Live Your Yoga

This is my dear friend Karen and I. We went through yoga teacher training together with Lahiri School of Yoga. Karen is doing AMAZING things down in Mexico with her newly formed and inspiring studio, Bending Tree Yoga and Healing Center. I’m so excited to see her and the other yoginis from our training while Karen is in town. I’m also looking forward to Karen guest teaching at the studio on Monday night! I will be participating as much as I can with my pregnant belly It’s definitely making its presence known lately. More to come on that! In the meantime, Welcome home, Karen!

I volunteered as a canvas for a body artist friend of mine. It was incredibly liberating and just plain fun! My mat was covered in paint when the shoot was over, but it was totally worth it.

Here are a few shots…

uttanasana

opening to grace

natarajasana

Body artist: Valentina Kai. Find her at www.medicinemuse.com

Photographer: R. Mike Lyons. Find him at www.rmikelyons.com

At the workshop on Sunday, we talked a lot about small self. Unfortunately, most of us know her on a first name basis. She’s the trash talking, flaw emphasizing, ego toting one that looks back at us when we’re brushing our teeth in the morning mirror. She’s the couldn’t have, shouldn’t have, oh no you di-nt kind of girl. The one that doubts. The one that looks around and thinks, I could never be like that, or on the opposite end of the spectrum, thinks that she’s the shit and wants you to know it in an obvious or sneaky coy sort of way. I’m the best, oh look at me, are you looking at me, no don’t look at me, no really, look. The small self stands in fear.

There is no room in my life right now for small self.

Jessica said a wonderful thing. And though she was addressing the entire group of beautiful and amazing women, I felt she was saying exactly what I needed to hear. She was speaking to me. She said it was my duty. My responsibility to share what I’ve learned. She told the story of the sage (hopefully I get this close to right ~ you’ll get the drift) who upon his death was expecting nirvana for all he had learned, and Shiva said to him, in your first life you have learned, in your second life you have learned. Now leaving this third life you have learned. But what have you given? And so he sent the sage back again, and in his fourth life he was a teacher.

I’ve thought about this concept before. And a version of this thought was one that got me on the path of teaching yoga in the first place. I wanted to change the world. And I believed that one way to do that was through yoga. Think about how you feel after your practice. Now think about every single person in the world feeling that same way. Peace? Enlightenment? How about just simple contentment for this moment? I expressed this thought to a friend once, a fellow yoga teacher. And she said something that was so far from my intention, but that affected me none the less. She said that thinking this way was my ego talking. I let that one little sentence dig into my small self. And it dug deep. But it’s finding its way back to the surface . That sense of affecting change. And now it’s even more profound because now, it’s my duty.

One week ago Sunday, my husband and I signed a lease to open a permanent location for One Rhythm Yoga. Since the Wednesday before that, when I was first considering the possibility, small self took up residency. We did everything together, and my husband was getting pretty annoyed when she kicked the covers off at night. At times, my whole self, my divine self, the part of me that KNOWS, well, she’d take over the situation in her firm voice. You know, the mother tone. And I would remember. I would remember. And I am back to the lesson of the daisy and that of my underlying strength. It’s there. And this space didn’t come to me for anything remotely having to do with my ego. I was not looking to open up a yoga studio. But then it was there, and God said, “Look Brandi. Now what will you DO with it?”

I have spent the last 13 years of my life learning what it takes to be yoga. I suppose technically I’ve spent the last 31. And I will spend the rest of this lifetime continuing that process. But here begins something new. Now I commit to being a teacher. Yes, I have been teaching. But I have never allowed myself to fully commit to it. Not really. Something happened. I discovered my duty.

I will not be surprised when small self peeks her little head in the doorway. Oh, yes, she’s a persistent little devil. I will not be surprised when she invites herself in for tea. But let me tell you friends, (and small self you best be listenin’ girl), after those lemon scones, she’s outta here. (says I in my best mama tone).

...they are a comin'

Otherwise known as “The Joy response.”

Swadhisthana

I went to a workshop today, led by one of my favorite and most inspiring teachers. I decided to go to the workshop even though I knew I couldn’t stay for the whole thing. My coworker was a gem and worked an hour longer so that I could in turn stay an hour longer, which only brought me an hour short of the ending. Got an hour thing going here, huh?

The workshop was called “Where the Goddess Stands” and focused on the second chakra, her favorite standing place. There were crazy amounts of hip opening and forward folds. This was only the second asana class I’ve attended of Jessica’s, the first being only a couple of weeks ago. Her asana practices are challenging and beautiful.

Plug for Jess here: She is the only Jivamukti teacher in Colorado Springs and she is AMAZING. Just seeing her smile makes me smile. Her inner light radiates and touches all those who are blessed to be in her presence. She teaches at Pranava Yoga Center and leads workshops and retreats year round. Check her out. You won’t regret it.

Back to the workshop: it’s part of her new Women of the Woods program (LOVE the name!) and just reading that title made me want to be a part of it. It sounded like something completely up my alley. So I went for it, telling her that I’d have to leave early. And my wonderful husband gave up his Sunday morning with me so that I could go.

We were asked to bring a flower that reminded us of our sacredness. Our feminine divinity. Even our sexuality. I brought daisies. Daisies are my favorite flower. It was my great grandmother’s name, and my aunt’s, both of whom I never met. It is the name of my daughter. Daisies remind me that beauty resides in simplicity. Also that grace, fragility, sweetness and innocence have this underlying strength that shines through against all odds. Daisies persevere in the face of a rose. And also in the presence of the weeds that she walks with daily. Daisies remind me that it’s okay to be a quiet force. I could go on and on…

So I brought daisies. We set them on the altar with images of goddesses and peacock feathers. Did you know that peacocks are the only known natural enemy of the cobra? The peacock actually transforms the venom in her body to something harmless. A reminder of how we can transform the poisons in our own lives. We each picked a goddess card from The Goddess Oracle and I got Coventina, goddess of purification. I am entering a time of cleansing and detoxification of mind and body, she says. Well, no doubt. My body is telling me lately that I better get serious about it. And my mind, well, there’s a whole other blog post.:)

Transformation

My husband and I picked our first zucchini out of the garden yesterday (see garden yoga). We were SO excited. This is the first edible thing I’ve ever grown! And it was beautiful! He made a fabulous quiche out of this beautiful vegetable and I felt overwhelmed with blessings.

Ok, that was off subject But I had to mention it.

The asana practice was intense. I had to let go of my defenses and access my inner goddess to get through it. And I did, and Savasana was so sweet. When we were called out, and about to go down for food, I looked at the time to see how much I had left and to my surprise and panic, it was already quarter after 2! There was no time for food or hugs I just had to get out of there to make it to work on time. When I made it to work I felt scattered and spacey. I attributed it to lack of food and simply that lack of full integration. Yes, I got savasana. But there needed to be something else for this particular practice, I thought. So I just went with it. Wonderful Daisy brought me a muffin and I sipped on my love latte from my wonderful husband. Then I started interacting with customers and soon I started to notice that I was absolutely elated! My mood was so elevated I was staring into bliss everywhere I looked. And then I noticed that my joyful spirit was contagious, or perhaps it was the people coming in that were wearing off on me. I don’t know, but the entire night was FUN! Just absolute pleasure and joy at being here, in this moment, with these beings. And then I started thinking, hmm… the spacey feeling that first affected me had turned into something else entirely. Joy!

So even though I don’t think I’ll choose to participate again in a workshop if I can’t stay for the entire thing, the essence eventually caught up with me. And my customers got to bask in the afterglow, even if they were unaware of the source.

Jai!

What a glorious afternoon in Colorado. After record heats the last few days, I awoke to overcast skies and now enjoy mild sunshine with gentle breezes. Oh yes. Glorious indeed.

I wanted to share my morning class with you, as it has sent me smiling into the world and I’m sure will carry with me throughout my day. First off, to “invoke” via dictionary.com:

Wow. That’s a lot to take in. Yet, that is exactly what I asked of my students this morning. That they call to heart the word, and ask what it meant for them. I then read them the short definition as presented by good 0l’ webster: to address or call upon in prayer. With that in mind, I expressed my desire as a teacher to share with them that our bodies are our prayers. Whether we hold religion, spirituality, or just a simple faith that we are alive on this Earth, we can all benefit from a moment of prayer, a moment of communion.

So as we sat through our pranayama practice, as we experienced those first movements into our vinyasas, we prayed. We prayed with our bodies. And though some may not have gotten it, I think that as they continue with their practice, they will. Your yoga may start out as something physical. It may start out as something that you do because you have tight hamstrings, or tension in your shoulders. It is my belief, though not imposed, that through a regular asana practice you begin to discover the spirit of yoga. You begin to peel into the layers of your own divine nature.

Let me tell you a secret:

We all need to be reminded sometime. I think coming to your mat is an excellent way to remember.

My favorite girl humored me with her camera skills. Check it.

adho mukha svanasana

trikonasana

trikonasana

utthita tadasana

salute!

utthita tadasana

om namah shivaya

advadanta sirsasana

surrender

balasana

It’s been some time since I’ve posted on this blog. I am happy to note that we’ve succeeded (sort of) in growing (some) things. The garden project is a continuing adventure. By next year, we should have it down.

I’ve felt somewhat neglectful of this blog, but then decided that it was okay, being that it’s more important to live my yoga than to write about it.

My public teaching schedule is limited lately. I’ve been kept rather busy in other areas. My 2 classes at Spectrum are going well, the energy has improved there and I feel like I owe that to Rebecca and Alice. I feel so honored that they chose to continue with me from Om and Garden, and it’s like a little bit of that sacred space came with them.

Or it could be that having them there has allowed me to free up the energy I’ve been holding in. Either way, I am so grateful to have them there.

Life and its daily rhythms are carrying on. Each day is filled. Plenty of chaos. Plenty of love.

I keep breathing.

in the zone, yo.

While digging out a site for a new garden bed, I was playing around with balances on my shovel. I’m fairly light weight. So when I dig the shovel into the dirt I have to put my whole body into it to really make a dent. When I do that, one foot first then the other, I’m essentially balancing my whole body weight on the rim of the shovel.

I dance with it sometimes, swaying here and there. It’s a laugh if you were to see me.

So anyway, my daughter came out with the cell phone and grabbed a couple of shots of my shovel yoga.

Tree pose was not super difficult, putting my weight slightly towards one side of the body rather than directly in the center. But Dancer, well that was another story and will definitely need more practice. Couldn’t quite balance enough to take the leg any higher.

It was fun though.

Happy gardening.

care to dance, anyone?

I just taught my last class at Om and Garden… unbeknownst to us all when we began our practice this afternoon.

During Savasana I received a message from Kim telling me that the closing ceremony would be Monday night. As I sat there in quiet meditation, evening out my breath to that of my students, I grew profoundly grateful. I could not think of a more lovely group of women to share this with than those that lay before me now…

At closing prayer, I told them the news and how happy I was to know them. I know that they’ll come to my classes elsewhere. But there was something about the space we shared and the energy we created at Om and Garden. I’ll miss it. And I know they’ll miss it too.

To those students and friends, old and new, that shared your time, energy and love at that studio: Thank you so much for allowing me the grace of your spirits. I am honored by each one of you.

With the deepest gratitude, }♥{

~Brandi

Seane Corn Vinyasa Flow

(*click on the link above to be directed to the video inspiration for this post)

Seane Corn

Yoga as prayer and an offering to the Divine… she speaks from my own heart.

This is what yoga is to me. My way of communion. My connection to Spirit. When I am lost in my practice, listening to the sound of the ocean deep within my breath, it is then that I feel most connected to Spirit.

When I study with Shiva, she often brings me to my prayer. There is something beautifully inspiring about a teacher that can lead you into your own body, and into your heart.

I’ve never studied with Seane Corn personally, but I like what I see and what I read. I’d like to one day. But even if that chance never comes, I believe we’re on the same path. Yoga is magic. Try it. You’ll see.