Awakening the Frame

Respite from a stagnant routine is not found only in sitting still; sometimes the spirit clears fastest when you put your frame into motion. Stepping out into the crisp Kyoto morning to disperse the stiffness of sleep, I followed a quiet path along a neighborhood temple. A low bamboo fence bordered the mossy ground. Stepping lightly onto the horizontal rail, I gripped the cool stalk with the ball of one bare foot and sank into a deep side stretch. The bamboo flexed slightly under my weight, waking my senses. As I shifted my center of gravity from hip to hip, a row of dew droplets shook loose and pattered softly into the damp moss below.