Life's short. Let's practice.
You are here. Wherever you are right now reading this, feel your feet on the earth, or if you can, place your hand on the ground, touch the floor, feel the texture of the grass or rug, wood or tile, under you. You are here. In this moment. Taking this breath. In this life. At this time. In this place.
Read MoreWhat does happiness look like to you? Sound like? Feel like? The Universe says “if you can imagine it, you can have it”. But how often do we believe this? That’s the catch. In order for the intention to be made manifest we have to believe that it’s possible. We can’t say “I want to be happy but I won’t be until this is different” or “if only this would change, you’d be different, if only I had this or that, then I’ll be happy”. We can’t focus on lack and gain abundance. We can’t hold our attention on hate and receive love. We can’t be unhappy and expect happiness to come. We have to believe that it is available to us. We have to hold steady the vision of happiness and love regardless of what is happening around us.
Read MoreThe things that I loved, the dreams that I had, the project I procrastinated on were all still there. Not one thing ever got up and left my home because I didn’t use it or had forgotten about it. And herein lies the beauty of the practice. The beauty of who we are. Our true self never leaves us. Our intuition, our source, our power, our love, our light. It’s always there.
Read MoreBut the world around us is not perfect, our limited human bodies and minds can never be without imperfections. All we can do is hold steady the vision of our happiness, our truth, the notion that is the premise of yoga philosophy, that we are of God, that our heritage is divine. Not part of a man-made religion but of GOD, we are all made of the exact same material and that is infinite intelligence. So what if we started seeing, first ourselves, as that? What if we started treating ourselves as divine? Talking to ourselves like we were part of the unconditional love that created us?
Read MoreThe key, I believe, is to hold steady the vision of our dream. A simple reminder that I want clarity. A few conscious breaths to bring me back to the knowing that it is available if I stay grounded in the truth. Trust that the Universe is cheering me on from the sidelines, wants me to succeed and is never judging or condemning me. We are human. We are going to get tired, fatigue, fear and self-doubt will at some point sneakily try to creep in. But knowing, believing, trusting in our innermost self will allow us to see the magic and beauty all around. If I put myself in this trusting vibration then stop and look outside at a tree, a body of water, a single white floating cloud, or sit quietly and take ten breaths I can’t help but see and feel the magic all around. I didn’t create the beautiful world around me but I do believe the sun rises and sets in all it’s glory each and every day for us. The beauty is a part of who we are, we are not separate from it but completely connected.
Read MoreIt’s common at the beginning of a yoga class for the teacher to ask the student to set an intention. “Why are you here? What is it that you want to embody in your life?” As students we set our intention on something physical; strength in the body or openness. Or something mental; clarity, focus, wisdom. Sometimes emotional; balance, peace. Spiritual; such as connection, oneness, or the desire to know who we are at our core. Even if you have never before stepped onto a yoga mat you may have a dream for your life or a desire for how you want to show up everyday in the world.
Read MoreOnce we sit with the feeling we can know who it is we are beyond them, know what it is we truly want to embody in this lifetime. If I’m going to choose fear and sit with it and feel it fully and know it deeply, what I will find on the other side, is that my deepest longing is trust, safety, intimacy. So I will sit for as long as I need and say “I choose fear”. I will watch it, as uncomfortable as it is feel it, then, although it doesn’t seem like it could possibly happen, my light begins to shine through it. When I feel I’ve moved through it (which could take days or months), I can then say “I choose to trust” and begin to let go of the thoughts and habits that have been blocking me from allowing this intention. If I’m going to let anger well up to the point where my whole body feels like it’s on fire what I will surely find on the other side is the love that resides at my core and that all I truly want is forgiveness and freedom and humor in my life. “I choose. I choose. I choose.”
Read MoreAll too often I run from the feelings that I don't want to experience because I believe that the pain will be too much to bear. So in those brief moments of meditation, rather than the heaviness that can sometimes accompany being human weighing me down, I allowed my soul to lighten it. Feeling the pain fully actually moved me through it and smack into who I am beyond it. And that.... is simply radiant.
Read MoreThe key, I believe, is to hold steady the vision of our dream. A simple reminder that I want clarity. A few conscious breaths to bring me back to the knowing that it is available if I stay grounded in the truth. Trust that the Universe is cheering me on from the sidelines, wants me to succeed and is never judging or condemning me. We are human. We are going to get tired, fatigue, fear and self-doubt will at some point sneakily try to creep in. But knowing, believing, trusting in our innermost self will allow us to see the magic and beauty all around.
Read MoreOnce we understand and begin to trust in the knowing that, as Gates said; “under the surface of life there is an ocean of spirit”. Then we begin to believe in our worthiness. We begin to believe that we are deserving. We believe that we are loved; just as we are. There are no preconditions to be met, there are no tests to take or rules to follow in order to become more. We become more, we evolve, when we trust in what underlies the surface and we surrender to that. We come to know that WHO WE ALREADY ARE is perfect.
Read MoreOnce we see where we are going, despite knowing how we will get there, we fuel the fire in our belly to keep us motivated and to believe we are worthy of our dreams. This fire, this self confidence, illuminates the beauty in our heart, all of our courage, strength, bravery and compassion for our self when the process becomes challenging or difficult. On the mat, similar to everyday life, distractions build, we get bored, tired, frustrated, feel stuck or tight and it is here we need to have faith that we are being guided, held, supported along the way. Faith brings us back to the moment, we remember our breath and the mind quiets. In that still place we begin to hear. We slowly recognize this sound as our own, the sweet, soft whisper our intuition. Slowly, this sound becomes the only one we hear and everything else falls away. Finally, we surrender to the truth. In those final few moments of practice, when we lie back in savasana, we become aware of the most subtle aspect of ourselves. We see that what it is we were looking for was within us all along.
Read MoreA mentor of mine asked me the other day; “what do think you will gain by staying small?” I looked at her and said; “a lifetime of mediocrity, unhappiness, nothing ever changing”. She smiled and said “I’m glad you understood the question”. I think I grunted something back like “ugh, I know”. Then she asked “well what do you think you will lose by stepping into your power?” and I just cried.
Read MoreWhen I loved myself enough what happened? How has self love got me to where I am today? What happened when I didn’t beat myself up for the times that I failed or screwed up? How quickly can I forgive? So I ask you, what has happened when you loved yourself enough? How would it change what you are doing right now if you loved yourself more? If you forgave yourself? If you accepted your own sweet self, EXACTLY as you are?
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