A Compass to Live By

There are so many physical benefits of yoga whether you practice daily or just a couple of times a week. But there are benefits to the subtle nature of ourselves as well, particularly if you have ever felt anxiety or stress. Yoga has a way of helping to balance our emotional lives, calming our nevous systems, even improving depression.

Often times when things are not making sense in my life and I'm not sure of some of the things I'm doing on my personal path, it's my yoga practice that centers me. I've done lots of different things with my life in regards to personal and professional pursuits, but yoga is really the only common denominator that has stayed present in my life. When things are off kilter and I'm feeling that fight or flight angst inside, yoga becomes the compass that steers me back on course. It lets me know that I need to take time for myself to practice or even "up" my practice even more.

No matter where you are on the path, I hope you let 2009 be the year you dip your big toe into the great cosmic pool of yoga and allow it to bring about whatever transformation you need.

Blessings,

Susan

Song for a Winter's Night

"The night was clear and frosty, all ebony of shadow and silver of snowy slope; big stars were shining over the silent fields." ~ Lucy Maud Montgomery

December 21, 2008 marks the winter solstice which jump starts the beginning of winter and it's the shortest day of the year. Just the thought of that makes me feel like this day is particularly dark and lonesome. But this wintertime doesn't have to be that way, especially after the luster of the holidays wears off and we must face another year with its challenges, stresses, joy, excitement and uncertainty.

Wintertime is nature's gift for encouraging introspection and contemplation. Don't you naturally feel like turning within and tending to your own personal business at this time? For me I feel less like watching tv and more like sitting quietly with a good book or journaling.

The solstice also marks the gentle return of the light. But until that light comes, we must keep it kindling within ourselves. How do we do this? We do this by re-connecting to our yoga practice, by re-connecting to our meditation practice and by re-connecting to our practice of breathing and being aware and awake in our lives.

I know these days seem darker than most years because of everything going on in our world and in our country, but truly if you can afford a $20 yoga mat, you have all that you need to transform your life and create more light in your physical body. And if you can sit on a pillow or comfortable chair for just 5 minutes a day, you have all that you need to create lightness in your mind.

I encourage you this winter as you are celebrating with family, friends and co-workers, to take some precious time for yourself and re-connect to those practices that will bring more stillness, light and joy in your life.

Happy Winter!

Susan

To Veg or not to Veg...

Much like the common misconception that you have to be flexible to practice yoga, there is also a question of whether or not you have to be a vegetarian as well. This comes from the idea of not harming animals, a practice called Ahimsa discussed in previous blogs. You can go very deeply into this topic and talk to people on every plane of the spectrum from those who eat a very specific plant based diet to those who occassionaly eat meat.

I wrestle with this concept too. I was a vegetarian for about four years before switching back to eating meat. For me it was a very personal decision and mainly one based on wanting to feel better. When I was a vegetarian, I just didn't feel like I had a lot of energy and the massive amounts of soy I was consuming was actually exacerbating other health conditions. This was my experience with it at the time.

It was then that I decided that I really just wanted to be a healthy eater and having a nice balance to my diet. I eat mostly a plant based diet and incorporate fish, lean poultry and Gasp....the occassional steak. Is it wrong? Is it right? I believe it's neither wrong nor right, it just is, what it is. It's right for me. Does that make me a "bad" yogi or care less for animals? Should I stop practicing yoga altogether because I ate a turkey burger? It's absurd isn't?

As yogis we have to honor our own individual bodies and what that means to keep us healthy. We also have to honor other people's choices and try not to impose our own personal belief systems on others just because it's written down somewhere in a book. Afterall, isn't that "harming?" Yoga teaches us compassion; compassion for ourselves, for others and for every being we share the planet with.

The great thing about yoga is that as you continue to practice, you will intuitively begin to know what types of foods will feed your body in healthful ways and which foods will make you feel sick. And then you can begin to make conscious choices for your diet, vegetarian or somewhere in between.

Love and light,

Susan

ps A nice reminder for feeling healthy in the new year...Lotus Yoga. Space is limited, so register now!! http://www.radiantfitness.com/lotusyoga.html

Crafty Yogi

With our hard economic times, many people, myself included, have decided to scale back on how much they spend for gifts during the holidays. Maybe for the adults and children in your life you can give them something simple, beautiful and from the heart.

If you are seriously wanting to live like a yogi during the holidays, then applyAparigraha to your gift giving. Aparigraha means non-coveting or GREED. If you are always wanting, more, more, more than take your cue from the current times and simplify. Here are some ideas to start:

For the Baker or Chef, you can make a gift of assorted homemade cookes, candies, or fudge. Create a cookbook or recipe cards of your favorite foods and give them as gifts. Create a soup, pasta, or cookie mix that you "jar" yourself and give those out. A nice blend of teas is always nice in the winter time.

For the Crafty, you can make scented eye pillow, beaded jewelry, blankets, scarves, etc, or handmade photo album with scrapbook supplies.

For the yogi in your life, a gift series to some classes is nice, as well as a new mat or mat bag, yoga book, dvd, or cd is awesome too.

For the children in your life, this is a tough one but maybe this year Santa can bring them one "big" special gift and the rest be smaller toys, books, clothes, etc. Check out some the toys that came out when you were a kid. Toy companies are manufacturing them again. You can also shop at antique stores too. Many vendors sell great things from yesteryear.

For the rest, how about choosing a name and spending only a certain amount on that person, or buying a grab bag gift. One of my students says her family chooses a name and they buy that person a book they think they will love. Could be used or new. Now that's pretty simple and great.

Just some ideas to make it simple yet beautiful this year. You can always flip through catalogues or online sites and find great gift ideas for any type of interest and scale it down so you are not breaking the bank.

The point is you don't have to spend a fortune, just be a little resourceful. Who are you buying for and why? If you take just a little time to think about what that person really loves, you can find something lovely that won't run your credit card up. And isn't the peace of mind of no bills waiting for you in January the best gift of all?

Love and Light,

Susan