I read once that it’s better not to apologize for a delay in proper etiquette.  Rather, that the renewed effort alone is enough.  Suffice to say, I feel badly for not having written in weeks and I’m glad to find you here reading, connecting with me.

The last I wrote I was on my way to Knoxville and Nashville, TN.  My husband and I traveled to Tennessee for a weekend workshop at the University of Tennessee, where Marc is earning his MBA.  We drove from Knoxville to Nashville on Saturday afternoon, and stayed at the Grand Ole Opry, Gaylord Hotel for two nights before I returned home, and Marc worked a trade show, for his real job.  Tennessee was delightful:  Interesting territory, great food, charming shopping, and most importantly, easy yoga access.

Interesting territory.  The whole focus of the workshop at UT was Work, Life, Balance.  For the past couple of years Marc and  I have talked quite a bit about our hopes and ideas.  We have road tripped enough to continue the conversation from where we left it a few months earlier and fill in the blanks.  Even while completing the one hour personal satisfaction survey, I felt more annoyed by the process of assessment than by the content of the questions.  Professors Kate Atchley and Lane Morris led a small group of  ”life partners” through a Myers Briggs test, a building houses from candy challenge, to  cartoon sketching our life’s stress and finding verbal patterns within each pair’s descriptions of the illustration.  It actually was very intriguing.   ENFP- maybe I shouldn’t tell you, if you know what it means, write back with yours.

While the stimulus of statistical behavioral science is tempting so was the sunshine, and barely into our second session the fire alarm sounded and we evacuated the building.  Everyone grabbed their personal belongings, probably a direct defiance of fire safety rules, but we knew we weren’t coming back to class.  We had already checked out of the hotel, so we made our way to Nashville, searching for Johnny Cash on the radio.  The landscape was barely barren, like little slivers of green grass or budding branches  hidden in a palette of brown and blue.  The trees are skinnier than ours,  but we even found the exit for McMinnville, TN so I felt strangely comfortable and connected to a bigger picture.

Stay grounded,

Erin

Stay Bendy

What does bendy mean?  Flexible, adaptable, contortionist.  Yes, and more.  Author Katrina Kenison articulated another kind of flexibility that is worth considering:  Is it more important to you to be right, or to be kind? Yoga offers practitioners opportunity to reveal points of resistance in the mind and the body and it begs each of us to explore what being “bendy” means on an individual level.  Certainly being flexible depends to some degree on genetics, but I think even more, it’s about grace.  Think of the genetics as the structure, the anatomy and how it facilitates the physical ease of the pose;  now the grace is about how you feel in the pose- how you breathe, how you surrender, what you hold on to and what you let go of.  Is it more important to be right in the pose or kind?  What feels more instinctual to you?

This week’s sequence is about finding your roots, digging in, and then growing in the pose to a shape that feels authentic and sustainable.  Think of your yoga practice as the seeds you bury into the Earth.  They require support (structure) and love (grace) to flourish, and as your seeds sprout and begin to rise from the brown soil, they change the landscape all around it.  They add beauty, wellness, and company to the other gardens that are also emerging.   Some seedlings grow straight toward the sun, and some don’t grow at all.  That’s what being bendy is all about: Understanding that it takes a lot of seeds to grow a garden and there is not a right way or a wrong way, but some arrangements will be abundantly productive, and some will simply satisfy.   All are doing exactly the right thing.

A kind word is like a Spring day.  ~Russian Proverb

Begin this sequence from standing in Tadasana, Mountain Pose.

Feel a strong connection with your feet into the Earth by lifting and separating your toes, then setting each toe back to the floor one by one.  Use an inhale breath to rise onto tiptoe, exhale returning to all four corners of the feet rooted to the ground.  As it feels right, begin to lift your arms toward the sun as you raise your heels, gradually making your way to Urdvha Hastasana: Upward salute, or sometimes called Palm Tree Pose.  Balance here on tiptoe for 5-9 breaths.

With your heels on the ground, swan dive into forward fold:  Uttanasana.  Inhale, lift and lengthen your spine, looking forward.  Exhale release fully.  Repeat three times.  Ardha Uttanasana/ Half Forward Fold.

Draw your belly into your spine and return to Tadasana, sweep your arms in a wide circle finishing with the hands folded into prayer position at the heart.  Keep hands at the heart or raise the arms and sit into Utkatasana/ Chair pose with the exhale breath.  Hold for 3-7 breaths.  Return to standing from chair pose with an inhale, then rise to tiptoe, Urdvha hastasana.

Fold forward once more, and practice three more lifts to Half Forward Fold, then make your way to Mountain Pose and pause.  Enjoy three resting breaths here.  Finally cultivate balance in the mind and body with Tree Pose/ Vrkasana.  Reach down actively with the left foot to the Earth and visualize roots growing downward to draw nourishment and energy up through your left leg.  Begin to lift your right heel, and turn it toward the left ankle. Center your hands in prayer position, at the heart.  Move as deeply and steadily into the pose as feels appropriate your body.  Lift the right foot to the calf , or the thigh of the left leg and if you like, raise the arms to the sky.  Breath.  Hold the pose for as long as you like feeling a deep, strong connection to the Earth.  As your body shifts and sways, imagine yourself as a tree in the forest gently bending to the elements around you with judgement or attachment.  Return to Mountain Pose to rest for a few breaths, then repeat on the opposite side.

Finish this sequence resting in Uttanasana, Forward fold.

This is a mild inversion and can be very restorative.  Hands can be resting on the floor, on opposite elbows, a chair, or blocks.  Let your head be heavy and your spine surrender to gravity.  Roll up gently as you are ready.

Namaste.

Thanks to Yoga Journal for the pictures.

Yoga for Foodies!  Stay together; stay magnificent.  Live music by Steve and Anne-Emilie Gold to accompany a 1.5 hour yoga practice at the McMinnville Grand Ballroom, Friday March 19th.  Dinner by Nick’s Italian Cafe and wine by R. Stuart and Co. to follow the yoga.  Pre-registration required. $60/person for  everything.  Make your reservation at R. Stuart and Co Wine Bar. 503.472.4477.

Stay Bendy

The following sequence is shown with yogis from the Gentle Yoga Class at the McMinnville Senior Center.   This is a short hip opening sequence that can take be enjoyed in  as few as five minutes.

Begin from a seated, cross legged position with  a blanket under your sitting bones.  Take a few moments of stillness listening to the rhythm of your own breath.

Seated Figure Four

Extend both legs and flex the feet.  Support the pose by moving your hands at or behind your hips and then lift and cross the right ankle over the left leg.  Keep the right foot flexed and relax the right knee toward the floor. To increase the stretch on the outside of the right hip, bend the left knee to place all four corners of the foot on the floor while continuing to soften the right knee and thigh.  Keep the belly drawn to the spine, heart open and smile.  Hold for 5-8  full breath cycles.

Figure Four

From Figure Four, bring the right foot to the floor beside the left extended leg.  Right knee points upward.  Begin to turn the torso toward the bent leg and hug the right shin with the left arm.  Bring the left hand behind the left hip for support.  Feel how the inhale breath slightly restricts the twist and explore twisting more deeply with the exhale.  Stay here for 3-5 breaths.

Marichi's Twist

Marichi's Twist

Inhale to unwind and keeping the right knee bent let the right leg move toward the floor with the right foot gently resting against the left leg.  Flex the left foot, inhale lift and reach the arms toward the sky, exhale hinge forward from the hips.  Allow both hands to rest on the floor on either side of the extended left leg.  To invite more opening into the back body, press the hands into the floor with an inhale and lift and lengthen the spine, crown of the head moves forward.  With the exhale, release toward the left leg.  Hold this pose for 5-8 breaths.

Head to knee pose

Use an inhale breath to rise up from this pose.  Extend both legs forward and gently tap them out.  Begin the sequence again on the opposite side.

When you have cycled through both sides, bend both knees to place both feet on the floor and roll gently onto your back.  Straighten both legs fully, or keep the knees bent- it’s your choice.  Enjoy your final relaxation pose here.

Namaste.

Special thanks to the models:  Bev, Larry, Nancy, Linda, Gwen, Dusty, and Janet.

Stay for dinner:  Ribollita

Photograph by Stephen Lewis

Ribollita is a classic Tuscan soup that’s made up of vegetable soup mixed mixed with bread. This version is packed with veggies—white beans, kale, chard, potatoes, tomatoes—and served with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.  Doesn’t it look delicious?  Even better is that you can enjoy this tasty soup without turning your stove on- I know you don’t believe me, but would I lie?  After all the theme this month is “Stay True”.

Seriously, though, this is the soup we’ll be serving at Stay Together; Stay Magnificent, the first of a three part series of yoga practices followed by dinner and wine.  The first event takes place Friday, March 19th, 6:00-9:00 p.m. at The McMinnville Grand Ballroom, and as if yoga, dinner, and wine aren’t enough I’m bringing in two very special guests to serenade us through our yoga practice.  Steve and Anne-Emilie Gold are stopping by McMinnville as part of their Let Your Heart Be Known Tour.  Should I say it again, they are coming here!  And just in case you’re not familiar with how fabulous their music is, you can hear by clicking the link here on my blog page- just to the right of this post.

Yoga from 6:00-7:30, then we’ll sit down for a family style dinner with my dear friends Maria and Rob Stuart’s Big Fire wines.  The Tuscan white bean soup will be prepared by none other than Nick’s Italian Cafe.  It’s going to be amazing.  The cost is $60/person and reservations can be made at the R. Stuart and Co. Wine Bar, 528 NE 3rd St., McMinnville or with me: erin@mamastayyoga.com.

I really hope you will come.

Stay true,

Erin

p.s.  A very special thanks to Chehalem Valley Dance Academy for their outstanding support of this event.

Stay colorful

“The soul is dyed the color of its thoughts. Think only on those things that are in line with your principles and can bear the light of day. The content of your character is your choice. Day by day, what you do is who you become. Your integrity is your destiny – it is the light that guides your way.”
— Heraclitus

The color of the week (drum roll please):  Yellow.  Wear yellow to class for a little treat.

Stay true,

Erin

p.s.  Monday afternoon class at CVDA (Newberg) is cancelled.

Stay Real:  Photos from class this week

Chehalem Valley Dance Academy

“Find your point of balance and then lean into each other to discover a united center.” -Jessica Chapman

Stay for Dinner:  Recipe or food tip

One of my family’s favorite weekend meals is pizza.  Despite the time investment- or maybe because of it,  I’ve learned that I really love to make pizza, crust and all.  That said, I recently had a pizza epiphany.  Previously I believed that the best pies were simple and classic combinations: Cheese, cheese and tomato, pesto with sundried tomato and chicken, etc.  On Saturday my husband and I made a “Clean out the refrigerator”  special that was absolute Zen.  Red pepper, mushrooms, spinach, blanched asparagus, sundried tomatoes, goat cheese along with all the other cheese crusts cluttering up the drawer, all piled on tomato sauce and baked to perfection.

This break through made me wonder, has my yoga practice mimicked my cooking;  Predictable and classic, dutiful and a little boring?  One of my challenges in teaching yoga, especially as a relatively new teacher, is maintaining a sense of my own practice.  One where I am not rehearsing for class, but rather discovering, moving, and resting my body for me.  As I make the move to my mat today, my intention will be to embrace the notion that my body will know the way to the practice that I need.  I may not know how it’s going to look, feel or taste, but it will nourish my body just like that yummy pizza.

Yoga and food are alike in so many ways. Sometimes combinations you think will be brilliant are contrived and messy.  Sometimes the simple and classic recipes can become a security blanket on the mat or the stove.   Marinate that as you think about what toppings you want on your pizza, and in your next practice.

Oh! and I think it’s important to note that the kids had their own pie- cheese of course, I guess they’re still in the “if not’s broken don’t fix it” camp.

Find Mamastay Yoga Co. on Facebook, reply to this page or, email:  erin@epinot.com

Stay colorful:  Wear WHITE to class this week and get a prize.

Kind of like a box of Cracker Jacks, think of it as your reward for making it to your mat. I know, you shouldn’t need external incentives to practice yoga but sometimes just making it to class takes everything you have. Call it bribery, call it bait,  I’ll call it fun because that’s what it’s supposed to be- you wear white, I’ll bring the treats!

White is technically free from color, so why white? From Sanskrit the ancient language of yoga, śveta means to be white or bright.  According to the website, www.yogayoga.com, it is beneficial to wear white while practicing yoga. “For the practice of Kundalini Yoga, it is helpful to wear white, natural fiber clothing. The color white is good for the body energetically and for the nervous system.”

There are lots of  cliches and expressions about white:  White noise, white light, raise the white flag, white wash.  Can you think of more? Leave your comments below, and I’ll see you in class.

Monday:  McMinnville Senior Center 1-2:00; Chehalem Valley Dance Academy 3-4:00

Tuesday:  Chehalem Valley Dance Academy 7:15-8:30 p.m.

Wednesday:  McMinnville Senior Center 1-2:00

Thursday:  Excell Fitness 6:30-7:30 p.m.

Stay true,

Erin

p.s.  Mamastay Yoga Company is on Facebook!  Now we can really STAY Connected!

p.p.s   We’re making some changes to our blog to make it more efficient and interactive.  If you like what you read, click on the cup of tea and make a contribution. This will keep the creative juices flowing- and the fun poses, too!  Even more exciting, soon  I’ll be posting information about workshops, goods and other services you can purchase.  STAY tuned!

Stay real:  Photos from this week’s classes

In case you can’t tell…it’s all about opening the heart, trust, and love.

Stay connected:  Book, Website, or Link of the week

All right, it’s Mamastay but what does that mean?  It means I am a Mama first.  Sometimes something speaks to you, or in this case, screams at you.  This is everything you want to say to your own kids, friends, and family. I mean it.  Imperfect is the new perfect.  Does it get more yogic than this?

http://www.loveyourflawz.com/

Stay true,

Erin