Winter Weather Advisory (Web Copy of News Mailing)

ByElizabeth

Dear Friends,

As I sit inside writing, listening to music, and preparing for a long afternoon yoga practice, I am filled both with gratitude for protection for the elements and an unflagging ability to amuse myself and complete awe at the power of nature.

I don’t usually feel the need to post anything about the possibility of weather cancellations.  If I can walk to class, there is class.  Depending on when the snow gets here tomorrow, the amount, how long it continues, and just how high the winds will be, could make winter cancellation possible.

I will decide late afternoon tomorrow.  Keep an eye out on Facebook, the website, and your email box for updates.  In the meantime, enjoy your home, the company of yourself and others living with or around you, and the beauty.

Peace and light,

Elizabeth

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    Acting, Letting Go (and a possible reference for rose garden)

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    A co-worker of mine said today that he hated that everything we do gets criticized by someone.  During part of the conversation, he also mentioned that once something written was made public and then questioned, an alternative meaning to the one meant (the alternative then necessitating clarification) often happens.

    Writing, art, and other expressions do seem to have a life of their own.  We need to do our best to be clear and then just go with the flow as what we say gets interpreted and passed on.  An example, for me, was that until the change in administration, no one thought to ask me whether the name “rose garden” yoga had anything to do with Washington, DC.  After the shift in January, a few people noticed how DC it could be and asked if my intent was to refer to the White House Rose Garden.

    It was not my original intent to have that be one of the many things that came to mind when I chose the name, but I it works well enough if people think of the Rose Garden as one of the many possible referrents.

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    Website Version of December Newsletter

    ByElizabeth

    Note:  If you would like to receive newsletters or previously subscribed, but changed your email or have not been receiving emails, please resubscribe directly through the website or send me an email and I’ll try to get you on the list.  I do get some mysterious bounce backs.

    I hope this email finds you well.  I’ve been enjoying the decorative lights outside and candles inside as we move towards the Winter Solstice.  Even with the excitement of the holidays, it is a great time to turn inward, to pause and refresh our remembrance and recognition of the light inside us all.

    Many thanks to all of you who came to the Thanksgiving Oxfam class (in spirit as well as in person).  Thanks to the generosity of Willow Street and all of you, we raised almost a $1,000 for Oxfam.  All of you who come to regular classes help support the Wednesday night practice being 100% for charity.  All fall, in recognition of one of the biggest issues of our day, the charities selected have been health-care focused, and I’ll continue that for December.  If you have any suggestions for cause of the month for 2010, don’t hesitate to share with me.

    Workshops:

    December Serenity Saturday: Give yourself or a friend or loved one a holiday gift of sweet relaxation at the next Serenity Saturday, which is December 19th, 3pm-5pm, at Capitol Hill Yoga.  Do a little local shopping or dining at Eastern Market and then join us for the delight of a deep restorative practice.  To register, please visit www.capitolhillyoga.com.  $5 discount if you register more than seven days in advance.

    New Year’s Day Workshop: Flow into grace with an all-levels asana practice, followed by yoga nidra from 2-4 pm on New Year’s Day.  Suitable for the well-rested and late-night revelers alike.  Go to www.capitolhillyoga.com to register.

    Classes:

    Needing a little extra yoga or to get back into the swing:  come drop in at William Penn House on Tuesdays at 6:15 for all-levels or at Willow Street on Saturdays (level 2 at 8:30am and gentle/therapeutics at 12 noon).

    Holiday Schedule:

    Willow Street is on break from December 21st through the end of the year.  I’ll be teaching through December 19th and then teaching free classes as part of free class week on January 9th.  Yes, there will be class at the William Penn House on Tuesday, December 22nd, but alas no class on December 29th.

    As always, please visit the website at www.rosegardenyoga.com to get more information on classes and upcoming workshops and to enjoy the blog.

    Peace and light,

    Elizabeth

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    May News (Web Version of E-Newsletter)

    ByElizabeth

    Dear  Friends,

    What a glorious Spring we’re having! I’ve just returned from an expanding, nurturing, and deepening time of study in Sedona with meditation teacher Paul Muller-Ortega.  Later in May, I will join fellow certified Anusara yoga teachers in North Carolina to be with John Friend.  Making sure to continue to study and gather with fellow yogis provides ever increasing appreciation of the benefits of practice and enhanced delight for the community.

    May Day (May 1) is the first day for my Spring Session classes at Willow Street:  Level 2 @ 8:30 am and Gentle/Therapeutics @ noon.  Both are in the Takoma Park studio.  While session registration is optimal, you are always welcome to drop in, whether you want to rock out in level 2 or get some healing and nurturing energy in Gentle/Therapeutics.

    The William Penn House class continues to have the special $12 offering for public interest workers (broadly inclusive), students, seniors, and those in-between gigs ($15 for those who can afford it).  Come join this collegial group 6:30 pm every Tuesday evening.  A portion of the proceeds goes to benefit the work of William Penn House.

    Looking to strengthen your practice:  join me for Standing Steady in the Light: A Standing Balance Workshop, Sat May 8, 2:30-5pm, Willow Street Yoga Center, Takoma Park, $35.  Find a place of deeper steadiness and balance in your own light and worthiness.  Learn how to use the Anusara principles to enhance your ability to stand or your own two feet or on just one foot at a time.  After we playfully explore a progressively expansive array of standing poses, we’ll finish with a few upside-down restorative postures to let our legs and feet feel the bright light created by the practice.  Whether you find standing poses a challenge or revel in the dance, this workshop will illuminate your practice.  Everybody welcome.  To register, please visit www.willowstreetyoga.com.

    As always, please take the time to enjoy and comment on the blog and if you haven’t already done so, friend me on Facebook for the latest news, photos, and quotes.

    Looking forward to seeing you soon.
    Peace and light,

    Elizabeth

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    February News–Bring on the Light (Web Version of E-Newsletter)

    ByElizabeth

    Dear Friends,

    Brrr.  It’s cold out there.  And if it is seeming colder than usual, you are right.  There have only been five winters on record with fewer days above 50F in Washington, DC.  Perhaps, like me, you have noticed that you are feeling just a tad sensitive or edgy or maybe a little blue.  I recognize the symptoms; in my distant past, a therapist suggested that I might have “seasonal affective disorder.”  My prescription for myself when winter has me feeling down?  Do more yoga, keeping a focused intention on cultivating the light of inner awareness.

    The form of meditation I practice is intended to allow the practitioner to rest in the light of inner awareness.  One of the aspects of the Anusara principle of “opening to grace” for me is to open to the light in myself and others.  On a more physical level, backbends will open up your heart and make room for the light; core work will warm you up by stoking the agni, the inner fire; forward bends will help you go deep inside to find your own light.  There is a light-filled practice for every day of the week, every time of day, and every mood you are in.

    Avoid the temptation to huddle inside, eating too many carbs and hiding away.  When the sidewalks are passable, bundle up and take a long walk.  When you come back inside, do a good therapeutic and restorative practice–it’s as good as hot chocolate (and no one said you couldn’t have the hot chocolate, too).  Invite friends over for a potluck.  Cook bean soups.  Have hot cereal for breakfast and perhaps for dinner.  Balance the warm food with the freshest of fresh food by growing sprouts on the kitchen counter.

    Want to light up your yoga fire, sun, inner light with company?  Join me and your friends and neighbors at William Penn House classes on Tuesdays at 6:30.  Need a little R&R or found you have tweaked something shoveling or walking on the ice and snow?  Drop ins are always welcome at the gentle and therapeutics class at Willow Street, Takoma Park, Saturdays at noon.  Give yourself something to look forward to by signing up in advance for the second “Relaxing Into Optimal Alignment with Anusara Restoratives” workshop at Willow Street on Saturday, February 26th.

    And plan for Spring with “Yoga for Gardeners,” the weekend of the Spring Equinox–yes, it is only weeks away.  As has been my practice in previous years, my profits will go to support the Youth Garden at the National Arboretum.

    Looking forward to sharing, expanding, and delighting in the light with you soon.
    Peace and light,

    Elizabeth

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    Web Version of October E-Newsletter

    ByElizabeth

    Dear Friends,

    Much of the conversation for the past few days has been about the weather.  Some people have talked about how much they hate the heat and how excited they are about the coming of cool weather.  Others are lamenting the passing of summer.  When it was this temperature six months ago, the same conversations arose, but mostly in reverse.  Right now, of course, it is perfectly and delightfully temperate.  Neither heating nor air conditioning is needed to have a healthy indoor environment, but because it is our nature to compare, it feels cold, just as the same temperature had us throwing open the windows and dancing for the joy of it being warm last spring.

    For me, the dialogue about the weather and the observation of my own reactions to the change of season is a perfect invitation to look at how perspective influences perception. One of the benefits of a steady and ever more refined practice is that it helps us feel a sense of awe and openess in the face of whatever comes and not be swayed by our history and personal inclination, allowing us to celebrate life more deeply and spectacularly.

    Upcoming opportunities to cultivate a sense of wonder (this Fall’s theme):

    The fall Willow Street session is underway.  There is still time to register and drop-ins are always welcome.  Join me Saturdays in Takoma Park for Flow at 8:45am and Gentle/Therapeutics at noon.

    William Penn House classes continue on Tuesday nights at 6:30pm with a wonderful and dedicated group of friends and neighbors.  All levels welcome.

    More experienced yogis will have a great opportunity to expand their practice at:

    Hanumanasana:  Nemesis No More, Saturday, October 16, 2010, 2:30pm-5:00pm, Willow Street Yoga Center, Takoma Park.  $35. Are there poses which make you cringe or yearn to have a break from class? One of the great fruits of yoga is “thinning the kleshas,” learning to feel aversions less powerfully and to better experience our intrinsically joyous light no matter what the world presents us. Enjoy an afternoon of exploring and delighting in a full-spectrum of standing poses, arm balances, and hip openers that might lead you to – dare we say it – a greater appreciation, if not downright enjoyment, of hanumanasana and will definitely bring you a delighted gratitude for vipariti karani (legs up the wall). For students Level I/II and up.  To register on-line, please visit www.willowstreetyoga.com or just drop in on the day of the workshop.

    Will you be in town for Thanksgiving?  Want to share the love and gratitude?  It’s the:

    Eighth Annual Thanksgiving Day All-Levels Yoga Fundraiser for Oxfam. Thursday, November 25, 2010, 10-11:30am.  $25. On Thanksgiving Day, join me at Willow Street Yoga Center, Takoma Park, for an all-levels fundraising class to benefit Oxfam.  Stretch your body and embrace your own generous spirit as we give thanks for our families, friends, and bounty.  Friends, family, and out-of-town guests of all levels of yoga experience, including first-timers, are welcome. To register on-line, please visit www.willowstreetyoga.com or just drop in on the day of the workshop.

    I’ve been getting lots of positive feedback about the updated subscription feature for the blog.  Give it a try, by clicking here and entering your information,  if you haven’t already and make it even easier to join the discussion.

    Look forward to seeing you soon.

    Peace and light,

    Elizabeth

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