Reciprocity

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This week we focused on the earth element.  Feeling the support of the earth beneath us, the firm, solid ground .... it's a really wonderful, stabilizing force.  An earth-based practice is also a great remedy for the "over-thinking" mind.  We can walk through our days so caught up in thought we don't even notice our bodies or feel our feet walk on the Earth.    

What's really key is this reciprocity of you releasing, rooting down and that feeling of stability, support, structure moving up your body.  As you listen for that feedback in your foundation (the silent strength of the Earth supporting you), an ease, a quiet, a calm comes to the mind and the nervous system.    In addition to the vinyasa flow, students explored drishti, the feeling of stability, and fun exercises to strengthen their feet.

Listening

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This week's practice was a practice of listening.  Listening to your body, to your breath and to the poses.  Staying focused on these questions as you practice:  

What is the pose telling me?  What is the pose awakening in me (inspiration, hope, courage, peace)?  What is the pose assisting me with (possibly rooting out fear or doubt).  

As we all work to drop below the judgments and expectations of the mind, students were encouraged to refine their practice to honor whatever was coming up that day while trusting the process to keep on practicing, noticing, listening, exploring and being curious.  

We strengthened the back with salambasana; we strengthened the core with chair into boat pose.  Students brought their curiosity and listening to challenging balancing flows and deep twists.  Learning to engage an even amount of energy throughout the pose while still creating space for deep, unhurried breath.  We closed practice using a strap on the back foot in pigeon to further open the quads, shoulders and back.  Ending in a quieting savasana.  Namaste, Lynn

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Artist: Kit Night PO Box 551110  South Lake Tahoe, CA  96155

Great book!

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Yoga teachers were asked, "What is your favorite yoga book".  Several teachers mentioned this book.  I hadn't read it.  I bought it, and I'm loving it!  It's written in story form and filled with relatable gems of wisdom.  One of the earliest quotes in the book reminds us:  

The poses bring a feeling of well-being ... Which stays with you.

Below I've typed from the back cover:  

Everyone knows that The Yoga Sutra is the ultimate source of all yoga.  What you might not realize is that this ancient book contains all the secrets you need to know in order to heal both your body and your heart; to overcome any kind of illness or unhappiness; and to reach a place of splendid health, strength, and peace.  

The secrets of how yoga really works to make us truly whole are revealed here in a delightful story based on how these precious teachings reached Tibet from their home in India over a thousand years ago.  

Enjoy, Lynn

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