The Sattvic Practice on Halloween

So, my two-year old walked into the kitchen at 7:30 am, with a 3 Muskateers in his hand...after rifling through the Halloween candy, he decides this would make an excellent breakfast. As much as I would sometimes agree with him, I can't give my child chocolate for breakfast! Right!? I guess I could, but then I would be breaking my promise of being the best I can be, which includes being the best "Mom" I can be. So, on a day where candy is the center of the universe, you have to ask yourself, "is this the best possible thing I could be giving myself"?...probably not, but I am a firm believer of everything in moderation. Yogis are known for eating a "Sattvic" diet which promotes clarity and calmness of mind and enhances spiritual growth. It is "sweet, fresh, and agreeable" and includes most fruits, nuts, seeds, vegetables, particularly green leafy vegetables, whole grains, honey, pure water and milk (with the reservation that commercially produced milk may not nowadays be so sattvic...). Given the amount of pesticides and chemical fertilizers used on commercial crops, only organic products still qualify as Sattvic, and frozen foods certainly don't. For the most part, I try and eat this way, but we're not all perfect all of the time...:) And, as yogis and yoginis, we still have to find "Santosha"...or contentment. So, today, maybe don't go for the third Reese's Peanut Butter cup, and just have one. You'll feel better tomorrow! However, if you sit patiently waiting for the non-existent Trick-or-Treaters and proceed to eat the entire bowl of candy, here's a heat building practice to burn it all off:

Down Dog - 15 breaths

Plank - hold for 1 minute

Chaturanga - hold for 5 breaths

Cobra - hold for 5 breaths

Down Dog

R High Lunge - hold for 1 minute

R side Parsvottasana...vinyasa

L High Lunge - hold for 1 minute...vinyasa

R Warrior II - hold for 30 sec.

Utthitha Parsvokansasa - hold for 30 sec...vinyasa

Repeat L side

childs pose

Forearm Plank - hold for 1 minute

Childs pose

Down Dog

Plank

Side Plank R&L...vinyasa

Malasana

Nivasana

Ardha Nivasana

Nivasana

A supine twist of your choice

Savasana

Take it off the mat today... Donna Jackson

I got up this morning and was planning on a really hard 'self' practice. But, all those plans came to a halt when my orthopedist said, "Every time you practice deep hip opening on the left side you push your joint to it's limit and your gonna be in pain".. the result of a labral tear in my left hip socket. Then he told me I was just like Alex Rodriguez and that I will need to learn how to practice without injuring myself. In other words a really deep hip opening practice is not in the cards for me unless I wanna be in pain for the next 24 hours. This he said is something I will have to live with. A tear in the labrum is basically untreatable. Not life threatening news. In fact, it's the kind of news that most people would not be that upset about. I, however, am pretty upset. My practice is so much of who I am. I love moving my body and I love practicing really hard. To me 3 hours on a yoga mat, breathing, and sweating and moving my body in a really deep way is just about as beautiful as it gets. So I decided to call some people who I know will make me feel better...

My dad (being the guy who once sold peanuts at Yankee stadium) said, "My daughter is just like A-Rod, I kinda like that". Massimo (being the look at the bright side kind of guy) said, "So you'll be a better handstander". MB (being the healer and fixer kind of guy) suggested taking a strap and some tape and doing all sorts of wrapping me up before practice. I was grateful for all of these conversations because they made me feel loved and supported but I needed to get this from myself. So I decided to take my conversations on this subject to a deeper place inside, off the mat. I shut off my cell phone, and took to the beach for a walking meditation. My kids had playdates and I had enough of a window in my day to make it happen.

Home now I can only say it was a beautiful experience. I took deep breaths. I didn't speak a word. I walked and I repeated the mantra "May I be peaceful, may my spirit be free" to myself a lot. It was a beautiful experience. I feel like I did what I needed to do for myself. Grateful for the water and the sun and the beautiful light and grateful for the opportunity to get to know & understand myself a little bit more.

And so lovely creatures of "The Promiseland", my suggestion for your self practice is just that: A walking meditation. No cell phone, no I-pod. No friends (even if they 'promise" to not speak to you). Make sure you're warm and cozy and just go... go and be quite.. go and breathe... get to know yourself and be grateful..

love, donna

10/29 Practice

Yoga as Communion
Today, if you come to the Joint you will receive another gift. Place this gift at the center of your heart and get cozy.
Sit or Lay. Maybe set an alarm for 5 minutes.
Join the Inhale and Exhale in a seamless wave. Begin each inhale and exhale in your low belly and move the breath in and out of the whole upper body. Ride this wave of breath as you contemplate your gift. Let the image or word permeate each inspiration and give great space on your exhale.
After 5 minutes Journal what may have arose during your contemplation.
Take Down Dog for 5 breaths. Option to kick up to a Handstand for as long as you like.
Take a standing forward bend with a shoulder stretch.
Sit for Janu Sirasana on right and left.
Agni Stambasana and Ardha Matsyendrasana on both sides.
Return to your seated or laying position for a little savasana.
End with a thought of gratitude.

Delicious Hip Opening for a Rainy Evening

Option to ponder as you simmer in some of the longer holds: "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 frightens us most." - Marianne Williamson

What can you let go of so that you can more fully embrace your own light and power?

Down Dog
Low Lunge (deeper option: forearms down; come onto the outside edge of your right foot; allow your right knee to fall open to the right)
Vinyasa
Warrior 2 on right; hold for one minute
Plank; hold for one minute
Vinyasa
Warrior 2 on left; hold for one minute
Pigeon Pose; hold both sides for at least two minutes
Seated Wide straddle
Fire Log Pose
Bound Angle
Savasana

To Whom Do You Promise?

The other day Tracy asked me, “When you do something, are you thinking what the other person is going to think of you?” She was specifically asking (in the context of our conversation) if I think what she is going to think of me: will she think I’m sexy, kind, smart, etc? I didn’t think twice before saying, “No.”

Of course there are always parts of us that crave and love the recognition of what we have done (especially if it was for someone else), and there is no doubt that we do the things we do out of our desire to be seen a certain way by loved ones, colleagues, friends, or society. There is something purely gratifying about the external props we get for a job well done. But that is exactly what it becomes, a job when we do things for the praise from others. A job is a transaction, a condition – do this and get that. Fulfill this promise, get a reward: praise, compliment, recognition. “When we live for the fame, we die with the blame,” as my teacher used to say.

When we make our promises to someone (or something) now we are obligated to them, not for our self but for the other. For instance marriage, we make a vow to the other, but really the vow should be to our self. When we make the promise to the other person we feel contracted to fulfill it and when we do, dammit, we want some recognition that we just lived up to our end of the bargain. We stop making the promises to ourselves and are only living other’s promises. We end up needing to be seen, to be praised, to be confirmed by someone other than our self. It becomes an endless cycle of samsara – conditioned experience where everything we are is based on the transaction of life. Life just becomes work.

So when Tracy asked me the question and I answer, “No,” what I said was I do things to make myself the best person, not for the other person. What will make me better will most likely end up being better for the other person or people, animals, universe, but the motivation comes from within. That is I make my promises to myself, and by keeping them I’m truly fulfilled not just gratified by the outcome. It certainly is not easy, but try it. What if the promises you have made so far and the ones you're continuing (and promises can be the same as the actions or choices you make) switches from being for someone, to your self? The odds that you will keep them and grow them and be more fulfilled in the things you are doing will increase greatly, and that will make everyone around you see you more. You will be both confirmed by others, but more importantly you will be affirming your self. Now that is a promise worth keeping!

let it shine

I am sore. Seriously sore. Anyone else? I am also addicted to my practice again. Anyone feeling the same?
As some of you know I was a bit ill for a while and was unable to join in at the joint for some good ol fashion rockin yoga for, well, about a year and half! I became quite accustomed to my restorative practice, it went something like this: take bath, perferably with alex's lavendar salts but epsom salts and bubble bath were in the rotation too; after bath lay with my legs up the wall and wait for my pounding heart to return to normal. If a nap wasn't the next posture then it was pigeon on both sides and a restorative forward bend. Ah....savasana.
I tried a few classes here and there when I thought my body was feeling good. I remember taking one of Tracy's classes on a Saturday and being on the couch for three days straight afterwards! I did some home practices, steering clear of backbends because they felt awful and set my nervous system on fire. I went back to the above sequence more often than not. I finally got some stamina and started to practice a few times a week, on my own, very carefully. How good it felt to move! The stretches were more nerves than muscles for a while but I was breathing and flowing and sitting in child's pose and aching for savasana. I started taking Donna's basics class. SO DIFFICULT!!!! Gosh, we make these beginners hold poses forever! My legs still aren't capable of the long holds!
This summer I began taking an open class a week. My home practice began to move away from the wall and off the floor. My muscles started to strech, my nervous system at bay. Enter The Promise Land (this is sort of like when Metallica's Enter Mr. Sandman plays during the Yankees games, meaning Mariano Rivera, the Closer, is coming in to finish off the opponent): A 32 day challenge to close a very long chapter of my life.
I still take Donna's basics class on Tuesdays, I am addicted. It is both good for my body and my teaching. I take as many open classes as possible when I a not working. I practice everyday in some shape or form. I even ventured out in New Haven and took a class, GASP, at another studio! It was nice to practice so close to home, something a lot of you feel about Saraswati's. I still take baths and put my legs up the wall (a great practice, ill or not). I still sit in pigeon often and love a restorative practice.
I am enlivened by the promise. The studio's promise to encourage all of it's students to move as he or she is meant to that day on his or her mat. The promise of my fellow practitioners to breathe me through a tough practice. The promise of The Joint's teachers to hold my space sacred for me. So I show up as often as possible. I show up at the joint, on my mat and off it, being as present as I can. I feel gratitude for every stretch that opens me and every pose that challenges me. I am thankful every time I step on my mat for the will to place myself in a posture, breathe there and watch myself unfold. I appreciate every moment I need to take rest and for the times when I feel light and strong and take flight. It's amazing how differently I hold my practice in my life now, how perspectives have shifted, wants and needs adapting. I am not sure I really understood those difference when I was younger, more fit, healthier. This month long Promise Land couldn't have come at a better time in my life. I can honestly say I am happy to have been ill. Like sunshine after rain I am ready to shine.

We're 10 days and 2 master classes in, and we want to hear from you.  How has your experience been so far?  Please comment and let us know about your journey throughout the two workshops (the comments floating around the studio about them are nothing but awe inspiring - please share).

We want to hear of the positive encounters you have had with others, and yourself and the challenges you have faced on, and off your mat.

You have heard a lot from the teachers, our thoughts, our challenges - but we need you.  Your journey only adds to ours.

It's easy to comment below - if you have any trouble, please email us right away.

The View from where I stand

So, just like we have been taught in our yoga practice; that the riskiest poses, the ones that take great effort, are also the most healthful for our bodies and ultimately, our spirits, so it is with our promises. A promise, or commitment, if meaty enough, once fulfilled often as the potential for life changing results.

However, what keeps coming back to me about this whole journey of The Promise Land, is the scope of our promises. Just like Sarah, Liz, Vicky and so many of us have said – you gotta keep it simple and you gotta do the work.

Sometimes it feels as if these big, grand sweeping vistas of promises (and intentions) are just that – Grand. They’re too big and esoteric and expansive and seemingly too risky to get to. It doesn’t mean they are not attainable.

You can look out across a field, or a sweeping plain, and be drawn into the expansive, endless horizon and all the possibilities that it presents in your metaphor, or you can take a moment and look down at your feet. You can look down at the ground beneath you and see the phat (I have always wanted to use that word as I expand my American vocabulary) blades of grass & the sea of dandelions and ladybugs (if you’re in Wilton of course) and all the action and activity at work, going on to create the possibilities that exist in that horizon. But they have to exist together.

So many of us spend so much time looking at the ‘big picture’, going for gold – staring at the horizon thinking of all the possibilities. Our ‘promises’, or our intentions, can sometimes be written in that horizon and yet, if we just spent a little moment bringing our attention to the ground beneath us, staying close to what we can touch we will see such great beauty, and intelligence and just as much possibility.

It is in the eyes of your children. It is in the smile of a stranger. It is in the kindness you bestow on someone you didn’t want to. It is in turning off your cell phones and listening to the birds (or ordering your coffee and actually engaging your barista). It is in stopping and asking yourself about your day, not waiting for someone else to ask you. It is in resisting the urge to talk negatively about someone else and focus on something beautiful about ourselves. It is in stopping in front of that homeless person and looking at him/her in the eye, and saying hello. It is actually stopping to take a breath.

I made a promise to get really clear on what I want in life (and in my days) and then ask for it. That is a big promise, and it has all the fixings to be vague and esoteric but I am starting at my feet. I am working every day at bringing my focus, and my attention to the ground beneath me. I will look up at the sweeping views, the horizon – that has its place – it all exists together - but I just start with what I want for Breakfast ;)

I have quickly realized that what I want doesn’t always present itself for me to ask for it, sometimes the work comes in me saying no, and sometimes the work is someone else’s no to me, but I have to trust that both are always my Yes. I am staying within sight of my possibilities, my promise, but my work is on the ground. Beneath my feet. In my heart. And that can be the riskiest pose of all.

I read this in class yesterday and this is one of my favorite excerpts from one of my favorite books: The Last Song of Dusk by Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi

‘In some fundamental way, we are all in total control of our destiny. Because destiny is what we build each day with our correct action. With our work, our Dharma, with the actions that are in complete abeyance to the Law of our Being. Now that’s precisely what makes it so crucial that you should never again see your life in terms of one singular existence, but rather try and imagine as if it were like the water…….see that rain? Well our life is like the water that tumbles from the sky and into the stream….and then some day, the stream arches into the river. Running with a mad fever, this river heads for the ocean. Where it rests and plays. See? But before you know it, that same bead of water will rise up from the ocean’s chest and soar into the great old sky to become the cloud it came from…and so, life starts over & over again. Thunder unfrees the drop, lightening announces its return and the earth sighs at its inception…oh, the old sky we all are, and the ocean we will always be’

Lyn G.

Dot-Dakshana

I was handed my beautiful pink rose today and didn't think much about who I would give it to before I headed into class. I watched a few students give the rose to one of their teachers and it made me think more about who I wanted to give it to. I wanted to truly give it without expectation in the spirit of its meaning, so I mentioned to beth I may give it to this woman at my deli who always seems all wound up and could use some brightness in her day. As I was passing Tracy on the way out of the joint I said I am going to give my rose to a complete stranger, it just kind of came out and I thought what a great idea. I left the rose in the car and when I went out at lunch I thought I better find someone before it no longer looks like a gift. As I was running errands I was in the Stop and Shop parking lot in Westport and there she was, this beautiful old woman working her way slowly to her car, with whispy white hair and gnarled knuckles gently holding the carriage, she had such a grace about her, but I could sense a tinge of sad. I knew in my heart of hearts she was the one. Now I got to my car and resisted at first, feeling a little funny about what I might say, but then remembered the promiseland offers me the opportunity to step outside of my comfort zone. So as I approached her putting groceries in the car, I walked to her side and caught hold of the biggest most beautiful forest green eyes, I felt like she held me for a moment with her gaze quizzical but very trusting as I introduced myself and handed her the flower and said I just thought this might brighten your day a bit. She flashed her gorgeous eyes in a gesture of deep appreciation and perhaps a little shy, in that moment my heart just melted, I could see her as a little girl and knew I had touched her as deeply as this moment touched me. I asked her name and took her hand in mine and she said Dot. I almost laughed on the spot, not only was it the most perfect moment in my day, what a perfect name "Dot-Dakshana".

Thinking it through…

Staring at the Promise board in the lounge a student laughed and said, I’m signed up but I haven’t made a promise yet. She was so convinced that her promise was either going to be false or unattainable or so attainable it wasn’t really a promise. I figured she wasn’t alone.
It is so common in our culture, particularly the lives we lead as busy east-coasting-Fairfield-county-goers, to talk the talk. We are great at making the gratuitous promise. Not to say there isn't "intent" (more on that in a moment) but rather we speak without consideration. If we remember that our thoughts and words carry as much weight as our actions we might actually speak more thoughtfully. You don't run across the street without looking both ways nor should you speak without contemplation. This is a hard lesson for a blunt-talking Italian girl. I think my father put it best most recently, “you need a filter.” So, when considering my promises, my conversations, my words, I try my best to think before I speak, not only about my own words but the reactions the words may have. On another front, as my life coach said, “You need a calendar.” Well, I have a calendar; I just need to use it. Some of the most mundane promises are the ones I have failed at, the “I’ll be there” promises to which I failed to keep because I forgot to write them down or didn’t realize my inability to keep such promises out of sheer over-scheduling. But “I’ll be there” are some heavy words and can mean so much with a little follow through.
Promiseland Checklist
Filter: almost fits, hard to replace the "off the cuff" look I've worn forever.
Calendar: Check, blackberry is a very helpful little tool.
Intentions clear: hmmmm…

I wish the whole Joint could've had read Lyn's hilarious email to her staff regarding the wonderful excuses we hide behind as "yogins": the full moon, mercury in retrograde, and I am adding INTENTION. I am definitely one of those who overuse the powerful word intention. I use it more as a sarcastic point of reference these days than a truthful process of contemplation. I would need to slow down, breathe deep, let my thoughts calm to fully involve myself in my intentions. When I don’t, shit happens, sometimes I break promises, we all do. We easily move on from a broken promise with the simple excuse of “it wasn't my intention.” Then what were we intending? To prove our inconsistency? To make our word worth zilch? To create an expectation that can't be fulfilled?
I don't believe it is the promise that is inherently wrong, I believe promises can be a powerful tool to help realize one's dreams in the most expanded text and be a better friend on the simplest of terms. It is our process that needs some work. We need to slow down. Let the thoughts move from the jumble of run-on sentences to the well punctuated. Once our thoughts are clearer our words can be spoken with authority. We would make promises we want to strive to keep. We, ourselves, might actually believe what we are saying. Our word would mean something. Our friends would trust us. Our dreams would be reality. It may not start with a promise but the journey towards The PromisedLand is full of them. So how do we slow down and punctuate are thoughts? Great question!
We meditate more. Join your fellow Promis-ers this Saturday. Donna’s Asana Sandwich class will guide you through pranayama and meditation, two invaluable tools to help you make, keep and relish in your promises.

Oct 22nd's Daily Practice

Once you get the motivation to practice at home or while traveling, the most challenging thing can be figuring out a sequence that flows nicely and is healthy for you. These daily suggestions are just that, suggestions. Please be playful and listen to your own body and desires. Make sure you are mindful of what feels good for you.

You may already know the sequence for a Sun Salutation A, but here is a recap for you. It is an amazing sequence that you can trust to be healthy and always go back to. Enjoy!!!

Tadasana- Standing at top of mat
Inhale- Urdhva Hastasana (arms extend overhead)
Exhale- Uttanasana (fold forward over acticve legs)
Inhale- Ardha Uttanasana (Lift belly away from thighs)
Exhale- Chaturanga (step or jump as you bend elbows and lower body towards floor)
Inhale- Cobra ( belly backbend)
Exhale- Down Dog (stay for 3-5 breaths)
As you finish your last exhale- walk or hop to top of mat.
Inhale- Ardha Uttanasana
Exhale- Uttanasana
Inhale- Urdhva Hastasana
Exhale- Tadasana

So here is today's "suggestion":

3-5 sun salutations

If time allows: Hold Warrior 2 on each side for 5-10 breaths and then repeat with triangle pose

Child's pose- stay here as long as you want/can with eyes closed and listening to the breath for savasana or lie down.

With love,

Janine

As I was lying in bed the other night still trying to find a promise that felt true to me I couldn't help but laugh when I thought of what promises were like growing up. Do you remember when a promise was a pact sealed as if you would give your life (swear on your life! or better yet how about your mother's?!?) or required you to maim yourself (cross your heart, hope do die, stick a needle in your eye!). How many of us remember making these pacts with childhood friends or siblings? You could feel the depth of these promises deep inside and you knew these words, this pact had real meaning, it always felt a little risky, but yet exciting. Now maybe these seem extreme, but they held real power for me, they held me to a deeper connection, they tested boundaries and offered integrity. In essence, I believe they really helped me to grow. I realized a promise fore me is more about the relationship, binding myself to something and what it creates within me rather than what it is. This first week for me has been about the experiences that we create together, the pact of making a commitment to ourselves with the support of a loving community or friend giving it real substance (fleshing it out, if you will). So after the first week of this collective journey, I have realized it is less about making the promise and more about keeping it. The importance of this pact is having all of you reflect back to me the strength of my desire and sharing in something sacred together. So, I have finally made my promise thanks to all of you. "I promise to draw upon the inspiration of my teachers/students (which can be one in the same), to share in this beautiful collective energy of the promiseland and I promise to hold space for all of you to experience the depths of your promise" Cross my heart!
In love and light,
Vicky

POEMS FROM HOLD ONTO YOUR SEAT

As promised, I mentioned last Saturday that I would post some of the poems and excerpts from my special P-land class. Here are some of the chosen pieces:

David Whyte "A House of my Belonging"
Ok, I have rediscovered the relevance, the sheer potency and beauty of this English poet. Just brilliant stuff on paper- and there are so many that work great for class, as well as evoke a lot of great thought, reflection. I often use his words to jump start me on some concepts, or questions.

Here are the poems I selected among a bountiful collection of great poems:

"All the True Vows"
"The Opening of Eyes"
"It is Not Enough"


Then I read from Dani Shapiro's upcoming memoir, DEVOTION. It will be available in a few months, and the only reason she graced me with a copy is because she happens to be my college writing teacher way back when, and she is a student of the Joint as well as a beloved friend to Mitchel and me. Talk about holding onto your seat... the book is flooded with a sharp, honest, tender relevant spiritual seeking that is so personal to all of us. I could have read the whole book and enraptured you with the truth of her experiences. The experiences and questions we all have as we take our seat in this quest to live a meaningful life, to make sense of our choices, to ask ourselves the question, as Dani writes, "what is to be done?"


If you would like me to write out the section I read about Faith, let me know and I will be happy to oblige.

Happy poetry hunting.

Restorative Night Cap

So, as my jam packed day is winding down, my legs are aching, my back is throbbing and I have a headache...and, I'm ignoring the list of chores that my house appears to have given me. Instead, I'm laying down, hips elevated on a bolster, legs up the wall and voila, I feel better already. So, if this too describes your day, try this pose...you can even throw your legs up your headboard and read your favorite book. You will receive the many benefits of a restorative inversion - reducing swelling in the legs, detoxifying the minerals that build up in your feet, relieving back pain and muscle aches by supplying fresh oxygen, regulating your metabolism, and the list goes on...

And, if you like this pose, stop by for your restorative tune-up tomorrow night at 7:45, following Erin's class, and you'll get to feel this first hand...Night night.

Casey

My love affair

I realized today that I have a secret love affair with Urdhva Dhanurasana (UD). I have to laugh out loud thinking, what if my husband read this blog and thought UD was another man? He would be shocked. But, seriously, I am so in love with the pose. It always makes me feel so good. And, as with any relationship, it requires commitment in order for me to be able to do it, to keep it going.

The build up to it during a class or during my home practice makes me pine for it and want to go back to it over and over again. It's like waiting for that kiss at the end of a date; you spend the evening enjoying and learning about someone and can't help but hope that it ends with something intense, like an amazing kiss(or more????). The time on my mat is the same; a time of enjoyment and self discovery with a UD very often being the climatic point of the practice.

I have probably learned the most about my body from UD than from any other pose. I have learned what areas of my body are strong and what needs more attention and what areas need opening. And this goes beyond just the physical, UD has been there for me through thick and thin and has even brought me to tears on many occasions, opening me up to a deeper part of my soul.

UD keeps me in the moment, knowing that I have to work my body, mind, and heart as a unit in order to truly reap the benefits of it. I wish I could remember this when it comes to my husband sometimes. There have been times that I have actually found myself up far longer than expected or actually moaning from the rush of emotions and physical sensations (ok, another comparison to an intimate relationship!).

There is such an art in forming this pose. Like the stroke of a paint brush, each move works together to create the final picture. It makes me feel beautiful, inside and out.

It is only appropriate to be called wheel not only for it's visual comparison. As we move through our lives we are constantly turning, facing new experiences but our core, the center of the wheel stays put.

I am sure someone else could easily argue another pose as their pose of passion, but for me it is definitely Urdhva dhanurasana! So, my husband is going to have to accept this love affair because I am not willing to end it!

A Promise of Faith & Some Thoughts on Meditation

Sitting in my bed last night reading "Faith", by Sharon Salzberg I came upon her discussion of a promise. She was talking about the night the Buddha became 'enlightened'. According to Sharon, what was significant to this part of the Buddha's story was Moras' (killer of virtue and killer of life) attacking of the Bodhisattva's faith in his own potential. The Bodhisattva asks the earth to bear witness to his right to be sitting there, in essence asking the earth to affirm his 'right to be free'. The Buddha sat all night under the bodhi tree in deep meditation and was enlightened by morning. Sharon remarks about how this is a story of a 'promise'. The Buddha's promise that freeing the mind from habits of fear and anguish is a real and attainable goal. She says this goal is not just for him alone but something we can all attain. After all, didn't the Buddha promise this?

Hmmm.... I thought to myself, not being Buddhist but being a person who spends a lot of time meditating and practicing the art of freeing my mind from habitual thoughts that stem from insecurities and fear, is this goal actually attainable? Is this promise of being free and happy and unencumbered by anguish, a promise that wasn't meant for me? Does it set up an notion that if I can't 'meditate' myself into a state of freeing my mind where I am completely happy, then I've failed? After all, I spend a lot of time meditating. I make great effort to free myself from fearful thoughts. Hell, I've made incredibly courageous life altering decisions after deep meditation and contemplation. Recognizing that I have the ability to make choices that might not be easy (like the Siddhartha sitting under the bodhi tree being attacked by Moras), but that will give my life more meaning if I persevere.

After sitting with this for a while, I realized that maybe its not the promise of something 'attainable' like freedom from suffering that keeps me meditating and practicing yoga but just maybe it is in-fact the promise of a journey that keeps me coming back. The journey into myself and the getting to know and experience myself. Not a promise of 'happiness' but a promise of recognition and a promise of learning and experiencing all of it- the sorrow & the pain, the love & the joy. All of it a choice and none of it an obligation.

Donna Jackson

20. What are the things that would take you out of your comfort zone?

Recently, I was given a questionnaire to fill out and one of the questions was: What are the things that would take you out of your comfort zone? This was a difficult one for me to answer – two reasons. One being, I’m not really sure what would take me (or take to get me) out of my comfort zone, and secondly – more importantly, I knew the person reading it would hold me to it, challenge me in some way I might be uncomfortable with. So, I wrote I’m already living outside of my comfort zone, blah, blah, blah. But, am I? No. Not really.
Yoga on the mat is a metaphor, a practice for how we want live off the mat. So this is how it goes: no, today I won’t go into Laghu Vajrasana, my shoulders aren’t open enough; no, I can’t do a headstand without the wall; no, I don’t have enough power in my back leg for Visvamitrasana, and the list goes on and on – We’ve all been in those situations before, the feeling that we just don’t have it in us, yet. This is not to say never, that we’re not determined to get there eventually. And it’s not about pushing yourself or giving 110% of your effort (B.T.W. which is 10% too much) or to power through it.
Instead, what if it’s about expanding our boundaries a bit, maybe to us giving 90% feels like 100% because we’ve been in it so long that it becomes our comfort zone?
If you can’t grow, expand, test, your boundaries with something or someone you love, where it’s safe to explore, how are you ever going to be able to tap into that inner source for growth, expansion, strength when you’re in a compromised experience, when you need to be able to see all the possibilities?
Yoga is your lab and the joint is your playground, so get playful on your mat, maybe this is the month you come up into handstand at the wall, or in the center of the room. Maybe this is the month you… who knows? The possibilities are all there, inside you, you just have to know they’re there, trust in it.
Also, as my 12 year old told me today, ‘If you work out of your comfort zone so often it eventually becomes your comfort zone.’ Ahh, out of the mouths of babes.

Wednesday's Practice

Ahhhh....just got home from Mitchel's advanced class and I feel great. Very inspired by the level of arm balances that we attempted, some found the Sattva, however, I did not :)..., so here's today's practice if you feel up for the challenge, and you know that you can always modify if you don't :)...enjoy!

Down Dog

R leg lifts, 3 legged Dog

R lunge forward, take your forearms inside your R leg, gaze at your back leg

runner stretch R side

Down Dog...vinyasa

Repeat L side from 3 legged Dog

Down Dog...vinyasa

Plank...hold for 10 breaths...vinyasa

3 Sun Salutaions A (more if you need more heat)

Trikonasa R side

Ardha Chandrasana R side

Standing Split

Step L leg back, lower the back heel, and dip R shoulder under R leg...vinyasa

Repeat L side from Trikonasana...vinyasa

Malasana

Bakasana, tripod headstand, back to Bakasana, jump back chaturanga...vinyasa

Warrior II R side

Uttitha Parsvakonasana, stay there, or move into Vishnamatrasana, into Kondinyasana I, into chaturanga...vinyasa

Repeat L side from Warior II...vinyasa

Malasana

Bakasana, try taking one knee off of each upper arm, dipping it to the center and placing it back, jump to chaturanga...vinyasa

R knee forward Pigeon, add the thigh stretch

Repeat L side

Boda Konasana

Pachimottanasana

Savasana

I couldn't find my "Light on Yoga", so I apologize for any misspellings :) Love to you all!

Casey

Keep it Simple

I was just having a conversation with Lyn about making our promises accountable. For some of us, just deciding what to promise has been difficult. It's easy to stay vague, and want to just be "better" or "more organized" or "more compassionate" but there's no clear way to measure such grand sweeping notions. If you're still vacillating, and feeling maybe a little less inspired than you had hoped for your experience, then make it simple. In class this morning I asked students to pick one thing, just one, to be excited about for their day. It could be the after lunch cappuccino that magically transforms the afternoon, it could be the 5 minutes that you have with your children in their pjs before tucking them in, or maybe it's just the first few words of the next chapter of the book that your savoring, but keep it simple. Pick one thing. See if you can do the same with your promise. Make it simple.

And then check in. Liz often talks about having a check-in buddy, which I love and don't do often enough. If you already have a buddy to check in with, great. Know their promise and ask them a question today that goes beyond, "How's the Promiseland going for you?" Ask them about their promise, specifically. If you don't already have a Promiseland buddy, you'll see plenty of beautiful yogins carrying around a Promiseland journal. That's the signal to jump in - introduce yourself. Make today simple - and maybe you'll find yourself delightfully surprised in its fullness.

Share a Story.............

I am not going to make it to the joint today so I need a little of the joint's love and energy sent my way via this blog! Please share an uplifting experience you had at the joint. It could be a turning point in your practice, a conversation with a teacher or student, making a new friend..... whatever.

Tuesday Practice

Centering/Meditation

If you don't have time or space to do your physical practice, just do the meditation. You can be sitting upright parked in your car, sitting at your desk, standing in the grocery line. I just did this meditation while waiting for my students to come back from gym. Ahh... more centered more what's next!

Begin with your hands on your belly. Direct your breath towards your hands so you can feel your belly fill up into your hands on each inhale. As you move your breath towards your belly, also allow your awareness to shift towards your belly. Notice how whatever thoughts that feel agitating, distracting, or uncomfortable when you think about them in your head, begin to feel more manageable when you move them out of your head into your gut/heart. Notice how by simply breathing deeply into the belly, your feel more settled, more grounded, more balanced to move into each moment.

Practice

Down Dog

Shoulder Stretch while bowing forward; feet as wide as mat

Intense Side Stretch Pose both sides (SYJ: Two Straight Leg Pose)--Parsvottanasana

Handstand

Down Dog

Extended Side Angle Pose on right--Utthita Parsvakonasana

Vinyasa

Extended Side Angle Pose on left

Vinyasa

Boat Pose--Navasana

Vinyasa--stay in cobra 5 breaths; focus on lengthening belly forward on each inhale, curling deeper on each exhale

Thigh Stretch--on belly or from low lunge

Vinyasa

Bow Pose--Dhanurasana

Runner's Stretch both sides

Down Dog

Camel--Ustrasana

Lying on back straight leg stretch--Supta Padangusthasana

Savasana

Love

A Promise to myself: Slow Down :)

Have you ever found yourself so caught up in the internal dialogue in your mind that you realize that you have driven to the grocery store, shopped, checked out and driven home and you don’t even remember how it happened? Have you ever had a phone conversation with someone and not really, I mean really listened? Do you find you’re worrying about how and when and where you need to be and what you should be doing in the future?

Welcome to my internal world :) My mind can take on a life of its own, thinking a million miles a minute about all sorts of ideas, goals, plans, “to-do’s” and where I am headed in life. When my mind runs wild, I often feel signs of tension, stress and anxiety about all the things that I should do or could be doing. And sometimes, I start to take action on these things filling my schedule with stuff… For the most part this behavior has driven me to be, what our society considers, a very pretty productive person. However, what I have realized is that while I am planning for the future, the opportunity to enjoy the little moments in life is passing me by… Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of fun and lots fulfilling moments in life, and I laugh a ton... but I believe I would have even more meaning in my life if I could just slow down a bit.

This week at the studio both Tracy and Mitchel, in different ways, spoke about the notion of slowing down in order to make each moment more sacred. I find such relief in this notion. Fortunately, I can slow down while I am on my mat at the studio. I can breath, like really breath. I can feel how precious each moment is with out the urge to look to the future.

Now how can I take this off my mat? How do I slow down when I leave the studio? How do I bring more meaning to each moment in the real world? My promise to myself is to give it a try. For me, for now, the first step is just bringing a sense of awareness to this tendency so that when I find myself getting “busy” or going too “fast”, I notice it. Once I notice it, I will try not to judge myself for it. Instead, I will take a break and breath for a few moments. I will keep you posted on how it goes.

Any thoughts, ideas or comments are welcome and appreciated!

Hugs-Kt

Practice for Monday

If possible, start your practice today with a 10 minute walk or jog...outside! It's beautiful out so what better way to get into the body, breath, and mind than a little fresh air. If you've never walked around your block just for the sake of walking around your block, then today's your day. Observe your breath while walking or jogging, especially the space between the inhales and exhales.

Once you're home, roll out your mat and take Downdog. Notice your breath now, especially that space between the exhales. Make the inhales and exhales last.

Right foot forward, low lunge.
Left fingertips down, right arm up for a twist. 3 slow breaths
Release right hand down and turn your right foot in, left foot out so they are parallel, folding, prasarita padottanasana, 5 slow breaths.
Turn left foot open, right heel up, low lunge. Raise left arm up for a twist. 3 breaths.
Turn feet parallel, folding, prasarita paddottanasana (option to clasp hands behind back for shoulder stretch). 5 breaths.
Turn right foot forward and step back high plank.
Lower down to belly.
Cobra, five slow breaths.
Down Dog.
Right foot forward, lower back knee. Runner's stretch.
Stretch right knee forward. Bend left knee and grab hold of foot with left hand. Thigh stretch in a lunge (take thigh stretch on belly if the lunge is too much).
Step back to downdog and switch sides.
Right food forward, triangle pose.
Step back to plank and lower to belly.
Cobra, 5 slow breaths.
Downdog.
Step Right foot forward, triangle pose.
Step back to plank and lower to belly, cobra, downdog.
Left foot forward triangle pose.
Step back to plank and lower to belly, cobra.
Lower knees to floor, thighs parallel, virasana (hero's pose).
Supta virasana as option.
Close your eyes, listen to your breath. What about the breath is similar to when walking, jogging? What in breath is different?

Sunday's Practice

First and foremost, how great was yesterday's workshop?!? If you are too sore to make it to the joint today then here is a little practice for you to try at home.


Downward facing dog (5 breaths)
Walk to the top of your mat
Uttanasana (5 breaths)
Inhale rise up to Urdhva hastasana
Release your hands by your sides - Tadasana
1 Sun salutation ending in downward facing dog
Right leg forward - low lunge (option to keep hands framing right foot or both hands inside and lower down to forearms)
Press back three legged dog (right leg lifts)
Right leg forward - Parsvottanasana (two straight legs, both feet point towards top of your mat)
Press back three legged dog (right leg lifts)
Right knee forward - Pigeon Pose
Downward facing dog
Repeat on the left side starting with low lunge
From downward dog inhale forward to high plank
Exhale lower down to your belly
Belly thigh stretch on each side
Cobra (5 breaths)
Roll over onto your back
Bridge pose (5 breaths)
Full body stretch (arms overhead & feet flexed)
Hug your knees into your chest
Roll up to sit
Upavistha konasana (legs open wide, feet flexed, bow down between your legs)
Baddha konasana (soles of feet together, knees out wide)
Lie down in supta baddha konasana or shavasana or stay seated if you have a few minutes for a meditation

Meditation suggestion: As you sit with your breath, think of a moment this weekend where you or someone you witnessed felt complete joy. Feel the warmth this brings to you. Focus on sending this warmth and love to someone in need (yourself or others!).

Enjoy your evening.

Namaste.

correction to the practice -oops

Sorry folks - at the end of the practice - lie down and take SUPTA BADDAKONASANA! not PADAGUSTASANA!

Enjoy...

Saturday Practice - no weight baring

hey all,
It's been a beautiful beginning (so many beginnings are) to our month long Joint adventure here on our way to the Promiseland. So, for today's practice: If you haven't made it to the mat, or your motivation is on the low end, then spend 3 - 5 minutes doing the following:

Start in pigeon pose (a good 5 breaths or so)
switch sides
lie down and do supta padagustasana (lying on back holding back of straight leg)
switch sides
breathe in supta padagustasana (lie on back with knees bent a and souls of feet together)
Stay there at least one full minute. eyes closed.

Om.

Resolution vs. Promise

How are resolutions different from promises? I often make resolutions as a joke, knowing full well they will be long disregarded before I get to the bottom of my champagne. January 2010, this is the year I … (fill in the blank) It seems almost as if it’s a running gag - come the holidays ‘So what’s your resolution this year? I didn’t keep it, I never did it. To be honest with you, it’s almost as if it’s hungover (ha) our heads January 2nd, one more thing to make us feel bad - one more barometer on how we disappoint ourselves and yes, yet another box to check on the never ending ‘to do’ list we create for ourselves. Now, don’t get me wrong, it all starts off with good intentions, great intentions, earnest intentions, in fact. Yet, even the most strong willed of us falters by February 26th.

Resolution defined: firmness of purpose. Firmness of purpose? By that definition alone it almost seems as if we are set up for failure from the start. It seems boundried, and, the boundaries are fixed, meaning there’s nowhere to go. That’s not yoga’s intention, yoga asks you to move within your boundaries, but to know they are not fixed, they are always expanding and always changing, growing, just as you ebb and flow so do the boundaries you define yourself with, maybe this time is a time to challenge those boundaries a bit, maybe it’s a time to explore securely within them. Know that a promise, well that’s something quite different then a resolution indeed. It’s an indication of future excellence, a declaration of something that will be done. It’s hopefulness. So whatever promise it is that you’ve made to yourself this month; realize: A promise is an affirmation. Yoga is an affirmation; yoga’s purpose is to affirm life – your life. Let the promise be the yoga.

Remember though, the funny thing is - is that resolution starts with good intentions, it’s something to be resolved, to transform by any process – to clear away, in essence : to make space – optimal space, and, isn’t that yoga’s goal? So I ask you this - Can you be resolute in your promise? That’s what yoga asks after all………

The Weight of my Words

Inspiration oozes out of The Joint, this blog, and each and every person in the SYJ community. The studio calls my name daily with its warm and welcoming voice. Upon arrival it draws me in with open arms and it feels like home. Each and every word within these posts and comments hit home. And yet I have to think and rethink again and again what I would like my word to be. For me making and keeping a promise is a difficult challenge. Sharing and articulating my promise is another and truthfully a quite daunting one.

If you ask my close family and friends, they will say I am of few words. I am a quiet thinker. On March 1, 2009 I realized how frightening and then how prolific it can be to share your words. It was the end of the first weekend of SYJ Teacher Training. I was asked to lead the closing meditation. I immediately started to sweat (of course!). What would I say? Would my words matter? Would they mean anything to anyone? Where am I even going to find these words? I hesitantly made my way to the front of the room. Stumbled to find my seat and asked everyone to close their eyes. With that my mouth opened and the words flowed. I saw tears, smiles and felt an overwhelming amount of warmth and acceptance. The adrenaline I felt compares to none other. It was a moment I will never forget and one I am oh so grateful for.

And so I make my promise. A promise that is twofold: to share my thoughts with others, to go beyond the surface, to engage in meaningful conversations and in return to listen wholeheartedly. This is not a promise to force meaning into every conversation for the next 31 days, but one to open the door when it presents itself and to not shy away for fear of feeling stupid or being judged. So with my promise comes a warning to my husband, family and friends….my words are coming your way.

Pratijna

The word in Sanskrit for promise is pratijna. Pratijna literally means "to know" from the verbal root jna as in knowledge, and prati which means "to or with respect to." Yoga is knowledge as the Shivasutra says in its second sutra - jnana bandha or knowledge is bondage. Yoga begins with a promise - the invitation to know yourself, but the goal of yoga is pratyabhinjna or recognition. But if you look closely you see the word for promise is in there, prati + abhi + jna, which literally means "a return to knowing." Yoga begins with a promise, but it lives in the returning to what you know. Yoga is a promise - knowing what you desire, what you commit to, what you hold, but the beauty of your promise is returning to it everyday in both the original and news way you choose to commit to your desires. It's right there in the language. The promise and the recognition are inseparable. Make a promise today, but return to it and turn yourself into it everyday.

Day 2's mini practice

When you can't get to The Joint and practice take some time to honor your commitment with a Mini Practice you can easily do at home.

Janine offers this:

Child’s pose- 5-10 breaths
Cat and cow pose (5 of each)
Hold each of the following poses for 5 breaths- except during a vinyasa:
Down Dog
Uttanasana
Left leg back- both hands inside right foot (maybe lower to elbows)
Vinyasa (plank, chaturanga, cobra, down dog)
Uttanasana
Right leg back-both hands inside foot (maybe down to elbows)
Vinyasa
Uttanasana to urdhva hastasana to tadasana

1-5 sun salutations (depending on time) ending in Down Dog

Right leg- Three legged dog- bend knee and turn open hips
Side angle pose
Runner’s stretch
lunge with thigh stretch
vinyasa- hold cobra for 5 breaths
Repeat on left side

Pigeon pose- both sides
Danurasana- 2 times (5 breaths each)
Down dog to uttansana
Onto back for a supine spinal twist on both sides
Happy baby
savasana

Who Has Road Rage? Heidi Did...

I spend a lot of time in my car. Not only do I commute from Danbury to Norwalk to practice, assist, and teach yoga, but I also travel around my surrounding area to teach various fitness classes. Because of the time spent behind the wheel, I’ve developed an emotional relationship with my car, my route to and from Norwalk, and other drivers on the road. My drive home from Norwalk usually goes as follows: after a beautiful practice at the Joint, calming meditation in savasana, and catching up with friends in the community, I walk serenely to my car in the parking lot and begin the long drive home. As soon as I put my car into gear I become a completely different person.

I am no longer serene. I am no longer thoughtful, self aware, conscious of how I treat others, and I am no longer patient. I realized last weekend, as I was slumped in the driver’s seat, twisted up in a rage because the 30 cars in front of me on Route 7 were all going 5 miles per hour slower than the speed limit, that I was so focused on getting home to my fiancée and pajamas that I was wasting whole hours of my day being frustrated.

Here I was, grimacing, hunching, staring maniacally at the taillights in front of me, wishing that SOMEONE would PLEASE pull over and let me through. All of a sudden I took a breath, I looked to the left and saw trees. It’s October in Connecticut (is it possible I didn’t realize it was autumn while in my car?), and it’s beautiful. The leaves are changing color, the air has that special crisp quality to it, and a great song was playing on the radio. Why was I wasting time being miserable?

I rolled my window down. I turned the radio up. I sang along. I breathed into a more relaxed position. I promised to enjoy my present situation, no matter what was happening or where I was, because no matter what position I’m in, there are beautiful and inspiring moments in it. All the way home to Danbury I practiced my yoga.

The very next day my fiancée and I decided to get a flu shot together. We drove to the local clinic and got in line. I brought out my phone and checked the time…I looked up and smilingly said to him, “why do you think I like timing things so much?” He turned and replied, “Because you’re impatient.” Ah. I’ve already broken my promise. Here I have my honey right next to me; why am I worried about how long this will take? I may not be perfect, I may slip up, but it is the return to knowing that is the promise. It’s okay if I forget sometimes; I just need to keep reminding myself to look around, open up, and let yoga in.

already in trouble, by DJ

OK so I did it.. I made a promise to someone about doing something I'm not so sure I really feel like doing 'right now'. But this person whom I made the promise to is holding me to it. Now I really don't want to do it and I'm not sure if it's because of the 'obligatory' notion of the promise or if I'm just not that interested in the activity I'm about to embark on.... more later...

Today's Mini Vinyasa Practice

Welcome to the first of daily home practices written by your Saraswati's instructors.  When you can't get to The Joint and practice take some time to honor your commitment with a Mini Practice you can easily do at home.  

Liz Lowe offers this:

Down Dog 3-5 breaths
Right leg 3 legged Down Dog
High Lunge Right Side 3-5 breaths
Uttanasana (forward bend)
Urdhva Hastasana (standing, arms overhead)
Sun Salutation A
Left leg 3 legged Down Dog
High Lunge Left side 3-5 breaths
Uttanasana
Urdhva Hastasana
Sun Salute A
High Plank
Lower to belly for Ardha Shalambasana (interlaced fingers behind back, toes down, head and chest up) 3-5 breaths
High Plank
Down Dog
Pigeon Right Side 5 breaths
3 legged Down Dog Right Side
Thigh Stretch from Lunge (right foot forward, left knee down) 3-5 breaths
Vinyasa
Pigeon Left Side 5 breaths
3 legged Left Side
Thigh Stretch 3-5 breaths
Vinyasa
Camel 3-5 breaths
Seated Spinal Twist (ardha matsyendrasana) Both Sides 3-5 breaths each
Savasana

Tracy and Donna talk the talk

I am happy to share with you the conversation that Donna and I shared with each other a few days before the Promiseland began. We interviewed each other. Recorded it. And here is only part of a larger conversation, you know how we can talk . . .

Tracy: Is there a promise you ever made but did not keep?

Donna: (pause). Um.. That’s the thing that I have been really mulling this whole promise thing over, and what it so ironic in this whole Promiseland thing, is that I think promises can kind of suck, because they create boundaries that are not necessary healthy. This is so crazy, but there is this quote that keeps coming into my mind from Mark Twain in Tom Sawyer that speaks to the tune of “why is it that the very act of making a promise makes you so badly want to do what you promised against.” So yes, to answer the question. I have made many promises that I have broken in my life, but I am not necessarily upset about it.

T: I think it is the whole idea of changing our relationship with the word itself.

D: Exactly! I have been thinking about this because here we are set up and excited to do this Promiseland event, and I realize that I do not really like promises so much. We are the only beings on this Earth that has the ability to make a promise. Every other being moves from a more innate, primal place, more instinctive. Promises are a phenomenon of our culture. That is not to say that they shouldn’t be made, but it’s important to know for ourselves from what place in ourselves are we making promises from. So many times I think we make promises to ourselves, to each other because we are afraid of losing something, or not accepting ourselves as we are. Like if you make a promise, or you ask someone to promise something to you, it is because you want comfort in your life. So, if you have this person make a promise to you, you feel safe, you feel comforted and everything is ok. So if that person were to break that promise, they have then betrayed you. The ultimate betrayal. And you become a victim. You set up this paradigm.

I think sometimes we just ask too much of people.

T: We ask too much of ourselves. I think that is where the victimization and unrealistic expectations seep into the mix.

D: I am not saying that we should not make promises, it’s just to me now at this point in my life, when I make a promise, I first want to ask myself is that decision based on a fear of something, or am I doing it to set up a safety of some kind, or can my promise be something that is more positive, more mindful as opposed to I will never do this or that? Circumstances change. Shit happens. People evolve and grow – and all of a sudden you are left with a promise that is no longer relevant – and you are now either the breaker of the promise or the victim of a broken promise.

T: And I think that is why when we came up with this whole idea of an event to affirm our promises we wanted to help influence that first reaction which tends to lean toward the “pressure” of what that would mean in our lives right now. Like when you say “make a promise” it means that I won’t do that anymore, I won’t eat bad food, or I won’t say mean things, or I won’t drink coffee or wine or whatever – but all framed within the confines of a moral boundary. I think the big thing that interests me is to get people to change their approach to something that may otherwise cause great strain, and turn it into a chance to rather infuse their life with something completely appropriate. Optimal.. To add dimension and beauty to their lives in making the choice to promise something that makes sense in their lives, that can even be adapted. Not just to be another thing to add to the list of things that just weigh us down. You know? Then that approach can take that bind of the promise that may feel like it is congesting our lives, and can free us to see what is really doable, realistic and possible. That choice is an important step in the process of us knowing how and why we are motivated to do anything.

D: Especially in our culture. We can be brutal on ourselves. I have been thinking about the promises I want to make for the Promiseland and before I put anything on our wall, or put anything out there in the universe, I want to insure that these will be promises that come out of a desire to bring more beauty into my life. That’s where the whole idea of asking if we can be thoughtful, and mindful in the way we speak about each other or other people came into the fray (part of SYJ’s community promise is to be aware of gossip) – to sit back and make more beauty in the world – make the world more beautiful, by consciously speaking beauty.

D: Do you think we should even make promises?

T: That is a hard question. Yeah, I do. I love what is in the word promise. I think it is an inherently positive idea. It is a “pro.” It is for something. I don’t look at it as something our lives should lack. I think it is important to make commitments in life, because if we never did then I don’t think we would get far. There are many things that are worth committing to. If I can just expand the idea that the promise is not going to be something that is going to put more pressure on myself. We are always putting that pressure on ourselves – that is in fact, the easier more conditioned conversation. Everything about the way we tend to set up our day is this linear list of obligations that we need to fulfill or our day may not seem that worthy or have value. I like to think about promises that will empower my life, motivate and encourage my actions in the most optimal way. I think that is yoga’s goal. I believe that is yoga’s promise.

T: Is there a promise you make everyday?

D: One promise that I try to maintain in my daily relationships is honesty. And that is because of promises I have made in the past that were setting far too many expectations on what was possible for me. So just a promise to know I am coming from an honest place, a genuine place, a real place. And no matter what the challenge is, I pause and ask myself can I move through this in an honest way that is healthy and not hurtful.

D: Are you good at keeping promises?

T: Yes, but I think it is circumstantial. There is something about having a goal that motivates me. It is all based on the desire and the moment. The timing of things. I have certainly intended to keep promises that I suppose I have re-negged on, but I would still consider myself a person who keeps her promise.

D: What are some of your PROMISELAND promises?

T: To tap into my creativity. To write more. I sense it is good timing for that in my life. To see more yoga outside of just a yoga mat so that the metaphor and meaning of the practice can start to trickle and develop into other areas of my life that get so pushed aside. I am going to mark this month as a way to consider that part of myself.

D: So you are planning to write every single day?

T: I think about the beauty of making a promise to myself like that has a lot to do with how it is going to add to my life, improve, and expand my life. It is something I want to say “yes” to. And when you have that attitude, that motivation and with a whole group behind you, I feel excited about accomplishing that. About recommitting myself every day to this promise. Because that is what it takes to keep the promise. No one is going to feel successful if they are going to be pressured by this. So it has to be considered. We have to ask ourselves, what do we want to commit ourselves to daily? Promises can be made with that same knowing and desire that you feel when you step toward the right relationship. That passion and excitement and wonder. That is the point of this event – to re-invigorate everybody to make the commitments that are right and possible for them right now.

D: Absolutely. That’s the most important question, how can we make a promise that can be a healthy and beautiful thing, free from the guilt and restraint and deprivation? And what is the time in your life right now that can help you craft a promise that will truly work beautifully within the landscape of your daily life?

T: I love that question. Yes. It is so much about timing, isn’t it? For some of us the timing might call for you to lighten up a little more this month, things do not have to be so serious and heavy, especially if you tend to be that person that sees life a lot of the time like that. Use this month to take the burden of your expectations off of your shoulders.

D: Or, the opposite – which is using the month to stoke the fire a bit.

For me, just the idea of making promises stirs up a lot of fear and guilt because I can create these crazy expectations on myself. How can I make changes or live in my life that is freeing me up more. That is the way I want to live my life. And it can be scary.

But beautiful and scary.

Take Your Time

We share a business together. Hell, we share a birthday together. We both named our sons’ Lucas. We are mothers. Entrepeneurs. We are dearest of friends, sisters in many ways. In fact, when we first met and decided to become business partners, it was such a natural choice given the fact that we were in many ways, the same person. Since we share so many common interests, so many personal preferences, you would think that sitting down to have a conversation with each other would be a daily ritual.

But like most people living busy lives with hectic schedules, we don’t ever make enough time to sit down and talk in person, face to face, not on our cell phones, trying to catch up while our children in the back of the car compete for our attention. Hence, our first promise: To sit down and give each other the real attention we deserve and crave from one another: The attention of our heart, the good old fashioned conversation that seems to be losing it’s place in our world of emails and text messaging.

The conversation begins with how all great yoga begins, with a question. With many questions. And not just arbitrary or obligatory ones, but real questions. Ones that evoke the right amount of space for our thoughts, one that kindly reminds us to pause and consider what we really want to pay attention to; so that when we make our promises, we know it is something that is coming straight from that soulful, heartfelt place, not just another impulsive demand that we set up to congest or overwhelm our lives.

You see, unless you have spent the past few weeks in savasana, you might find it hard to miss the latest inspiration that has pervaded the walls, the emails and the post class announcements at the Joint, the 32 day yoga challenge that we have coined, “The Promiseland.” After sitting down with Donna on the floor of our new joint within the Joint (our “becushioned” lounge) about what it means to make promises in our lives, and how these commitments can either help stoke the fire of a very needed passion renaissance, or conversely, be the very thing that adds to a burdening lists of obligations and expectations that burn us out, in the true Saraswati Yoga fashion, Donna and I sought to eek more out of our promises not just the “keeping” of them. But to redefine, reexamine, hell, re-create the whole notion of what a promise truly means. And we realized that by doing so, that by taking the time to step back from all the business, we gave ourselves the attention needed to realize what promises we want to make. Now, it’s your turn. Take some time. Whether it is on your own, or with a dear friend and have the conversation so you can decide what promises you really want to make.