Monday, November 23, 2009

Imagine a woman...

One of the beautiful women in my yoga teacher training read this and took my breath away. This training has given me so many gifts and most of all a strong sense of who I am as a woman in the 20th century. I am forever grateful to all the women that stood beside me through the past eight months. Eternal OM SHANTI.

Imagine a woman...

Imagine a woman who believes it is right and good she is a woman.
A woman who honors her experience and tells her stories.
Who refuses to carry the sins of others within her body and life.

Imagine a woman who trusts and respects herself.
A woman who listens to her needs and desires.
Who meets them with tenderness and grace.

Imagine a woman who acknowledges the past's influence on the present.
A woman who has walked through her past.
Who has healed into the present.

Imagine a woman who authors her own life.
A woman who exerts, initiates, and moves on her own behalf.
Who refuses to surrender except to her truest self and wisest voice.

Imagine a woman who names her own gods.
A woman who imagines the divine in her image and likeness.
Who designs a personal spirituality to inform her daily life.

Imagine a woman in love with her own body.
A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is.
Who celebrates its rhythms and cycles as an exquisite resource.

Imagine a woman who honors the body of the Goddess in her changing body.
A woman who celebrates the accumulation of her years and her wisdom.
Who refuses to use her life-energy disguising the changes in her body and life.

Imagine a woman who values the women in her life.
A woman who sits in circles of women.
Who is reminded of the truth about herself when she forgets.

Imagine yourself as this woman.

"imagine a woman" Patricia Lynn Reilly, 1995

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

I am officially off to Mexico.
I will be spending my new year in a small fishing village in Mexico practicing yoga everyday.... twice (at least!). I will be graduating from my teacher training in December and I could think of no better way to begin a steady practice on my own than at a retreat. . . in sunny Mexico. It will be a fantastic eight days, I just can't get enough. I am also just finishing up my yoga for teens class at the high school and will start up again next semester. In the mean time I am looking into learning more about yoga for teens and possibly getting certified in yoga specifically for teenagers. They have been such a wonderful group to work with and I would love to open more classes for them. I also have an opportunity to help with a wellness workshop for high school girls teaching them yoga which I am so thrilled about and will start in January when I return. So many breathtaking events happening, I can't even begin to explain it all! Om Shanti!

Friday, November 6, 2009

candied apples
oranges with cloves making our cider yummy!

Sweets and Meats Market is as fall as it can get.  I have been able to play with caramelizing apples and making hot mulled apple cider.  There is always something new happening and we are already making plans for the holidays!  These past couple of months have flown by - Julia had her third annual Meatmus/Meat-a-palooza party (the table was graced with bear meat and venison ribs (?)), I am now teaching two teen yoga classes soon to be three this winter (with a possibility of using space at Shiva Shakti while my teachers are in India for six months).  All of this seems just right.  While Finn lays curled up next to me in our cozy cottage I am thankful once again for the path I am on. Om!