185 Yoga Calendars

This year was a record for my total calendar order.
To date my total order is 185 calendars. They are all gone or spoken for.
Feedback has been great and the consensus is that it is the best calendar yet.
A great way to start the new year and enjoy "IMAGINE" 2011.
HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you.
I am already thinking up ideas for calendar 2012!!!

A Poem for Winter Solstice

I read this poem in our last class together this week. Some students asked if I would post it.
I think this is one of the most beautiful winter poems I have ever heard. I hope it touches you in some way.

Winter Solstice by Rebecca Parker
Perhaps for a moment the typewriters will stop clicking,
the wheels stop rolling,
the computers desist computing,
and a hush will fall over the city.
For an instant in the stillness,
the chiming of the celestial spheres will be heard
as earth hangs poised in the crystalline darkness, and then gracefully tilts.
Let this be a season when holiness is heard and the splendor of living is revealed.
Stunned to stillness by beauty
we remember who we are and why we are here.
There are inexplicable mysteries.
We are not alone.
In the universe there moves a Wild One whose gestures alter earth's axis toward love.
In the immense darkness everything spins with joy.
The cosmos enfolds us.
We are caught in a web of stars, cradled in a swaying embrace, rocked by the holy night, babes of the universe.
Let this be the time we wake to life, like spring wakes,
in the moment of winter solstice.

Freshen Holiday Traditions

Sometimes what has worked and been enjoyed in the past becomes tired and worn out.
What is important about traditions and rituals is that they have meaning. It seems that every year we may need to evaluate all the ways we celebrate the season and decide which ones we want to keep and which activities we can let go of. Most of us know we have limited energy and if we try to cram in too many activities and requests, we end up overwhelmed and exhausted.
"Choose" might be a mantra for the holidays. Choose the things that you truly savor and release some of the tasks that have become a burden. Every day remember why and what you are celebrating this year. I suspect you will find each day more fulfilling, some new discoveries and a fragrance of joy and peace.

Holiday De-stressor YOGA

Hello everyone. I am just back from 8 days in Hawaii where I took my own little "holiday de-stressor"! This week we begin 3 weeks of "yoga tonic" for whatever ails us during the month of December. Weekly yoga gives us an opportunity to refresh what "Living Your Yoga" really means during demanding times. The theme for these 3 weeks is CELEBRATION. Each of us celebrates in our own unique way. What is it that you hold dear and sacred at this time of year? What can you let go of or allow less importance to simplify the weeks ahead? What will you "celebrate"?
Maybe this year you want to do things differently to experience PEACE, JOY and the beauty of winter solstice. Maybe less spending and more present moment awareness with the little things.
Whatever you choose to do, notice how it affects your wellbeing. When and if you do get overwhelmed or a somber mood visits remember to breathe, get out your yoga mat and take time to celebrate all that you are grateful for.

Last Week of Fall Simply Yoga Classes

It is already week 8 of our 8 week session... one more class to go before RESTORATIVES!!!
It has been a fun session.
Next week, .... something to look forward to.. Restorative Yoga. This is a class I only do once a quarter.
"Often I say to myself, I wish I could just be a student in this class, as I am teaching it. I want to receive all the goodness."
What a great reward and something to savor as we move towards Thanksgiving.
Wednesday class is full but there are still spaces in the Tuesday or Friday evening class. Sign up soon. You will be restored and refreshed and ready for the holidays.

Sign up for HOLIDAY DE-STRESSOR YOGA -3 week session... Starting the week after Thanksgiving.

Yoga Paintings at the Art Walk

I hope to see many of you at the Art Walk this coming Friday, November 5th.
I will be at 3 Oms Yoga Studio (Bay Street, across across from the Blue Horse Gallery and next to the Upfront Theater) from 7:30pm - 10pm with my new show, IMAGINE.
These are all paintings from the new yoga calendar for 2011. Can't wait to celebrate and see many of you there. Couldn't do this without your inspiration! THANK YOU so much!!!

Intention and Resolve

The Buddha talked about "right resolve". He was referring to a determination to set intention and then to live from that. Our intention comes from our inner values. We then practice living by what holds truth and meaning for us. We are able to notice if and when we are tempted to compromise our values for material gain or ego. Through practice we strengthen our ability to hold to our intentions no matter the circumstances. Our resolve needs to be fed daily, strengthened daily or it begins to weaken.. like a muscle. However, we know that if we allow that muscle to weaken we CAN strengthen it again.
The more we develop the habit of intention the more natural it becomes to the way we live in the world.

"Right intention is organic; it thrives when cultivated and wilts when neglected". P. Moffitt