Do you sometimes struggle with making decisions?  I know I do, and there seem to be more and more decisions to make every day.  Sure, we still have the simple ones like what to wear and where to go out to eat. But then there's the bigger ones, like will it be safe?  Do I need to wear a mask?  Should I travel right now?  Is this still the job I want?  What should I tell my loved ones about x, y, z, and will they understand? 

I went to a Hanukkah party recently that made it clear to me we're all still deciding things.  The party was indoor and outdoor.  Some people wore masks, some did not.  Some chose not to come.  Some said "hi" but kept their distance.  And you know what?  All of those decisions were fine and acceptable.  The host family made it clear that all personal decisions were valid and welcome.  They even provided a basket of masks for those who wanted one but didn't have one.  So cool.

I think the problem comes when we doubt ourselves and our decisions.  We can fret not onl...

2021 has been so rich with...experience...that it's hard to believe it's coming to an end. And in this Season of Light, whether you celebrate Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, or simply love being surrounded by twinkle lights or connecting to Source, we can think about the image of light during these Holy-days as radiant illumination, guiding us on our path of enlightenment.

I'm sure you don't need me to tell you that this season of light is also a season of busyness. Your to-do list might be longer and your social calendar more full than usual. Yet I encourage you to build in some pauses every day to take a breath and tune in to your Light.

What does this mean? It can mean something different to everyone. For me, it's my soul. I check in with my truest essence, which lives in the darkness of my heart center and shines light throughout. It's a steady glow of Life within me that connects me to you, to Divine, to nature, to my family, to humanity. It's always there, but I don't always noti...

There are countless benefits to taking a yoga vacation with an experienced teacher you know and love to a place that is heaven on earth.  Here are my five favorites:

Remember

We each carry around several identities.  We wear them in layers around our True Self. They are the labels of our life, like mother, director, husband, employee, caretaker, and leader.  Each label carries with it its own responsibilities and obligations.  When you go on a retreat...they all go away.  You get to be the person you were before you got married, before you had kids, before your time became swallowed up with adulthood.  You get to remember who YOU are, with no strings attached. 

Replenish

There are “vacations”  there are “trips,”and there are “oblications.” They are all different degrees of fun, and they get you out of normal day-to-day activity.  But afterward, you often need to recover! Rest after a vacation?  Not with a yoga retreat.  When you retreat to another place, get your fill of yoga...

If you've been a student of mine for any length of time, I'm sure you've heard me quote my dad.  And though he passed away 18 years ago, his voice still advises me in my head. 

One of my favorites came to mind today, and that is how he sometimes made decisions about what he should do at any given time based on what he would think about in the "rest home."  I don't know how p.c. it is to say "rest home," but that's what he called it.  (Also "old folks home," if you prefer.) 

For example, when advising me on who to marry, he suggested I marry someone I'd want to still talk to in my "rest home rocking chair."  Or should I spend money on a certain extravagance? Well, what do you want to count in the rest home, money or memories?

Experiences were always important and worth it, in my dad's opinion.  Worth the time, the money, the risk, and the effort.  This guiding principle has pushed me out of my comfort zone to go for it so many times, and I've never regretted it! 

So today when Laura...

Can you believe we're already in the last week of October?  And we all know what that means--once the ghosts are returned to their graves and the candy is secretly stashed away, we are racing towards full-on holiday mode!  This might make you grin, or it might make you shiver.  Either way, I know one thing that helps is yoga.

When you have a daily practice of yoga, several things begin to happen:

  Stuff bothers you less.

 You have fewer aches and pains.

 Your relationships improve.

 You feel stronger.

 You become more flexible--literally and figuratively.

 You experience an increase in self-confidence for showing up for yourself on the daily.

 You become more aware of your internal state of temper and emotions.

 You walk through the world more mindfully. You are present! 

 Joy starts to sneak into the mundane moments of your day.

 Your mat begins to call to you like a dear friend--practice becomes habit and you feel the effects multiply!

So, while I'm away in Guatema...

As you might already know, last Thursday was my birthday.  This means I got to start the day teaching--which is my favorite way to start the day.  What a gift!  But as I shared with the class last week, that wasn't always the case.   I used to stress about it, starting the night before.  "What am I going to teach?  What poses will my students like?  What will they find inspiring? Will they even show up?? Will they come back?  What am I going to wear??"

The problem with these questions is that they were all about me and how I was doing and how I would be perceived.  I'm telling you now--that's a real joy-sucker.  WHILE I'm teaching I've always loved it, but the lead time had strife.  Unnecessary strife, to be sure. Because I was missing it!  I was missing the gift life had handed me with my silly worrying.  So I changed the language.   Now, instead of thinking, "I have to teach in the morning,"  I think,

"I get to teach in the morning."

This has made all the difference. It's...

I’m getting excited about our October Yoga Community Gathering happening on October 24! (Information and registration HERE.)  In thinking about being at the Firm Foundations Equine Therapy Ranch again, I remembered I wrote about my experience there back in 2019.  It's been a while, and now you might actually MEET Charlie the horse, so I thought I'd share it again for you here. 

It's really interesting to me to read this pre-pandemic post from a post-pandemic (or during pandemic) point of view.  Living with uncertainty is the norm now, and I recognize every day just how much I don't have control over.  Somehow I'm more ok with that as well.  See if you feel the same…

I have to tell you about this amazing experience I had last week.  I went out to Firm Foundations Equine Services in Wimberley, Texas.  Lindsey, the therapist there, had reached out to me to see if a collaboration might be something worth exploring. (Hint--yes it is!) My event curator, Angela, and I went out there t...

What was your nickname as a kid? If you're like me, you had several. My dad called me "Fly," because when I was a baby I moved my hands and feet like a fly. (Who didn't?) It sounds gross, but it stuck to the point of my dad putting a custom-made fly decal on the driver's door of my first car, complete with fancy eyelashes.

My mom called me "Itsy Bitsy Guru." The origin story there is unknown, but I like to think I was a wise and knowing toddler ;)

What a guru actually IS, is anyone or anything that brings light to darkness. Gu, meaning darkness, and roo, meaning dispel. Together, guru. 

The light reveals what is hidden; what is in the shadows. When we can't see in a dark room, we are prone to fear, to stubbing our toe, to standing still rather than risk walking in the dark. So we turn on a light and walk right in.  It is the same with our lives. It is the same in our mind.

Every chakra, or energy center within us, has a shadow, or a dark side.  It is the process of awareness and enlight...

As I think about my New Year intention and resolutions, I’m trying to remember that there are no disciplines or practices that will make me a more worthy human. Now I can stop grasping, pushing, clinging, struggling, and fighting to self improve. Just be

Welcome to 2021! Feels much like 2020, huh? I'm ok with that. Big change and worthy transition takes time. I'm still reflecting a bit, even as I'm super excited to forge ahead.  Recently on my podcast, we listened to each chakra and asked ourselves how 2020 affected us in all areas of our lives.  (If you haven’t listened yet, I encourage you to listen to that PODCAST episode (#101) where I take you through the chakras and corresponding questions. You can also download the accompanying PDF, and spend 15-20 minutes asking yourself those questions.)  I really feel looking back is imperative to moving forward with wisdom and right action. Because we DO want to move forward!

Even today, as I look around and listen to the chatter on...