Tropical Mindfulness

    With much gratitude for everyone and everything that have brought me to this place and time, I am sitting looking out over the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of Hawai’i (the Big Island).  I hear the sound of small waves breaking against the relatively fresh Earth of lava rock pools between me and the deep blue sea.  I feel a warm breeze on my sun baked skin. I see a good sized Honu (green sea turtle) is basking on the rocks.  I saw some small, young ones swimming in the small protected pool earlier as well.  Will they also come out to bask? Who knows?  We must wait and see, and be with what is happening right now, right?

      

  Except, I am at this very moment also writing a blog post, so perhaps I should be mindfully attending to that!  I recently listened to a talk on dharmaseeds.org by Michelle McDonald and she points out that if we were completely mindful of everything every moment, our heads would basically explode.  Though she may have put it more eloquently than that.

  

      The reason I started this post, and the reason for the wave photos was because I was feeling very clever after noticing the following:

     I was watching the waves come and go on the beach the first day we arrived here.  I tried to mindfully watch one wave arrive, crest, ripple up the beach and recede. But there was always another wave right behind, capturing my attention.  It proved verrrry tricky to focus on one wave at a time. Just like my thoughts and experiences.  They come so quickly, that I feel lucky to be able to notice one at all.  I try to slow down and notice, but not be harsh or judgmental towards  myself if I cannot.  After all, I certainly do not want my brain to explode.

What are you seeing/hearing/smelling/feeling/tasting at this very moment?


Disclaimer:

It's not like I'm some kind of mindfulness expert, but I have been attempting to be more mindful since beginning my yoga teacher training with Yoga Calm about 5 years ago.  Mindfulness certainly doesn't always make life more pleasant, but it definitely makes it more interesting, and I enjoy weaving it into my yoga teaching and daily life. My starter book was Mindfulness for Beginners by Jon Kabat-Zinn.

Visit my website shadygroveendeavors.com for information on my yoga classes in Eugene, Oregon.

Crafting Season Is Upon Us:

 Keep Your Joints and Mind Healthy For More Enjoyment of Your Craft with Bo Yoga

      Fall brings us shorter, rainier days and the reminder that some major holidays are drawing closer. For me, this means more hours to spin, knit and weave as I snuggle in to my cozy home and happily think of gifts I might still have time to create for my loved ones. Whether you are a fiber fanatic, a paper piecing powerhouse, a jewelry genie, a decoupage diva, a sewing superstar, or a woodworking wizard, you too may relish this time of year. As much joy as I get from my various pursuits however, they all have one thing in common. I find myself sitting for hours in less than perfect ergonomic form; my hands, wrists, shoulders and back get tired if I stay at it too long. Then there is the self-imposed stress of making sure I have just the right thing for each person!

Luckily for me I discovered Bo Yoga in April and have come to love its gentle joint rotations, supported stretching and balancing, and energy work. I have been doing yoga for 20 years and have been teaching it for over a year now, and as much as I still love traditional yoga for many reasons, I have found a special place in my heart for the Bo Staff (Balance Bar) and the Bo Yoga style of teaching. I can take mini breaks from weaving dishtowels, grab my balance bar and move through a few simple Bo Yoga warmups to help relax the stiffness out of my upper body and get the circulation flowing from my toes to the crown of my head. If I’m feeling a little creaky from too much sitting after a long stretch of spinning, I can do a few standing poses with the helpful support of the Balance Bar. Speaking of spinning, one of the most fun aspects of Bo Yoga is you get to spin the Bo Staff sometimes! There is little to no weight bearing on wrists or shoulders in Bo Yoga poses, so you can exercise and lubricate those important crafting joints gently without strain or pressure, leaving you fresh for your next project.

And let us not forget the pressure so many of us put on ourselves to make everything “just right” for the holidays; often crafting into the wee hours and stressing about getting things started or finished. Most Bo Yoga classes include sessions of energy work involving fun and easy vibration/dance and Qi Gong/Tai Chi style movements before final savasana to help balance minds and emotions. I find this aspect of Bo Yoga to be gloriously simple as there are no complex cues to follow, yet deeply moving. The energy work calms and grounds my mind and nervous system, leaving me refreshed and energized to take on the next craft project, or, perhaps, to decide that I have done enough for this year.

 


    Join my class on Monday mornings at Eugene Yoga downtown at 10:30-11:45 to experience Bo yoga for yourself. 

      Bo Yoga is appropriate for all ages and genders of crafty (and non-crafty!) folks. It is a supportive, non-competitive, all levels community. Beginners are welcome, and even the most experienced yogis will find something new to love in Bo Yoga.

You can visit my new website at shadygroveendeavors.com to learn more about my new ventures as a yoga teacher.

 



Don't live in Eugene? 
Check out boyoga.com for more information about this growing trend.

See you at the yarn shops and art supply stores between classes!