Welcome this new cycle of life. Year of the Metal Rat.
under the moonlight
cultivating love always
as a healing balm
Looking forward to meaningful connection with you!
Chinese New Year 2020
Chinese Medicine
Falling into Fall 2017
We are (finally!) falling into Fall. The cool, crisp mornings and bright blue autumnal skies and brilliant hues of yellow, orange, and red leaves make us just want to, “aaahhh.”
Breathing in the new freshness and exhaling the old is what our Lungs do all the time. And this season of Autumn is when the Lung Qi really shines! This is the season of Metal, Lungs and Large Intestine, the color white, the emotion grief, and the spicy flavor. The Metal energy is about letting go of what’s no longer serving us. Equally paramount to the letting go process is receiving inspiration and fostering a spiritual connection, bringing richness to our existence.
Have you ever smelled a moonflower?
The heavenly white moonflower blossom offers tremendous inspiration with its enchanting fragrance and night blooming delicate petals! Its name alone invokes the heavens, the abode of the moon. The celestial realm is the domain of Metal. The skies of stars, planets, and the Milky Way reflect brilliance and invite wonder as we contemplate infinite space, and therefore infinite possibilities.
In keeping with tradition, I’ve composed a haiku intending to portray the sentiment of the season and possibly bring a bit of inspiration….
clouds of nostalgia
part to release stars shining
on a chest of hope
It is with love that I wish for you a lovely, rich Autumn. I hope it is a time of letting go and deeply nourishing yourself, most specifically your Spirit as the elemental energies are aligned to naturally encourage the release of grief and loss. The more we can surrender to this movement of emotion, the more open we can be to inspiration and devotion.
Sunflower Seed Spiral! and these nutritious seeds nourish Lung Qi!
With love and inspiration,
Sally Robinson, L.Ac.
White Pine Acupuncture
828-545-2288
whitepineacupuncture.com
Spring newsletter 2017
Spring greetings!
In Chinese Medicine, Spring is associated with the Wood element, made evident by the green plant world, showing us growth, flexibility, and adaptability. The Wood element encompasses the energetic networks of the Liver and Gall Bladder, the Gall Bladder being regarded as the strategy oriented mapper and planner, and the Liver the general who executes the strategic plan. We strive to remain flexible as we grow into our unfolding plans, much like a vine growing around a rock “in the way.” The more we can declutter and free ourselves of known impediments, the better we are equipped to adapt to the ongoing changes that life inevitably presents. So, the notion of spring cleaning is totally synced up with Chinese Medicine theory. Let’s let go of old build up, clutter, and debris so that we may find ourselves inspired and renewed toward fresh, forward growth aligned with Spring’s momentum.
There are specific acupuncture points on the body to facilitate this process of letting go of energetic clutter and encourage the healthy engagement of Wood energy. It’s a great time to clean out your closets at home and come in for a treatment to do a similar freshening up!
In honor of Spring renewal, our excellent massage therapist, Jenny Bourdette Lusk, is offering a special. It is:
3 MASSAGES for $180 through April 30!
You can book with her through our online scheduler; just click the schedule button on the website.
In Asheville, Spring also brings with it the Best of WNC for the MountainXpress local publication. Please find time to vote for us in the Health and Wellness section. I have been fortunate enough to have won first place in the past, and I would be delighted to receive that honor again! The website for voting is http://www.mountainx.com
In closing, I’d like to share a haiku I wrote for Spring:
green soul peering out
through verdant windows of moss
while plum blossoms drift
Wishing you all a lovely, ever-so-fresh Spring!
Sincerely,
Sally Robinson, L.Ac.
http://www.whitepineacupuncture.com
828-545-2288
Winter ❄️ 2017
Welcome snowy Winter!
Today I want to share a few things, such as:
Some inspiration via poetry, a tidbit about the nature and lore of black pearls, and an opportunity to win a massage with Jenny Bourdette Lusk.
In Chinese Medicine, Winter is associated with the Kidneys, the colors blue and black, the salty flavor, and the Will. The Kidneys work diligently all the time for us, providing both the Fire and Water to fuel all of our activities. During this natural time of introspection, the Kidneys relish the opportunity to rest and preserve our vital life force. Retiring early with the setting sun is a great way to promote deep rest and recuperation. Meditation is also readily integrated into our minds and bodies at this time, as our rhythms are naturally inclined toward introspection during the Winter. The Will gathers that calm energy, quietly converting it into reserves to call on as needed.
Black pearls are associated with Kidneys and Winter because of their color and their origin, having arisen from the salty water and specifically from the depths of the ocean, also strongly symbolic of Kidney essence, the richest and most substantive aspect of energy. Legend says that the Full Moon produced so much Heavenly Dew from the discarded dreams and memories of men and women that it fell into the sea. Oysters came to the surface of the ocean and opened their shells to receive the light of the Moon and ingested the discarded Heavenly Dew, which fell inside and hardened into pearls. The black pearls are all the sad thoughts that have been transformed into beauty and hope by the Moon Goddess.
One of my favorite poets is Matsuo Basho, a haiku master of the 17th century. I’d love to share a quote from his writing as well as a few of his haiku capturing the vibration of Winter.
The Moon and sun are eternal travelers. Even the years wander on. A lifetime adrift in a boat or in old age leading a tired horse into the years, every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.
✨✨✨✨✨
weather-beaten bones,
I’ll leave your heart exposed
to cold, piercing winds
❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️
The cry of the dove
penetrates even the stone
door of this dark cave
🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋
all the stones are dead,
the waters withered and gone–
winter and nothing
💧💧💧💧💧
for today only,
we’ll grow old together in
the first winter rain
💦💦💦💦💦
And now for the massage …..
Massage Giveaway!
I will be having a drawing on Feb 1 to give away a FREE 60-minute massage!
How to enter:
1) Like my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/jennybourdettelusk/
2) Leave a review (You can write a comment or simply rate 1-5 stars)
Winner will be contacted on Feb 1.
Yours in Wellness, Jenny
Wishing you all such a lovely and potent introspective Winter, well infused with sparkly inspiration and rest,
Sally Robinson, L.Ac.
828-545-2288
whitepineacupuncture.com
whitepine.acupuncture@gmail.com
Acupuncture.Herbs. The Power of Peace.
Falling into Autumn, 2016
Fall has arrived here in our mountains. This the time of harvest, acorns and apples ripening and falling to the Earth. Abundance and gratitude are ours to embrace as we feel the seasonal shift guiding us towards the quiet, still time of Winter.
In Chinese Medicine, the fall is associated with the Metal element, Lungs and Large Intestine, the color white, the spicy taste, and emotionally grief and letting go. We see the great oaks letting go of their acorns, the fruit trees’ branches getting heavy with fruits before they drop, and the deciduous trees loosening their grip on their leaves. We can draw inspiration from the natural world to also in turn stand firm and exhale, letting go of the old to make room for the new.
Making apple cider!
Poetry and interview to share:
Usually I share some of my own poetry, but I have recently been very inspired by the works of Pablo Neruda. I have selected a couple of small pieces and quotes here that exude the sentiment of Autumn, specifically nostalgia:
“You know how this is: if I look at the crystal moon, at the red branch of the slow autumn at my window, if I touch near the fire the implalpable ash or the wrinkled body of the log, everything carries me to you, as if everything that exists, aromas, light, metals, were little boats that sail toward those isles of yours that wait for me.”
” Who writes your name in letters of smoke among the stars of the south? Oh let me remember you as you were before you existed.”
As you are aware, I am a big supporter of integration of Eastern and Western medicines. I met with a colleague of mine recently, Dr. Grace Evins. She wrote an article about our discussion, and I have posted the link here below. Check it out!
Enjoy the autumnal beauty.
Sincerely,
Sally Robinson, L.Ac.
http://www.whitepineacupuncture.com
whitepine.acupuncture@gmail.com
828-545-2288
Late Summer, 2016 by Sally Robinson, L.Ac.
First of all, I LOVE that Late Summer is its own season. We know this to be true as we experience August quite differently than we do June. Chinese Medicine is rooted in the interplay and continual unfolding of the five seasons and the five elements.
Late Summer is now ….. the time in which we have been made so aware of a change that is soon coming. We see it in the way the morning light comes in a little differently, the angle, time and quality of it have all shifted. And yet we are still in the ease, heat, and humidity of long, hot summery days. It is mostly at the beginning and end of these days that we sense something is different. The morning light has changed, and there is that cherished freshness that the misty mornings bring. The evenings bring a new coolness and quiet that cast our minds into what’s coming next…..the invitation of fall.
Chinese Medicine associates Late Summer with the Spleen and Stomach, the Earth element, the color yellow, the sweet taste, the emotion of worry/contemplation/compassion, and the direction is that of the center.
The center- this is what I’d like to emphasize. The Spleen energy/Earth element is the still point between activities and seasons. It is the energy that supports us through transition. Late Summer is that fulcrum between Summer and Fall. Within us, that coincides with our sense of center in our body. Traditionally that is thought to be in the abdomen, the middle, the area between the navel and the chest. This sense of center is further extrapolated into us as human beings, standing on the Earth reaching up toward the Heavens. We are the mediary. This carries a lot of significance in Chinese Medicine, as humanity is much revered for being this go between between Heaven and Earth. Humanity has long been associated with benevolence. To be aware of an innate sense of goodness and kindness infusing each of us and all of humanity brings us into a peaceful state.
I believe that much of what we intentionally do, whether that be prayer, meditation, yoga, or exercise is to get us more in touch with our sense of center within ourselves. We can visualize a warm, bright, yellow orb lighting up our Stomach area. This is the place we are connecting to and operating from as we live from an integrated place of center. Calm and clear, still as we honor the sacred pause. Essentially is Late Summer not a sacred pause?
haiku for Late Summer:
here I am, coming
home. peaceful and still, golden
light beckons my heart.
Parting tidbit:
And in closing, our wonderful massage therapist, Tara Nichols, is running a special right now.
10% off new clients’ first massage
Tara can be reached at 828-674-7711 and tarasyogabliss@yahoo.com
See you soon. Enjoy the pause.
White Pine Acupuncture 