Graceful Yoga

Moved

2010-09-30T10:51:00.001-03:00

Blogging here: http://gracefulsimplicity.blogspot.com/

Frugally Abundant Yoga

2010-01-28T17:21:00.001-04:00

It’s easy to be excited about yoga when faced with endless options for yoga classes, workshops, retreats, books, and accoutrements (a never-ending supply of yoga “inspired” products), but what if all you can afford is a mat? Even on the basic level, being a part of a yoga community costs money. It’s easy to feel left out, or even less “yogic” than the dedicated yogi who doesn’t bat an eye over flying somewhere for a yet another meditation retreat.
I personally have been left aghast after doing the math on how much my “yoga addiction” cost me since this summer, and I was only paying small potatoes compared to the yoga world envisioned by Yoga Journal (oh, visions of organic yoga pants dance in my head). Sure I benefit from the yoga community and the wisdom of others, but right now, unfortunately, my wallet doesn’t. However, there are many frugal ways in which yoga creates abundance in your life while leaving your money safely tucked away in your savings account.

1. The first one is an obvious one, gratitude. Gratitude is as much a practice as are the yoga postures. Practice gratitude every day and you’ll feel good about forgoing that weekend yoga retreat (believe me, there will be plenty more opportunities for a retreat some other time).

2. Eco Yogini practices Guerilla Yoga where she and her friends gather in the park (weather permitting) to practice together.

3. My hubby, yes, my hubby, is currently swapping his professional skills for free yoga classes.

4. Practice intuitive yoga at home. Just tune in to your body’s needs and go with the flow, no DVD or class instruction needed. You can gain many personal insights with a solitary, self-guided practice.

5. Develop a home practice using DVDs. If you can’t do number 4, then invest in a few good yoga DVDs and practice at home for awhile. (Just before Christmas I purchased Rainbeau Mars’ Pure Power DVD for $5 at Winners, so keep your eye out for bargains).

6. Start or join a yoga book group. I’ve recently been invited to one (have yet to go though). Ask your teacher or local studio if they know of any groups in your area, or if you can put up a poster to start one.

7. Throw a yoga party. Lead your friends or pop in a DVD. If they’re beginners, stick with the basics. If you promise them food afterwards they’re more likely to come (or maybe that’s just my friends). Or just invite a close friend over who’s interested in learning yoga (she knows who she is).

I would love to hear your ideas for creating more frugally abundant yoga in our lives.

Expanding: 1st Blogoversy

2010-01-14T16:02:00.001-04:00

A year ago today I started this blog with no real direction. I knew it was going to be about yoga, hence the title, but it wasn’t long before it became so much more. In fact, I feel kind of weird having the word “yoga” in my name, wondering if I’m representing yoga well or at all, and the majority of my posts are not even directly related to yoga. For awhile there near the end of 2009, I wasn’t sure if this blog was going to continue (I lost my blogging mojo), but I’m still here and I’m excited about my blogging future.

When I think about all I’ve learned through blogging, the word that comes to mind is expanding—the present participle form of expand, because it is something continuous, and I imagine it will always be that way.

I’m continually inspired by other bloggers, and eternally grateful to the readers of my blog, who, for some reason, keep coming back! The blogs of other like-minded women (and men) keep my creative life juices flowing in an environment of acceptance and positivity, stirring me into action while at the same time, perfectly content with what is. I look forward to another year of blogging.

Punctuation Marks

2010-01-11T18:05:00.000-04:00

"We think that it's the big moments that define our lives--the wedding, the baby, the new house, the dream job. But really, these big moments of happiness are just the punctuation marks of our personal sagas."

- Sarah Ban Breathnach

Accepting the Feminine

2010-01-10T11:52:00.001-04:00

A look at The Dance of the Dissident Daughter by Sue Monk Kidd

So much of it [life as a woman] had been spent trying to live up to the stereotypical formula of what a woman should be—the Good Christian Woman, the Good Wife, the Good Mother, the Good Daughter—pursuing those things that have always been held out to women as ideals of femininity. (1)

The Dance of the Dissident Daughter is a heartfelt and honest spiritual memoir by writer Sue Monk Kidd who began her successful writing career as a Christian writer, which needless to say made her transition to embrace a feminine spirituality a bumpy journey.

From Publisher Weekly’s writes:

The author's journey to capture her feminine soul and to live authentically from that soul makes a fascinating, well-researched and well-written story. Kidd's successful pilgrimage from her Southern Baptist roots and away from the patriarchal and fundamentalist Christian religious systems surrounding her is an account of anger turned to courage, creativity and love. A mid-career realization that she had lived without "real inner authority" and with "a fear of dissension, confrontation, backlash, a fear of not pleasing, not living up to sanctioned models of femininity" produced in Kidd the new mindset that made her journey possible. (2)

Now, in many ways I can’t relate to her: (a) I was not brought up as a Christian, (b) I do not have the money or the luxury of time that she seems to have had to figure things out, (c) I grew up playing in the dirt (often getting scolded for doing so), not in charm school, and (d) I don’t remember “feminist” ever being a bad word growing up. But every woman’s journey is unique, as she points out.

Still, there was plenty for me to relate too. I am part of a society founded by patriarchy after all, I’ve seen enough Disney movies to know what “proper” girls are made of, and I’ve seen enough music videos to know that feminism is still needed today.

“We are all trained to be female impersonators.” – Gloria Steinem

I dog-eared a number of pages in the book where I was inspired or lead into self-analysis. I’ll probably return to these pages now and then to aid in reflection, pages with words such as this:

I am grown, with children of my own. But inside I am still a daughter. A daughter is a woman who remains internally dependent, who does not shape her identity and direction as a woman, but tends to accept the identity and direction projected onto her. She tends to become the image of woman that the cultural father idealizes. (3)

"Many societies have educated their male children on the simple device of teaching them not to be women." - Margaret Mead

Feminism has worked so far in that women are allowed and encouraged to participate in the world of men and take on “male” characteristics (not that it’s always easy). A position of power and influence seems to be an ideal upheld for both men and women now. Feminism doesn't seem to have succeeded in increasing the value of “feminine” characteristics. Feminine characteristics (second sex characteristics) are still discouraged in men. Why? Is it because “feminine” characteristics are of lesser value, less worthy, less desirable? I read feminist books, I would call myself a feminist, but still, I don’t always find myself empowered by feminist discourse because my “feminine” characteristics are strong (emotional intelligence, intuition, gentle, quiet, tied to the material world/nature, nurture). I like to say that I’m a feminist in an apron—not a common feminist theme (although, I think this might be changing, and I'm thinking about bloggers here). Men and women are both subject to “conformity-demanding stereotypes” and “in a patriarchal society, women do not fare well. But male stereotypes also hold power over men, limiting who they can comfortably be by rewarding some qualities and rejecting others.”(4)

We are our best selves when we’re brave enough to be authentic. “When we need to conform in order to be acceptable, we may end up wearing a false face and playing an empty role if who we are inside and what is expected of us are far apart.” (5)

Obviously, I write this from my own perspective; I wouldn’t even presume to know the experience of other women, especially those of other cultures and social backgrounds, and not every woman will relate to Kidd’s book, but it spoke to me on many levels, and is one of those books that I’ll keep forever.

Footnotes:

1. The Dance of the Dissident Daughter, pg 13

2. Publisher's Weekely excerpt

3. The Dance of the Dissident Daughter, pg 41 – 42

4. Gods in Everyman: Archetypes that Shape Men’s Lives, Jean Shinoda Bolen, pg ix

5. Ibid, p 3

Warning

2010-01-08T19:47:00.003-04:00

(Purple Lady Puppet from: Puppet Artists)

Warning

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple

With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.

And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves

And satin sandals, and say we've no money for butter.

I shall sit down on the pavement when I'm tired

And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells

And run my stick along the public railings

And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain

And pick flowers in other people's gardens

And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat

And eat three pounds of sausages at a go

Or only bread and pickle for a week

And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry

And pay our rent and not swear in the street

And set a good example for the children.

We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?

So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised

When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

- Jenny Joseph

Just Give

2010-01-02T10:23:00.000-04:00

Last week I signed up for free trial with one of those music download services. But then I started thinking: Do I really need this? No. Can I afford this? Yes and no—money could be better spent elsewhere. Not only that, but it also cost time. Did I really want to give it my time and money (energy) to this? No. I’m trying to spend less time on the computer, except for work, not more.

And that got me to thinking, If I can afford those small monthly payments, shouldn’t I spend it in a way that more closely resembles my values? I mean, it could feed a family in the third world, or help conserve an eco-system. I cancelled my subscription. I already have a few organizations in mind, but I’m looking for other recommendations. So, what are your favorite causes?

How Much Philosophy?

2009-12-01T11:33:00.000-04:00

I imagine as a yoga teacher it would be very hard to balance the physical aspect of yoga with the philosophical and spiritual components in their classes. Many teachers never venture into the “weird stuff” in their classes, sticking to the physical and health benefits of yoga, and then maybe offer workshops on the philosophical and spiritual components for those interested. I can understand this. If you’re struggling to get by you don’t want to scare away students who are either not interested or not yet ready. I bring this up because last night my teacher spent what felt like half an hour discussing the 8 limbs of yoga. She usually talks quite a bit at the beginning of each class where it is for beginners, and this doesn’t bother me, but I can see where students who have come to work on their fitness would be annoyed. At one point the student next to me mumbled, “Let’s get on with it.” (At least that’s what I think she said.) Well, was she ever in for a surprise, because when we finally did “get on with it” we jiggled around to the music of Krishna Das, and when the beat got faster the teacher turned the music way up and the next thing you know she had us dancing around and jumping. Most of us seemed to be having a great time—expect for the stiffy; the let’s- get-on-with-it lady. I wonder if she’s going to come back?

(The hubby was a good sport and went along with it, but I don't think it's really his thing. I love dancing, so naturally it was my favorite part of the class. It feels like a celebration, and since today is my birthday, what more could I ask for!)

What Are You Afraid Of?

2009-11-24T21:14:00.000-04:00

I'm not 100% on this!

Photo Source

Setting Goals Part 2: Self-Reliance

2009-11-23T18:56:00.003-04:00

Read my first part about goal setting here and why I’m writing about it.

Our plans miscarry because they have no aim. When a man does not know what harbor he is making for, no wind is the right wind.

-Seneca

First you have to get your priorities straight; you can’t do everything (this is a hard one for those perfectionists out there). Figure out what you want the most. If you don’t want it bad enough it will never happen. There’s nothing wrong with not waiting something bad enough, but there’s no point in wasting time either, so spend some time thinking about what it is you really want. If you want it bad enough, the easier it will be to make it a priority, such as saving money or finding the time for it.

I learned this the hard way. I told some people that I was thinking about taking yoga teacher training and I got caught up in the excitement (friends wanted me to teach them, a few yoga teachers wanted me to sub for them). And the fact that my hubby did not think it was a good idea put me into rebel mode, “He can’t tell me what I can and can’t do.” So I spent a lot of time studying and researching yoga schools. Eventually my inner voice got drowned out. Unfortunately, once I did find my voice again, I was lost. I did not know what to do instead. I became directionless once again and ended up spending a good chunk of my saved money when I should have held onto it more tightly. The money wasn’t wasted, but it didn’t go towards one of my priorities (because I didn’t have any!). I’ve learned my lesson.

One dream of mine that returns time after time is travel. I’m an expert at making excuses for not traveling. I’ve lived a protected, sheltered life, so it scares me. I’m used to having others make decisions for me, or at least have a hand in it. I’m used to stability. It is easy (and comfortable) to fall back into old patterns.

Now I have travelled for work (boring as heck), and I did spend the coldest nights of my life in Montreal with a group of college friends. But I didn’t take responsibility.

So, even though I’m well armed with every excuse in the book, I think this is something I need—the experience of being self-reliant in a strange place. This is my goal now, and I am saving once again. Specifics will be another post.

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga, 2009)

This is why you are fat.

2009-11-19T15:18:00.000-04:00

Sorry, I don't mean to sound harsh, and I wasn't talking about you. It's just the name of this blog. Just looking at it gives me a heart attack.

Banana Peanut Butter Cup And Marshmallow Grilled Sandwich

A sort of triple layer pizza thing.

One reason to aim for that "Yoga butt".

2009-11-19T14:35:00.000-04:00

I do yoga so that I can stay flexible enough to kick my own arse if necessary. ~ Betsy Cañas Garmon

Feeling Powerful

2009-11-18T15:24:00.001-04:00

If you don't know where you are going,

you'll end up someplace else.

-Yogi Berra

I did a power yoga practice today for the first time in a while. I think I missed it. I followed along with one of my favorite DVDs, MTV’s Power Yoga. Yeah, yeah, MTV . . . commercialization of yoga, blah, blah, blah. I don’t care; I like this practice. I always feel strong (physically and mentally) afterwards, and healthy, like I can take on anything. I don’t know of that is real yoga or not, but the main thing is I breathed.

And speaking of feeling powerful, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about goal setting.

A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.

- Francis Bacon

I’ve never been the kind of person who strives for achievement. I’m way too relaxed and easy going. And I seem to have a hard time making decisions because I can be happy with many different outcomes, so I tend to have a “let’s wait and see what happens” kind of attitude. I am not a person of action. This needs to change. I’m all for “going with the flow,” but I feel the need to take more control. I’ve never been a “doormat,” but it’s come close to that at times. I’m getting better at putting my foot down and clearly saying “NO.”

This goes beyond just wanting to have control, it’s about being an active participant.

Now, I’m no expert on setting and achieving goals, as I’ve just disclosed, but I happen to work for motivational speaker and writer, so I like to think I’m well-versed in the subject, and perhaps I need to put some of what I’ve learned into action. Even though I changed my mind in the end regarding my last goal (yoga teacher training), it showed me that I could do it if I set my mind to it. And I met the goal of doubling my student loan payments.

I would like to write a few posts about goals, and you can consider this part one.

Care to share any of your success stories?

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga, 2009)

Meeting Goals

2009-11-16T12:44:00.001-04:00

In 27 months I will be free from my national student loan payments! Today I DOUBLED my monthly payments, something I’ve wanted to do for a while, but wasn’t sure if I was able. Yes, it will make my budget tight (don’t expect any fancy Christmas gifts), but I know I can handle it if I commit to it. It may mean, however, a break from yoga classes, but it depends on how committed the hubby is to a home practice (don’t want to stop him now that he just got started). I paid his for classes, and I’m considering it his birthday/Christmas present.

It feels good to have finally met a goal I set for myself.

A few more goals:

1. Eat better. My colitis is currently in a flare up, and I’m temporarily back on medication. I need to recommit to healthy eating as I had gone off track. This week is my first experience with ordering a weekly food box of local produce (the service just recently became available.) I hope this is easier on my wallet too, since I can’t do any impulse shopping (although that’s more of a hubby thing).

2. Even though I doubled my loan payments, I still want to be able to put some money away each month for rainy days, or if I’m lucky and nothing goes wrong with the house and the appliances don’t quick working, like our oven recently did, I can finally go to Costa Rica. A friend has expressed interest in going too, and she’s a seasoned traveler, and we’re a rare find in that we both like to do the same things, practically twins, except she can drink and I can’t (because of the my colitis).

3. RECOMMIT TO BLOGGING. I haven’t felt like I had anything worthwhile to say, and so I said nothing. I had this idea in my head of where I was headed in the near future, and I was working hard towards it, and that inspired this blog. Then it became clear to me that it was no longer what I wanted. I was acting on momentum supplied by other people and old situations that were no longer applicable. Yes, that had something to do with yoga teacher training.

What goals are you working towards?

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga, 2009)

Yoga and Cheesecake - Two Things that Make Me Happy

2009-10-26T12:33:00.000-03:00

But not so for the author of this somewhat humorous article about yoga who also wishes she liked cheesecake (she obviously hasn't tried my mother's cheesecake!)

Silly Names

2009-10-23T12:27:00.000-03:00

I was looking at some of the upcoming releases in Yoga DVDs on Amazon, and thought I may as well share with you some of the titles that made me laugh. Again, you can get angry at the commericalization of Yoga, but they are just titles meant to sell in our culture, and I'm sure that many of these are actually quite good; becase, really, it all comes down to the individual's mindset going in to the pracitice.

Ballroom Yoga
Ten Zen Tummy Toners
The Pursuit of Happy Hips
Yoga: Sweat & Freedom With Pilates! (I'm confused, is it Yoga or Pilates.)

And the winner is: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Power Squad Bod! - Body Slimming Yoga. The one that inspired this lame post.

Simply Yoga

2009-10-21T12:28:00.004-03:00

I remember the first time I found out there were different ways of practicing the system of yoga. Before that I thought it was all the same. I had heard of Iyengar, Satchidananda, Sivananda, and, of course, Rodney Yee (the prolific yoga DVD creator that he is). I knew what Hatha meant. I did not know that there were actually some great differences in approaches, let alone something called flow yoga or power yoga. I don’t believe the local Chapter’s had its yoga section yet.

During my first year of college, I signed up for a free meditation class. While there I was approached by an older couple, obviously excited to see a fresh, young face, and asked how I came to be there. I told them I practiced yoga and wanted to try a meditation group. Their faces lit up (this was just on the cusp of yoga’s explosion of popularity--I think Madonna had already been on Oprah doing her asanas, but this city was still a bit behind, as Nova Scotia often is). They asked me, “What kind of yoga do you practice?” There are kinds?!!! I thought. I panicked, never being one who was comfortable with looking stupid. I mumbled something along the lines of, “I don’t know . . . regular yoga,” and got away from them as fast as I could.

It was after that experience that I started to seek out books on yoga and began to study it. Things started to get complicated. Being in college at the time, however, I had to put yoga study on hold for the most part. But after college, during the last few years, I’ve felt I had to amass as much knowledge as possible about the system of yoga, despite the fact that I can never remember the Sanskrit names. I thought if I was going to teach I had to know everything or else I would be false, a fake. I think I was happier with my yoga practice when it was simply just yoga and being with the breath. I’ve began to remove the pressure I placed on myself to get back to that place. When I say I’m taking a break from yoga, I don’t mean that I’m not practicing and trying to “live” it, but trying to be less intellectual with it—it was taking up too much brain space (and god knows, I ain’t got much of that!). I just don’t want yoga to be an obsession (although I suppose people would be a lot less interesting without their various obsessions).

P.S. I never went back to that meditation group. They were a bit weird.

(Text Copyright: Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Graceful Simplicity

2009-10-09T10:55:00.000-03:00

Don't forget to visit my new blog: Graceful Simplicity.

Beginner Mind Again and Changes

2009-10-08T09:19:00.002-03:00

I’m happy that my hubby has decided to take yoga class with me. Another reason I love this is because it’s forced me back into a beginner class, and it has been “enlightening.” I’ve been moving away from physically demanding practices for a while now—I still do them when needed, and I’m physically active elsewhere—but lately when I come to my mat I need stillness. I’ve learned more in two beginner Kripula Yoga classes than I have in a long time. And I’m not talking about the postures.

I am tired of self-analysis, searching, and achieving. There is peace and happiness to be found in what is now. I do not need more self-improvement. I just need to remember to breathe and be mindful. Simple. Mindfulness is the backdrop that everything else rests on, and I feel like that is something I’ve lost recently.

What am I getting at here? Perhaps, I just mean that, for myself, there are more important things for me to focus on, more useful things to learn. I think I can be more “useful” if I can get my head out of this space. I may not have appeared to be outwardly busy, but internally, I had myself under a lot of pressure. I had myself under deadlines to have certain things figured out and decided upon. That has not been successful. And I fail to see how reading about the Chakras could help me.

Bliss Chick has written about something similar recently, and she puts this feeling into better words than I can. She writes about it here and here.

So I’m moving on and have decided to move on over to the Graceful Simplicity blog that I registered a while ago (it will be ready soon). Call it a fresh start or a clean break. This blog will still be here for whenever I feel like writing about yoga, but I hope my current readers will also venture over and visit me here. Change is good.

Last of the Flowers

2009-10-01T14:09:00.007-03:00

It's the first day of the most wonderful month, October, and the first day of the October Blog Party hosted by Domestic Witch .

There are only a few flowers left in the garden, but there are still a number of wild flowers (or weeds) left in the yard, thanks in large part to the fact that we haven't mowed the lawn in months.

The last Morning Glory. And below is the place it was hiding.

A new flower I've discovered this year is pictured below. I have no idea what it is but hope someone can tell me the name. It's a beautiful, exotic-looking yellow flower that grew naturally in one of my flowers beds. When you touch the seed pods, they explode in your hand like magic. I have seen them elsewhere, growing wildly in other places in Nova Scotia, so perhaps it's native.

(So as I was writing this post earlier today, the hubby fell through the glass roof of the greenhouse he is building. This is the 2nd time in 6 years that I've had to call the ambulance for that man. He is fine. He is definitely accident prone and for that reason is not allowed to use chainsaws. I assure you, we are laughing at this.)

Can You Earn a Living Teaching Yoga?

2009-09-30T11:10:00.003-03:00

I’m glad I found this article (thanks to Happy Daisy Yoga). It’s so hard to find an honest look at the reality of making a living teaching yoga. Everyone usually just says how great the training experience is, how it’s worth the expense, etc., etc.

I’ve been thinking a lot about my motives for taking yoga teacher training. And I’ve been having my doubts. Most of the time I like my job. My life is usually stress-free (there are hard times, but nothing that can’t be dealt with). Teaching yoga would be something I’d do on the side, so I’m not sure it’s worth the stress potential (time and money) it could bring. I like my free time in the evenings to explore my hobbies. I like having free nights at home without any engagements. In other words, most of the time, I like my life just as it is. I would have many obstacles to teaching yoga; the biggest one is a lack of interest in running and marketing a business or myself at this point in my life. It’s just not something I want to do. I don’t even like the idea of trying to promote myself to the recreation department to fit in yet another yoga class where there are already many offered (and how many does one small town need?)

(Update: Linda also has a number of frank and honest posts about teaching yoga, which I've always found to be helpful. Go check them out.)

(Graceful Yoga and Simplicity, 2009)

Still On Blog Vacation - A Few Thoughts

2009-09-23T10:35:00.003-03:00

Even though I posted yesterday (I had too, it's was exciting news), I'm still not ready to start blogging again.

My mind is all over the place these days. I need time to work privately on my path and quiet my mind. My recent weekend retreat was more energizing than than it was centering (but I still had lots of fun), and it took place in the location where the local teacher training is, so it was good to get a feel for the place, and I have lots to think about.

I am still unsure of so many things. I am quite content to remain a student for now. However, because I've talked to people about teacher training, asking questions etc., I now feel almost a pressure to take it even though I'm still unsure in my own mind.

I find that if I'm too immersed in the yoga community or too focused on spiritual pursuits, I actually begin to feel disconnected. Which I suppose is odd considering so many people take up these things to get connected. I personally become ungrounded easily. I am happiest when firmly rooted to this earth and instead of achieving higher consciousness or romanticising the natural world, actually get down on my hands and knees and get dirt under my nails. (One thing I like about my yoga teacher is that I feel grounded in her classes).

The present moment is all that matters, and yet sometimes we get caught up in esoteric ideals and goals and deep self-analysis that we forget that we are still part of this earth and we miss the present moment.

Forgive my rambling! In other news, I apparently made a Top 50 Yoga Blogs for a Healthy Mind and Body list. So while you're waiting for me to get my act together, go check out some of these other blogs.

Guess Who's Going to Yoga . . .

2009-09-22T14:36:00.004-03:00

. . . my skeptical, addicted to the Internet, needs constant stimulus hubby!

How it all came about:

I was gone for the weekend at an ecstatic dance retreat with no phone or Internet connection. We have never gone that long without communicating before. Normally when I'm away he fills his schedule with social activities. But this week he was mostly alone, hardly slept or ate, and we have no TV. In short, he was left to deal with his mental demons and realized he was incapable of entertaining himself. Apparently he tried to watch a movie and saw a preview for a film called "Grace Is Gone," about a man who loses his wife named Grace. I think he went a little nutty.

After my touchy-feely weekend (which I am so not--after 6 years I still have a hard time hugging and telling my in-laws "I love you" for example) I had plans to attend my drumming circle before coming home. The hubby missed me so much that he met me there! Shocked and worried he would make fun of us, I was overjoyed that he liked it and everyone appreciated having him there.

Then Monday morning I reminded him that my yoga classes started again on Tuesday and told him "you can go to the pub if you want." To which he replied, "Can't I go to yoga with you?" I said it was an 11 week and expensive commitment, but that if he was serious I would go to the beginner class with him, which started that night, instead of the Tuesday class. We went and we paid. I'm glad that he came to this decision by himself, recognizing the need to quiet his mind. We plan to do 10 minutes of gentle yoga every morning now, too, so I guess he really liked our Kripalu yoga teacher. He said that everything she said made sense and resonated with him.

I'm shocked. I need to go away more often:)

Taking a Little Break

2009-09-13T16:53:00.002-03:00

I think I need to take a break. I know the last time I said I was taking a blog break, I was blogging again two days later, but this time, I think, will be different. Not only will I be busy this week coming, but there are my things stirring in my mind that I need to let simmer and I feel a need to retreat inward, so I will be returning to my private journal for a while. I can't say how long this is be, perhaps just a few weeks, perhaps a month, perhaps more (probably not that long, but ya never know.) Thanks to my followers who have been with me so far.

Your Money or Your Life

2009-09-11T10:17:00.003-03:00

I started reading, Your Money or Your Life: Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Achieving Financial Independence, last night. So I thought it was interesting that the hubby should send me the link to this article this morning about people who's lives were ruined after winning million-dollar lotteries.