ZEN – The essence of Zen Buddhism is achieving enlightenment by seeing one’s original mind directly, without the intervention of the intellect. It is a mixture of Indian Mahayana Buddhism and Taoism. It began in China, spread to Korea and Japan, and became very popular in the West from the mid 20th century. The essence of Zen is attempting to understand the meaning of life directly, without being misled by logical thought or language.

Zen techniques are compatible with other faiths and are often used, for example, by Christians seeking a mystical understanding of their faith.

Zen is a practice transmitted from Master to Disciple and this goes back 2500 years ago in India, The Buddha zen in Japanese means meditation, this is the core of Zen Buddhism, without it, there is no Zen. 

This is my last A- Z Challenge post, I hope you have enjoyed it over the past month, I have enjoyed this time, and also found very interesting the A – Z challenges done by the blogs I follow. I would like to thank everyone, who has followed my challenge and for the comments I have recieved, it is very appreciated. 

The great Billie Holiday

“Billie Holiday, One of the best jazz singers of all time”

Billie Holiday was born, Eleanor Fagan on April 7th 1915  in Philadephia and sadly died July 17th 1959 at the age of  44 years old. Billie Holiday as a child, had a some what unstable and very troubled childhood.

During her difficult early years, she found her love for music, singing along to Bessie Smith and Louis Armstrong. She followed her mother to New York in the late 1920’s, she worked in a house of prostitution in Harlem. Around 1930 she began to sing in local clubs and took the name “Billie” which she took from the film star Billie Dove. While performing in a Harlem Jazz Club at the age of 18, she was discovered by producer John Hammond, he organized her get together with a then up and coming clarinetist named Benny Goodman, she made several tracks and achieved her first top ten hit “Riffin” the Scotch. 

In 1937 she joined  Count Basie’s orchestra, this is where she got the nickname “Lady Day”, In 1938 she worked with Artie Shaw and his orchestra, finally breaking out on her own as a solo artist, she performed at the “New York’s Cafe Society” this is where her trademark was born, wearing gardenias in her hair and singing with her head tilting back. 

In 1941 she married James Monroe, this is where she picked up his habit of smoking Opium, they later divorced but her problems with substance abuse continued. In 1944 her boyfriend at the time was trumpeter Joe Guy and sadly with him she started to use Heroin. Despite her personal problems she remained a major star in the jazz world. In 1947, she was sentenced to one year and one day of jail time.

Billie Holiday shared her life story in 1956, her autobiography “Lady Sings the Blues”

In 1959 Billie Holiday died from alcohol and drug related complications.

Here are just a few of her great musical hits, followed by a video of her chosen by me singing “All of you”

1934………………………………….”Your Mothers Son in Law”

                                                                “Riffin” the Scotch

1935………………………………….”What a Little Moonlight can do”

                                                                 “Miss Brown to You”

1939………………………………….”God Bless the Child”

                                                                 “Strange Fruit”

1940………………………………….”T’aint Nobody’s Business”

                                                                  “My Man”

1944…………………………………..”Lover Man”

                                                                  Film Louis Armstrong/Billie Holiday titled New Orleans.

1952…………………………………..Tour of Europe

1956…………………………………..Lady sings the blues

1958…………………………………..Lady in Satin

Hope you enjoy the video !

The Great Billie Holiday Hoping you all join in this weekend and have a great time, my contribution today by way of my post is Billie Holiday !

YOUNG – We all want to stay or at least look young ? Well we can do alot just by keeping a good posture, yes not magic creams etc., When we keep the correct posture it can take years of us, the correct posture can be better than botox , do you have a sedentary lifestyle, because if you do it could be making you look much older than you are. 

You should, always walk around and stand, when you sit for long periods of time, the reason for this is while sitting your hamstrings and hip flexors will become tight and this will weaken the muscles supporting your spine. You should always take your phone to eye level , when texting and not continually bend forward toward the phone. You should always be able to see your computer screen straight in front of you, and not by bending your neck. Let your feet be flatly on the floor and your hips higher than your knees, and your knees bent.

You should not wear high heels all day, they shift your gravity and affect your posture, you should change the heel sizes, a variety is much better. You should not, use your laptop on your knees, leaning forward all the time, this will give you stiff shoulders, neck and back muscles, and will form a rounded back.You should not, carry the world around with you in your handbag, this affects your stance and posture , heavy things are much better in a rucksack.

To improve your posture all you need is a wall, stand upright to the wall, with your shoulders heels and head touching it, hold for 10 seconds, step away, holding the same posture, your body and memory will have the sensation of the wall being there. 

When you stand straight, with a good posture, you will look taller and younger, when you have a bad posture, it shows in everything you do, and can also tell alot about you to another person.You will also suffer from pain in the neck and shoulder area, if you observe an older person who does not hold good posture, you will see hunched shoulders, saggy tummies, rounded back and discomfort. So remember if your wish is to look younger longer, your posture plays a big part of that, straight spine head held high and away you go, It’s a great start.

X-RAY…. We all know what an x-ray is right ? However have you ever thought of doing an up close x-ray on yourself, up close ad personal, just think if that really could be done, in a way we can…. Let’s start at the top with our head (have pen and paper ready) let’s go internal first…. what do you think you would see, little men running all over our head, not knowing which way to go ? or a streamline organisation working in perfect harmony ? like a military display, write how you think your inner head really is, don’t spare anything to do this exercise well, we need to write everything you feel could be going on in there. This can also include your thoughts. Now lets go external, how our your eyes, in good shape, do they need a little extra help when reading, writing blogging ? and how about the ears, don’t miss anything ! you need to hear all the information that’s coming your way, with no problems………..And your skin, how’s that ? it’s probaly perfect, or do you need a little TLC, remember it needs to be fed,just like we do………Now lets move to our arms, what’s going on there, are they great, do they need a better look, are our hands and nails well cared for ? Chest and tummy ? Legs, now remember how long they have to travel around for us, are they strong ? and our feet, very important to have a good look there, they need to be in good order for walking and summer is just around the corner,so you are going to be seeing much more of them in the next couple of months, infact all of you is going to be more on show !! So armed with your list, here comes the important part….you should have your upclose and personal x-ray, the secret is not to become overwhelmed, you will have a list of all things you would like to work on and maybe put right, in an orderly fashion, your external parts are not to difficult you do however need to stick to an exercise program, this does not mean you become a gym slave, you just need to find out what your arms and legs need to be well toned and strong and slot this exercise into your daily life, if you are a busy bee, don’t make it a chore (if you do, you will let it go ) If you can go to the gym, go, that would be great, but many do not have time, so you have to improvise, if your eyes want testing go and do it, same with the ears, your skin , include creams or body milk into your daily routine, this is 5 mins of your time.

Now if you find you have a jumpy mind, you need to take control,slow it down so you can listen, again you can list your thoughts, organise them, you cannot do a hundred things at once, so stop trying, it is wasted energy. Use your time and energy to your advantage, when you get use to this system you really will see the benefits. 

WELLBEING – There are certain things that we can do to give us a great sense of wellbeing, being at peace and happy with our families, friends and neighbours, is great for our personal relationships and we should always make a little time to talk, even in this busy world we live in. We should be mindful , and live in the present, the past has gone and we are not in tomorrow yet ! When we are active we are protecting ourselves from depression and anxiety, it gives us self esteem and keeps us in a general good mood, keep moving !! Keep learning, new skills are great and can be fun, and can be great for your confidence, and always help others, there is something about this, that gives us self satisfaction, no matter how big or small, this simple act of helping others will increase your sense of purose and will bring you great happiness. Always care for yourself and others, if you look after your body and mind your body and mind will care for you.

VOLUNTEERING – The more we give the more we get, Helping others can reduce your stress levels and help your mental and physical health. Great friendships have been made by volunteering,meeting people from all walks of life, in very varied circumstances. It can increase your confidence and happiness. You have the opportunity to make an impact and change lives, you can help women to become more self sustaining, you can inspire, give hope, it creates priceless memories and helps many people. It’s an opportunity to give back, Volunteering is generally an activity where an individual or a group provides a well needed service, but it can work both ways, if you are a natural volunteer, and have always done something towards helping others, or you could be at a point in your life, where maybe you just don’t know what to do with yourself, age is of no importance here, and no matter what your previous profession may of been, it could be continued if that is what you want or you could go in a totaly different direction. Many people do not realise that to do Volunteer work, the amount of possibilities are enormous, volunteers are needed in all walks of life and professions.

It can be with people, animals, heritage, organic farms,charities, orphanage,wildlife, ecological to name just a few, it can even be overseas if you enjoy travel and maybe even a little adventure, you are needed and you could contribute toward making the world a better place. 

Maybe you could create a new life for yourself and certainly that of another, remember the golden rule, if you are interested in being a volunteer, don’t just think about it, act, join in within your local community or if you are more adventurous spread your wings and fly

Don’t forget International Jazz Day, Saturday 30th April 2016, go to     musicteacherlifestyle.wordpress.com for more information !!

Music Fans, have you seen this !!! If you are a Jazz Lover or like me a month ago, not so sure, don’t get me wrong I love all kinds of music, I am open to a little bit of everything, but, I had never really made a big thing about Jazz, however, Ioana has had a fabulous month of Jazz everyday she has had a different fantastic track available to listen  to,  I have had a great time and can say I’m really hooked and very surprised, if you pop over to her blog, you will still be able to see what a fantastic choice she set up for everyday through April.

You need to go to musicteacherlifestyle.wordpress.com and while you are there, join up for the 30th April 2016, International Jazz Day Challenge. There are various options for this, all great and fun, so go and see for yourself, you will love this blog, and let’s make Saturday 30th April, International Jazz Day a day for us all to remember,have fun and maybe make some new friends. Make sure you put this on your calender, 

musicteacherlifestyle.wordpress.com

UNLOCK – The connection Mind/Body, We are aware that how we feel and what we think added to our emotions can show in our physical health and vice versa. Palpitations, butterflies, is a sign of anxiety, and pain or an illness leave us feeling as if a bull dozer has gone over us and we just can’t get up and back on track,but, it looks as if it could be more than the anxiety creating these symptons, recent studies have shown that the optimists have a lower blood pressure and a faster healing and stronger immunity than people you think more on a negtive level. The more we learn regarding reducing stress and anxiety and put into action it does reduce and help relieve pain, kicks in to help immunity and can generally improve are health and heart disease. This brings us back to the Basics of the Law of Attraction, that our thoughts create our reality, if we are thinking of blood pressure anxiety etc., then that is what we can expect to show up in our life, here is the importance of the ability to unlock the mind/body connection. People have been known to cure themselves through their positive thoughts and beliefs. Let your thoughts and emotions influence your physical health in a good way.