Moving on Up the Road

Hi folks,

I have decided to take this trip to the next level. This is my last posting on this blog. Follow me at www.getgrounded-yoga.com where you can see my current teaching schedule and meanderings. Featured on the Get Grounded site is my outdoor yoga practice held in area state and town parks. Look forward to seeing you outside.

Be well. Be Grounded.

Rolling with the Waves

I've been absent. And I apologize.

At the end of September, I took a position managing the yoga studios that I teach at. I thought it would be wonderful to combine my detail-oriented mind with my love for yoga and the studios. And as a bonus, it was only 20 hours a week, so I could still be the stay-at-home mom that I am while bringing in the extra income that our household so needed.

To do the job well it required more than the 20 hours a week of work that I had signed up for. I was always in my car, always on the phone, always on the computer, always on my way to a studio...always going. I looked up and realized that I was going no where fast. I was certainly moving; but that meant that I was never present.

My relationships with my children, my husband, and my friends were suffering. My ability to practice asana had even taken a back seat. No matter how I pushed and shoved and rearranged, there was no balance to be found. So I stopped. Took a deep inhale. Paused (weighing the much needed income against my family, my friends, and my love for yoga). Exhaled and let it go. I resigned from the position after only 5 months. The shortest length of time that I've ever held any particular "job".

This brief episode reminded me of two things:
One, we can't allow ourselves to mistake movement for accomplishment.
And two, that when you're out on the ocean you should do your best to roll with the waves, but if you're heading toward a swirling vortex, swim like heck in the other direction. It may be hard to go against convention, but in many cases it will be well worth the effort.

I'm sure that both of these 'lessons' sound strange coming from a vinyasa yoga instructor. But think about it. Our asana practice is designed to tire us out so that we can come to stillness. Come to that moment of peace in savasana. Growth isn't in the flow. The opportunities for health, wellness, and a deeper connection with your Higher Self happen when you stop.

Schedule 9/6 - 9/12

Where ever you go, there you are...and what a wonderful place to be. If you'd like to know where I'll be teaching this week it's listed below.

Sun, 9/6 - Open Doors, Canton 10:30am Beginners
Mon, 9/7 - Open Doors, Easton 9:30am Moderate
Tue, 9/8 - Vitality Center, Canton 6:30pm*
Thur, 9/10 - Vitality Center, Canton 6:30pm*

*All sessions at The Vitality Center are private/semi-private (max 4 participants) and require pre-registration. Please call 781.713.4714 to sign up.

Upcoming

The seasons are changing and with that so do many other things....including my teaching schedule.

Please check back to see what's in store for October. I will certainly be teaching with Open Doors. There is always a time slot available to sign up for a private or semi-private session with me at The Vitality Center. And...wait for it...

I will be teaching a 6am class at Yoga Energy, a new studio in Dedham Center.

The 6am class is scheduled for to begin on the first Tuesday of October and will continue through the month. If the interest remains high than we'll keep going through the year. I do hope to see you there. It is a wonderful way to start your day.

Moving Right Along or The Butterfly Effect

A beautiful soul came to practice this morning. I watched as he breathed into his postures and took rest when needed. I thought to myself, "how joyful this person is in their practice." Truly a beautiful soul.

After class, he asked me what brought me to yoga. At first I thought he was referring to the influence that brought me to teach. But he was actually wondering if there was a turning point in my life that brought me to yoga.

I explained that it wasn't until recently (within the last 4 -5 years actually) that I realized that I have been practicing yoga since I was about 10 years old. I wasn't practicing asanas, but I was practicing a few of the other eight limbs of yoga: particularly the yamas, niyamas, and pratyahara. I explained that I couldn't think of any one thing that started me on this path. I ended with, "Now I'll have to think about it." Even as the words where coming out of my mouth...I began to remember:

Whenever I felt 'ungrounded' or disconnected, I would take a walk to a nearby creek, cross the water on a downed tree, sit on a flat boulder, and just breathe. Sometimes I would sit for 10 minutes and sometimes an hour, but always I waited until I could hear the leaves talking. At this moment, I always felt re-centered, re-energized, and quite literally as one with the world.

At 10 years old, I didn't yet possess the language to describe these walks. But, even in this split moment of thought, I know that I didn't start talking these walks because of some great event in my life. Quite the opposite actually, I took them simply because I felt drained, bored, or uninspired. The interesting thing about life is that sometimes the most mundane occurences have the largest impact on our lives. We fret and worry over things that inevitably pass and we don't give a second thought to how our smiling at the checkout person would make their day.

The gentleman said, "Don't think about it. We think too much." And he is right. The outcome is the same. I am where I am, right now, today. But, I thank him for sending me on the walk down memory lane. What a joy!

Schedule 7/26 - 8/1

Where ever you go, there you are...but, if you'd like to know where I'll be teaching this week it's listed below.

Sun, 7/26 - Open Doors, Canton 10:30am Beginners
Mon, 7/27 - Open Doors, Easton 9:30am Moderate
Tue, 7/28 - Open Doors, Westwood 6:00am Early Morning Power
Tue, 7/28 - Vitality Center, 6:30pm*
Wed, 7/29 - Open Doors, Westwood 6:00pm Power
Thur, 7/30 - Open Doors, Westwood 5:30 Power**

Thur, 7/30 - Open Doors, Westwood 7:15 Beginners**

*All sessions at The Vitality Center are semiprivate (max 4 participants) and require pre-registration. Please call 781.713.4714 to sign up.

** I am subbing these classes.

Setting Your Intention

Often I will begin a practice by asking my students to take a moment to set their intention for their practice. They may be focusing on being present or their pranayama or their balance. It's different for everyone, everyday. But I go on to explain that it's not just coming into a posture that makes in beneficial. It's the intention behind the posture that makes it truly transformative.

Now I tell you this to explain how setting your intentions behind your actions can, not only benefit you, but the people around you.

Earlier this month, I was heading to the dry cleaners. As I neared the shop, I noticed that all of the on street parking spaces were free. I felt like I had hit the jackpot! You see, my daughter had just fallen asleep and I didn't want to wake her. So I began to ease into the spot directly in front of the door of the dry cleaners where my daughter would be visible to me as I dropped my stuff at the counter.

Then came the obnoxious honk from the driver behind me. HOOONK, HONK. The honk clearly said, "Get the hell out of my way, you loser! I know that you saw me behind you! Pull the f$@! up!"

I looked in the review mirror and reluctantly pulled forward so that the Honker could come in behind me. This, of course, meant that I would now need to wake my poor kid and drag her into the shop with me.

As I got out of the car, I took a good look at my Honker. It was one of my yoga students! And boy, was she embarrassed. And then even more embarrassed when I explained that I didn't want to wake my baby. Suddenly, she was no longer in a rush and offered to stand by my car while I took my clothes into the shop.

What was most interesting is that she said, "I never would have done that if I had known it was you. Oh my! I was being so rude. I just couldn't figure out why you weren't pulling forward. But I really wouldn't have done that if I'd known."

I laughed and said, "I felt your intention behind that honk. You really laid into it. I realized that my actions were frustrating you. So I moved. But a simple 'toot, toot' would have sufficed."

Now if I had been a stranger, both of us would have been a bit more salty because of the intention behind her actions. As it stood, she was embarrassed and I got a good chuckle out of the situation. We can never know what's around the corner or why someone is doing what appears to be a strange and confusion thing. Err on the upside, set your intentions with a little help from your Higher Self. Treat everyone like you would if you knew them, the latitude you offer can only come back to you.