eat, sleep, breathe, and raise your children well

through the years my husband and i developed this mantra that we use to help keep our life on track.  it brings us back to a balanced state of being where our ability to keep our actions aligned with our core beliefs is stronger.  we also determined that our time, effort, and energy are best spent on practices that express what is deeply meaningful to us in this life, the lives of our 3 children and the creation of a homestead.  our aspirations for self sustainability and growing much of the food our family consumes fuel our deep connection to nature and the rhythms and the cycles of life.  to live in this way we experience more consistent feelings of peace, balance, and contentment.

as we involve our children in the workings of our choices they too have begun to reap the benefits of our path.  they are directly experiencing the value in living a balanced life.  while our lifestyle of vegetarianism, farming, yoga, and living simply are not forced upon them we have noticed that they have chosen to subscribe to bits and pieces of our path.  in an attempt to provide greater opportunities for them we have enrolled my younger 2 children in the seven generations charter school in emmaus.  please visit their website to see why we feel this is a decision well made.  my son starts right away while my younger one will need to be wait listed for the 2011 – 2012 school year.  until then, i have chosen to homeschool her via the pa cyber school.  with this shift into the unknown i’ve been left feeling that classes here at my house by appointment are going to be best right now because of the flexibility they will allow me.

due to a death in the family i will not be available for classes this week (11.28)

my on-going yoga classes will not continue

i will continue to offer private and semi-private classes  

*including prenatal*

this could be the perfect opportunity for you to develop a practice at home with one on one attention or share this wonderful practice with friends or a special group.

keep in touch through facebook

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002991710427

“the moment you can visualize being free from the things that hold you back, you have indeed begun to set yourself free.” ~ unknown

plant your feet to find your truth

quotes, inspirations, words of wisdom, daily doses of positive perspectives…. they are everywhere! we “like” them, we share them, and we blog about them, but do we understand them? do we live and experience the words and phrases we intellectually understand? are these collections of words something we strive for or are they engrained into our very being? how do we know? how do we really know we understand something? is understanding enough? look at all those question marks;)  i believe it is the experiences that make our “understanding” ring as truth.  one of my favorite quotes is a chinese proverb that says…. “tell me and i will forget, show me and i may remember, involve me and i will understand”.  thru yoga and meditation we become “involved” in the discovery of our true nature and experiences of our truth.

plant your feet to find your truth.

the practice of yoga is so much more than just a series of physical postures. it is a journey to find the very best of ourselves and express it in our own unique way. since the day we were born we have been drawn to explore the outside world, but how many of us have searched for the source of our own desires? or dug up the roots of our fears? yoga encourages us to be as familiar with our inner workings as we are with the world around us. to be as familiar with our thoughts, feelings, memories, desires, and imagination as we are with time, space and causality. without a fine understanding of ourselves, who we are, how we relate to the world and why we do the things we do, we cannot possibly live life to the fullest. when you can move through both the inner and outer domains of life with freedom and finesse, you fulfill the highest purpose of yoga.

on the mat, the most logical starting point is our foundation. even for a seasoned yogi to revisit the basics is a valuable trip. how you align your body, where you place your hands and your feet, how you spread your toes, bend your knee and draw energy inward is reflected in the integrity of the pose. without a solid foundation the ability to reach up and express the fullness of the asana is compromised.

pause, take your time, stay steady and strong… which doesn’t always mean physically.

at a deeper level, asana means to fully express the integration of mind, body, and spirit. here you become consciously aware of the flow of life energy in your body and perform the asanas with full awareness. it is such a beautiful practice for performing actions in life with awareness.

use truth as a foundation to express life more beautifully.

off the mat, our foundation can be related to our truth, what we believe, and how we live our life. it can be difficult at times to grasp what this really means. on the mat, we can trace a feeling of unsteadiness to our lack of attention on how we connect with the earth. off the mat, however, our feelings of disconnect are not so easily traced. we can become so distracted from our truth. in a world with so much information available to us and so many different perspectives we are often left feeling ungrounded.

the importance of a strong foundation is woven into every aspect of living. taking time to reflect on other foundations in our lives and their present condition can foster a sense of inner awareness. to find our truth, a relationship with ourselves has to be established. spending time in meditation, in deep contemplation, or simply quiet time alone cultivates our sense of connection, not only to ourselves and our truth, but to the world around us as well. if we are actively involved in practices that help us return back to our truth, to get back into that balanced state, our capacity and our desire to remain in that balanced state changes. the path of yoga helps us to recognize when we are moving away from our truth and gives us the tools to manage our life so it stays in balance. there is a reason we long for peace, connection, and balance and when we find that reason, through direct experience, our roots will run deep, our foundation will be strong, and our life will bloom and grow.

be here….. now

yoga is such a beautiful thing…..

it teaches us to be present in our daily lives, to be here … now.

in our practice on the mat we catch glimpses of inner peace… our true nature.  as our practice deepens, the desire to remain connected to that truth can flow off the mat and into our daily lives.  in this podcast i am sharing, mindy broadstone discusses living in truth and being mindful of how our life affects our connection to truth.

http://www.swamij.com/podcast/060704-truth-mindy-b.mp3

free yoga classes

free yoga classes this week

wednesday night ~ 9.7.11
at juli kell’s dance center
145 main st
pennsburg
6:30pm – 7:45pm
&
thursday morning ~ 9.8.11
at HERE yoga ~ brought to you by balasia
1153 gravel pike
hereford
9:30am – 10:45am

commUNITY yoga

to my dear friends along the path,
here in the west, we work long hours throughout the week, leaving us without a lot of spare time for family, friends and tending to our own needs.  many people begin to feel disconnected.  yoga classes are a wonderful way for people to socialize and be amongst other like-minded people, creating a sense of commUNITY.  in a yoga class, people feel connected to one another, as they tap into the energy of the whole group.  this energy not only helps all the yogis during the class, but, persists even after the class to keep your level of being raised.  when we practice together, moving and breathing as one, we naturally come into rhythm with one another.  this visceral experience of oneness is like a signpost pointing us to the deeper experience of yoga, the state of enlightenment.
as more and more people begin to gravitate towards wholesome, holistic living, opportunities to share your life with those who are living at a similar wave length as you become increasingly important.

“so powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth.” ~ baha’u'llah

namaste,
christy

fall class schedule

*the first class at each location will be free*

tuesday mornings  *beginning 9.13.11*
9:30am ~ 10:45am
HERE yoga ~ brought to you by balasia
1153 gravel pike
hereford
*this is the perfect time for parents with morning kindergartners*

wednesday nights  *beginning 9.7.11*
6:30pm ~ 7:45pm
juli kell’s dance center
145 main st
pennsburg

thursday mornings  *beginning 9.8.11*
9:30am ~ 10:45am
HERE yoga ~ brought to you by balasia
1153 gravel pike
hereford
*this is the perfect time for parents with morning kindergartners*

classes are drop-in and open to all levels
$12.00 class exchange

private & semi-private classes are offered by appointment only.  each class is designed to meet the specific need of the individual or group.

please call or e-mail to discuss pricing and scheduling.
exchange rates may vary depending on the nature of the class and the location.

summer shavasana!

how beautiful it is to do nothing, and then to rest afterward. ~ spanish proverb

corpse pose (shavasana) is quite possibly the most challenging of yoga postures yet the most rewarding.  it’s simplicity is deceptive.  all you do is lie on your back with your eyes closed and relax, right?  the practice is to relax the physical body enough to where you need not be aware of it anymore.  the next step is to bring awareness to your breath, not change it, simply observe.  now it’s just you and your mind.  watch your thoughts just like the breath.  the ability to cultivate here is detaching from your thoughts, not stopping them.  observe passively, without comment and without direction.

while guided meditations and visualizations have their benefits, they are basically masks to your thoughts not detachment from them.  it is easy for anyone who is really paying attention while they are in shavasana to understand how difficult it is to still the mind.  you could develop your flexibility until you are able to twist yourself into positions that would make gumby envious and still never grasp the deeper aspect of shavasana.  which is ok because a perfect shavasana is the same as perfect enlightenment.  our worship of thought keeps our minds busy and we believe we are being productive.  our minds have convinced us that we cannot live without it’s help.  the truth is that intuition will get us a lot farther than thought ever could.  realizing that thought and intuition are two different things can be understood during this magnificant pose.  shavasana is an opportunity for you to get in touch with that part of yourself that is NOT the mind, the place where intuition lives.  take the time this summer to visit the quiet place within you to feel truly refreshed and rejuvenated.

the art of being

oh the splendor of spring!

mother nature is expressing herself in the most magnificent ways.  it is impossible not to notice.  the energy from the sun warms the air, the earth, and my soul.  the urge to linger outside until the last possible moment is uncontrollable at this point.  as i watch in wonder of earth’s re-birth i find myself wanting to create something… anything.  and while i was not blessed with your typical artistic abilities i have found other ways to express myself in my own unique way.  life artistry…. or “the art of being” as i like to call it.  my life’s work is a collection of lovely little things like gardening, long walks to pick flowers with my children and horseback riding with my husband.  creating a balanced life for myself and my family that is in harmony with nature and being fully present for as many of those moments as possible fulfills my creative urges.  bringing LIFE to my life.  and while there are times where i find myself going back to the proverbial drawing board to start again or to realign, i am finding that each experience brings me closer to my masterpiece.

be the very best of yourself.
~ namasate

our deepest fear

i love this and believe every word of it.  i first saw it on the cover of my yoga teacher training manual and i have been striving to live by it ever since.  i was reminded of it after a beautiful conversation with my friends the other day.  we were talking about finding our own way and how being true to our own individual path can inspire others to do the same.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

~ by Marianne Williamson
(from “A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles”

happy spring

if you don’t have garbage,

you have nothing to use in order to make compost.

and if you have no compost,

you have nothing to nourish the flower in you.

~ thich nhat hanh

be mindful of the seeds you plant

whether in your garden, in your own mind, or in the ears of others.

namaste,

christy

celebrate coming out of hibernation

the natural world is going through a rebirth, so be creative and forge a connection to this awesome process.  take a long walk, plant a seed, or simply sit on the ground, close your eyes and uncover your connection to the biggest thing there is.

*share your voice*
for our commUNITY i have created a space on my website and a page on facebook for you to connect with others in the kula (community).   feel free to share stories, ask question, and find inspiration from others who are practicing yoga on their journey through life.  people are drawn to yoga for many reasons.  regardless of why you practice, sharing your experiences of the practice could be a gift to someone else.  to someone searching for a starting point, your story may be exactly what they need to hear.

if you have any comments or suggestions on any of my classes please feel free to e-mail me.  i always welcome feedback.

as always, i encourage you to share my website, or facebook page with anyone you think might benefit from the practice of yoga.  the spoken word can be an amazing gift.  if used mindfully, it’s powers are beyond measure.  please help me to promote the practice of yoga.

namaste,

christy

love is all you need…. happy february!

happy new year yogis!

january is the perfect time to rethink.

as the saying goes … “out with the old and in with the new.”  it is a time to reflect on the past, ground yourself in the present, and make wise choices for the future.  take the time to gently and loving releasing that which no longer serves you, count your blessings, and remain mindful as you make your new year’s plans.  nature encourages us to turn inward this time of year – slow down and take some time for yourself and recharge.  stay warm.

namaste,

christy

“he who waits to do a great deal of good at once, will never do anything.”

 - samuel johnson