Hello, Yoga Friends!
I hope this note finds you well and enjoying the turn of the calendar, the year, and the season. I also hope that you are being gentle with yourself as you live each day with your new or reestablished intentions, resolutions, or acknowledgments. Remember that you can always, shift, change, or revise your plans as you learn what works and what doesn’t. Allow January to be a “feeling it out” kinda month and practice flexibility with yourself and your expectations. Just like easing into a yoga pose at the beginning of your practice when your hamstrings are still cold — bend your knees a little! Trying out new routines and establishing new habits requires the same kind of care. So, bend your knees a little, bow your head a bit, and lift the corners of your mouth!
Updates
2019 was filled with some unexpected challenges and surprising opportunities for me. Was yours the same? I’ve grown some, learned a lot, and stepped into new responsibilities. {The next bit is lengthy, so feel free to skip to The Wrap Up!}
Yoga Class Offerings
As many of you know, last summer the old standby, Monday night Power Yoga Practice, took a back seat to my eldest son. It had become glaringly apparent that he will graduate and move out in less than three years, and I decided to offer my Monday nights to assist the Mansfield Symphony Youth Orchestra so I could spend more time with him. He’s been playing in the organization for many years, and it has been a blessing to be closer to him in this endeavor and share the experience in a new way. The decision feels right and good.
While I’m happy with this wise choice, I’ve felt myself longing for the rhythms of the vinyasa flow and the energy of the power yoga spirit. I’ve been scrounging around my family’s schedule for a new night to hold the class but have come up empty-handed. We’ll soon have a third driver in the family, though, so let’s keep our hopes high that the right night will open up in its own time.
Currently, I’m guiding Gentle Yoga for Strength & Vitality each Monday and Wednesday from 9:30 – 10:30am. I’ve created themes for each month so you’ll know in advance where some of our focus will be. You can view the themes at the Weekly Yoga Class page if you’re curious.
New Work
In addition to changing up my regular yoga teaching schedule this year, I’ve also changed up my stay-at-home time by joining the staff at Mind Body Align last August. This has been exciting, challenging, liberating, and supportive. My official title is Mindfulness & Yoga Educator, which means I teach both mindfulness and yoga classes and workshops at the Butterfly House, as well as off site for special events and programs. I also work with the Wellness Education Director to bring mind body awareness practices to the students of our local Mansfield City Schools. MBawareness Educational Program is moving into the end of its pilot year, and it’s been fun and rewarding to share my passion with younger students!
In addition to these endeavors I provide outreach and special programming for local community centers, area first-responders, and those in caring professions throughout mid-Ohio.
Writing and Learning
Continuing eduation and writing are a big part of my world right now. I’ve completed a second six-week course through Mindful Schools called Mindful Educator Essentials and have been accepted into their year-long Mindful Teacher Certification Program, which will begin this July. In November I began Yoga on High‘s 300-hour teacher training which will bring my credentialed hours beyond 500. I’m thrilled to be able to share new theories, perspectives, and practices with my students!
In addition to these trainings, I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to share my writing at Christians Practicing Yoga, a website dedicated to healing divides. I’m humbled to be a part of this amazing team of writers, yogis, and Christians. Follow the link to read more about the vision and mission of this extraordinary group of yogis proclaiming Christ.
The Catholic Yogi – A Trinitarian Focus in Yoga Practice
I still offer some independent sessions and classes and have been blessed with opportunities to share Yoga for Resilience with students at the 179th airlift wing. The chaplains there have been instrumental in bringing trauma-informed, mindfulness-based yoga practice to the base, and it’s been totally cool to share not only the physical and mental aspects of yoga, but the spiritual as well. Over the past few months I’ve also been able to share yoga practices with Christian Families who are curious about holistic health and pursuing ways they can integrate physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing. (Super-Cool.)
The Wrap Up
Be on the lookout for a couple of fun new things:
By the end of the month, my first ever guided meditation will be available at Christians Practicing Yoga and right here at The Catholic Yogi. It’s called Setting Intentions for a New Year: Discovering Your Sankalpa, and I really hope you’ll check it out. I’m planning to record a few more meditations over the next couple of months, so for those of you who used to ask me to make relaxation cd’s ten, fifteen year ago (and I said,” No way!”), you’re about to get something even better, mp3 audio files in the palm of your hand. Hopefully it will be worth the wait!
The new Ask a Yogi section of the Mind Body Align newsletter will feature real questions from real people just like you — because I’m asking you to submit some! Yours truly will offer her best response, and while I don’t know everything, I promise to do my research, query my own teachers and colleagues when I need to, and bring you the most helpful and supportive information I can. (If you’re not already in the loop, follow this link to the MBA website and sign up for the newsletter, Align.)
Don’t Forget
- Be gentle with yourself (bend your knees a little)
- Keep practicing
- Visit Christians Practicing Yoga & Mind Body Align to sign up for their blogs & newsletters
- Spread the word about Mind Body Align’s MBAwareness Educational Program & summer teacher workshops
- Check out my meditation once it goes live
- Ask a Yogi Q & A: Submit your questions about yoga and mindfulness here
- Forward this to anyone you think might benefit
That’s it for now, friends. I look forward to seeing you at the studio and teaching your kids in the classroom. Until then, Happy Practicing!
The Catholic Yogi
(Photos by Pexels)
Generous Wisdom | Spacious Heart 