The last of the humans had passed--it was about 5:00 P.M. and I still had about three miles to my first night's camp at Vogelsang.




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3/17/2018

Seeds of Humility from Thailand (Part III)

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Continuing on from Part I and Part II, where we explored how  people can dedicate themselves to the well-being of others (monks and nuns) and how a whole community can choose to prioritize safety and kindness (transportation in Thailand), the final seed of humility I experienced in our recent trip to Thailand was the treatment of elephants and other animals so that tourists like myself can be entertained.

I was the youngest of six kids in our rowdy Italian family. As much as I liked to tease my siblings that Mom and Dad stopped having kids after me because "they finally reached perfection," the reality was we were all invariably at the brunt of a lot of jokes and put downs.



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3/10/2018

Seeds of Humility from Thailand (Part I)

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Santichaiprakarn Park, along the Chao Praya River, Bangkok, Thailand.
{Whether it's a moment of awe-inspiring grandeur or a situation that wins against my ever-so-arrogant ego, I'm used to humility slamming me upside the head--either knocking me flat on my face or at least to my knees.  In the last few days of our two month journey to Thailand, while it was a little less dramatic than this, humility had me on my knees yet again.}

We often stay along the Chao Praya River when in Bangkok. It's situated near the major tourist attractions (The Grand Palace, National Museum, various important wats, and Thammasat University). It's also far enough away from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok's mega-malls, skyscrapers and intense traffic, which helps us transition in and out with a little more grace.

There's rarely a place you can go in Thailand where, within a few blocks, there isn't a wat (Buddhist monastery). Jim and I are used to stopping at one or more as a regular part of our day--whether as tourists to explore the grandeur of the Buddha images and grounds, make an offering of incense or flowers, visit with a dog or two, or just sit in quiet stillness, bringing our attention inward.

One of our favorite things is to experience monks chanting. Without knowing the words, the melodious sounds spoken tend to lull my heart into soft knowing.


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2/25/2018

Sowing the Seeds of Intention: Step 3 - Stepping Fully (and Easily!) into Commitment

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An acronym to help keep elephants safe.
In steps one and two of Sowing the Seeds of Intention, you explored and clarified your heart's deepest calling at this time. You crafted a powerful vision statement, capturing all you would receive from living this vision. Now, it's time to step fully into the commitment to create it.

Here's an excerpt from my forthcoming book, Mindful and Intentional Living: A Path to Peace, Clarity and Freedom to explain more:

“Commitment is an act, not a word.”  ~Jean-Paul Sartre

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2/17/2018

Sowing the Seeds of Intention: Step 2 ~ Setting our Compass

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Young boy feeding elephants at Elephant Valley, Thailand.
In Step 1 of  Sowing the Seeds of Intention,
we focused on Illuminating and distilling our heart's calling. In this post, we'll focus on the four parts of clarifying our heart's calling that lead to creating a powerful vision statement and affirmations. This will set our heart's direction for action. 

Step 2: Setting Our Compass

  • A) Review outcomes of Step 1
  • B) Pull out important statements of truth
  • C) Draft and refine a vision statement
  • D) Draft and refine statements of affirmation

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2/17/2018

Sowing the Seeds of Intention: Step 1 ~ Illuminate and Distill the Heart's Calling

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A baby elephant and mother at Elephant Jungle Paradise Park sanctuary outside of Chiang Mai, Thailand
In Part I of this series, we learned the three steps to Sowing the Seeds of Intention:

  1. Illuminate and distill the heart's calling
  2. Set our compass (direction)
  3. Step fully into commitment

Intentionally living in alignment with our deepest calling  leads to greater fulfillment and happiness in life. This post focuses on the first in this three step process:  illuminate and distill the heart's calling. 

Illuminating the heart's calling is really a lifetime expedition, but setting aside time on a regular basis to check in with our heart is a good practice to reveal new truths, deeper callings and possible misalignment with our values.

As I mentioned in the last post, I experienced a values crisis during our latest visit to Thailand. We've been engaging with and learning about elephants on each trip, but this last one really challenged me--enough to shift into action. I'll be sharing this experience as an example to work through sowing the seeds of intention, beginning with the first, Illuminate and distill the heart's calling.

“A highly developed values system is like a compass. It serves as a guide to point you in the right direction when you are lost.”
~Idowu Koyenikan



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2/5/2018

Three Steps to Sowing Seeds of Intention (Part I)

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Picture
Durian seed sprout. Durian is a large, highly aromatic and popular fruit in Thailand.
(Jim and I returned from Thailand just this past week. The return was rough for us both as we were dealing with ongoing colds, flus, and the stark reality of coming back to our complex lives after being abroad for two months. These are luxury problems, I know! During our travels, many seeds were planted in my heart. You can read more about our trips:  2016-17 and 2017-18.)

While the time for setting New Year's resolutions has passed, sowing seeds of intention can be done anytime and any season.

Our recent weather in Lake County isn't reflecting it, but we're still in the 'wintering over' stage of the earth's seasonal creation cycle. Seeds, while not visible, are deep in the earth's nourishing embrace, readying to germinate. It's a perfect time to mirror the outer stillness of winter, and listen for our heart's innermost desires.

We all have seeds germinating from our heart's deepest desires just ready to emerge. How can we best cultivate the conditions for their successful arising and tend to them for their eventual fruition?


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