How are all of you hanging in there? In general I feel well, but will have waves of sadness that come . I talked to a friend yesterday who just feels angry. Another one of my friend’s anxiety has totally been triggered in light of the world’s events. For most of us there is worry. Worries about getting ill, about our overall safety, the …
Practicing Open Heartedness
I’ve been making Valentine’s with my daughter Gretta who is obsessed with hearts. She is drawn to anything with hearts: heart socks, heart cereal, heart stickers, heart hair clips. Gretta might be one of the most open-hearted and loving people I know, so her affinity to hearts isn’t shocking. What does being open hearted mean? When you are around someone …
Recipe for Making Desires a Reality
At the start of a new year there is always a chance for a fresh start. We all, as humans, have a desire to feel better and to be better. There is an innate desire and a natural drive to rise from our circumstances and actualize our highest self. One of the ways we’ve been taught to reach our potentials is set goals …
Being the Light During These Dark Days
My daughter Gretta, who has been gifted with joie de vivre, has been singing Jingle Bells at the top of her lungs all week. During one of her renditions, I heard the lyric “making spirits bright” in a new way, making me think about how we can keep our our spirits bright this holiday season. We are in a natural period …
Season To Complete, Let Go, and Release the Old
We are on the home stretch of the year. This period between Halloween and the Winter Solstice on December 22 is a time for massive letting go. Starting anything new is going against the energy of the season, so our time is best spent in completing things, and releasing the old. I’ve always been drawn to the stress relief and …
Yoga is Good Medicine
I had the opportunity this week to lecture to 180 first year medical students about research on the health benefits of yoga. They stayed awake, and were interested! Following my talk, the doctor who invited me said…”Wow, that data really makes me want to start yoga!” Here are some of the stats I shared with them that might motivate you …
My Meditation Journey (thus far…)
It was 20 years ago I was first introduced to meditation while on internship at the University of Miami cancer center. I was required to attend daily meditation over the noon hour. At first, all I noticed was my racing mind, impatience, and annoyance that I wasn’t spending my lunch break in the warm sun. Within a few weeks, however, …
Downshift as Fall Approaches
How is your life balance? I spent years trying to find that elusive place of equilibrium with the perfect mix of work, family life, relaxation, and a clean house. There were moments that felt balanced, but the operative word is “moments”…it never lasted. The yoga sutras teach that we can achieve balance, or a “sattvic” state in our mind and …
Summer Solstice 2015
The sun is at the height of its power on Sunday when we experience the longest day and shortest night of the year. Solstice means “standing of the sun”, and is a major turning point in the earth’s cycle, providing a great time for self-reflection. Take a moment to honor all that has unfolded in your life since the solstice …
Inside Job
On some level we do yoga because we desire transformation. We might want change in our bodies, our flexibility, our balance. Or, we want to transform our relationship to our emotions…we want to suffer less and have more joy. Some want to experience less stress. Even though it may be possible to point to things on the outside that would …