on to minnesota!

Today I fly through several cities and land in Minneapolis. I’m looking forward to seeing my city of lakes, tattoos, artists and farmer’s markets!  (and friends and family!!)

While I’m in the air, check out this post from the Chakra Khan blog!

Dear Multi-use Park,

You inspire and delight me on a regular basis.  I’ve walked your stone and concrete paths many times now, but I still smile to myself each time I round a bend and see the brightly colored exercise equipment poking out between the leaves, or a group of 70-somethings playing mah jong and cracking sunflower seeds, or almost bump into the man who has taken off his shoes to walk bare-footed on the bumpy rock section of the trail.

Your pond is sprouting lily pads like no tomorrow this time of year.  The lotus flowers are starting to bud.  The ceramic fish that jump up from the murky waters look more at home now than they did when I first met you months ago in the cold rain of winter.

I’ve never been the lone person in the park, though I’ve occasionally been the last person chased out by the guard, unaware that the closing time is not a loose guideline.  Your square of the earth provides benches for the naps of office workers at lunchtime, shade for those who have no a/c in this milky-thick humidity, and sweet turtles to be observed by grandparents with their grandchildren.

The brightly colored exercise equipment behind large green leaves provides elliptical action, and tai chi push-hands simulation, shoulder stretching, torso twisting, and upper body movement that simulates the grinding of grains.  Your paths meander past hiding kittens, under palm fronds and next to flowers and give moments of solitude so rare in this city of 23 million.

Exercise, rest, play, alone time, together time, shade, beams of sunlight, cool air, oxygen, fellow creatures of all ages and types–multi-use park, you give me so much, you remind me of all the important things.

Thank you!

Julie Kesti is Co-Founder of Chakra Khan. She is currently living in Shanghai with her husband, Sean–though she’ll be in Minneapolis this August to mid-October, so you can stop in and say hello to her or book a session!

You can keep up with her adventures on her blog, facebook, and twitter.  Julie’s neighborhood park is Xu Guangqi Park in the Xujiahui neighborhood.