People will drop over $100 per month on lattes and hundreds more on drinking and eating out, yet not want to spend $80 on a gym membership, or hundreds on therapy or a coaching program.
And then they wonder why they don’t feel good or aren’t reaching their goals.
People spend hours scrolling on their phones or watching Netflix and but don’t have enough time to read, meditate or go for a walk.
Your actions show where your priorities are, not your thoughts and ideas.
If you’re having a difficult time making changes to your health, happiness, relationships, business, whatever, take a look at what you’re investing in. Not just with your money, but your energy, time and/or attention.
The more you give to yourself, the more you’ll get back. You deserve to have everything you desire and nobody else is gonna give it to you but YOU.
If you’re worried about the price of getting started, you should see the cost of staying exactly where you are.
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“Whoever has learned how to listen to trees no longer wants to be a tree. He wants to be nothing except what he is. That is home. That is happiness.” ~ Herman Hesse
If hugging a tree is good for you, imagine what kissing a tree can do?
Seriously, did you know that hugging a tree increases levels of hormone oxytocin? This hormone is responsible for feeling calm and emotional bonding. When hugging a tree, the hormones serotonin and dopamine make you feel happier. Trees give us hope and insight, and courage to persevere – even in the harshest conditions. They also teach us to stay rooted while soaring to great heights. Trees remind us that letting go is a cycle that must happen in order to make space for the next cycle. A tree teaches us that longing for the previous season or competing with the other trees is a silly and wasteful way to spend our days.
For many years I felt I was I told a story that I was too busy to slow down and soak in the moment. I created a life that was minute to minute chaos. Now, I crave stillness and the result of a calm mind. I long for the smell of leaves that have fallen or the sweet whisper of a breeze along my face. I chose to walk away from the constant hum of a busy and demanding life for a the chance to take long, deep breaths and feel the connection to all that is.
Connecting with nature
By taking the time for my soul to connect with nature, I find myself better prepared to take on the struggles that can come from being alive. I know I am a better human being for choosing to step off the hamster wheel of constant striving and instead step into myself. There used to be something so revered about being busy, when in truth, it was all just a distraction to the inner work that needed to happen.
The tendency to create a busy life still crops up from time to time, but a quick stroll outside reminds me of the happiness that is inside of me. The home that is peaceful and calm.
I get to the feel the benefits of being close to a tree and I like to think that the tree smiles down when she gets a hug and kiss, too.
Just because someone carries it well doesn’t mean it isn’t heavy. I think that it is pretty likely that each day we hold things in our heart, and sometimes these things become incredibly heavy. But also choosing to carry grace sure lightens that load.
It was on this day that my kids lost their dad forever. It was years before that though they also lost him. I realize that he did the best he knew how to do. It wasn’t ideal by any means, but he did what he knew. And that is okay.
I choose grace.
I choose to hold my head up high. Looking at my grown kids I know that the load I have carried for years was worth every single ounce. My kids are remarkable people and that makes the load all worthwhile.
Someone recently asked me how I got to the point in my process of being able to choose to forgive. And to let go. Well let me first say it wasn’t always easy and there are still times when those feelings of anger or disappoint bubble up, but I try really hard to not allow those heavy feelings to take over. I did a couple years of therapy and I dove into working on myself which invited me to not spend my waking hours fuming about what I didn’t get and instead look at what may have been my part in it all and to be able to learn about perspective.
Divorce takes a little bit of your heart regardless of how amicable it is.
Co-parenting may seem like a great idea, but the truth is finding common ground that works for the kids is even harder when you have two households working. It wasn’t many months after my divorce and my three little kids and I were no longer receiving child support. He didn’t think he needed to and so he chose not to. He also chose to have his visits with the kids shorter and few and far between. The raising of the kids landed solely on my shoulders. It wasn’t just the daily grind, but the big picture things that one parent should never be completely responsible for if the other parent is capable. Or so I used to think.
Maybe he wasn’t capable. Maybe he had no idea how to think beyond himself. Maybe his own heart was shattered and he couldn’t access the part of himself to step up. Who knows.
Within a few years he began to slip into a slow, horrific self-inflicted slow death. He chose to neglect himself. He chose horrible things to do to his body. He chose to give up. Or so I used to think.
Maybe he didn’t know how. Maybe he had something inside him preventing him to get and allow help. Maybe he just couldn’t.
I think about my own father in much the same way. Something in him was missing and he wasn’t able to to plug into being a part of my life. Maybe it was his own addiction or his own beliefs that he had. Maybe he never had a father step up in his own childhood. Maybe he didn’t know how.
When someone asks me how I arrived in a place of peace about my kid’s dad (or my own dad), my simplest answer is that I got tired of allowing all of that pain to take up residence in my heart and preventing me from allowing something much better into my heart, like love. I realized that they both probably never had a father that stuck around. I was able to step back and see that my former husband was a young man with a tremendous amount of responsibility and perhaps he simply could not do it. He was giving all he had to his little family that eventually crumbled in front of him, and maybe it broke him.
I chose to see my father as a lost little boy who had no real father to speak of and an abusive mom. No wonder he was disconnected.
I replaced the feelings of anger and disappointment with compassion and love. Then it was really simple to carry on with a little lighter load in my heart. Being able to do that certainly doesn’t lighten the heaviness of raising three people alone and the huge responsibility that I had, but somehow having a heart full of compassion rather than pain, I was able to move forward and feel good about myself and my kids.
The air was difficult to breathe; heavy with tension and with a denseness of uncertainty. The fear of the unknown and the anxiety stifling our very breath. We stood in unity, hands held, watching with anticipation. As the following moments unfolded, I witnessed something so beautiful it is hard to capture in written words.
Yesterday both of the boys were with their dad as he was removed from life support. After each boy said their goodbyes we stood in unison and watched the process through a window in the ICU unit.
The heaviness in the air was suffocating.
As we stood together, I reminded the boys that their father was there to help them enter this world, and now together, we get the opportunity to be there as he exited.
Moments following his head turned, sedated and confused his eyes shifted our way. We all held our breath in stillness.
As if the time has stopped, I watched as my youngest son walked towards the window. He placed his hands on the glass and gazed into the room. With purpose and poise he re-entered his father’s hospital room. I watched through the window as he spoke directly to his dad. I saw his dad look at him. The space became still and light. Slowly my older son joined his little brother. Side by side my two young men comforted their dad. They held his hands. They leaned over the bed fearlessly. With their hearts wide open they spoke to him and they loved him. Completely setting aside any of their own heartbreak that spanned years of disappointments, they gave their father the gift of unconditional love.
I witnessed my two boys elevate beyond any fear and open their hearts–wholeheartedly–to the space of compassion and of love. They each faced this experience with courage and with grace. In the following thirty minutes, I watched as they fully embraced their dad and the experience of death. I felt the lightness in the air. The peace enveloped all three of them and the healing between them happened. I saw with my own eyes an affirmation of each of my boys integrity, love, compassion and true grace.
I watched as they were each heroic in their unwavering support and compassion for their dad, and for each other.
Although I feel like I have spent the last ten years or so doing tons of self-work and unpeeling of the layers and layers of ‘stuff’ that has accumulated in my life, I still love that I am willing to do deep soul work.
A few years ago was a definite year of courage and the willingness to listen to my inner voice. As the dust began to settle from the major changes in my life, I took a month or so off from the heaviness that can come when you are in the labyrinth of self-improvement. Establishing myself into my new home space and adjusting (again) was my focus. It felt so good to pause from the rigorous self development and instead just enjoy myself.
A course on courage.
Not soon after, I began an online course on Courage. Brene Brown has been one of my favorite authors and speakers in the last few years and when the course was offered, I said a gigantic YES. To be guided through courage, vulnerability and shame with a leading researcher and expert was an opportunity I was not going to pass on.
Knowing that I had spent the previous year in the ‘arena’, I was curious as to what I would find I would need to explore in the bravery realm, but willing I was to examine it. Lesson one offered over one hundred values to identify just one that guides your way in life; everything from accountability to balance to faith to humility to love to optimism to spirituality to well-being. Where do you hold your highest regard and when this value is not in place you know you are off your path? In my ego mind I wanted my chosen value to be something easy like compassion or kindness. My soul said go deeper than that and asked what is it that I know for sure, when this is threatened, I am off my center?
Safety.
Safety?? Yea, like in the form of being judged, not being seen or understood for who I am, financial risks, being unorganized and chaotic, feeling unsure of decisions, having people in my life who are disrespectful or threatening, allowing fear to creep in, etc.
Safety.
I wear the armor to protect my safety.
So going into the ‘arena’ again, I had to be open to the rawness and vulnerability of the emotional exposure around this value of safety and to be willing to set the armor down.
The Lantern
Using the metaphor of a lantern, she explains that the flame that burns is the identified value. The glass that surrounds the flame illustrates the behaviors you display and people that you have in your life that protect that value. The handle of the lantern symbolizes when you have set your value down and walked away allowing your ship to get off course.
My flame is safety. My glass (behaviors and people) that keep my flame protected include boundaries, choices, self-respect, meditating, journaling, keeping a budget, being organized, people who support and honor me, a knowing and exploring of self. When I have set this value down I am allowing fear to enter, I take risks, I allow people to speak or treat me in ways that hurt, I am not grounded and I worry irrationally.
Knowing that this value is held in such high regard to me, I can see why some life decisions I have made, and the experiences I have been offered, have caused me to feel such anguish. In addition to better understanding what it is that stokes my flame, I am way more armed with tolerance as to what makes me tick and then respond when the value is threatened.
Safety.
Indeed my highest value for my life is safety. I know when it is threatened or I am off course because of the internal responses that I have that then lead to behaviors that diminish the flame. It is so clear to me now. While compassion or kindness may have been easier, I am so grateful for this new knowledge about myself and can move forward in my life with a strong flame and people and behaviors that will protect that part of me.
It is amazing to me how our inner narrative about ourselves can be so negative. Years ago I started a pretty solid affirmation practice and continue to this day. By rerouting our thoughts and words to a positive place, we actually retrain our brain to think and see the good in our lives.
Affirmations are positive statements that can help you to challenge and overcome self-sabotaging and negative thoughts.
When you repeat them often, and truly believe in them, you can start to see positive changes in your life unfold. Practicing positive affirmations can be extremely simple, and all you need to do is pick a phrase and repeat it to yourself.
I don’t know about you, but I have spent many years, speaking things like “I am a mess. I am overwhelmed. I am stressed. I am in so much pain.” I still catch myself and can now rephrase to “I am doing my best. I am handling this with grace. I am feeling my body tell me something”.
Affirmations require regular practice they can help you to make lasting, long-term changes to the ways that you think and feel.
Do you have a list of affirmations? What’s your favorite one? I love having sticky notes and reminders around my house and I even have an app in my phone that periodically throughout the day sends me an I am_____ reminder of something good.
I encourage you to start a 30 day affirmation practice and see what shows up in your life. Need some help coming up with affirmations? I am happy to help!
Yogi’s have known for thousands of years that there is something magical and mystical inside of each of us that is influenced by our thoughts, surroundings, foods, and even our emotions. Scientists are catching on and people are realizing that our emotional well-being, and our energy can be not just measured, but it can also be influenced with a few adjustments to our everyday habits and attitudes.
I learned about this frequency of emotions mindset many years ago, but I didn’t have the language to make sense of it or share it. With some researching and learning, I now feel confident that I understand it and I have definitely seen how the subtle changes that I have made over the last eighteen years in my mind, body and spirit has set into motion the abundant and happy life I now live. We all have met someone who seems to have really “good vibes” and I know that we have all had people in our life that seem to bring us down. That is their energy and how our own energy interacts and received it.
Prior to my great wake-up, I was living in constantly very low vibrating emotions; fear, anger, disappointment, blame, and shame. The outward manifestation of this chronic mindset was that I was physically heavy, I was depressed, I had trouble sleeping, I had little motivation, and even less joy in my life. I had yet to discover a purpose and a passion, and I was living my life on autopilot barely even recognizing that I was alive.
Since my transformation in my mid-thirties, I live in a nearly constant state of happiness and abundance. Experiences that I have wanted to happen, seem to happen. I find the right people at the perfect time. I am inviting into my life amazing opportunities on a seemingly weekly, if not daily, basis. There seems to be little to my life that I wish was different, except perhaps having less physical pain. However, despite having a chronic pain disease I am able to compartmentalize that experience into a place of better understanding and usefulness for my life.
Not that my life is unique because we all have situations in our life that are less than ideal, but it is what we do with it that changes the game. Here is what I have in my world that could send me down the spiral of blame and shame, if I chose to allow it–raising a disabled daughter day in and day out, multiple chronic pain diseases (including lupus) that cause pain and fatigue, the grueling self-employment lifestyle of being 100% dependent on myself to make money and survive, having raised three children alone and with who still lives with me (which means I have technically been a 24/7 caregiver for 31 years with no break), I have never received a financial windfall, my father chose to completely opt out of my life, my children’s father died from self-neglect at a super young age leaving them without any chance of a turn around, I have had multiple orthopedic surgeries in the last 5 years that have taken a toll on my body, and my joints continue to deteriorate despite my greatest effort to be healthy. Pretty heavy, right?
With all that heavy emotion how do we manage our emotional frequencies (vibes) and how can we work to raise our vibration?
Let’s imagine for a moment the image of a ladder. The middle rung of the ladder represents contentment. Contentment is often thought of as a Zen like experience where all is well. It is something that most of strive for at certain times in our life and when we arrive there, we sigh heavily feel as though we have arrived. Hold on. One step under contentment is complacency. Yea, complacency. That emotion where we feel like, ehhh I don’t need to put that much effort into this, or try that hard. Complacency is that who gives a shit mindset where half effort becomes routine. One more step down the ladder we are living in boredom. Then creeps in loneliness. Then sadness. Then blame. Then shame. Then defensiveness. Then anger. Then fear.
Feel that heaviness?
Go back up the ladder to contentment. Imagine again what that feels like. Now, one step UP from contentment is hope. One of my favorite definitions of hope is to expect with confidence. To me hope is walking towards something positive and good with a knowing that it will become. Feels amazing, yes? Well above hope is curiosity. Above that is joy. Above that is happiness. Above that is bliss. Keep going and you will reach the complete wholeness of feeling grateful. A grateful being is a person who lives in a constant (or near constant) state of high vibes. When we live in that plane, we attract all great things into our life–people, experiences, opportunities, purpose, and love.
Here is where it gets even better.
Simply by shifting our attention up, lifting our chin, looking up, elevating our heart we immediately move up from contentment to hope. I mean literally look up. So much of our life is hunched over, head down either worrying or working. Carrying SO much emotion that can feel heavy it makes our physical body shift downward. Constant downward looking, we begin to sink into the spiral of low and often heavy vibration frequencies.
The frequency of abundance measures the same as the frequency of a wild orange. The higher up on the tree, the higher we feel. This is why certain essential oils have the ability to shift our emotional state simply by smelling them. You can learn more about the brain and aroma here.
A simple and powerful tool to keep yourself on the upside of the ladder is to literally look up and notice the tree tops, the clouds, the sky, how your heart lifts with the simple tilt of your chin, take mindful and complete breaths and fill your heart with gratitude. Smelling pure wild orange essential oil is just an added aspect to this magic that can powerfully shift your mood.
Are you ready to work on your emotional frequencies and start attracting experiences and people into your life that resonate with you and your highest vision?
I currently have some personal mentoring session times available if you’d like to learn more about how to shift your emotional frequencies, including the use of crystals and gemstones. Reach out to me, I would love to hear from you! Also, enjoy this upward spiral and downward spiral image to see and feel how good it is to live above contentment.
I noticed this morning the beginning stages of the leaves letting go and I was reminded that the beautiful colors are a sign that some amazing growth is coming to the end of a cycle. This is also time when we ourselves also enter into a cycle of letting go. No longer striving to be bountiful, a softness enters out hearts and intentions, and we have the opportunity to shed, to fall away, and to take time to prepare the moments of soon to be rejuvenation and rest.
I looked at my life and considered that I too am experiencing my own seasonal change. I mean the reality is the few years have been incredibly disorienting for so many, including myself. The constant pull and push of emotions and uncertainty have been really hard to keep a grasp on. The division and attempt to stay steady has been exhausting.
Although perhaps it is that this seasonal shedding is that I am seeing what no longer serves me personally and professionally, and what I have carried through perhaps too many seasons. I believe at the heart of these metamorphic transitions– whether subtle or bold–we hold the key to the life we deserve and are destined to live.
As my feet plodded along the rocky trail and while I took in the presence of Life in my moments of reflection, my heart centered prayers easily flowed.
May I find within my shadow what needs to be shed and allow it to shed.
May I have the grace to loosen my grip on the aspects of my daily life that impede my peace.
May I find the forgiveness for others that I wish upon for myself.
May I let go of what is holding me back and keeping me from what I am worth.
May I be the light that I am and not hide in the dark corners of life.
May I release the old to make room for the new.
May I find the clarity to embrace what is and let go of what was.
May I surrender, and in doing that, be free.
May I remain beautiful in the process of letting go.
Emotions creep in at the most unexpected times. I dropped my girl off at her adult day program today and then had the most needed and lovely conversation with a dear friend. We covered a lot of terrain in our very honest conversation about pain, anger, disappointment, family, and the world. Although we did not solve any of these problems, it gave my heart peace knowing that I have someone amazing in my corner that gets it.
It is funny how this time of year always brings a set of emotions that range from grief to gratitude, and everything in between. This time of year is a reminder of the death of many things, including people and dreams. This year especially I am finding myself even more in need for solitude as I navigate the sea of feelings that I seem to be experiencing.
I think back to a time two years ago when I witnessed the most beautiful moment as my sweet grand-baby took her first breath. It was truly magical. Within days of being consumed with a love I did not know existed, I learned of a couple sweet souls I had known in my work who took their very last breath. I was reminded again that within those two important breaths, life offers so much joy and an often an equal amount of pain. Ultimately it is what we do with both that makes our life have meaning.
Twenty seven years ago I lost a dream and gained a purpose. While on one hand having a child with a disability has been one of the hardest things I have done, it is also the source of my direction. So the paradox is one that I allow my mind to explore.
It is usually around my daughters birthday that I allow myself to ask the “what ifs”; what if she was typical, what if she was graduating college, what if she was getting married, what if she was having a baby, etc. On the flip side of those questions I look at who she is and what she has given me; purpose, direction, unconditional love, simplicity, and a divine plan. I find myself asking those same questions recently as I witness friend’s daughters experiencing those major life events and my heart is conflicted with a tinge of jealousy and grief alongside genuine happiness to see their joy.
That is the death of a dream for me. And yet, I am grateful for the simplicity of my life with my daughter. These conflicting emotions seem to be evident in so many areas of life recently.
This paradox of life and death, grief and gratitude, loss and gain, joy and pain always finds me to be remarkable. I suppose it is just like everything in life–temporary. So that breath I just took in, I must also be let go.
And so is life.
I have decided yet again that the space between the first and the last is truly where LIFE exists–love, magic, connection, acceptance, passion and purpose. So, we must learn to lean into the joys and the pains because it is just part of what is.
I am incredibly grateful that I have had time along a trail and in the trees to figure all this out and makes sense and peace with what is. What I have come to know is that all things happen as they should and it is a choice as to what I do with it.
Today, I choose gratitude for being given the gift of my girl. I choose gratitude for the friends that I have. I choose gratitude for nature to always ground me.
Most important today, I choose to remain aware of the space between the first and the last and commit to making my life the best it can be. Always.
But I am in this world to be a drop of goodness that I hope will better humanity. I believe I am also here to remind others the responsibility to engage with fellow humans from the place of respect and oneness.
The last few months I have been faced with some tough situations that have invited me to look closely at the people I surround myself with. Along with the tough situations I have experienced, it may also be that taking the big turn becoming fifty this year has brought about a deeper wisdom about myself and where I want to invest my energy.
Or perhaps with more clarity, who I want to invest my energy with.
Maybe I just have a huge need to get off my heart the sadness that I have witnessed by people in recent months or maybe my honesty will spur someone else to think about their own role in the division and indifference to humanity that is so obvious these days.
In a world where it seems many people are focused on themselves, I am seeing some incredible discouraging characteristics; selfishness, hatred, self-centeredness and greed to name a few. And what saddens me even more is that my recent experiences have come from so called “healers”. People who claim to care about others, yet their actions are so out of alignment with those claims.
When I look at the world around me and the last few months, the word that keeps coming up to me is respect.
Respect, by the way is not words that can be easily typed into a text or portrayed through social media. I am talking about looking around at the world and acting with respect and to truly hold each other in deep regard.
Respect is treating or thinking about something or someone with honor. In a world where many have limited drinking water or warm beds to crawl into, I am deeply bothered that so many people will invest their emotions and time into arguing over simple acts of stewardship for each other as we all share this planet. It boggles my mind that some people feel that having to follow certain recommendations are not okay when really the intent is looking out for the safety of fellow beings. You know those things like stops signs, seat belts, speed limits that prevent less death, less injury. They certainly don’t eliminate every single event, but they greatly reduce tragedy. And yet, those things don’t take away rights, they just help to keep everyone safer and show respect for others.
Actions of respect. Doing what is best, not just for themselves, but for others. That is the essence of respectful actions.
Simple, right?
It seems not so much these days. In this all about me life our world seems to be living, it is grueling for someone like me who expects, and even demands respect.
In the last 18 months I have lost, or chose, to step away from many people who I was completely shocked to learn the truth of them, instead of just seeing the externally projected perfect Instagram loving people many of them have claimed to be. I saw the depth of their lack of respect for others.
Sometimes taking a hard look at your tribe or circle of people can be much needed. This is bigger than just slicing through your Facebook “friends” with a quick click. I am talking about taking a stand for what your heart feels and using discernment to kindly step away.
Reevaluating who is in your tribe can sometimes feel daunting. It can be incredibly isolating and down-right scary. I have even had a few times in the last year that the disappointment brought about periods of deep sadness.
When we start the process of choosing who we want to have in our tribe, we have to remember that this is not about ourselves being right and them being wrong, although it sure does feel like it, instead this is about aligning yourself with people who hold you up and who protect your heart. It is about making sure that the ones you choose to share your energy with will respect you and are grateful to be part of your life.
Aligning myself with those who are here to make a difference in the world for the better of humanity is where I want to be. After all, a single drop of respect and goodness can make some big waves in the world.
I bless the night that nourished my heart To set the ghosts of longing free Into the flow and figure of dream That went to harvest from the dark Bread for the hunger no one sees. All that is eternal in me Welcome the wonder of this day, The field of brightness it creates Offering time for each thing To arise and illuminate. I place on the altar of dawn: The quiet loyalty of breath, The tent of thought where I shelter, Wave of desire I am shore to And all beauty drawn to the eye. May my mind come alive today To the invisible geography That invites me to new frontiers, To break the dead shell of yesterdays, To risk being disturbed and changed. May I have the courage today To live the life that I would love, To postpone my dream no longer But do at last what I came here for And waste my heart on fear no more. ~ John O’Donahue
The Autumn Equinox is a time of letting go and harvesting the good that is abundant in our lives. To allow the stalks and leaves to fall aside and go back to the Earth. With this beautiful and colorful season emerging it is our time to loosen our grip on the focus of growth and prepare to move into a more dormant season.
Autumn Equinox and cycles
This is also a great time to look at the cycles of life; seasons, months, breath, and even life. As we embrace the time of gathering our harvest we are also preparing ourselves for the cycle in which we become more hunkered down. A little more in hibernation mode. The paradox of understanding cycles exists everywhere.
The simplest observation is the breath; to inhale you must also exhale.
When we are awake we come to know that with each ending there is a beginning in whatever shape that takes; self awareness, growth, wisdom, letting go, forgiveness and grief. If we pay attention, we can see this so easily in the changing of leaves. The amazing color that emerges following a season of bounty. Then the ease in which the leaf lets go. Watch as leaves effortlessly fall to the ground. They are taken into the loving arms of Mother Earth for the new growth that waits for the next season.
Take time to look at letting go of what no longer serves you.
At the autumn equinox there is a dynamic shift. The season of sunshine, growth, taking action, movement to a more quiet and still season. This time of year during the equinox is a powerful time to pause after the often chaotic energy of summer. Back to school and busy-ness to a more dormant and contemplative time.
This is time where we replenish, regenerate and recuperate from a season of push.
Well, at least we should try to as the we are so in tune with nature and the natural rhythms of the world, if we are paying attention. Nature responds to the lessening hours of daylight by slowly fading into dormancy. Watch as the leaves fall from trees, the lush green of shrubs and vegetation fades, and animals forage and gather for a season of hibernation. How do we mimic these natural occurrences? We withdraw from the rush of outward action to a season of a more contemplative inner reflection of our spirit.
With this season also comes a wonderful reminder to gather your harvests and share with others and to celebrate the abundance of the world with your neighbors, your family, or even a stranger. We tend to want to hang on to “things”, both tangible and intangible and really all that does is is exhaust us and stop the flow of goodness.
During a yoga practice watch as you move in and out of balance and neutral. How your breath becomes rapid and slow, though we strive for equality of breath. Notice how the tension in our body is often paired with ease. Thoughts come and thoughts go.
The skills that we learn on the yoga to find neutral, equanimity, and harmony teach us the gift of following the rhythm of nature. Remember, our time on the mat is truly a practice for living yoga as we know that yoga really happens off the mat.
Our practice this time of year should reflect the message of the equinox and allow it to be filled with times of pausing to gather your breath, to reflect in mountain pose with a sense of neutrality and to find the balance between dynamic postures and stillness.
Welcome the harvest that is within and always look for opportunities to be grateful.
I know for myself, the practice of gratitude has lead me into a life of awareness that has enhanced my life everyday.
