Unwording and the benefits of space, stillness and silence

There are two kinds of pain. The trick is to discriminate between the one that’s inevitable and the one that’s self-generated.

Here are some great online resources on anxiety, fear, mindfulness and yoga philosophy.

I’ve always been ambitious. I was the hyper-responsible eldest child. I was the people-pleaser and the kid who would finish my homework and then look around for other people who needed help with theirs. If I were a Simpson, I’d be Lisa.

Accessible Yoga.org is an organization dedicated to making yoga practice available to everyone. Last week I was able to contribute and article to their blog. If you're interested the article is called: When is Accessible Yoga Actually Accessible?

The past month has been so tough, for so many reasons. It feels like there are fires burning everywhere. If you’re like me, the temptation is always to withdraw into the safe shell of home, family and entertainment and to focus on what’s good for me and mine. But that translates into turning my back on people in need, and that’s an age old problem.

I always struggle at this time of year with the influx of “cheerleading,” and “buy now!” newsletters that pile up in my inbox. Each year at this time we’re encouraged to get fit, find our true purpose, lose ten pounds and make more money. I think these things can be helpful and good, and yet, and yet…

My friend Leslee sent me this quite a while ago, and I meant to post it right away. I got busy and distracted and forgot all about it, which is all the more ironic in a person (me) who is always blathering on about slowing down. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Ask any yoga teacher about the origin of yoga and you are likely to hear that yoga is an ancient tradition going back thousands of years. This is not untrue, but not the whole truth either. Recent research has revealed that the form of yoga we practice today would have been unknown in India prior to the twentieth century.

A friend of mine passed away a few weeks ago and I’ve been thinking about him a lot. Quish was an eccentric and entertaining person and full of self-acceptance. We shared a love of books, Ireland, Jamieson’s, and stories. He used to carry a wad of crumpled up Post-it notes that he referred to as his Blackberry. He once said his next house pet would be an Asian elephant because he needed something that would out-live him. (He was holding out for an apartment-sized elephant).

John Mayer had a popular song a few years back called “Your Body is a Wonderland.” Lately I’ve been feeling that way about my own body, only in my case it feels like Alice’s Wonderland, a place where unexpected, bizarre, and sometimes inexplicable things happen. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that living in a body is more of a negotiation, or accepting limitations, than a case of mind over matter.

I’ve been practicing yoga for over twenty years now. (I started before Madonna!). I’ve been immersed in a culture of healthy eating, moderation, reverence for all beings, compassion, empathy, and ethical living. And some days I have this irresistible urge to binge on Big Macs, Irish Whiskey and bad movies. I’m reminded of the cooking show called “The Two Fat Ladies” which featured Clarissa and Jennifer–chain-smoking, wine-swilling, excess aficionados who managed to incorporate bacon and heavy cream into everything they cooked. I adored them.

Although it felt like it would never happen, the time for gardening is here. Remember that when you haven’t been in your garden for six months you need to start slowly and build up gradually.

Ancient India, the birthplace of yoga, produced a dizzying number of stories about gods and goddesses and their various exploits. The stories are symbolic, meant to teach about social mores, values, and psychological states. Usually the god or goddess has a “mount,” and this vehicle/animal has a meaning as well.

Ancient India, the birthplace of yoga, produced a dizzying number of stories about gods and goddesses and their various exploits. The stories are symbolic, meant to teach about social mores, values, and psychological states. Usually the god or goddess has a “mount,” and this vehicle/animal has a meaning as well.

I don’t often write about the physical aspects of yoga practice. I made this choice early on, mainly because there are an abundance of excellent yoga websites that focus almost exclusively on the “asana” (i.e. postural) practice.