Timeless State

January 4, 2012 in Jan 2012 | Leave a comment

ASATOMA INVOCATION

 Asatoma Sat-gamaya

Tomasoma Jyotir-gamaya

Mrityorma Amritam-gamaya

 May this practice lead me from the unreal to the real

From the darkness to the light

From time-bound consciousness

to a timeless state of being.

Asatoma Invocation (listen)

When do you find yourself in a timeless state of being? Watching a movie? Staring into the face of a newborn? Gardening? Golfing? Kissing? This concept is less esoteric than it sounds. We have all experienced it and were born into it as our True Nature. The qualities show up as a state of peace and ease, where the artist melds into the art; the dancer into the dance; where there is total absorption into the moment at hand and the world around seems to dissolve…nothingness and everythingness all at once…

That’s why when the calendar delineates this time of year as a New Year, a new beginning, I don’t take too much stock from a yoga point of view. The calendar is a man-made construct, the timeless state transcends years, months, days, minutes. Each moment with each breath presents as a new beginning because there is no such thing as yesterday or tomorrow, we only have this moment, right now.

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the imposed opportunity to take stock and create intentions toward optimizing my existence, I embrace the wake up call, but do so with as little attachment to the results of those goals as my human condition will allow. Mrityorma Amritam-gamaya. The timeless state of being that we are. When we connect with it, losing 20 pounds or resolving to make more money seems irrelevant.

Wishing that each breath in fills you with life force and each breath out releases that which no longer serves.

Happy Holidays!

December 22, 2011 in December 2011 | Leave a comment

By request from this morning’s yoga class students, I am posting a favorite poem of mine. Many blessings to all this season and throughout the year. And I hope you get what you need AND what you want…

Everything I Needed

Author Unknown

I asked for prosperity and God gave me brawn and brains to work.

I asked for strength and God gave me difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for wisdom and God gave me problems to solve.

I asked for courage and God gave me dangers to overcome.

I asked for patience and God placed me in situations where I was forced to wait.

I asked for love and God gave me people to help.

I asked for favors and God gave me opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted I received everything I needed.

My prayers have all been answered.

Great Expectations

November 17, 2011 in Nov 2011 | Leave a comment

I drove into work this morning and as I approached the highway at a RED LIGHT, I stopped before turning right. Well, turns out the guy behind me didn’t want to stop and bumped my bumper – what is it about people wanting to crash into me lately?! What is it about people who feel the rules don’t apply to them?! Only a soft nudge, I was fine. I pulled over to the side and turned on my emergency lights. Looked to see where Mr. Impatient would pull over, only instead I watched him drive away! Hmm. Now this is happening.

Was it an unrealistic expectation to believe that he would pull over? No, I don’t think so. I sat for a moment in disbelief and disappointment for humanity, went out to check the minor paint scratch and drove on. That happened.

Without any expectation for what is supposed to occur, there is no disappointment. Without dramatic reaction to events, all that is left is the event itself. I continue to work on this release of great expectations for self and other as I practice simply noticing and responding. Noticing and responding. Noticing and responding.

This ebb and flow of riding the waves of reality is a much less bumpy ride than the one of expecting, judging and reacting. I spent years expecting my friends to be as loyal and giving as I was; employers to be fair; citizens to do the right thing. All were simply fantasies made up in my mind, nothing to do with reality, setting me up for constant disappointment. Now, after years of practicing yoga, friends can still be ungrateful, workmates inequitable and citizens completely disrespectful, but my relationship to it all is softer and without much expectation to be anything other than the perfection that it is.

“Experience is not what happens to you, it’s what you do with what happens to you.”

-Aldous Huxley

Settle Before Change

August 29, 2011 in August 2011 | Leave a comment

“Content makes poor men rich; discontent makes rich men poor.”

-Benjamin Franklin

One of my earliest memories of philosophy through this practice was imparted by one of my teachers and came from the Zen tradition. I remember the yoga pose I was in when it landed: wide-legged forward fold (aka in Sanskrit, Prasarita Padottanasana). Funny how some things remain crystal clear in the memory banks. The message was this:

You cannot successfully effect change until you are settled with where you are right now.

As in all philosophies offered, I did not simply believe this powerful statement; I set out to see if it was true. It proved to be so and I have come back to it time and again, just as I have with the wide-legged forward fold…

This notion of being settled before creating or effecting change goes against the usual grain of motivation and goal-setting in the way we have been “Westernized”. For example, consider my friend, “Dave” who has a discontent with his lack of financial success. He looks left and right in comparison with his friends and measures his trappings against others and always comes up short. This makes him frustrated, angry, disappointed and ashamed especially because he works just as hard if not harder than his peers.  So Dave, out of a sense of lack, sets out to fix his problem and get more money. He struggles miserably to work more hours all the while setting his sights on the future goal of changing his financial status.

Dave is miserable.

What can we offer Dave to help him feel better about his situation? Well, what I have learned is to relax with what I have. Right now; not in the future, as though this will be the only set of circumstances available-ever. And when I can totally relax with what is, then and only then, can I begin to move toward making a difference.  Perhaps Dave might notice that he is perfectly fine with his lifestyle until the moment he starts comparing it to others! The key for Dave is to embrace and appreciate where he is, relax with it and then, if still motivated from the inside, make efforts to optimize his circumstance.

By doing things this way, we move not from a sense of lack and disparity, but from a centered place of being settled. The progression then is from a great place to a potentially even greater place. Or if the effort fails, well, it’s ok, because we are settled with what is, right now.

This is not one of the easier philosophies to work with (for me anyway). It’s definitely a work in progress and that’s why I am always so happy that we call yoga a practice.

It’s only when we really, really accept the way things are that we can be truly happy; not in the way of settling for what is or tolerating what is, but being receptive and allowing for what is. And so it follows, when we accept how we are and how the world around us is showing up, we can be nothing but happy!

“Discontent is something that follows ambition like a shadow.”

- Henry H. Haskins

 

 

A Love Unsurpassed

July 8, 2011 in July 2011 | Leave a comment

This amazing poem was sent to me by my dear friend who is a new mommy. We chatted recently about all there is to be a parent and I stand from a place of a bit of experience as my not-so-little-ones embark on the teen years.

Having kids is a wonderfully long life lesson in selflessness. There are those times when we sit and wonder, “What were we thinking?”, oh yes, more times than we’d like to admit, but they are quickly shadowed by those many moments of pride and joy and compassion and deep, deep love unsurpassed by any other kind I have known.

In any relationship, trust is the key component to a healthy and respectful union, and my kids have taught me the value of listening and allowing – as much as I feel it is my duty to control and command. We navigate now not around potty training and playdates, but around keeping them safe while letting them explore their own True Nature. oy.

On Children


-Kahlil Gibran

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you, and though they are with you yet they belong not to you.  

You may give them your love but not your thoughts, 
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
 For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, 
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, 
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

 You are the bows from which your children
 sling arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might 
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness; For even as He loves the arrow that flies, 
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

A New Year Awaits

December 26, 2010 in Dec 2010 | Leave a comment

I am gearing up for many things as I continue my venture at the new yoga studio. The question arises, “how can I optimize the coming year?” I am so blessed with my health, energy, family, friends, my yoga practice…what can be done to continue to grow and evolve?

My latest mantra is: The degree to which you make an effort above and beyond what is expected, is the degree to which life gives you a return. This, of course, not a particularly original thought by me, but an adherence to one of the laws of karma. In simpler terms, you get back what you put in. This holds true for many things such as interpersonal relationships, school, job,  etc. If we simply show up, punch in and do the minimum, that is exactly what we get in return. Sadly, I have noticed those who adopt this strategy of giving just enough still expect something extra! 

Extra comes when you go above and beyond. When you do things despite discomfort or inconvenience, THEN, one may see life’s reward. So I have an idea to push myself  a little (because running a family and a business and teaching students is hardly enough) and will use this venue as my platform.

Stay tuned….

“Above is the sky of the mind, and  beyond this sky is the Lord.” -Sri Guru Granth Sahib

World-changing

November 14, 2010 in Nov 2010 | Leave a comment

Who says you can’t take over a business in 6 weeks? My new dear friend and business partner, Kelly and I have successfully transitioned into Yoga Breeze of Cave Creek and are having a great time! A lot of work to be sure and not much sleep in the beginning, but so worth the effort. We continue to create and hold the space to practice and teach yoga and offer massage and other healing therapies. It’s not like it’s a world-changing event…or is it?

I’ve never been drawn to being a national yoga teacher of merit with lots of exposure and a long list of videos.  Yoga celebrity has no cache for me.  But the experience of connecting with students one at a time or in a group has been and continues to be wildly satisfying and moving and humbling and fortifying and fulfilling! We have lost so much in the way of interpersonal communication with the advancement of technology as we bury our heads in the handheld device; so it’s a refreshing injection of humanity and a nourishing validation of life itself when we come together on the yoga mat. (I was on a date with my husband and another {younger!} couple sat next to us on their date.  They were both nose deep in their iPhones the entire time.  Weird.)

So running a yoga studio is not that big of a deal. Training students to become teachers is not miraculous in and of itself. But the day-to-day connection, between teachers and students and the discovery of self and others each student experiences with each class has a lasting effect.  It affects the loved ones around them; it affects the acquaintances around them; it effects the strangers they have never met. The ripple effect…changing the world.

So maybe it is a big deal to provide a space to love and validate one another through movement and breath and philosophy. It sure feels like one to me. I’m so grateful for the opportunity, the support and for all that has passed to bring me to this is  point.

“It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.”

-Robert Francis Kennedy

Yoga Breeze!!

October 6, 2010 in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

I am now an official yoga studio owner.  Woohoo! or is it, “What time is it?  have I eaten today?  Slept at all?” It is quite an undertaking owning and operating one’s own business. Fortunately for me I have a partner to share the load and make it twice as fun.  Kelly is THE BEST. Neither of us would take on the project individually, but together we rock.

A month’s work done in only a few days, I must learn to put my impatience aside and live by the tried and true, “Rome was not built in a day” strategy.  Now that we represent the studio I want everything to be just so and to reflect our personal tastes, values and visions.  As I listen to myself coach and guide my lovely teacher training students each week and watch as they respond to all that I have learned and received, I can’t help but remember to take my own advice.  “I have never gained any benefit from moving quickly through yoga, but when I move slowly, with acute awareness and attention to what is happening in the moment, I not only feel fulfilled and at peace, but the poses (as in life) are realized with much more integrity.” 

And so it goes with this beautiful space-we take the reigns and move forward with integrity and lots of love and energy to create something that might be helpful to others.  What a gift! To all the students who are currently attending and to all of those who will grace us with their new presence, I honor you and feel priveledged to be your tour guide.

“It is not because things are difficult that we dare not venture. It’s because we dare not venture that they are difficult.” -Seneca

Love Endures.

September 6, 2010 in Sept 2010 | Leave a comment

Our family has two older cats and we recently added Jef, a kitten from the shelter.

This is Jef.  There are many fetching qualities about Jef: his stripes, his orangeness, his feisty personality, how he lets you cuddle with him as much as you want.  But my favorite aspect of this kitty is his perseverance when it comes to being loved and accepted by the other cats.

The other cats were extremely angry at his inclusion in our family at first.  The young and beautiful , Lolly, hissed and spat and ran and hid and ignored me for weeks.  The big fluffy one, Scooter, was annoyed and combative. Jef remained undeterred.  His strategy was to love them anyway!  And he did.  When they papped him, he did not back down.  When they napped, he cuddled nearby.  When they ate, he sidled up. Despite their clear disdain and rejection, Jef continued to show his severe interest in being their friend.

It didn’t matter what they thought of him. He loved them anyway.

Well, after some weeks now, there is much less hissing and papping and there are even signs of slight acceptance if not inclusion in our cat world.

I have learned much from Jef’s life strategy and have adopted his method of unconditional love when it comes to a relationship in my life, where a person is really not that interested in being my friend anymore. I have decided to love them anyway. I recognize being pesty serves no purpose, (I am slightly more discerning than a cat), but I can still hold it in my heart and extend the occasional effort or affection when appropriate.  It seems to work.

What others think of you is none of your business.  Your feelings are true and valid and worthy of expression.

Thanks Jef. Glad I was listening.

Finding Our Way

August 16, 2010 in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

So I went with my BFF to see Eat Pray Love last night.  It was a very lovely movie.  Ms. Julia was understated and real, the scenery and food were spectacular and I really liked the men in the movie–representing all of those aspects of challenge and discovery for the main character.  Frankly, I’ll pay any amount to see Javier Bardem for a few moments…

The movie begs the question, “How do I find my way?”  This character needed to go far and wide and experience something so far outside of herself in order to connect with something inside; to feel something real.  This is one strategy if you don’t have kids and can afford to take a year off.  Yet many of us do not have this luxury, so what are we to do? Can we still find our inner peace and fulfillment if Bali is not an option? Can we still connect to God even though the stack of bills is piling up and the dinner needs cooking? Well, for me, the answer is yes, yes indeed.

I’ve spent the last 10 years or so in my own journey toward self-awareness and I rarely left the state. One of the main catalysts toward moving out of the darkness and living in a state of light and ease was going through yoga teacher training.  With the weekly discipline, the constant demand for self-reflection, the physical and energetic opening through posture and meditation, and the loving support of my teacher and co-students, a shift was created.  My life didn’t change, but my relationship to my life changed completely.

I emerged with less baggage, more confidence and a clearer understanding of how the mind works and how it does not create or control my life.  I discovered the connection to Source that I’d only wondered about and my heart opened to a capacity which now allows for so much more than my mind ever allowed. 

I am so grateful for my teachers and continue to grow and learn each day on and off of the mat.  The Truth is right inside each of us, it’s just a matter of creating enough quiet around us to hear it, feel it and then embody it.

“Wherever you go, there you are.”  -Unknown

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