I love taking bubble baths, and I lived for one loooong year without a bathtub. I didn’t think it would be a very big deal, but man, did I miss those baths. They are my time to unwind, relax, let go, and surrender. It’s a sweet treat at the end of the day.

My Mum shared a newsletter with me from Christine Arylo at Dare to Live You! She mentions that we all want to feel loved, and we can do this for ourselves (rather than waiting around for someone else to love us). She offered a list of suggestions, and the self-love soak is my favorite:

Take a Self-Love Soak. Candles. Bath. Bath Salts. Music. Lip Liner. Beautiful Bar of Soap. Undress. Write words and sonnets of love all over your body with the lip liner. Get into the bath. Gently rub the soap over the love words and feel them soaking into your cells.

When teaching yoga classes, I often talk about letting the vibration of OM soak into your cells, so that last sentence resonated with me quite a lot.

In shifting out of 2011 and into 2012, what action can you take to feel a little more loved today?

Happy New Year!

Choose love,
Grace

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When did I get so old?

My joints creak, groan, ache. Scar tissue accumulated from old injuries whines and complains. Emotional wounds cause prana (life force energy) to stagnate in my body, presenting frustrating areas of tension.

Each morning I have at least one achey spot in my body when I wake up.

I can choose to be gentle with my body: get a relaxing massage, take a calming yoga class, soak in a tub full of bubbles.

But my body will never feel like it did when I first started practicing yoga. I wish I could go back seven years and have a conversation with the girl that I was then, and remind her to be very, very grateful for her strong, comfortable body!

Despite the “old” factor, sometimes when I’m practicing yoga the term “extraordinary machine” runs through my mind over and over again. I can’t help but think how amazing my body really is.

Today, I choose to be grateful for my body, as it is, right now. A big part of that gratitude is taking good care of my body, so it will serve me well in the years to come. One of my tricks is yin yoga*, which stretches and stimulates the joints through long, restful holds.

Are you grateful for your body, as it is, right now?

Choose love,
Grace

*I teach yin yoga at Emerald Necklace Martial Arts on Sunday evenings at 6:30pm. It’s a lovely way to start your week!

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***

Have you ever reflected on whether or not you are a “glass is half full” or “glass is half empty” kind of person?

I attended a satsang this past weekend at the Ramakrishna Vedanta Society. The satsang included music, meditation, and a beautiful reflection on the meaning of gratitude by visiting Sister Pravrajika Vrajaprana.

My favorite part was when she was reflecting on the glass half full versus glass half empty idea. She put it quite simply like this:

What about being grateful for HAVING A GLASS?

What about being grateful for HAVING WATER?

Rather than focusing on the empty/full part (interpreting or defining the state of the object), what about reflecting on WHAT IS.

“There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle.” -Albert Einstein

The good, the bad, the ugly…everything leading up to this very moment has created RIGHT NOW for you. Rejoice in the many miracles that have supported your journey.

“Human beings learn through pain. We just do. So instead of playing the victim or blaming…let’s step into gratitude for the times that challenge us. Almost every challenge, hard time or seeming disaster – overtime – will prove to be immense acts of Grace and beauty. We, today, have the opportunity to see these moments as what they truly are – a miracle – and that chance, in our perspective, is the miracle indeed.” -Mastin Kipp

I might start writing a gratitude journal again. For a few years, I was dedicated to keeping a daily catalogue of all things I was grateful for, but I got out of the habit. I think it might be time to start the practice again.

After all, one of my most favorite yogi tea quotes is: “An attitude of gratitude brings opportunities.” Begin by saying thank you for everything!

Do you ever journal about the miracles- great and small- in your life?

Choose love,
Grace

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“He believes that mental exercise is as important as physical exercise.  He mentioned that we do lots of physical exercise to make our bodies beautiful, but we rarely do any mental exercises to make our minds beautiful.  He shared another exercise that his grandfather had him do:  he was tasked with going to a quiet corner, taking with him something he believed to be beautiful, like a flower or a photograph, for example.  His grandfather had him sit quietly and stare at the beautiful object for a minute, memorizing every aspect of it.  Then, he had to close his eyes, and keep the image of the beautiful object in his mind’s eye for as long as he could, without letting other thoughts or images intrude.  He said at first, as soon as he closed his eyes, he would begin thinking of something else; however, with practice, he was able to hold the image in his mind for longer and longer periods, and he was able to control his mind.”

I love this story because it is very similar to my candlelight meditation idea, but with added emphasis on the object being “beautiful.” It’s also great because everyone thinks of beauty as something different, so your object could be very different than my object (and therefore, our meditations are personalized and unique). Also, there is an unfortunate stereotype that meditation is a chore, so the idea of staring at something beautiful makes it seem less chore-like, don’t you think?

Please let me know if this meditation idea helps you!

Choose love,
Grace

Additional Meditation Ideas:

3 Minute Breath
Walking
Past and Future
Color
Internal Gaze
Candlelight
Smile
Swim
Bridge
Affirmation
Sit Down

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My breath observation from this past week was that after chaturanga dandasana I tend to get less air on the inhale when I am lifting from low push up to upward facing dog. Anyone have any suggestions on how to receive more breath in that transition?

Next time you’re at home practicing, put a pair of ear plugs in, and see how that changes your experience on your mat!

Choose love,
Grace

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