I learned a new word in yoga this morning:  kula.  It means community.  I think this is one of those times when the universe is trying to tell me something.

Yesterday I watched Maya Angelou’s memorial service.  Over and over again speakers talked about being part of her “family.”  Not blood family, but the people Dr. Angelou gathered around her – her community – her kula.

We move in and out of many communities during our lives.  In mine there is the family community, the Detroit community,  the Cleveland community, the theatre community, the university community  to name a few.   All of them are my kulas.

So what does this have to do with Aspen groves?  Well, as anyone who has had a conversation with me about my favorite trees knows – Aspen groves are actually one organism.  They can spread over acres, but they are all part of a whole.  All of my kulas are part of the fabric that makes up my life – my personal Aspen grove.

I am blessed in different ways by the communities that support me and I am grateful for each of them – and so today as I left my yoga class, I set my intention – gratitude for each of the trees that makes up each kula that constitutes the Aspen Grove of my life.

Namaste.