falling into contentment

 

 Come away and cultivate contentment with miss Misty Pittman. Enjoy yoga friends.....



I have my yoga clothes on, new Avia capris and a blue Outer Banks t-shirt. Class starts in 79 minutes. I could leave now and get there with a few minutes to spare. But I'm not going to. 

I can give you a few solid reasons to justify this. I'm exhausted because I spent more time last night coughing than sleeping. I'm feeling a little queasy from all the Robitussin and cough drops that I consumed in the middle of the night. I still need to put the finishing touches on my plan for the class that I am scheduled to teach later this morning. 

All valid, right?

But really, honestly, my heart is just not in it this morning.

I have the house to myself, and it's not often that I have the house to myself. I like this alone time. I tell myself that I should at least be doing something productive while I'm here, like running the washing machine, but I don't want to. 

What I really want to do is just sit and be quiet. I want to cough my little heart out, without worrying that I'm disturbing someone. I want to drink my ginger tea slowly, savoring it, instead of trying to keep from spilling it all over myself as I drive to Lexington. I want to write. I want to go to the farmers market and buy veggies that will boost my immune system and kick this cough’s ass. 

Of course, I tell myself that I am not being a good yogi by skipping class, that I'm not being a good wife by not cleaning the house, that I'm not being a good mummy by not walking the dogs.

 

But then I let it go, because Failure and me have a close relationship, one that I respect very much.

This is how I fail everyday. I make a commitment to myself and then I renege. It’s so easy to beat myself up over it, too.  

But what’s the point?

Inhale inhale inhale… exhhhhhaaalle let it go.

When I let go, I accept. When I accept, I can move on and be present. When I can be present, I can start to see the horizon of contentment.

I can choose to spend the next hour watching the clock, telling myself that I should be at class, or I can indulge in my change of heart and soak up the quiet that I am really craving. I can send a little light to the students that I know I won’t get to sun salute with, and then take another yummy sip of tea.

 

When I remember to accept I can expand and soften (just like a really good supta baddha konasana).

The wisdom on my tea bag tells me that ‘the greatest tool you have is to listen’. And that is really, truly, all you need to do. Ask your Self what you most need in any given moment and listen. You don’t always have to listen to the shoulds and have tos, but you do always have to listen to your heart.

breathe courage

More words to savor and breathe in from Miss Meredith Swim.

 

The solo robin stands on the edge of his nest, his black eyes scanning the rain drop garden and gazing at the world beyond the fence. His burnt orange-feathered chest rises and falls with his breath. He’s meditating on his first flight, breathing in courage.

 

Breathe courage. This is my new mantra and the young robin embodies its powerful message. Before the bird takes flight, he pauses and breathes, connecting to his inner source of courage.

He reminds me of the importance of that pause. I easily can buy into the hustle and bustle of the modern world and lose my own voice to the fast advice of others. If I forget to breathe, my courage slips away from me; but taking the quiet moment to breathe allows me to gather my inner resources and handle the situation or the difficult person in front of me.

At first, my monkey mind resists that pause by pointing at the clock: “You’re taking a time-out?! We’re already pressed for time! You don’t have time!”

Ironically, taking the moment to breathe with awareness, to hit pause, creates time. The mental clarity to make the appropriate decision appears, freeing myself of additional stress and the time that would be needed later to let go of the day’s burdens.

This young robin is the last of his siblings to leave the nest. At first, I feel a pang of pity for him, sitting alone with the wild world pressing up against his safe haven; but this dissipates as I notice his cool serenity.

 

He’s not self-conscious about being the last bird to fly; he’s not flopping around his nest in a state of distress and crying for his mother. He’s a majestic little prince determining his own course.

 

Breathe courage. Staying true to oneself takes courage. In yoga class it takes some courage to honor your body, choosing a modification or a child’s pose while others vinyasa about.

Later in the morning, I check the bird nest and it’s empty – the young robin has successfully dived into the world outside the safety of my parents’ back porch. His pre-flight meditation helped him to soar.

Reflecting on his flight, I realize he must have possessed such confidence in his body, his wings, his instinct, and recognized the courage existing in his small, magnificent body.

 

This is one of the main reasons I fell in love with yoga and am inspired to teach the ancient practice – in yoga class, I felt safe in my body.

 

Yoga found me during my adolescence, a self-proclaimed daydreamer who had grown up dreading gym class. In my first yoga classes, as I twisted, stretched, and bent forward, I felt awe for these physical limbs I had so long inhabited but ignored out of fear of imperfection and discomfort.

 

To breathe courage doesn’t mean taking in courage from the outside world, but to reconnect to the strength and power already existing in your skin and bones.

 

As the robin gazed at the awaiting world, he exuded courage, the courage to wait and be with himself until the time was perfectly right for him to stretch his wings and fly.

love is all we need

I love just how real Misty Pittman keeps it in this blog post. Read up and enjoy friends. xo, sharon

 

 

Late last December I was introduced to the notion of having one word that could guide me through 2013.  A word to explore, deconstruct, embody, grow into, challenge, and inspire me.  

I almost settled on the word TRUST, but fate led me to LOVE, and I settled in.

I think about this word daily.  I hold it close to my heart and ask it many questions.  I am surprised by it and, at times, disappointed in it.  I imagined that living a year of love would be easy peasy.  It's supposed to be glowing and sweet and comforting.  Everlasting.  Except, I'm learning that it's not.

There's the gripping panic that comes when love changes.  The confusion of love waxing and waning.  The desperation of attachment to keep everything we love just as it is, to keep it safe.  With love, there is bound to be fear.  

One aspect that I'm getting curious about is what effect falling out of love has on us.  When we are no longer enamored with a new beau.  When a hobby that was once joyful becomes tedious.  When friendships lose their sparkle.  When our dream career turns lackluster.  When the smell of a favorite meal makes us feel queasy.

Cue disappoint and boredom.  

My yoga practice is one example.  I have a huge love/dislike relationship with my practice.  I can go from daily down dogs to dreading my mat in the blink of an eye.  Sometimes I ceremoniously read Yoga Journal (tea, sunny spot, breeze), sometimes they pile up in the corner for months, nagging me as one other thing I need to do.  Things can get stale pretty quickly.  I try to revisit the things that drew me to the practice initially.  I might talk myself into only spending five minutes in, what used to be, my favorite go to pose.  Meh.  These things do nothing for me.

I'm learning that it's not about hanging on to the things that I once loved, it's about accepting where I am right now and then finding new ways to keep the love going.  We fall in love with what's new and exciting.  For me, that might mean practicing a pose I've never done before or studying a different aspect of yoga that I've never considered.  Sometimes it means changing location or intention.  When I get it right, when I find that thing that brings the practice back to life for me, I can get back to bliss.  

I'm learning to love these in between moments.  I'm making peace with the discomfort it brings, the feelings of confusion and questioning.  Because it's during these times when I know that something new is waiting to be discovered.  And I love that.  

Is there something in your world that has lost it's sparkle?  Something that you know is worth holding onto but no longer fulfills you? Can you find another way of being with it that encourages excitement?  Maybe it's finding a way to simply love the change and be open to a new phase.

I am a true believer that love is the magic cure to everything that ails us. 

this unfolding journey

Good Monday morning Friends....I'm delighted to share this blog post with you written by our new college graduate, Meredith Swim. I hope you're as inspired by her as I am. Keep rocking this thing called Life, Meredith. xo, sharon

Hello Blog Travelers!

I am writing this post as a college graduate! Hurray! As the graduation celebrations have drawn to an end I have found myself in a transitional phase. My yoga practice is an absolutely essential part of my day as I breathe my way through ambiguity and begin to shape my post-grad plan.

My inner poet articulates this yoga relationship a bit more fluidly…

Unrolling the yoga mat is part of this unfolding journey.

Vinyasa flow from one stage to another

with child poses and conscious breaths

to ease the rough in-betweens.

Diving into my downdog with delight in the desire

to re-discover the wisdom planted in my feet and the advice waiting to be given from the stretch in my hamstrings.

I’m backbending to open my heart

and see what passions dwell inside.

Breathing-in so I can hear

the true voice that speaks so very quietly at times,

and exhaling to release the crowd shouting out advice.

Re-affirming that we all have our own journeys and we all have different paths destined to take

Comparing and contrasting causes too much tension in my shoulder blades.

In half-moons I reach up for the stars, thinking of future destinations and ambitions achieved, but if my drishti is too focused in the future,

I lose the moment and forget to breathe.

In savasana I surrender to the Earth

and let Her hold me.

I let go, again and again, and again.

The mat pardons my repeated mistake in thinking that I have to be so much more than whatever this breath or moment asks me to be.

A quiet forgiveness emerges as I settle into my skin, realizing this post-grad moment, with all its questions, insecurities, and dreams, is the exact place I need to be.

A vinyasa or two, child poses in-between and a few swan dives to stretch my wings reclaims the Center I am so eagerly seeking.

A Namaste blesses the rest of the day and I step off my mat with to graciously embrace the day.

grace and yoga

Because grace is a beautiful thing. Thank you Misty Pittman, you are the picture of grace.

I found these words from yoga teacher, Jason Crandell, in my FaceBook newsfeed today, “The integrity of your movement is more important than your range of movement”, and I realized that this is exactly what I’ve been trying to speak to in recent classes.

Grace.   

How can we invite this into our yoga practice, and into our lives?  How can we show up in a way that is gentle?

And why is this even important?

When I think of grace, I think of ease, compassion, and humbleness.  I think of going with the flow.  When we are practicing these elements, we are living in a way that is harmonious and authentic. 

We begin to notice ourselves as kinder. 

With grace, there is less struggle and awkwardness.  We are not resisting or forcing.  We can loosen our grip on whatever it is we are fighting with and begin to accept.

The yoga mat is a perfect place to begin to explore this.  How often do we push ourselves into poses without paying attention to the transitions?  How many of us tell ourselves stories about how our limitations on the mat determine our worth?

What if we thought about our yoga practice as a dance and our breath the rhythm that carries us?  Moving slowly, stretching our bodies joyously, inhaling deeply as arms are swept overhead and exhaling fully as we float our upper body forward into a soft fold.

Take time to establish alignment, setting down hands and feet as if this was an honored ritual.  Breathe fully, creating expansion, without taking the breath to a place of rigidity.  Be gentle in your thoughts and words. 

These elements of grace soften us and make us whole.  We feel calmer.  Even if we lose our balance, we recover with a smile.

Start here, on the mat.  Feel alive and carry that into your daily life, bringing that quality of grace into your relationships and work.  Enjoy going with the flow, even you do have two left feet.

the heart of yoga: an online offering

In this wild, beautiful, crazy, precious life we need tools, ways of living and Being, which help us to stay connected to our center. 

Life is not inherently stressful, busy, and hard but it can feel that way to many of us. Yoga offers us a beautiful system that helps us to integrate body, mind, and spirit. It also offers us a powerful framework for not only living in accordance with our Self, but also how to live in harmony in our relationships.

The essence of Yoga is this integration of body, mind, and spirit through practices that enhance the mind-body-heart connection. These techniques awaken strength, poise, grace, and the development of centered awareness even in the midst of chaos and turmoil.

Who wouldn’t benefit from more of this?

Join me in this five week journey through the yamas. Don’t worry, that’s just a fancy Sanskrit word that basically means “restraint”. These so called restraints are not quite as limiting as they might first appear. They actually create the most awesome containers that encourage us to live and love in peace with ourselves and one another.

The focus of this online offering is about You + Your Relationships. After all, isn’t life one big relationship? Let us consider.  We have:

Our relationship to our Self.

Relationship to our family of origin, spouse or partner, friends, children, co-workers, community, the clerk, and yes, even your barista. And we must include our very own Mama Nature, the environment.

How about your relationship to passions, goals, dreams, intentions? Your relationship to your beliefs, habits, and the truths you have owned.

Friend, there is so much more.

Why is this exploration worthy of your time and attention?

Because if you are reading this, then you too feel the call to live life intentionally. To be awake and aware in this world. To love more fully and joyfully. You are devoted to a life of meaning and purpose. 

This doesn’t mean we are perfect, that we don’t slip and make mistakes. Oh no, this is not the place for judgments and righteousness. This is the place where we  each get to show up, turn towards our light, compassionately reflect, and consciously choose how we want to show up for ourselves and each other. 

Will you bring your strengths, your vulnerabilities, your joys, your hopes, your regrets, your sorrows and join me on this glorrrrrious adventure? 

I so hope you will. 

For five weeks you will receive an email from me three times per week… Monday, Wednesday & Friday. Each week we’ll journey through the five yamas, playing with one per week. You’ll have to digest, ponder, and play with the words, stories, and exercises presented. You can open and read each email at a time that feels convenient for you. We’ll also have a private Facebook forum for those of you wanting to connect in an online environment.

I’m also planning to teach my classes around the yamas during the five week course. Local yogis will have a chance to explore these practices on the yoga mat.

For those of you wanting to dive a step deeper I am offering a coaching session in addition to the class. This is for any of you wanting personal attention as it relates to the work we’ll be exploring and personal practices for you to engage in. 

The Details:

The Heart of Yoga: Five week online exploration through the yamas                                                       

When: May 20 - June 21                                                                                                                               Registration: $36 for online course, $100 for course + one coaching session

Click here for registration.

Please note there are two options, one for the course alone and one for course + coaching.

with love,

sharon

mega self love retreat

I'm feeling ready to start a radical self love revolution.

That's right. And I'm calling all women to join me. Yes, you, you, and especially you.

It doesn't matter your age, the size of your thighs, what you do for a living, if you're currently happy or miserable. It doesn't matter if you're feeling lost and confused, or totally on track. I don't care if you can stand on your head or sit in lotus for meditation. I don't care if you single, happily married, or fighting your way through fertility.

What I want to know is this....

Are you willing to start loving yourself right here, right now? 

Mary Oliver tells us this (and she's brilliant so I'm all ears, heart too),
"You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves."

I'm about to suggest something radically different. There is a way for you to summon self acceptance, compassion, kindness, and love for wherever you are in your life right now.

There is in fact a way for you to hold a higher vision for yourself and your future AND give yourself some mega love for where you are now. Yes, at the same time.

We postpone our joy (and love) for a later date and time. We think....

When I finish school,
When I have the baby,
When I get a new job,
When life settles down,
When I lose 10 more pounds,
When I master such and such yoga pose,
When I have more money,
When I have more time,
Etc, etc, etc.
THEN I will be worthy to love myself.

Frankly, it's time for it to stop.


Consider joining me and a small group of awesome lovely ladies for the day to explore all things major loooovvve.

We'll revel in our bodies awesome ways to move through yoga.
We'll let someone else love our body up and down with an hour massage at The Massage Center.
We'll eat an awesome organic lunch provided by Good Foods Co-Op.
We'll share stories from the heart.
We'll explore ways to embrace, celebrate, and demonstrate how you can start loving yourself today.

And because it's a day of mega loooovvvve, there will be moments of moving to your own rhythm. That may look like a walk to Starbucks for a latte, swinging outside near the flowers, busting out a spontaneous sphinx pose, or sipping hot tea and doing absolutely nothing.

Decide that this IS the day you stop waiting for love. It's yours to claim. Go for it.....The world is waiting.

Saturday May 18, 8:30 - 4:30
$160 if you pay before May 4
$185 afterwards
Price includes all yoga sessions, massage, tea, treats and other random awesomeness.

Register early as space is limited ladies!

Register Here!

**Sorry men, this one is only for the women out there.**

alternate nostril breathing

Sarah Bowker shares how you can use the breath to create more energy and how to settle down and relax. When you need a quick fix, there is nothing more readily available than your sweet awesome breath. Enjoy Friends.

My “go-to” breath: alternate nostril breathing

Our breath serves many functions.  One of the most important functions our breath has is to move our prana, or energy, throughout our body.

Close your eyes, and take a breath.  Can you feel the skin stretch and the lungs expand as you filled the body with your inhale?  Can you feel the body settle back into place on the exhale?

Now, take a breath, and imagine taking that breath in through your hands.  Feel the inhale travel up from the palms of your hands, along the arms, all the way to the top of your head.  Exhale, feel the breath move back down, from your head, along your arms, and out your hands.  Take a few breaths this way.  This type of breath visualization can help us to move our prana in our body. 

Cool, huh?

Just like yoga poses assist in toning, strengthening, stretching, and balancing the physical body, there are different breath techniques we can use to balance our energetic/vital/breath body. 

Let us take a quick look at the yin/yang concept of energy.

At all times, our body’s energy lies somewhere along a continuum between yin and yang.  However, our energy cannot be completely yin, or completely yang (see symbol below); without the presence of yin, we cannot know yang, and vice versa. Here are the commonly used adjectives to help describe the tendencies of yin and yang:

Yin	Yang
Cold Hidden Feminine Soft Moon Restful Dark	Hot Exposed Masculine Hard Sun Active Light

We can easily change the energetic balance of our bodies using our breath.  How?  Our body’s access to yin and yang energy is through our nose.  Our left nostril helps to increase the yin energy in our body, while the right nostril helps to increase the yang energy in our body.

The breath exercise used to balance the yin and yang energies of the body is called nadi shodhana, or alternate nostril breathing. It involves exhaling and inhaling through one nostril, and then switching sides to exhale and then inhale, and so on.  The fingers can be used to lightly seal the nostril not being used to breathe, or just visualization can be used.

Yoga journal has a great tutorial: http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/2487

Alternate nostril breathing is a quick and effective way to prepare the energetic body for meditation.  It also helps to slow the breath down.

Feeling sleepy?  A few breaths in and out your right nostril will give you an energetic boost!

Feeling jittery, and unable to relax?  A few breaths in and out your left nostril will mellow you out.

Give it a try, and let me know how it goes!