There are moments in my life when I have felt like all was right with the world. I can remember vividly, watching a sloth in Costa Rica. My ex and I must have caught this gentle being in its one-hour of activity in the day. It moved with such tender, quiet ease, reaching its arms…
Tag: yoga
Give your heart back to itself
Give wine, give bread Give your heart back to itself. Give wine, give bread Give your heart back to itself. To the stranger who has loved you all your life And whom you ignored for another Who knows you by heart. To the stranger who has loved you all your life Whom…
Roll and Release
Since my husband first proposed that we move to Europe so he could enroll in a doctoral program in France instead of the United States, I have felt the unsteady groundlessness of limbo even more acutely than ever before in my life. It’s odd because I have always made the choice to try something new,…
He(e)l the world
I often tell my yoga students to take a moment to honor their choice to practice yoga because they are helping to make the world a better place. While I tend to share the comment in a lighthearted manner, I believe that the meaning runs deep. I have personally experienced a complete shift in my…
Craving connection
Note: This is an off the mat yoga post. I wrote this piece 13 January, 2017. For me, it’s been a rough start to life in Brussels. I have been here since December 2nd and been sick for the better part of the time. It began with bronchitis, and now my husband and I are…
Do unto others
I offered a yoga class this week where I spoke about the idea of walking your talk. I live and teach in Belgium, and I am often curious if sayings that are commonly used in the United States are found here in Brussels, so I sometimes bring them up in conversation. At the beginning…
Anything but stasis
I have heard many of my yoga and meditation teachers describe how meditation quiets the mind and how it can be easeful and grounding. My experience with meditation in the past year and a half of daily practice has been anything but soothing, however. I read about people’s initial struggles with meditation. They sit and…
Who put the Ram?
In the past two months, I have been very drawn to the color yellow. After finding a yellow, wooden ring yesterday afternoon, I thought that perhaps I should look into the significance and symbolism of the chakra associated with the color yellow. When my husband arrived home from work, he commented on the large…
Be the puzzle: Reflections on life, learning, and yoga with Jaye Martin
I have a kind of love-hate relationship with the public transit system in Brussels. I love how easy and affordable it is to get around the city. I don’t like waiting outside on freezing cold winter mornings (though I did wind up investing in a super long, warm down coat this past winter, which is…
What does your tea bag tell you?
Several years ago, a dear friend spent a couple of winters with me when I was living in Lowell, Massachusetts. We shared the gift of time together in my apartment beside an old candle making company that had been started by a Greek family decades ago. My building had been attached to the neighboring building…
Shiva and the snail
Often when I am feeling a bit crushed and bruised by the world, reminders are sent to me that offer both perspective and a solidarity. These reminders frequently come in very small packages. Yesterday morning, I left the house all ready to attend the final day of a weekend workshop with an incredible Anusara teacher,…
Without the dark
Much like my journey toward so many practices that create balance and joy in my life, my path to yoga has been full of stops and starts. Realizing that a practice will lead to a more easeful, sustainable existence does not mean that I am able to instantly and seamlessly weave it into my life….
Howling Wolf Yoga 