These are the rarest skills (in no particular order or relevance):

1. Hitting a Baseball

Considering that a major-league pitch can reach speeds more than 95 mph, hitters have only 0.4 seconds to find the ball, decide where the ball is going and swing the bat.

2. Raising a Child

I am not yet a father but I’ve heard it’s amazing…and profoundly challenging.

3. Saving a Penalty Kick

On the soccer field, the goalkeeper’s job is to protect a goal that is 24 feet wide and eight feet high — 192 square feet waiting to swallow a ball about 9 inches in diameter. During a penalty kick, the goalie has 0.25 seconds to move and block a ball traveling at more than 60 mph.

4. Maintaing a Healthy Marriage

I’m only in year 2 but some of you going on 20, 30, 40 years…will attest to the work required to sustain an enduring relationship.

5. Feeling Sudden Gratitudes

Someone told me a story yesterday. He works for an executive who got his end of year bonus. 8 figures?!?! And the executive was PISSED. TRUE STORY.

He clearly suffers from a mental disease called EINE – Enough Is Never Enough.

EINE can lead to incredible success… and an empty pit in the soul.

For instance, I was sick to my stomach the other night when Alabama coach Nick Saban said after winning his 4th National Championship, “We’ll take a few days and start getting ready for next season.”

Hey coach, what message does that convey? What about taking time to CELEBRATE?

You can’t live like that. You have to stop and celebrate life, EVERYDAY.

And that’s why SUDDEN GRATITUDE is one of the hardest and rarest skills, and I want you to practice right now.

Without thinking, say very clearly three things you are grateful for. These are mine:

1. I am grateful for my health because I am recovering from this flu that has knocked NYC to its knees.

2. I am grateful for my passion which entitles me to many more dreams than regrets

3. I am grateful for my wife; if I had to choose, I would take a fiercely loyal spouse over an 8 figure bonus anyday of the week!

Now do it! Don’t just speak the words, embody them, infuse them, own them.

Because if you are not grateful for what you have right freakin now, you will never, ever be grateful for all the things you hope to have in the future.

KEEP IT SIMPLE. BRING IT HOME.

My In Home Retreat takes place January 25-26.

Because we all know that peace, health, and happiness begin at home.

Reserve your spot on the journey.

Too many end-of-year recap emails

Too many college football bowl games

Too many New Years plans

Too many exclamation points (!!!!!!)

Too many commitments

Too many apps

Too many words

Too many worries

Just One Moment.

This One.

Happy New Year

KEEP IT SIMPLE. BRING IT HOME.

My In Home Retreat takes place January 25-26.

Because we all know that peace, health, and happiness begin at home.

Reserve your spot on the journey.

1:11

On January 11, The Momenteer Movement begins. The mission is simple: to show up fully for the moments that matter most. Be ready for the big launch and the very simple commitment of taking a minute each day at 1:11pm to celebrate life.

Hello from Kauai.

This morning, I had the rare experience of being at just the right spot to watch the sun rise to the east and the full moon set to the west…at the very same time.

What is the symbolism of such a powerful astrological occurrence?

Watch the above VERY SHORT video!

And remember, “Letting your mind control your life is like letting an 8 year old drive your car.”

Happy New Year

RELAX AND STOP THINKING SO MUCH

If you, like me, spend way too much time stuck in your head…

…let’s start the New Year with a foundation of relaxation.

My In Home Retreat takes place January 25-26. It’s all about taking a few days to get warm and cozy AT HOME.

Reserve your spot on the journey.

The Mayan calendar has long foretold that today, December 21, 2012  is The Apocalpyse, the end of days when the world will come to a fiery end.

I like to see it differently.

One author described December 21, 2012 as the moment when we have stumbled upon a HUGE fork in our evolutionary road.

A rare few of us will roll right on this fork and become fully realized human beings. While others will roll left and become automotons, one with machine, leading to a completely different evolution.

Today is decision time. Will you become a computerized civilian or will you become a warrior on a quest?

****

Over the past week, I have been engrossed in the story of a legendary Native American warrior named Quanah (see above photo).

Quanah was a leader of the Comanche tribe, considered by enemy American soldiers and frontiersman as the toughest, most courageous, biggest badasses ever.

I have a particular fascination with Native Americans.  Not sure why.  Maybe a past life thing or possibly just guilt because our ancestors muscled their way West, pillaging, burning, and fighting to lay roots for what would be the United States.

And in many a battle, the Native Americans kidnapped white women to procreate.

These captive white women would often be rescued but there was only one case in recorded history when a white woman refused to leave her Native captors.

Her name was Cynthia Ann Parker and she was Quanah’s mother.

The only prominent half-white Comanche war chief, Quanah exhibited the finest qualities of both races.  He was a genetic freak of nature with massive forearms and a powerful upper body, traits not characteristic of most Native Americans.

But more powerful was Quanah’s connection to his horse.

As described by a US Army soldier who witnessed Quanah in battle:

“A large and powerfully built chief led the bunch, on a coal black racing pony.

“Leaning forward upon his mane, his heels working in the animal’s side, he seemed the incarnation of savage, brutal joy.

“A full-length headdress of eagle feathers, spreading out as he rode, and descending from his forehead to his pony’s tail, almost swept the ground. 

“Large brass hoops were in his ears; he was naked to the waist, wearing simply leggings, moccasins and a breechclout.

“Bells jingled as he rode at headlong speed, followed by the leading Warriors all eager to outstrip him in the race.”

SYMBOL OF GRACE

Comanche boys became adept bareback riders by age six; full Comanche braves were considered the best horseman who ever rode.  You had to be one with your horse to thrive in the Comanche culture.

In the modern day, it’s less about the horse.

There is a different creature we need to tame; a creature that, when properly nurtured and understood, will serve us dutifully.

But if this creature turns on us out of fear or spite, we are severely weakened as a species, like a horseless Comanche warrior.

Do you get where I am going here?

Psychologist Steve Sealy said, “It’s usually takes only a few minutes of silent, motionless sitting to see clearly the untamed wildness of our mind.”

On this most auspicious day of December 21, 2012 which marks the end of one era and the beginning of another…

I want to urge you, and this is my work too…

…tame the wild horse that is the mind so you can ride bareback in the dark of night!

Here are a few tips on taming the mind.

1.  Feed it Well

If the last thing you see before bedtime is meaningless drivel flashing on your phone or TV, expect your malnourished mind to rear back and send you flailing everyday and all day.

Ingest information that transports your mind, that exercises your imagination, that makes you feel uplifted, like the book about Quanah called Empire of the Summer Moon.

2. Let it Run

Gerald Rafety said, “A horse loves freedom, and the weariest old work horse will roll on the ground or break into a lumbering gallop when he is turned loose into the open.”

How and when do you let your horse bust loose?

We think 90% of the very same thoughts each and everyday.  It’s a movie we play in our head over and over and over.  The horse doesn’t like that, it feels stuck in an enclosed arena.

The trick is, each day, to open the gate, and let the horse bust loose.

For instance, today I thought about what it would be like if I was walking on the moon and someone jokingly poked a hole in my astronaut suit and I exploded into space like the bad guys in Superman II.

I’m not sure if you remember Superman II but those were some scary scary bad guys. 

It was just a thought but I let my horse bust loose and my horse is grateful.

Now the question is, will my horse come back?  It doesn’t always come back when I let it bust loose.

3. Practice Riding

Riding your horse means YOU are in control of your mind.  The mind is not intended to be the controlling entity.  If that happens, the horse is poorly trained, dangerous, and spooked by the slightest misstep.

For instance, when you are pissed, and you so badly want to talk some smack, pull back on the reins and walk away before you start running your mouth.

Sh*t talkers and gossip queens are lousy riders.

*****

You can look at someone’s countenance, behavior, and energy…and know pretty quickly what they’ve got goin in their head.

They might have a vicious beast, an angry stallion, a wild pony, or a graceful thoroughbred.

As reads the Bhagavad Gita, “Consider the mind as difficult to master as the wind!”

Taming the mind just takes practice.

Whether you are a lawyer, money manager, mom, salesman, yoga teacher…know that you have within you a warrior, just like Quanah, who begs of you to seek the ultimate freedom of the human experience.

Remember, every warrior needs a horse and every warrior needs a battle cry!

So get your coal black racing pony ready, and let’s roar into, not just a New Year, but a NEW ERA.

Hi,

When something as tragic as Newtown takes place, it is a sort of ELE or Extinction Level Event. No, it wasn’t a meteor or contagious disease or nuclear catatostrophe. And no, millions were not killed last Friday.

But if you have even a tiny bit of soul, a part of you died with those 20 children and 8 adults.

Some level of innocence that we as Americans tried to protect in our culture and our children, is now extinct. There’s no pretending. This has happened too many times.

For me, it really hit hard when I read the story of a mother who lost her son in the tragedy. Viewing her son’s body, she began to wail, telling her son to leave this “dark, horrible world.”

Reading that, you just want to scream, to wail, but also to squeeze tight everyone you love.

*****

In the year 2000, my close friend’s father passed away. At the funeral, he wept, while telling a story.

The father invited him to go on a bike ride. He declined, choosing to relax at home. Within the hour, his father had passed, suddenly.

My friend beseeched the hundreds at the funeral, “When someone you love asks you do something, DO IT! You never know the last time you’ll see them.”

It’s a story and a quote you have heard hundreds of times, but when you see your friend crying in front of a casket, you listen. It hits you deeper. Just like the Newtown Tragedy.

We are all a little more aware right now. Something isn’t right.

So as best we can, let’s make it right.

When you see the ones you love most this holiday season, remember that the greatest gift you can give, is not your presents, but your PRESENCE.

Even the most scattered, worried, distraught relatives need to be heard, looked at, touched, loved.

Give them that gift. They will NEVER forget it.

Ask how they are doing and really listen to their response. Use both eyes to penetrate.

If they complain about their back hurting, heal them with your touch. Genuine (not creepy) touch is rare, and powerful beyond measure.

When they say something that pisses you off, make so much room in your heart that their missile explodes into infinite space.

As the grieving mom who lost her son or my weeping friend who lost his dad would both attest, life is fragile, death is sudden, and revelation can and should be EXPLOSIVE.

NOW is the time. SHOW UP FULLY.

Namaste,

David Romanelli
The Momenteer Movement Begins on 1/11 – Email yeahdave@mac.com with the subject “I Wanna Be a Momenteer!” for more

You would have thought “the day I grew up” was at my Bar Mitzvah (see above pic of the big day).

But truthfully, I didn’t grow up until a few weeks ago on a sunny winter day, halfway through my 39th year of life.

I accompanied a good friend to a sales meeting at a Fortune 500 Company in a Manhattan skyrise. He wanted me to sit in as a prop.

I could not believe what ensued. This friend lied through his teeth, making up stories that caught these attentive executives hook, line, and sinker.

My friend thought nothing of it, skating from one bullsh*t story to the next.

I must have looked like a 9 year old boy seeing a naked woman with giant boobies for the first time.  I couldn’t believe my friend could sit there and lie to these executives.

I said to him immediately afterward in the elevator, “Did you just make that stuff up?”

“I embellished,” he responded.

“You mean you lied?”

“It’s not lying. It’s business.”

He continued,  “I used to think you first had to be invited to the party in order to celebrate. But that’s now how it works. You first gotta celebrate [he paused for intonation] and then you’ll be invited to the party.”

It took me a little to understand, but then I realized, every single person I know who is successful in business is, shall we say, a great storyteller, if not a mega bullsh*tter.

God knows we are all leading lives of quiet desperation. The last thing we want is another meek dweeb clogging up our calendar with boring and literal interpretations of business and life.

I thought to myself, I GOTTA PUMP IT UP!

*****

Over the past year, I have been part of the Newark Yoga Movement which brings yoga to public schools.

It’s a lot different audience than the Lululemon-clothed folk like you and I who frequent urban yoga studios.

It seems like the kids are only partly listening, and taking in 1 out of every 10 words from my mouth.

But by the end of class, they are relaxed, giggling, and just awesome kids who I LOVE to work with.

Yoga is good for them, probably one of the most liberal offerings in their curriculum.

But what these kids really need is a class on how to sell their story, how to “pump it up!”, how to fake it til you make it!

They don’t teach that in school.

And these are the lessons we need to navigate the streets, especially in the jungle that is Manhattan.

On that note, I am excited to announce that I have worn the meek jersey most of my life.

And on January 11, that jersey is being retired and I’m putting on some new gear with the word MOMENTEER all over it!

And those kids I teach in Newark can be ready for “Mister David,” as they call me, to tell them to PUMP IT UP!

The Momenteer Movement is going to be a GAMECHANGER.

Not because it will be BIG. But small, just asking 5 seconds of each day.

Everyday at 1:11pm, I will send Momenteers everywhere a vision, not words, but a vision…to WAKE UP and CELEBRATE LIFE!

I believe it’s the single most important message of our time.

What I could not understand in 39.5 years came clear to me in just 9 words:   “Only those who Celebrate are invited to The Party.”

The countdown is on. Email me at yeahdave@mac.com if you want to be a Momenteer and as the original Spiritual Gangster Ian Lopatin said, “Celebrate a little vacation EVERYDAY!”
 

WILL YOU INVITE ME IN? (January 25-26, 2013)

We all know that health and happiness begin with a healthy and happy HOME.

That is why the best retreat I am ever leading is taking place, NOT on the tropical beaches of Tulum…BUT IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR OWN HOME!

My In Home Retreat is January 25-26. It’s about getting rooted in your truth, in your body, in your home!

You don’t need to get on a plane or schedule time away from family. You just need to carve out a weekend to cozy up and go deep.

Email me at yeahdave@mac.com with the subject line ‘Bring it Home!’ to receive early registration info.

These are the Top 10 Things NOT To Do or Say at Your Company’s Holiday Party:

10. Suck Helium from the Party Balloons

9. Double Dip in the Guacamole

8. Sit on Your Boss’s Lap

7. Put Ice in your Red Wine

6. Demonstrate Mulabandha for Anyone, let alone the mail room staff

5. Bring Your Gerbil, even if he is “a furry ball of love.”

4. Give Thrusty Hugs

3. Sit on Your Boss’s Boss’s Lap

2. Bring an Underaged date

1. Say to someone, “You look like a young Newt Gingrich.”

“The function of prayer is not to influence God, but rather to change the nature of the one who prays.”  –Soren Kierkegaard

This past Tuesday, I was preparing for my morning run, standing at the corner of St. Mark’s Place and 2nd Avenue in NYC.

Next to me was a Latino man, on his way to work.

Normally I would not have said anything, partially because I don’t want to be the annoying guy that says HELLO! way too early in the morning.

But recently, I had a conversation about “Invisible People,” which is the expression for the folks who work for minimum wages and sweat to make it through every single day.

I think it’s fair to say many Americans, myself included, will come in contact everyday with “The Invisible People” and not acknowledge or greet them even once.

So this time, I wanted to say something to this Latino man.

“It’s cold,” I uttered in the bitter morning air.

I don’t think he spoke English.

So I said, “Frio. Mis pezones son duros” which means “It’s cold, my feet hurt.”  (FYI, I majored in Spanish so I am fluent).

A warm smile melted the Latino man’s face. And then he laughed hysterically.

That’s all it took. Just one sentence in his language and it was as if we just spent hours watching futbol and drinking cerveza.

I broke the invisible barrier.

In case you didn’t know, yoga people love to boast about all the good they are doing for the world!

In that instant:

• I saw myself becoming a hero venturing deep into the reddest territory and leading my fellow Americans across the invisible barrier.
• I envisioned $45 “Talk to Immigrant” organic cotton t-shirts being sold at yoga studios everywhere.
• I was going to run home and post on Facebook that I did a good deed so that everyone could know as soon as possible!

But then, the Latino man said the strangest thing, in a thick Queens accent:  “Bro, you had me at nipples.”

?

It turns out that I did not say in Spanish, “It is cold and my feet hurt,” but rather “It is cold and my nipples are hard.”  Since 8th Grade, I have always confused “pezones” with “pies,” the correct Spanish word for feet.

Hold the presses on those $45 t-shirts!! I would not be going home to post on Facebook.

But…

I would be going home to pray.  I had a startling revelation.

*****

I’ll be honest with you. My faith is kinda flat.

Sometimes I pray but feel like I have the same problems today that I had a year ago.

My thought process goes something like this, “If there really was a God, he would have known a long time ago what I need and he would have figured out a way to help.”

But yesterday, coupled with the hard nipples fiasco was a call I received from a friend.

“Have you read the latest Joel Osteen?” he asked.

This is not what I expect to hear from this friend, a Jew (like me) who plays the stock market and watches Detroit sports, not for the faint of heart.

He proceeded to tell me a startling revelation he had while reading Osteen, “You have to ask for what you want. You really have to ask for it, very very specifically.”

There must be something about this Joel Osteen. Everybody LOVES the guy, even my friend who watches Detroit sports.

So I read deeper into Osteen’s simple interpretations of ancient teachings.

Osteen shares this story which I will summarize:

A prophet sees a blind man and says to the blind man, “What do you want me to do for you?”

The blind man says, “I want my eye sight.”

So the prophet touches his eyes, and for the first time, the blind man is able to see.

But knowing he was blind, why did the prophet not just heal him. Why did the blind man have to ask?

As Osteen explains, imagine that prophet is standing before you asking the same thing that He asked this blind men. “What do you want Me to do for you?”

The way you respond is going to determine what the Universe does.

Often we will say, “I just need to pay my electric ball” or “Just help let me get over this cold.”

Instead, dare to say, ‘Please grant me great abundance and financial freedom!” or “Please let flow through my veins vitality and crazy awesome health!”

Point being, if you want to communicate with someone including the Universe, you have to speak their language.

And the Universe speaks in cans, not cant’s…in abundance, not scarcity…in love, not hate…

So today, in your ordinary routine when you are washing the dishes, sorting through emails, or waiting in carpool line…

…take a moment to pray with all your heart and soul! Ask for what you want…in the language of love, abundance, and magnificence.  Tune all your thoughts and all your feelings to your request.

Because unless you are profoundly well-versed in the language of prayer…

…you’d be surprised how often…

you ask for health in the language of wealth,
or hope for a break while desiring a steak,
or worst of all, as I experienced on Tuesday,
try to create ripples while talkin’ bout nipples.

IN-HOME RETREAT  (January 25-27, 2013)

A wise one said, “The only Zen you are going to find at the top of a mountain is the Zen you bring up there.”

Healing, love, and peace begin at home, not in some faraway retreat destination.

On that note, I am excited to present an entirely new and completely awesome healing experience.

In the heart of winter, we all love to designate a perfect weekend to “whole up” and dive in.

For 3 days in January, I’m going to present an IN-HOME YOGA RETREAT, a live audio and video experience that you will tune into on your computer or mobile device.

Just like a retreat, you’ll know when class begins, when it’s time for a guided meditation, when it’s time for a fireside chat. Except you’ll be doing this in the cozy creature comforts of your den, living room, or deck.

Break out the candles and wine. We’re gonna set the scene for just the right mix of storytelling, music, inspiration, and yoga to create a supremely cozy and grounding weekend.

And best of all, it will be LIVE! However, if the scheduled times don’t work, no worries, you can download and listen later at your convenience.

If you are loving the idea of inviting over a few friends, or taking a weekend to yourself to go deep with soothing stretches, beautiful tunes, and my special style of inspiration…then email me at yeahdave@mac.com to receive early registration info.

*When this opens for registration, the first 5 people to register will receive a special gift from me…The Love Weapon 101, my online journey giving you the tools to conquer fear! The value is high, impact will be huge, and for the first 5, this will be my gift to you.

“It seems that all my bridges have been burned,
But you say that’s exactly how this grace thing works
It’s not the long walk home that will change this heart,
But the welcome I receive with the restart.”   

                                                                –Mumford & Sons

I went to the synagogue on Wednesday. It was a kids service.

I couldn’t pay attention to the service. Just the kids.

Kids are fun to watch, especially if you don’t have any…yet.

• There are the hyper kids who act as if they were a blown up ballon that just got popped…over and over again.
• There are the shy kids who stay close to mom or dad just because they are still young enough to prefer hangin with mom and dad.
• There is always the kid who has a terrible temper and is throwing a screeching tantrum.

But there was one child that I remember with a certain clarity because she just sat in the kid’s area, totally alone, watching the Yom Kippur service.

It was as if this child had been given the gift of grace, a peace of mind and body, so rarely seen in children.

Does it really ever change as we get older?

We try our best to hold it together but truly, there are times where we want to have a tantrum…or hyperspaz…or just stay close to mom and dad.

But how do we achieve the grace enjoyed by this little girl…the grace to just make peace with life, when everyone around us is going CRAZY????

****

I have been very excited for this week. This is the week the new Mumford & Sons album was released.

I have learned such a valuable lesson from Mumford…

…that you can write about human struggles and divine providence and reach the mainstream.

In my first book, Yeah Dave’s Guide to Livin the Moment, I wrote about flatulence and s-x and boobies, low vibration stuff.

I thought that would help me disguise a spiritual message in more relatable terms.

A lesson learned.

High vibrations are more powerful than low ones.

Some of you might say, “Nah, I’ll take the flatulence and s-x and boobies any day of the week. And I hate Mumford.”

But as it goes with nutrition, you can only eat so many cheeseburgers until you need some greens.

That is why I decided to call upon grace. And I can’t believe how quickly she responded.

Here’s a thought to ponder as we head into a beautiful weekend.

Grace is a simple choice, made by anyone of any age, to live from the highest, most elegant place in your mind and soul.