Marta Hernandez Studio

“I am the lily that blooms in the valley of silence.”
~ Kahlil Gibran

I touched
the heavens
and the earth
to remember
who I am.

I lay
in a hammock of stars
until I’m pushed out
of the nest.
The axis askew
just as the lies
that were sold
as truth.
Plunged into
a cold bath of reality.
I live the day
as a dream.
And the dream
while I sleep
the escape.

But slowly
with age’s wisdom,
I watch
the animals
who breathe
with their bellies,
and not with their minds
to learn the secrets
of the universe.
I once walked
the path
to meet my love,
and now
I walk for me.
I count leaves
for past lives
and cement cracks
for old wounds.
This ride
wasn’t meant
to move
so fast.
My awareness
has yet to catch up.
The constant waiting
for the gift
to arrive
when it was always
there.
In the smell and colour.
In the warmth on my skin.
It was always
all alive.
But I regret
I didn’t notice.

I loop the gorgeous sounds.
and now this moment.
It can’t take away
past blindness,
but can open
my eyes
and breath
with its grief
and play.
And the forever
a dancer.
Who moves
for feeling
and feeling alone.

I’ve introduced these Chinese red dates into my breakfast cereal 🥣 and am enjoying the gentle and warm sweetness.

Jujube fruit has been eaten and used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for over 3,000 years. It’s a species of ziziphus in the buckthorn family.

Jujube fruit is high in vitamins and minerals and low in calories. It’s also high in antioxidants and helps promote and improve sleep. They are known to help with digestion and constipation. Jujube also has high fiber content and may boost your immune system, as it’s rich in vitamin C.

You can find them at T&T or in Chinatown grocers I ams sure. They are also a great addition to soups for added sweetness or congees. 🍲 💛

“I wonder if anyone else has an ear so tuned and sharpened as I have, to detect the music, not of the spheres, but of earth, subtleties of major and minor chord that the wind strikes upon the tree branches. Have you ever heard the earth breathe?”
~ Kate Chopin

“Life is the dancer and you are the dance.”
~ Eckhart Tolle

………………………….🌊
I carry you.
I knock
on your shores,
breaking down
old stone
into sand,
to teach you
endurance.
I fill your thirsty cups,
and bow to your moon.
I respond
to your tempestuous storms
with sharp waves.
And calm
in your held breath.
I obediently change course
when you redirect me.
I find simple pleasure
in the quenching of bees
and small things.
I gladly fill
the leaf’s skeleton
with juice,
and glisten
in your barefoot
morning dewy walk.
I gratefully heal your belly
with my steaming broth.
I cry from the sky
and cleanse your day.
I course
through your fierce veins,
and the sad ones too.
I found joy
in your drenched child
who stomped my puddles
in glee.
I compassionately
follow the tears
to the corner of your lips,
and salt your tongue.
I hold you
as you float
on a hot summer day
and the days
before you were born.
I’m humble and gentle
but filled
with the power of life
and everything.

This thank you note from my student brought true tears to my eyes. I’ve been teaching this Pilates Teacher Training for over 20 years. And while I’ve always approached the work from a deeper place than most, I think my years of experience has finally turned into a deeper wisdom where I take my students from the physical into the energetic/emotional and into the spiritual. My trainings and explorations of different modalities have been woven together to approach this work in a much more holistic way, while still honouring the true essence of Pilates.

I’m so lucky to attract the right students at the right time and the gifts I share with them, go both ways. I feel I also learn so much from my students and the blessings are mutual. The only sad part is when it ends. I hope to stay connected with each of my students. So please reach out, as each one of you, from all my past trainings has touched me in a special way. So grateful for you all and I hope your careers in Pilates are successful and joyful as you spread the seeds of healing to your students….. 🌾