First Class Free

Maybe you've seen the PBS documentary series from Ken Burns these past two nights called: The National Parks: America's Best Idea. As I am watching the stunning images from Yosemite and Yellowstone and hearing the eloquent words of John Muir, I am moved. For I too feel the call of the wild. It is when I am in wilderness that I more easily reconnect to the core of who I am and find my connection with the web of life.


One of the things I love about Tantra Philosophy is this idea that the divine is revealing itself through the material world: through each waterfall, each mountain, each sunrise and through each one of us. We don't have to wait for the afterlife to touch the divine's will...there is a temple of nature here for us each and every day. People describing John Muir said he had a "bizarre rapture" with life. He was in love with his world and this gift of having our breath taken away by nature taps us back into this sweet love of life itself.


Similar to nature, yoga has helped me reconnect with a bigger spirit than myself and my thoughts.  As I practice yoga, I begin to slowly peal back the layers of the preconceived notions of who I think I am or who others think I am as I slowly reconnect to a deeper truth. In Tantric Philosophy, we call this forgetting of our true nature, a veil, cloak or mirror that is called Maya. The Maya creates the 'dust' on our heart's mirror and shows up as fear, anger, sadness, guilt and shame. It cloaks the big picture and conceals the truth of who we are so we don't see as clearly. A steady yoga practice can help us start blowing the dust off the mirror so we can begin to reconnect with the fountain of life that is within each of us.


We may not be able to get to a National Park this year but through our yoga practice we can find the wilderness within our very selves. Why not think of your practice today as a chance to go on a journey. What is your body telling you?  Listen to yourself and your soul....what does it want you to hear? What does it want you to remember?


Song- by John Muir
Here is a calm so deep, grasses cease waving.
Everything in wild nature fits into us as if truly part and parent of us.
The sun shines not on us, but in us.
The rivers flow not past, but through us, thrilling, tingling, vibrating every fiber and cell of the substance of our bodies, making them glide and sing.
The trees wave and the flowers bloom in our bodies as well as our souls, and every bird song, wind song, and; tremendous storm song of the rocks in the heart of the mountains is our song,
Our very own and sings of our love.

SEPTEMBER 28, 2009:  I am inspired by this beautiful poem called The Awakening.  It fits in perfectly with our dedication this week to the importance of dreaming and envisioning our lives as we really want them. All we have to do is stay the course with this amazing practice of yoga so we can see through the Kleshas or veils that build up and stop us from dreaming as big or bold as we did when we were in love with life with less complications. It can be that way again.  May this time on the mat help you “remember everything!”  Love and light, Silvia

 

 

The Awakening

"In the early dawn of happiness

You gave me three kisses

So that I would wake up

To this moment of love

 

I tried to remember in my heart

What I'd dreamt about

During the night

Before I became aware

Of this moving

Of life

 

I found my dreams

I saw how my heart had fallen

On your path

Singing a song

 

Between my love and my heart

Things were happening which

slowly slowly

Made me recall everything"

 

Namaste beautiful friends on the path,

This week I am inspired to focus on lighting up our imagination! Focusing on how we can create images or visualizations for our life.  Basically I'm talking about making time on the mat this week with me to delight in your Dreams and Fantasies!  As Picasso is famous for saying:  "ANYTHING YOU CAN IMAGINE IS REAL."

My personal inspirations for this week came from a article by Sally Kempton, a dear friend traveling the world and a fellow yoga teacher in Chicagoland along with humble bows always to the first dreamer I knew, My father.  Love to you and see you on the mat! (When I teach is below)

Monday 6:15pm and 7:30pm 

Tuesday 6:15pm and 7:30pm

Wednesday 9:15am and 6:15pm

Thursday 10:45am and 7:30pm

Friday 9:15am and 6pm

Saturday 9:15am

Sunday 7:45am, 9:15am and 4:30pm

 

SEPTEMBER 27, 2009:   This practice helps us to unfold our own myth (Rumi).  It has us but up against the myths or limitations we have about ourselves like “I’m not flexible enough, I’m not old enough, I’m not strong enough, I’m not young enough.”  We can even use the poses sometimes when too much focused on the literagy of the alignment to limit us and strengthen the old myths rather than enhance and expand us.  So we take use the alignment as the outline of our story but the detail is the real deal.  That’s where we make ourselves or as Swami Vivekananda says, “WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT WE ARE AND WHATEVER WE WISH OURSELVES TO BE, WE HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE OURSELVES.”

 

 

To help us find where we might see ourselves through the eyes of myth rather than reality we used the “Double Basic Vinyasa” inspired by a friend of mine for double the fun. And a whole lot of core cultivation!  But this served to ignite 3^rd chakra more and in the words of Rumi “Set your life on fire.”  So this was about coming home…making the inner form the work of our soul selves the real story and not just the outer form. And as always it is all about LOVE.  So wishing you all the best love, the best lovers, the best life, Silvia

 

"You that love lovers,

This is your home. Welcome.

 

In the midst of making form, 

love made this form that melts form,

with love for the door

and soul for the vestibule.

 

Their dance is our dance.

You are the soul, the universe,

and what animates the universe.

 

Human beings, you have a great value

inside your form, a seed. Be led 

by the rose inside the rose.”

-Rumi

 

In celebration of the Autumnal Equinox:  Focus on Releasing, Reflecting, Receiving

MONDAY SEPTEMBER 21, 2009:  I AM READY FOR CHANGE

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 22, 2009:  I AM GROUNDED IN ACCEPTANCE

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2009:  I CREATE MY REALITY

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 24, 2009:  I ATTRACT AMAZING PEOPLE

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 25, 2009:  I AM OPEN TO RECEIVE LOVE AND HELP

Summary:

It is never too late to really be here

It is never too late to enjoy the moment

It is never too late to love and be loved

It is never too late to let yourself be helped

It is never too late to be wholly grateful

It is never too late to be who you really are  (Jack Kornfield A Path with Heart)

 

SEPTEMBER 25, 2009:  Today the third day after Autumnal Equinox is so special. Our affirmation today:  I AM OPEN TO ACCEPTING LOVE AND HELP.

 

This represents our ability to receive support and love from other people as we allow ourselves to evolve towards greater experiences of happiness. And I assure you we are readier than we ever have been to receive and be happy.  I know this and more importantly you know this because in class when we breath more deeply into ourselves it feels wonderful! You guys, this reflects our willingness to breath in Life itself, to be more conscious, more present, more receptive.

 

BREATHING BREAK: Right now wherever you are Witness the breath, appreciate the ebb and flow of breath and how you can better feel and receive it.  As you deepen into your breath inhaling it smoothly and fully know that you have received an amazing gift. The gift of life, of energy, of opportunity!  Not everyone was chosen to breath today. Some in this world did not win the life lottery.  But you did!  And as you breath, be aware of the raw abundance of the breath. It is continuously meeting your needs.  Open and expand into this knowledge that on the most fundamental level all your needs are being met in this moment.

 

Then think about someone in your life right now that has done something for you, that has offered their love or help….what have you done to receive the gift of this offering?  How could you do better at receiving from them?  Receiving has this quality of surrender that all we need do is welcome the gift into our life (we don’t have to judge, question the motives, demand it be more) all we have to do is just accept it and let it come to us.

 

William Holden, PhD says in the book Be Happy, “RECEIVING is a prelude to giving.  Receiving and giving are two sides of the same coin.  In other words, your capacity to receive is what determines your capacity to give.  If you are not good at receiving, you will not give yourself fully to a relationship or to a job, because you will be afraid that giving will deplete you.  The only way to keep giving and not receive is to be in sacrifice.  And that can only last so long before you feel like you have nothing left to give.  Also in truth no one can give what he or she has not received.”

 

Today what can you do to receive more?  How can this help you see that recieivng is infinite and abundant you don’t have to limit yourself from receiving love.

 

On the mat you can practice by saying to yourself “How does this pose help me?  What gifts does it have, am I receiving them with an open heart?”  Allow each pose to be your teacher and before you know it you will find that you grow better at receiving.  And with time we all learn to just feel grateful for this immersion into the flow of abundance. That the universe is working on our behalf to offer us love and help inside every moment, in the guise of every Angel on earth that we crosses our path.  Question is, will you let yourself RECEIVE?  Big love to you all, Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 24, 2009:  Okay, so it’s Monday morning. You’ve made your “to do” list for the week and you’re ready to go. Work, errands, and family responsibilities all listed on a nice piece of paper. It’s easy to get in that quick yoga practice to get the week off right. Tuesday is here and you’re feeling good about what you got done on Monday, so you get the full routine going. Maybe yoga fits in. Wednesday comes and you know you need to get over the hump day, so you’re sure to get in that practice to make the day productive. Thursday starts out and you realize – “OH NO! I have so much to do before the weekend. I can’t possibly fit in yoga today!”

Does this sound familiar? Does the week get started with the best intentions, then by Thursday you’re so overwhelmed that you forget or neglect to get your yoga in? Here are some reasons to schedule in that practice on Thursday mornings

1. Yoga reduces stress – being overwhelmed by your “to do” list creates stress in the body and mind. Yoga controls the breath and clears the mind of cluttered thoughts.
2. Yoga wards off illness – reducing stress will keep you healthy. Research shows that yoga boosts the immune system.
3. Yoga improves concentration – when you can focus, you can get more of that “to do” list done.
4. Yoga keeps you feeling young – BKS Iyengar did 108 back bends on his 80^th birthday! Maybe growing old is just in our restless minds???
5. Yoga improves energy levels and productivity – yoga replenishes the mind and body with precious energy needed to respond to daily tasks and challenges.

You can’t beat those reasons for scheduling in your practice.

This Thursday, we’ll explore how setting your intention at the beginning of practice and specifically in certain poses can bring awareness to the body and spirit. We’ll practice poses that invoke certain emotions, giving us an opportunity to explore. We’ll affirm our inner spirit and listen to our hearts throughout our practice. Then, we’ll take these great feelings with us as we step off of the mat and move into the business of the day.

Join me – Thursdays 9:15 am Level 1/2 – or – if you’d like a gentler class, come to Silvia’s 10:45 Basics class.

Don’t take TIME OUT of your day for yoga, add TIME IN to your day by increasing your productivity and focus by attending yoga class.

Wishing you Peace, Prosperity, and Productivity,  Mary

 

September 24, 2009:  This week we've been focusing on Mantra meditation in celebration of the Fall Equinox which offers us a highly opportune time to Release the old, Reflect on what we want and Receive support from the universe to welcome the new chapter of our lives.  It's been my experience that as much as we are all seeking to love others and be loved actually allowing ourselves to Receive has a learning curve.  Just like happiness is a learning curve.

 

Monday we focused on the Mantra "I Am Ready for Change" really letting go of the old stories, wounds, hurts, worries, fear of this last part of our lives.  We also worked on saying to ourselves early in the week “I Am Grounded in Acceptance” based around this contemplation of whether we are running away from our life or can we find the courage to face our difficulties and joys with equal acceptance.  Only once we accept can we really do the work of creating. We continued the week with the Affirmation "I Create My Reality" where it was time to be honest with ourselves and Reflect on what we truly want in our lives and which direction we wish to go next. 

 

Today our affirmation is "I Attract Amazing People." This represents our ability to receive support and love from other people as we allow ourselves to evolve towards greater experiences of happiness. And I assure you we are readier than we ever have been to receive and be happy.  I know this and more importantly you know this because in class when we breath more deeply into ourselves it feels wonderful! You guys, this reflects our willingness to breath in life, to be more conscious, more present, more receptive.

 

So today, just say to yourself I Attract Amazing People and do that for the next week as we transition into Fall, see what happens when you wholeheartedly welcome joy, love and happiness into your life!

 

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for joining me on the mat on Thursday's. Love to you all!  Silvia

 

 (PS I welcome your stories of how this affirmation made a difference!)

 

SEPTEMBER 23, 2009:   I don’t remember the exact day that I learned through spiritual practice that the world is not created outside of us but that we create the world first on the inside.  WOW!  I had no idea that what we think is reflected back to us through what we see.  The fact that we have 60,000 thoughts that are “trainable” and that by managing the energy of these thoughts multiplied by 7 days/per week and the days in the month we influence the quality of our lives blew my mind.  I really believed that other people or situations put thoughts in my head and I had no control of that.  You can apply this knowledge to all aspects of your life.  The learning on the mat is transportable.  Maybe it’s something little like the fact today was a bit overcast does not mean it is a bad day. It is all in our perspective.  I CREATE MY REALITY.

Keep this mantra or affirmation in mind as an all time favorite!  One of the most inspiring things I keep going back to are the words of Jack Kornfield, "in the beginning of our spiritual journey, we become aware that much of what we do is a way of seeking to love and to be loved. Perhaps the enlightenment of intimacy is the same as love.” To me this is speaking to the fact that if we are loving creatures then we CREATE THE REALITY OF A LOVING WORLD, within us and then this becomes our experience.   

Love is mysterious. 

“We don't know what it is, but we know when it is present. If we seek love, we must ask where it is to be found. It is here only in THIS MOMENT. To love in the past is simply a memory. To love in the future is a fantasy. There is only one place where love can be found, where intimacy and awakening can be found, and that is in the PRESENT." (Kornfield)

The most difficult part of being responsible for ourselves and our thoughts is to remain present. To let go of the way we wanted things to be in the past and instead focus on the beauty that is here now in front of us. Equal to that is the pitfall of trying to get all the answers about what we want for the future before we love fully so as not to get hurt.  But we will never know the future outcome all we can do is influence it by staying true and loving now, planting seeds for then but surrendering to something greater.  This is a challenging degree of intimacy to have with oneself (let alone another person) but totally necessary to in order to awaken to the depth of love available to us.  WE CREATE OUR REALITY but this means now, not yesterday.

"To learn intimacy is not an easy thing. Growing up in a divided culture, marked by our wounds and longing, it is hard to be present." (Kornfield)  Use this practice to love yourself more, to stop holding back. Through this we learn how not to hold back our love from others and the more we wake up to all that is being offered to us the more it grows!  Rumi writes, "Today is like every other day, we wake up empty and frightened. Don't open the door to the study and begin reading. Take down the dulcimer. Let the beauty we love be what we do."

May yoga wake you up to the beauty of your love so you love yourself more, you love your day more, you love your life more!  Create your reality.  Love in all ways, Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 22, 2009:

 

I AM GROUNDED IN ACCEPTANCE.

 

Today is the Autumn Equinox.  It is a highly auspicious day and there is an amazing energy available to us three days before today and three days after.  But today the peak is at its highest.  “To open deeply we need tremendous courage and strength. A kind of WARRIOR SPIRIT. But the place for this warrior strength is in the heart.” These are the words of Jack Kornfield from a favorite book titled A Path with Heart.  That warrior spirit is always there as are all the most wonderful qualities of the heart.  We need our most inner strength to learn the truth about ourselves. 

 

Taking this literally I am thinking about starting to take up running again.  I haven’t run for some years every since my Father, Papa passed away suddenly at the age of 59 years old.  It is something that we did as a family growing up. He was my first running “coach”.  And I’ve had this fear of the sadness I’d experience by going back to running.  Now over the years I’ve still bought really great running shoes, just in case I just haven’t used them.  But it has come time as I grow up and become more honest with myself and ground myself in my own acceptance that I see the situation for what it is.  I am running away from the strong feelings I associate with my Dad, the sense of loss and hurt not having him here on earth.  I have to face this.

 

“We need energy, commitment and courage not to run from our life nor to cover it over with any philosophical – material or spiritual. We need a Warrior’s Heart that lets us face our lives directly.  Our pains and limitations, our joys and possibilities.” (Jack Kornfield)

 

So as I face myself I asked a sweet friend who is making their own expansion this question:  ARE YOU RUNNING AWAY FROM YOUR LIFE OR RUNNING TOWARDS WHAT YOU WANT FOR YOUR LIFE?  There is a difference.

 

I am seeking my own Warrior courage to put those running shoes on and get out there face my grief and get on with it.  I don’t want to run away from anything, I’ve tried that you guys and it doesn’t help.  So I encourage you to do the same in some aspect of your life.  The reason why I think this is good is that we can’t choose to close down just one part of our life and expect everything else to open.  Energies are not mutually exclusive, if we are opening to love and peace we must do so in all parts of our life. Jack Kornfield goes on to encourage us,

 

“To live in love:

·         Look at every path closely and deliberately and ask yourself does this path have heart?  If it does the path is GOOD, if it doesn’t it is of no use.

·         Where do we put your time, strength, creativity and love?

·         Does what we are choosing reflect what we deeply value?

·         What might lead me to create openness, honesty and a deeper capacity to love?

 

We must have the courage to face whatever is present – our pain, our desires, our grief, our loss, our secret hopes, our love, everything that moves us deeply. Each of us will find something from which we have been running – our loneliness, our unworthiness, our boredom, our shame, our unfulfilled desires.  We must face these parts of ourselves as well because to live in the present demands an on-going and unwavering commitment.  Just as it is a courageous act to face all the difficulties from which we have always run, it is also an act of compassion. And compassion is the “quivering of the pure heart.  With greatness of heart we can OPEN to the people around us.”

 

I want for us all to choose wisely and decide to no longer run away from life but instead to run towards it.  Accept where you are and begin again from there.  I will keep you posted on my progress putting on those running shoes and stepping onto the pavement.  As I wish the best for myself I wish you the same and more!  Love and courage to us all, Silvia

 

 

 

SEPTEMBER 21, 2009:   Dear Friends Happy Namaste!

Ok, it’s Monday.  So my question to you is can we get out of our “Monday Mind”.  You know, that mind that says to us this is going to be the same week as last week and feelings of boredom, worry get all stirred.  So to get out of the Monday mind join me tonight at 6:15pm or 7:30pm for yoga to cut through the crap and get to the Truth of your experience. That truth is ours to face and then influence to evolve so we don’t replay this same pattern of Monday Mind every week.

 

So as meditation today try saying to yourself:

 

I AM READY FOR CHANGE

 

This is very 3^rd chakra work and being on the mat will reveal what is necessary for us to allow our evolution to unfold.  We get to see where we have resistance to change.  Or where we doubt ourselves or hesitate which are forms of resistance.  We all know what we want, what we need, what we are ready for and often replaying Monday Mind only serves to “hold us back”. 

 

So today start the week off in a positive way by saying I AM READY FOR CHANGE.  I don’t want any of us to hold ourselves back from life.  Why?  Because who are we to think that we can be ecstatic LATER if not now?  What we get later is what we DO now.  We set the tone through our dreams and intentions for what we want for our life.

 

Now I know this is challenging.  I have faced the fear of making positive changes in my life many times over (both work related and personal).  I have tried the avoidance of making a healthy change and sat on the razors edge for far too long.  And that’s not a good or comfortable way to live life.  It all begins with a dream, some call this the power of intention, I AM READY FOR CHANGE. 

 

With the courage that comes from the strength of your heart can you speak to yourself of your SECRET HOPES AND DREAMS?  Make a list of your dreams, add to it.  We just don’t make enough time for dreaming. Mark Twain said, Optimist means Day-dreamer more elegantly spelled.  I know it seems kind of silly at first, but believe me until you start actually writing out your dreams you aren’t fully admitting them not even to yourself. 

 

A friend asked me if we are limited in the number of dreams we have and what happens when they come true?  I said to them our dreams know no bounds, they are limitless.  There is no stop to the flow.  I know this because as I said to another friend (and I hope you don’t mind my sharing my thoughts here):  “For me as a lover of nature I look at mother earth and I see her dream of change in seasons, colors of leaves changing, she dreams of rebirth in the Spring, of being comforted and blanketed in the winter, of children playing in the waters of the oceans of winds blowing and reaching amazing heights to the tallest mountains.  If the earth is in a constant state of fantastical dreaming then I can be too.  She doesn’t seem to stop dreaming, manifesting and hatching new dreams.  So I believe I can live the rest of my life (a day, a year, 60+ years) always dreaming, planting new seeds, believing in them, seeing them come to fruition and making new dreams my realities.”

 

I would love for you to understand that YOU CREATE YOUR REALITY.  Your Monday Mind can influence the week in a dark way or change it out and dream big and each day of your life becomes as Rumi writes “a day of festival!”  Yes, it really will if you allow yourself to keep evolving in the direction of happiness which the yoga sutras say is our natural state.

 

Start now…I AM READY FOR CHANGE.           

 

Love to you, courage to all of us! Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 20TH, 2009:  When I was a girl I’d get together with my friends and we’d use the ouija board.  When it was my turn I’d ask serious questions, they’d be things like “Does Craig like me? Will Chris ask me to the dance? Will Ben love me forever so we can get married, have babies and live happily ever after?”  The ouija board had no chance in impressing me. I was relentless in my questioning. And I was only 15 years old.

 

Now just a few years later it has taken a lot of spiritual maturing to realize that as yoga teaches we experience life not with our mind and all its questions, but with our soul.  That we are something beyond the mind, beyond thought. And why do we need to question everything?

 

Putting all questions aside today can we in the words of my favorite band, The Beatles, “Let it Be”  Or as Tantric Scholar Christopher Tompkins said during a lecture in San Francisco at Shiva Rea’s teacher training last October at YogaTree, “Don’t try to fix shit during yoga, just be with how you are now.”

 

Hmmm, ok I have to say I kind of get the feeling of that on a gut level.  It is also helping us to just be present.  So easily said but to actually BE has a learning curve.  The mind wants to question every little thing, rewrite the past, write out the exact detail of the future.  In a way a better understanding of consciousness could be to let go of what we know is NOT consciousness (like what we see, what we think, the numbers of shoes we have, what kind of jeans we wear, etc).  Consciousness, a real awakening to this moment being presented is felt with our soul.

 

This is why fundamentally Yoga is for the Mind, to help us focus and find ourselves more present. I know we do stuff for the body but that is the gateway and totally enjoyable as well.  Eventually the path of yogic teachings is taking us deeper inside than perhaps we’ve ever been, the Home of our Heart.  May you live in love and today give yourself a break, STOP QUESTIONING EVERYTHING.  Just Let it Be.  Love and light, Silvia

 

 

(This meditation inspired by Kishan Shah, visit his site www.kishanshah.com) Om Shanti! 

 

SEPTEMBER 18, 2009:   It has been my personal experience that when we grow up under the paradigm that we are "born imperfect, flawed" then we create this mistaken belief that we must earn happiness.  That we have to do, achieve, complete something (everything) before we can BE happy.  The doing of stuff comes before the being happy. We can convince ourselves this just means we have a strong work ethic or we are really helpful to our friends. But it doesn't matter because happiness becomes a by product of our effort.  It is essentially saying that we don't deserve happiness unless we can prove we are worthy of it.

This makes happiness unnatural, and certainly not democratic (only for the elite that can work themselves to death).  It is really saying that we have to EARN happiness just like a PAYCHECK.  No pain no gain mentality.  The biggest application is that we have to postpone being happy until we've put in 60+ years or working and can retire...then we finally have proven our value and can get the reward of happiness. 

HAPPINESS IS NOT A PAYCHECK. 

Once the reality of this sinks in, your life is transformed forever!  May you be happy as you want to be, as happy as you are!  Love and light, Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 17, 2009:   I was saying to a friend that when I got to bed at night I appreciate all that I attempted during the day no matter how it turned out, I acknowledge I did my best and right before I go to sleep I promise myself that "tomorrow I will be 10% kinder."

Life moves so fast on a day to day basis that sometimes it seems like we don't have time to be kind which is really another way of saying we don't have time to connect with other human creatures, they aren't important enough.  Yoga teaches us that a root cause of our suffering is isolation; disconnection from others for it is against our very nature.  When we actively practice kindness it brings us closer to other individuals.  Every day I also say to myself "am I serving as an example or a warning" to the people I am in contact with?  I hope my life right now serves as an example, that no matter how difficult the challenges I might be facing I am still above all else kind.

 

One of my heroes Jack Kornfield writes, "The work of your heart, the work of taking time, to listen, to help, is also your gift to the whole world."  I found that quote in a little book titled GOOD PERSON given to me by my loving friend Nancy.  I keep that book next to my bed to remind myself that above all else that is really what influence I hope to inspire others by.  I may not have millions of dollars but the beauty and value of being a good person seems far above an impressive bank statement.  And the good news is that as JM Barrie says, "Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves."

 

We can light up the lives of all whom we think about, touch, email, talk to, and work with, love.  Each of us has this responsibility to be a good person.  If we sit back and wait for the world to be made better, well the funny thing is we are the world.  We are the ones that by being 10% kinder can make an enormous difference. 

 

"There is in each of us so much goodness that if we could see its glow, it would life the world."  Sam Friend

 

I have to be honest many years ago I didn't have the guts to articulate this. I was too embarrassed and afraid what other people might think of me (it's usually a whole lot easier to sit and complain the with the majority of how terrible life is) so I had to do a lot of soul searching to grow up spiritually from babyhood to be able to say without hesitation "I want to change the world.'  Yup, it may be one down dog at a time, one mindful breath at a time but at least I am trying in my own way.  And the heart of the effort comes from being 10% kinder each and every day.  Today can you join me in this effort?  "Thank you to all the people in the world who are always 10% kinder than they need to be.  That's what really makes the world go 'round."  (Helen Exley)

 

Your goodness knows no bounds and is unlimited in its potentiality, do it your way but please accept the responsibility to care enough for yourself, this world we share to be 10% kinder each and every day!  Love to you with lovingkindess (metta), Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 16, 2009: 

Aren't you tired of being perfect? 

 

I read somewhere once that we are far too rational in our relationships, far too ordered, far too organized and far too predictable in the way we live life.  We get stuck in the mundane instead we should "move into spontaneity and serendipity, a level that includes a greater sense of freedom and risk – an active environment full of surprises which encourages a sense of wonder.”

 

I get tired of being perfect. It is a whole lot more fun being a little messy and entirely more open hearted.  Hey I've lived the abuse of perfectionism and learned that the harder we are on ourselves the tougher we are in terms of our expectations of others.  Through the last 15 years of spiritual practice I've grown kinder, towards myself and everyone else.  Fundamentally we attract the people to us who reflect the relationships we're having with ourselves. 

 

Every day we are asking through our doing.  So what are you asking for?

 

Lately it seems like folks have had a harder time than usual getting back into the swing of this “back to school, back to yoga, back to healthy lifestyle” time of year.  It’s been a tough time getting folks to the mat. The reason may be because our summer was less solar so we are a bit less in our energy. Ok, then we have to live with what life is offering us.  It is not perfect, the summer was clearly a bit deranged and we had irrational weather.  That’s just the way of things, not bad, not good just what was there for us.  So it’s up to us to resolve to find the fun and spontaneity in the scope of the energy we feel.

 

Nature is always our best teacher. A friend shared this story with me today that I share with you here.  It goes like this:

“Today, on my run, I heard some squirrel action.  Do you know the action I am talking about?  It sounded like some pretty intense lovemaking, so I slowed down to see if I could get a view.  They were in a tree about 15 feet above my head, and from the sounds of it, things were quite intense!  Well, sure enough, they were.  The two squirrels were so tightly wound together that it was confusing to see who was who and just precisely what was going on.  The inner voyeur was coming alive in me.  Just as I was thinking I'd best be getting back to things at hand, something slipped--or a small branch broke, or goodness knows what, but the two squirrels came flying through the air at me and landed in a roiling, squeaking, noise of a mess of squirrel ball that immediately separated into two grey streaks and climbed back up the tree to go at it some more!!!  

 

It was pretty intense.”

 

You guys, the squirrels clearly did not over organize their location or over analyze their relationship and instead allowed events to simply unfold, then when things didn’t work out the way they expected they were able to regulate or even co-regulate with one another and get right back to what was important to them. In healthy human relationship our partners/friends help us to co-regulate and resolve to adjust to what life is offering instead of getting stuck in the fact it didn’t work the one way we expected. I’ve been in relationship where the other person could not re-regulate and if something didn’t happen according to the “The Plan” the whole day/week/event was ruined.  The yogic teachings tell us that narrowly defining the outcome of anything in just 1 way is the root cause of our suffering and disappointment.  There is always more than one outcome because life as Emerson writes is life is fluid and volatile. The artist India Arie puts it like this in her lyrics:

 

“Oh God, grant me the serenity to accept the things

that I can not change,

The courage to change the things I can,

The wisdom to know the difference.

And God, give me the courage to love with an open heart,

an open heart, an open heart.

I want to love with an open heart.”  

 

We have the opportunity not to get dragged down in the details of our lives but live in the broad brush strokes. If we fall out of a tree we get back up the tree to keep enjoying our life!  Spontaneity means as my friend Sadie Nardini writes, “If you want love then be love and it will find you exactly as you are experiencing it inside yourself.  You can't treat yourself like crap and get sweet love back, you give crappy love to yourself and you'll get crappy love in return.  Don’t you deserve better than crappy love?” 

 

If you are harsh, overly regimented, and self-critical in how you treat yourself that’s exactly what you’ll get back in relationship and you DESERVE BETTER!  The way you broadcast your life to the world through emotion (lightheartedness, ease, wonder, humor) is then transmitted back to you.  Your heart is the mirror.  Maybe if we all lived like those squirrels our lives would be more filled with spontaneity, sweet surprises, and pure pleasure!  Love yourself, love your day, love your life, Silvia

 

 

SEPTEMBER 15, 2009: 

SEPTEMBER 14, 2009:   Today I realized as I was driving home after yoga class and my mind was freed up that I uncovered another Samskara.  Part of me said UGH! Not this again. And yet the other part of me after I stopped crying was like ok let me care for this and before I fall into the proverbial hole in the sidewalk (that I've been in before!) let's see what I can change.  But let me say seeing it doesn't make it easier to change especially as it relates to love it just makes you more responsible for yourself. And yup sometimes that's harder.

 

As is written in the Secret Power of Yoga my favorite translation of the Yoga Sutras, "our thoughts and feelings form these clusters of habitual patterns, tendencies and potentialities called Samskaras. These Samskaras accrue by the constant churning of our thoughts and emotions.  Whenever any thought or feeling is encountered it is easily fed into one of these patterns.  Then our habits and patterns become set.  The pattern of HABIT or samskara is difficult to change, as our consciousness is often unable to reconfigure the obvious."

 

You see our thoughts (all 60,000 per day) are trained by habit to flow in predictable patterns.  We are tuned out to most of these habits, especially the Unhealthy ones.  The practice of yoga inspires us to recognize who we really are, our true selves and we begin to see our "MINDLESS HABITS" (Samskaras).  We then begin making more conscious choices.  It is like we wake up.  Chapter 1.50 When experiencing the absolute true knowledge all previous Samskaras are left behind and new ones are prevented from sprouting. 

 

In the yogic model, two reasons exist for remaining stuck in negative emotions or unhealthy actions:

• The first is samskaras, or karmic knots, that develop over time.
• The second is a lack of prana, or vital life force, oxygen in our bodies. 

How yoga can help:

• Releases emotions/stress locked in the body.
• Brings in more oxygen/prana or life-force. (For instance we learn when we hold our breath)
• Balances the brain.
• Calms the mind and develops the “witness” - we see our thought pattern or physical habit.
• Helps us reconnect, become more awake or conscious. 
• According to Stephen Cope, MSW, LICSW, a psychotherapist and author of Yoga and the Quest for the True Self (Bantam, 1999), hatha yoga's postures improve mood by moving energy through places in the body where feelings of grief, stress, worry or anger are stored. "Hatha yoga is an accessible form of learning self-soothing," he says. "These blocked feelings can be released very quickly, [creating a] regular, systemic experience of well-being." 

So today let's dedicate the metta meditation to where we are personally stuck in an less than healthy samskaras (patterns) and let's offer this practice to someone in our life that is living in the darkness, someone who doesn't see they are repeating the same negative cycle over and over again.  As I said to a friend yesterday, it is like being in a dark room and you have to first want to find the light switch, the thing is the light switch is always there on the wall (it doesn't move around) and it may take some crawling around to find it but all you have to do is flip the switch and all in your life will be illuminated! Sending you all courage to change your life for the better!! Love, Silvia

 

METTA (LOVINGKINDNESS) MEDITATION

May I be happy, may I be healthy, may I be peaceful and free

May you be happy, may you be healthy, may you be peaceful and free

May we all be happy, may we be healthy, may we be peaceul and free

 

SEPTEMBER 12, 2009:   What is anxiety?  Doctors say it is sadness or fear.  So how do you disappear it? 

 

Well through my practice what anxiety feels like to me is going to pieces.  The remedy has been reconnecting to my center so that I can again find Peace. Peace is bringing the pieces back together.  Now for a long time I looked outside myself for the answer to anxiety. After I was attacked over 15 years ago I suffered from anxiety attacks, panic attacks and I was afraid of everything. I felt like I was going to pieces. I lost my center and this is no way to live.

 

I would have paid any amount of money, done anything, gone anywhere to find a relief. But through yoga this last 15 years I discovered no one can relieve anxiety for us.  Peace is the opposite of anxiety. And we ourselves have peace within us at all times.  This seems almost impossible to believe at first because the last thing you want to do is sit with yourself when anxious. 

 

In yoga we can go into the quiet of our own stillness and healing, facing the fear of anxiety. Or it will overtake us.  Anxiety is only the surface of the mind, we must go deeper through our tissues, into our heart and we DISAPPEAR IT FROM THE INSIDE OUT.  We can vanish it like light being shed in a dark room.  In yogic terms Asmita are the outer layers that we remove to reveal the inner wisdom from our heart. 

 

Anxiety is of the head

Peace is of the heart

 

There is no greater expression of happiness than peace.

 

I am here to say that if I can do this you can too.  Your life is a work of art waiting to reveal itself!  “In yoga we are both the masterpiece and the artist painstakingly working to uncover the hidden work of art that is within all of us.” (Secret Power of Yoga book)  If you are experiencing anxiety in your life please give this practice a chance to help you look within to pull back to your center.  May you peaceful, may all beings everywhere be peaceful and FREE!  Love you, Silvia

SEPTEMBER 11, 2009:   This week is devoted to core cultivation. For me the main reason to better understand why yoga is so core centric is that it promotes grace, coordination and balance.  We all need these things both energetically and physically and I don’t know which is more challenging: maintaining life balance or physical balance; keeping our energy graceful so that we don’t fall apart from tiredness or spin out of control in hyper speed mode. 

 

Hatha yoga increases energy by aligning our phsycial and subtle energy bodies, through physical poses (asana) and enhancing our life force through breath practices (pranayama) and encouraging our sense inward through deep relaxation. (Pratyahara).  The word Hatha means Ha (sun, solar qualities, doing) and Tha (moon, lunar qualities, being).  We need both and they come together in our center.

 

Chapter 2.46 in the yoga sutras talks about sthira and sukha this balance between effort and letting go, doing and being, stability and freedom, steadiness and sweetness.  To find our center we need to move otherwise we remain distracted when it comes time to rest.  As a result we use rhythmic breathing coordinated with movement to help release blockages and allow our life energy to flow.

 

If you take one thing away from this practice it is to breath into and from your center on purpose.  Holding the breath gives our nervous system a distress signal. Allowing our breath to flow evenly makes us more relaxed.  Yoga teaches that our mental state effects our breathing but breathing can impact our mental state.  So today practice Alternate Nostril Breathing like we’ve been doing in class to promote a return to your center to live in grace with improved coordination and life balance.  Love the day! Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 10, 2009:   The choice to be FREE requires an enormous amount of inner strength.  It asks that we be courageous and believe in our own right to be free.  Chapter 2.26 talks about how if we believe we are limited, you will be limited; if you believe you are free, you are FREE.  Henric Frederic Ameil says “the one who has no inner life is the slave of his/her surroundings.” 

 

Yoga teaches us that we are sovereign over the democracy of ourselves.  We are the kings and queens of the kingdom of our lives.  So ask yourself what kind of leader do you want to be seen as?  Are you afraid to stand up for your rights?  Do you promote shared responsibility amongst the constituents of your limbs, breath, mind and heart?  Do you keep yourself shackled to workaholism or do you imprison yourself with worry or self-doubt or critical self-dialogue, do you allow someone outside yourself (your kingdom of self) run your life and keep you in prison?

 

So right now, sit in a way that elongates your spine and let’s your breath travel more freely.  As you free your breath you liberate your mind.  As the mind opens the heart opens.  You being to realize that you can choose to draw upon your own fortitude to free your heart from pain, to free your body from long held tension and to free yourself of unhealthy mindless habits (samskaras).  It is going to look different for everyone.  Freedom doesn’t appear to take the same priority.  It is a constant practice to remind ourselves that we alone are the most responsible in keeping the peace and joy within the democracy of self.  This territory you care for is most vitally important to you. 

 

In the end I hope that as we make liberation important we find from the inside the peace and content with ourselves where we discover joy (Santosha) has always been our natural state (sutra 2.42).  It was waiting for us to break free of our chains, our shackles and the prisons of our own making or imposed upon us by others.

 

I know what it’s like to feel imprisoned. I also can tell you I know what is it like to break free.  It’s not easy but I believe all of us can do it.  And if you want more of my story just call or email or sit and chat after class. I’d be happy to share more.  In the meantime here is a final favorite story to take to heart, to free your heart, to live in love!  Silvia

 

A final story I want to share with you from the Secret Power of Yoga “In ancient Egypt after death, the heart was removed from the body to be measured against the weight of a feather.  If the heart was found to be heavier than the feather’s weight, the person was considered not ready for admission for heaven.  The scale, was thought to reveal the degree of emotional heaviness held in the heart.  The LIGHTHEARTED were presumably permitted entry through a special ritual as their physical heart was given a place of honor in the burial plot.”

 

 

SEPTEMBER 9, 2009:   We started class by making ourselves more awake to our breath for a few minutes.  Just this alone can in the words of the sutras help us “to feel our wholehearted dedication to the light within us.”  Breathing on purpose requires action.  Kriya Yoga is known as the YOGA OF ACTION.  By sprinkling life with dedicated action each and every moment we can transform the moments of full hearted joy into minutes, into hours, into days, into weeks, into months, into years, into a lifetime! Tapas is that inner strength and determination that helps us show up to take the action.  And doing the poses and breathing helps us to be ourselves. 

But sometimes the question arises how long do I need to practice to see a transformation, to feel different.  Well, this commitment or devotion to practice known as Abhyasa (Sutras 1.13 and 1.14 for reference) is a life long dedication.  There is no formula.  What we do know of spiritual practice is that it takes more than just a single repetition. There is a steadiness of kriya yoga, continuous action over a long period of time. Tapas is the enthusiasm to keep going especially if the changes you aspire to aren’t yet as obvious as you’d like. 

 

My favorite peace activist Michael Franti shared this story at a concert recently (thank you to my dear friend for bringing this to life for me).  Franti's story went something like this:

“There’s a story I like to tell about a butterfly sitting in a tree, and a bird flies up to the butterfly, who lives his whole life in 5 days, and the bird says – “Mr. Butterfly, you’ve been living up here your whole life, there’s one question I’d like to ask you, IS THIS TREE ALIVE??” And the butterfly looks at him and says “You know Bird, I’ve been sitting on this tree my whole life, all five days, and I have yet to see this tree move one time, and from that I scientifically conclude without a doubt that this tree is dead.” … 

But the bird flies back to the tree in five years and sees that the tree has taken in the water and the roots have dug in deep to the soil and the tree has bared beautiful fruit and the animals of the forest have shared that fruit, and the seeds of the fruit have planted new seedlings and those seedlings have grown roots that have grabbed onto the roots of a bigger tree creating a whole family in the forest. And in fact the tree was ALIVE.”

 

I think that this points to the fact that CHANGE is a long-term process and that social change requires intention and action. 

 

Well, Franti is talking about social change but as a big yoga practioner he is promoting the change within the singular self that transforms the world.  The real yoga we all practice is most often invisible.  But that doesn’t mean that we aren’t making forward progress towards our intentions (the tree is NOT dead).  So what I am asking for us to consider is to be political.

 

What does political mean really?  Sharon Gannon says “to be political means to care.” 

 

If we care about our lives: our own transformation and that of the world; then we will take the healthy actions required to change the world through the experience of our own humanness.   And all I ask of each of you is don’t give up. Don’t give up on yourself, don’t give up on your loved ones, don’t give up on making the world a better place.  Please, please stay political…please keep taking the actions (kriya yoga) that show you care.  With heartfelt courage, Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2009:  From the book the power of kindness by piero ferrucci:

"Imagine we wake up and find that everyone has forgiven everything there was to forgive and has found the courage to say sorry for any wrongs that even individuals had forgiven one another every injustice and instead of recycling the past, could at last live FULLY in the present?

We would all breath a sigh of relief. The atmosphere would be happier and many people would discover the wonder of living in the present moment instead of constantly investing huge parts of themselves in recriminations and accusations, reliving events that are long past.

Relations between people would be open. And all the energy poured into blame, hatred and revenge would instead circulate freely towards love.

Forgiveness is possible. It is NOT the same as condoning. It means not feeding anger for a wrong or slander. Forgiveness is the inner act of making peace with the past and of finally closing accounts.

The decision is not easy. On the contrary it is nonrational because accounts do not balance. We do not even need to see forgiveness as the absence of resentment- an emotional void.

Rather forgiveness is a positive quality. It contains joy and faith, generosity of spirit. It frees us and whoever forgives feels uplifted."

SEPTEMBER 5, 2009:    Om is the Name of Narayana, the flame of truth.”

 

OM NAMO NARAYANAYA

 

This mantra is said to take the sayer to sublime spiritual realms where spiritual questions are answered and great TRUTHS are revealed.  The word for truth in Sanskrit is Satya.  In India the even hold a universal truth ceremony called Satya Narayana Puja.” (Healing Mantras by Thomas Ashely-Farrand)

 

We started class in seated meditation and I sang this mantra so we could all feel the vibration and set the tone for using the practice to delve deeper into revealing our unique truths. I know this concept is not “new” to you.  I too grew up with the idea of honesty. But the way I learned it was fear based this presentation of Don’t Lie or you will get into terrible trouble, no one will like you and you will be sent to a horrible place. As a kid this gave me nightmares and I can tell you I was a very good kid but I didn’t really need to be scared into embracing honesty.

 

So as an adult in my more mature spiritual practice I often dedicate my meditation to the basic TRUTH of my life.  I sit and attempt to “get real” with myself.  It started years ago with just the question “what is real” as I tried to figure out where in my life I might downplay things or where I might overexaggerate stuff.  Through this observation I found the middle path, the truth.  And each day along this path I say to myself “I AM STILL LEARNING” these are the words Michelengelo spoke at the age of 87 and my friend Liz gave me to wear as a bracelet on my left wrist, the receiving side of the body.    

 

This idea of still learning has helped me hold myself more gently.  It has allowed me to be more honest about who I am, what I need, what I feel. It helps me to look at old mistakes, times of self-neglect and even old hurts so I can move forward more honestly but always with love and more love.  Fearful intentions don’t work for me.

 

Spiritual Truth:  TRUE HAPPINESS REQUIRES HONEST SELF-REFLECTION. THE MORE HONEST YOU ARE WITH YOURSELF, THE GREATER HAPPINESS YOU WILL EXPERIENCE.

 

A great exercise I offer you from Robert Holden who wrote Be Happy is this:

 

1. Self-Awareness. You will always feel like something is missing, you will always feel inadequate until you learn to know yourself better.  Life isn’t about getting more it is about being more of who you really are.  Authenticity is the perfect antidote to split desires and to negative comparison. And the more real you are with yourself, the more you will realize what you really want.  This is important because as Eric Hoffer put it “You can never get enough of what you don’t need to make you happy.”
2. Self-Acceptance.  For as long as you do not accept yourself, you will always want more than you have.  If you will not accept that happiness is your true nature, you will search for happiness for the rest of your days.  And if by chance you discover some happiness, you will not let yourself enjoy it unless you have learned to accept yourself.  The fact is, more of anything or everything will not be enough until you choose to be happy. 
3. Self-Accountability.  If you think something is missing from your life, it is probably you.  The idea that something is missing in your life, in your relationships, in your work is a projection. This projection is based on the fact that you are not fully present.  True happiness requires you to participate fully in your life now.  Do a self-inventory based on three questions:

1.)     What am I not being?

2.)     What am I not giving?

3.)     What am I not receiving?

 

 So today my dear friends please take time to reflect on your own truth and through this may you find the greatest happiness within your heart! Let’s imagine a world where everyone is living as themselves and that world is bright with no more war or conflict just pure truth and love.  Sat Nam (in truth and light), Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 4, 2009:  Namaskaram Yogi Friends,

What a great practice today!  For bringing your best self I thank you.  As you know we focused on Om Namah Shivaya.  I shared the story of how last week I brought a friend to their first Kirtan. Om Namah Shivaya was their favorite song.  So this inspired me to share more with you today, starting by singing out 108 rounds of this mantra. 

Om Namah Shivaya mantra uses the universal elements that govern each chakra: earth, water, fire, air, and ether. 

 

That’s all the chakras are: just the elements that you know exist rolled up into various energies of our bodies.  The syllables of Na, Ma, Shi, Va, Ya help the chakras to better utilize the fundamental elements that predominate in the chakra.  When we sing, hear or think this mantra we bring into balance all the chakras, all our energies.

 

This mantra also reminds us of our innate Perfection.  That we are born perfect (siddha) and whole.  And our only job in this lifetime is to remember how AMAZING WE ARE!  The thing is, you have always been perfect and what you are experiencing through your journey is the removal of all the external layers you’ve carried for a long time known as kleshas.

 

This brings us back to our true nature, which is JOY.  Even Abraham Lincoln says “Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.”  If this knowing comes from a man known for his dark depression then I am sure we can all find a way to understand this about ourselves.  Carl Jung once said, “your vision will become clear only when you can look into your heart.”  So Om Namah Shivaya brings us back to our selves, we actually remember better how happy we are on the inside in spite of the challenges that might surround us.  Put another way by great Indian Philosopher Pantanjali, “When you are inspired, all your thoughts break their bonds: your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive and you discover yourself to be a greater person than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” 

 

All I am asking each of you to do is believe in your own GREATNESS and capacity for ever increasing happiness.  Leo Buscaglia writes in his book Loving Each Other “Joy and happiness are simply states of mind, it is strange that some of the happiest people I have ever known were those who seemed to have no particular cause to rejoice.  They were simply happy.  They seemed to have in common a singular courage, a willingness to risk, to fail and to let go, a believe in themselves, a wonderful resourcefulness, and a trust in their creative uniqueness.” 

 

Be your best self today, OM NAMAH SHIVAYA!!  Big love, Silvia

 

SEPTEMBER 3, 2009:  Grounding into 1st Chakra

I dedicate this class to all those friends, students and unknown hearts that are feeling uprooted or ungrounded in life right now.  To you I say, “I know” I’ve been there.  And by learning more about the power of the Root Chakra, which is our foundation for life, we can regain our sense of security, internal power and stability.  You can believe in your choices with greater conviction once more.  Most of all to me the root chakra reminds us to accept the TRUTH of who we are.  This truth of our own specialness and uniqueness keeps us connected to the present moment.  Otherwise when we lose our center it is so often because we are trying to be what someone else wants us to be and as a result we feel unstable. 

 

We used a series of poses to till the soil of our bodies warming them up so we could be in our own skin. Inside ourselves we find an inner security and stillness. A quiet peace that is unrelated to circumstance or others opinions. I mentioned how I love photography and collect cameras.  That the 1^st chakra when balanced brings us clarity no different than holding a camera, setting up the angle, moving yourself or the subject around and then refining the focus of the picture by growing still.  This crystal clear clarity on our decisions is based in strongly rooted self-worth.  If you know who you truly are then taking action on your personal pilgrimage towards what’s important to you is a whole lot easier. 

 

I guess all that I want any of us to do is be present to the loveliness of our lives and claim our place in the world.  Through yoga you can regain your stable center and assert yourself with lovingkindess: strong get gentle.  Join me on the mat to experience more of the root chakra.  Wishing you your best courage! Silvia

 

Dear Friends on the Path,

This Friday, September 4th is the Full Moon. This is the time when the moon's energy is the strongest. It is considered an ideal time to start up a new endeavor, to begin again our most honest spiritual adventure. To make space for what comes next I've been working on letting go. Two key areas the practice points out that I need to focus on are: (1) offering forgiveness and (2) letting go of wanting to rewrite the past.  Now I understand the teachings: that forgiveness is a form of self-compassion and by forgiving we are making the decision to be happy. Forgiveness helps the ego stop over-exaggerating the pain or tiredness of the past. As Robert Holden says, "Happiness is letting go. Forgiveness is letting go. When you choose one you choose the other."

What makes it hard for me is that I get stuck in wanting to rewrite the past instead of just letting it go.  I waste time wishing things had been different which pulls me out of the present. Partly I do this so my legacy looks better on paper, but that's about what everyone else thinks instead of about how I am actually experiencing joy in my life. 

"Sometimes in order to be happy in the present moment you have to be willing to give up all hope for a better past."

So this full moon I dedicate to a happy today and a happy future. Yoga teaches us that happiness is our true nature so I am realigning my heart to change the way I think about the past. I am trying to forgive more and make happiness more important today. What's done is done.

Basically this comes down to whether or not we choose the past or the present, the upset or happiness, fear or love.  And with immense gratitude for my yoga practice I find the strength to say to myself each day, I CHOOSE LOVE.  I choose to be present and enjoy each moment so as of now I don't miss a thing.  With lovingkindess, Silvia   

 

SEPTEMBER 2ND, 2009:   I wake up in the morning and I journal in my mind or on paper. Either way I think about what is important to me on that day.  Then recently in the book Be Happy by Robert Holden I found a metaphor that best describes what I’ve been doing.  In the book he talks about a great daily spiritual practice to help us focus on what is most important to our happiness.  He describes, “The Spiritual Front Page”.  The idea is that each morning you visualize the front page headlines of what is truly most meaningful to you to living the most joyful day ever. This helps us figure out and articulate our Truth.  It gives positive intention to our actions. 

Instead of focusing on what is unimportant (our headlines would not read Do Laundry, Dishes Put Away) we’d share the real important stuff with not just ourselves but these front page headlines would like a newspaper be easier to distribute to our friends, colleagues and family members so they know our big news.  How often do you major in the minor stuff?  How much of your time is spent hiding the big headlines (focusing on what really matters) until the very end of the day when tired and out of juice?  I know I’ve been there.

 

So for me this time on the mat in yoga class helps me to make sure that the Spiritual Headlines I’ve chosen reflect the TRUE me. And once I’ve written them for the day I stick to them.  It’s too easy with technology these days to keep changing it up or giving up. Instead we maintain the discipline that once its in writing we will do our best on this day to follow through.

 

Equally, once the day is done, the newspaper gets recycled.  What’s done is done.  And tomorrow we have another “24 brand new hours” to live in JOY!  Love your day, Silvia

 

*Reference to Thich Nhat Hahn