Now that we are back in action in Monday Morning Yoga, I'm again reminded of something I love to see in a group practice: the generative energy of asana!

Since asana simply means posture, you are actually in an asana right now as you sit (or stand) and read these words. And how is your seated posture? Do you succumb to gravity and slouch, or is there a lift within you that, at first, takes effort, and over time gets easier?

When we forget that we can be our own engines of energy, we tend to shrink down and collapse a bit. Our breathing gets shallower as our diaphragm has less space to move and pull oxygen into our lungs. We get tired, even sad. Then core muscles grow weaker and aches and pains ensue.

But you are generative! You have "the power or function of generating, originating, producing, or reproducing." ~ Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

Just try this with me:

~ Whether you're sitting or standing, interlace your fingers on the crown of your head.

~ Now pull down on...

Every Monday, at the end of the day, I settle into my favorite comfy chair in the front room next to Lila, our sweet Red Heeler dog, and I write my blog. Ideas of what I want to say to you are always bouncing around in my head. My phone is full of little voice memos to myself and dictated notes of things I want to share. I always want these weekly love notes to be of value to you, whether that's to make you think, help you remember, inspire you, give you a treat, or just plain inform you of what's going on. 

Today the theme of adventure is on my mind as I'm warm inside while it's literally freezing outside. To have an enjoyable outdoor adventure would require getting out of town. So I'm dreaming about that. Also, snuggling up inside is a perfect time for yummy meditation, like an inner adventure. So I'm dreaming about that, too. And sometimes we like to go on adventures that take us deeper into self knowing and the journey is simply the path of life. I'm dreaming of that...

I hope easing into 2024 has been a breeze for you so far. Today the wind was HIGH in Austin, but I went on my bike ride anyway.  My 35 minute ride took almost an hour! It didn't seem to matter if I downshifted, upshifted, or just decreased the resistance. That wind was going to win, and the windbreaker I was wearing didn't break a thing. 

When I have extra long bike rides I have extra time to think, and these days I'm thinking about chakras a little extra as I prepare for our workshop on Thursday.   

Chakras are part of your subtle body system; your energetic self. You can't see them, but they spin like gears and encounter the world around you and create the world within you. This can be hard to wrap the mind around. I get it. Truth be told, I don't think we have to understand or believe all that to make the chakras, and the study of them, valuable, applicable, and pragmatic.

Here are 3 ways I use the chakras as a valuable framework for...

Happy Winter Solstice! This is the shortest day of the year for the Northern Hemisphere, or the longest night, depending on how you look at it. I like to focus on the night aspect, because it's the longer nights that create the space for longer silence.

I imagine in the pre-industrial days this time of year was very quiet. Activity quieted down when the sun went down, so more hours to read, sleep, and chitchat by the fire. I've actually been feeling like doing just that ever since an acorn hit me on the head in mid-September while I was walking a labyrinth.

I've been in "Acorn Time," as I've taken to calling it.

Without much warning, rhyme, or reason, my creative drive has slowed down and my productivity is low. And rather than fight it, I've gotten curious about it. I've allowed myself to follow my cravings, whether it's for a nap, a walk, a cookie, or a night out. Despite how awesome all that sounds, because my natural tendency is to plan and produce, this has...

 I hope you’ve taken some time to consider how to make these holidays happier by living with purpose, seeking enjoyment, and fostering satisfaction. (Doesn’t sound familiar? You can catch up on my blog post How to Have Happier Holidays.) 

That was what I THOUGHT was going to be the theme of the Yoga Community Gathering last weekend, but, as I said at the time, that’s not the class that wanted to be taught. The one that wanted to be taught was about JOY. So I had to follow the thread!

We were inspired by the newsletter from the Center for Action and Contemplation, and the writing of Fr. Richard Rohr about his time in Istanbul:

“I attended the prayer of the Sufi whirling dervishes. Again, in this sacred dance, there was a spinning around a calm and fixed center. In fact, a dervish cannot fake a calm center and survive the prayer. One foot has to be firmly, calmly grounded in a Stable Love or they cannot do the dance…”...

I hope your Thanksgiving was restful or exciting, whichever direction you wanted it to go. Mine was a little of both–restful with family, fun, and food, and exciting–How ‘bout those Texas Longhorns?  

Either way, I hope it was happy. I’ve been following the recent press about Oprah’s new book, “Build the Life You Want: The Art and Sciences of Getting Happier.” She co-wrote it with Harvard professor Arthur C. Brooks, who teaches a class all about happiness, and has written other books on the topic as well.

Whenever I hear about a new research on happiness my ears and interest definitely perk up. After all, happiness is a basic human desire I think we all have, so the quest for it captures my attention every time. Yoga also has a long history of helping people make their lives happier through the balance and awareness of mind, body, and spirit, so it's kinda my jam.

This quest for happiness has been going on for...

Did you know I've been writing this blog/email every week since September, 2020?  Obviously if you've been a student of mine since before then you heard from me a lot previously, and I have missed a week here and there, but pretty much every Tuesday morning you can count on me showing up in your inbox with something to say, offer, question, or promote. And as we enter this month of gratitude, I am so very grateful for your readership, response, and engagement. Some of you I've known for over a decade, some of you just joined up through my podcast or a friend sharing an email. Regardless, there are now over a thousand of you who receive my missives, come to events, listen to my podcast, or study with me online. We are a strong bunch of yogis, and it is my immense pleasure and joy to connect with you here every week. So thank you for reading! 

This week I want to reiterate what Jess on the Mountain podcast episode 30 is all about, and invite you to two...

Surrender.

We talk about this a lot in transformational spaces and conversations. It’s even the third part of Yoga in Action. And until I had a great conversation with Shannon Jamail, founder and creator of the Mind & Body Complete, who literally wrote the book Surrender, I didn’t question this concept very much. I’m all for it, as I know there’s only so much I have power over in my life. But then in Jess On The Mountain Episode 28 , she lay this little gem on me:

“I don’t surrender my power…I surrender control.” 

Surrender your power.

Surrender your control.

Both sound pretty powerless at first. But when we surrender control, but not our power, it means using our power to open our clenched fist and let go. (Which, Shannon points out, is then open and able to receive.) 

Your power is yours, and it’s for you to maintain and use for good. Control, and the desire to control, often stem...

How busy are you these days? Is life feeling pretty full and fast? I’m with you! This is when the things I need to do, have to do, and want to do all start getting mixed up and more than a few things fall through the cracks. Sometimes, the first to go are the things that I know need to stay in place. In case you’re like me, let’s remember together.

When life gets busy, we have to double down on minding our health and good habits. 

I had a student once say to me that she “and Beyonce have the same amount of time each day, it just depends on what they do with it.” I’m not sure what the connection to Beyonce is…perhaps we could all be queens and rock stars if we wanted to? Regardless, the sentiment stuck with me. We each get the same 24 hours. We can DO THIS.

From working one to one with hundreds of clients and students over the years, I’ve learned that, for most of us, when we get busy and stressed, we drop the...

I just returned from a fantastic long weekend in Chicago with Nick. We became enamored with this city! The architecture was amazing, we took in three museums, and enjoyed three shows. Well, two of them anyway. 

Because we’re both comedy fans, each night was a different comedic showcase. First, Second City sketch comedy was brilliant. Our third night was Drunk Shakespeare, which if you don’t mind booze, is hilarious! The one in the middle was stand up comedy at The Comedy Bar. This was not-so-great, but it didn’t have to be that way! 

I have a feeling the headliner we saw was usually funny. This was just not his night. He watched his emcee open to mediocre applause, and his first two acts didn't do much better. We didn’t feel like we were part of a particularly hostile crowd, but we started to wonder as each act went up and, well, bombed. I can admit that our crowd wasn’t on their best behavior (unlike Nick and me, sitting up...