Jana's Yoga Spot

Vancouver Landmark Forum - Day 1

2012-01-21T02:23:00.000-08:00

Here I am in Vancouver - Lululemon so graciously sent me here as their humble Ambassador to participate in a Landmark Forum. This is the training that Chip Wilson, the founder of Lululemon did that propelled him into starting Lulu (I think that's how the story goes)! As part of Lulu's commitment to developing their people - they have a budget to send staff and Ambassadors through the program. Some how I was lucky enough to get picked!

I've decided while I'm here I'm going to take in as many yoga sessions as possible and create my own little yoga workshop/conference. This city has always been a source of inspiration for me! Last night I stopped into Meghan Currie's Power class at YYoga Yaletown. When I got there, I saw a sign that said I could do 2 weeks unlimited for $35+tax. Sign me up!

With Landmark training 9am-10pm Friday - Sunday - my only yoga options on these days are sunrise. This morning I took Meghan's Power class again. I gotta say - even the muscles around my eye balls are feeling the strength of these power classes!

Last night, after class, I had an impromptu visit in with Christine Price Clark, who's GLOWING! We're planning an encore visit for her to come back to Edmonton - so stay tuned for those details.

Day 1 of the Landmark Forum

Everyone keeps asking "What do you think so far?"

I have to be honest - I haven't formed an opinion on it yet. The methodology is different from trainings I've done in the past, however, I believe the end goal is similar to a lot of the work I've done in different yoga trainings. Our Forum leader, well, I can't figure her out yet either. She's stern and serious, from time to time she cracks the most dead-pan jokes. Hilarious jokes. And I have yet to see her smile. She calls it like it is and scares me. For all of you who have trained with me in the past - you know how I like to add to the conversation - I have yet to speak up. There may be a couple reasons for this.

The first thing they asked us to think about is "What are you here for?"

~ To become more present and refined in my listening skills

~ Become even more courageous to be me

~ Figure out what holds me back from my wholeness

~ To reveal why I get in the way of myself and stop doing that!

Then she went into a cyclical trip of a conversation that I've often had in the classroom: We don't even know what we don't know, so how do we even begin to know what we don't know if we don't know what we don't know yet? All this was to lead into the purpose of the training: What we already know won't give us a breakthrough. It's illumination of our blind spots that trigger breakthroughs.

"It isn't about you - it's about the impact you have on others."

Here's what she promised us:

Procrastination will be gone after this weekend
We're going to deconstruct our view/story
She stands in the vision that every human has potential to be extraordinary
We'll learn to not be so hard on ourselves
We'll deconstruct FEAR

All she asks in return is that we show up fully, have a willingness to learn and an openness to be coached.

Right before she stated that we'll deconstruct FEAR, I realized that when I left for Australia in 2001 - I decided to drop fear as part of my life. The morning I was to leave on my trip, I had a moment with my older brother where I realized that I was scared shitless to go on this trip across the planet by myself. It felt yucky, so I decided to drop the emotion and plunge forward into this dream. I even went sky-diving the first week I was there, just to stare down the face of fear! I figured I could do anything - and I could! In that moment, I created this delusion that I fear nothing. It's that very aversion to fear that's caused me to deny that it's even present and in reality, the denial of fear is what holds me back from facing my fears head on! Now all of a sudden, I have all this fear flooding back into my world. Wow! Now I have something to work with! Good!

We examined Authenticity and Inauthenticity. The question: "What area of my life do I lack power, freedom and peace of mind?"

"The more places we can find inauthenticity, the larger the potential for transformation."

"To be fully alive, we have to transcend living reasonably. Take a risk. Live life by choice. Get ridiculous!"

Over the course of the day, we're asked to share a bunch of different things with different people and each time, I'm digging deeper into what it is that I fear and where I am living inauthentically. After each break, we're asked to find a new seat. Each new share partner brought up a different topic and by the end of the day I figure I had the major bases covered.

I have yet to share publicly with the group. Why? I'm not 100% sure, but I think it comes back to what Venerable Robina illuminated for me (the Tibetian Buddhist Nun from the Tushita in India, remember?). Attachment to my reputation. When people speak up, Angie - the facilitator, is relentless in deconstructing their story. It's vulnerable work. I have some fear around sharing. My first partner tried to loop me into her public share and the second she did my heart started beating out of my chest! (Thankfully Angie only wanted to work with her in that moment!!)

There's two more full days. They ended the session with some homework and told us that today was only about 5% of what's to come. Okay - here we go!

K, I gotta get my butt to sleep - sunrise yoga to start my day!

Loving this life experience...

Manifestation & Creation - A New Project

2012-01-07T22:57:00.000-08:00

It was about 11 years ago, an old roommate and great friend of mine, Michele, introduced me to her older sister and her boyfriend who were madly in love, jaw droppingly gorgeous, just about the coolest people I knew, AND they made being Spiritual cool. I had always had this HUGE part of myself that was yearning to express my Spiritual side, however, I never had an example of how to do that and still fit in with the 'cool kids.' They talked about all sorts of things that were weird and awesome that I had never heard about, introducing me to ideas that blew my mind. Of course, I would sit and listen to them in awe and never admit that I had never heard of most of this before. Tesla lights? A Spiritual Teacher? Kundalini yoga? Conspiracy theories, strange foods, all sorts of alternative healing modalities, how our thoughts shape our experience, you're going to put a what in your where now? and so many more seeds of consciousness. Some of the seeds lay dormant still to this day, even more have grown and I often pause to sit with gratitude for the direction change in my path meeting all these beautiful people caused. There is one particular seed that I've continued to nurture and take care of since they planted it 7 or 8 years ago.

I was over at Michele's new apartment and she showed me this new book her sister bought her: "Ask and It is Given - Learning to Manifest your Desires" by Esther and Jerry Hicks. I had no idea what this book was all about, but I knew that since Krista & Mat got it for her - it must be good. I left her apartment that day and went straight to the book store to get it.

Honestly, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. The first chapter starts like this:

WTF? Really? I'm lucky I admired them and trusted that whatever they were into was going to be good because honestly - this was too weird for me at that time in my life. The book sat on my night stand for a good couple years. Every now and again, I would pick it up, open to a random page and start reading. Pieces started to make sense. "You are the creator of your own reality." "That which is like unto itself is drawn." "...you might see the powerful Law of Attraction of sort of a Universal Manager that sees to it that all thoughts that match one another line up... ...You understand this principle when you turn on your radio and deliberately tune your receiver to match a signal from a broadcasting tower. You do not expect to hear music that is being broadcast on the radio frequency of 101FM to be received on your tuner when it is set at 98.6FM. You understand that radio vibrational frequencies must match, and the Law of Attraction agrees with you."

It wasn't until February 2009 when my mom gave me the book "The Law of Attraction" by the same authors on CD that it really started making sense to me. I had a number of really long car adventures that year and on each and every one, I would have the CD's playing in the background of my minds wanderings, (which were just about as wild as my road map). I would zone in and zone out. Something Esther would say would trigger a thought and I'd be off in the canyons of my mind exploring things I had created or experienced. As time went on, I started getting curious: 'What would happen if I actually did these exercises?' As with most of the practices I do these days - I figured I had nothing to lose by trying.

Here's my first big success story working with this practice:

I had $xxxx in student loans left. I had been picking away at it for almost 6 years and was done with watching it slowly, slowly dwindle away. Even though I was making regular payments, it was taking for EVER! I was playing that game with myself that so many of us often play: 'When my student load is paid off, then I will...' I didn't want it to hold me back any more. I wanted to move on to the next phase in my plan, but I simply couldn't do it with the budget that I had. I decided to take the teachings of the Law of Attraction and put them into practice.

About a month into practicing the suggested meditations, cleaning up my thoughts, especially around my finances, I received an email from someone I hardly know asking me to pick him up a lotto ticket. I emailed him back & turns out he meant to send that to his wife. Weird. I had only played the lotto a handful of times at this point. It decided it was a pretty clear sign I should buy a lottery ticket. So I did. I bought a Lotto Max quick pick and tucked it away in my car. A couple days later, I drove 12 hours to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho listening to the Law of Attraction CD's, imagining myself completely debt free, getting lost in all the things I would do when I won the lottery. I imagined the land I would buy, the yurts I would build, the vegetables I would grow, the workshops I would teach, how I would share when money was that abundant. Funny, even with all that imagining, I was 100% sure that I would still live where I lived, teach yoga and pretty much continue on my path, now debt free. I distinctly remember this feeling that washed across my heart at one point. I had never felt it before, it was a new opening. As soon as I got to Coeur d'Alene, I forgot all about it as I immersed myself in the teacher training. On the second last night of the training, I was sitting in my friend Jessica's living room, remembered my ticket, ran out to my car, grabbed it and came in to check it. First number right, second number right, third number right, cool. Free ticket? Fourth number right, fifth number right, Wow-EE! What does this MEAN? Sixth number wrong. Oh well. Seventh number right! WHAT? I got 6 out of 7 numbers right? What?!? Am I rich? Turns out I won $35 shy of my total debt! It works! The practice really works! Holy smokes! I was debt free!!! Time to activate the next phase in my plan!!

Crazy right?

The thing about the Law of Attraction is it that its working whether we're conscious of it or not. Over the past couple years, I've been playing with how the potency of the practice of yoga intertwined with this potent conscious mind practice can be used to literally create the life we've always dreamed of. There's lots more to say about this, but I'm going to leave it at that for now.

My new project is this: Video Blogging. It's going to be a place where I tell quick stories of how my thoughts become things. I'm not exactly sure what this will look like right now as I find with most of these things, they start to take on a Soul of their own. Only time will tell. I wish I could say that I would post every Wednesday or something like that. Knowing my crazy schedule, I'm not sure that's a promise I can keep, but I will post. I'm just working up the courage to do my first one. Gulp! Wish me luck!

Workshops, Retreats, Special Classes and Teacher Trainings!

2012-01-06T02:16:00.000-08:00

Retreats:

Fernie Yoga Re-TREAT yourself! Date: Feb 23-26th, 2012.

If you have questions or want to send in a deposit, please email me at jana.renee@gmail.com

To find this event on Facebook, click here

Upcoming Workshops:

Edmonton:

Advanced Alignment Intensive

By popular demand, the Gaiatri Advanced Alignment Intensive is back at YogaLife Studios! Basically, we will lead you through an experiential learning adventure of the Universal Principles of Alignment from the well respected system of Anusara yoga.

Dates: March 8th - 11th, 2012

Times: 9am - 5pm

Investment: $379 + GST

"These four day Immersions are great for any student of yoga with a desire to understand more. Whether your practice is relatively new (min 6 months of practice) or you're a seasoned practitioner or teacher, there is always room to go deeper! Personally, when I took this course, it transformed my practice in remarkable ways! It was the first training I did after breaking my back when my desire to heal through yoga was at it's peak. I felt needed to understand alignment so my practice was safe, what I didn't expect is the transformation that moved through me with that. It also launched my journey into Anusara Yoga." ~me

Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan:

Anusara-Inspired Weekend Workshop @ the Yoga Loft

Teacher Trainings:

Yoga Alliance 200-hour Yoga Teacher Trainings with Gaiatri Yoga and Beyond

Edmonton: Gaiatri Yoga & YogaLife Studios are teaming up for a 200-hour Teacher Training Program ~ 2012 dates are as follows:

August 1st - 15th

Sept 21st - 23rd

Sept 28th - 30th

Oct 5th - 7th

If you are interested or want more information check out the Gaiatri website www.gaiatri.com, YogaLife Studios or get in touch with me directly: jana.renee@gmail.com. If you want a phone conversation, please include your phone number in your email and I will call you back.

Calgary: Along side Sasha Bahador, Ally Bogard, and Anna Colin, I will be part of the Gaiatri 200-hour Teacher Training Program starting September 9th, 2011 in Calgary. This training will be in weekend format over 7 weekends and a week retreat.

***If you are interested in hosting myself or Gaiatri for workshops, teacher trainings or have a group interested in building a retreat - please let me know. I am happy to custom design programs, travel to teach workshops or teacher trainings. All you have to do is ask. Contact: jana.renee@gmail.com***

Still ALIVE!!

2011-11-28T01:00:00.001-08:00

How's it going out there in cyber land?

Despite good intentions to post regular tales from my life or insights or random blurbs, I seem to have neglected this blog for some time! Not for being lazy, in fact, quite the opposite is true. I may have become a little over ambitious in what I have taken on over the past months. More importantly, I have developed this deep love affair with unplugging from e-communication.

In talking to a friend of mine recently, we laughed at the many ways we can connect these days. Email, Facebook, text messages, What's App?, Facebook messenger, Twitter, Skype (okay - I really like how Skype lets me hang out with friends on the other side of the planet or how I can invite a girl friend into my bedroom to help me figure out what to wear! Haha!). It's AMAZING! We reflected how sometimes these forms of communication can create a flat level of communication that perhaps even feeds disconnect rather than deepen our connections. In this conversation - we proceeded to agree to talk as little as possible on these platforms and go back to good ol' face to face (Skype fits, yah?) or telephone chatting. Needless to say, I have decreased the amount of time I spend on a computer and increased the amount of time I spend living, breathing and immersing myself in life. Having said that - I now strive to create a balance. So here I am back in the cyber world ;)

With 2011 nearing its completion, I find myself putting a decent amount of thought into what 2012 looks like for me. 2012. The much talked about, often exploited year: 2012!!!

Today a friend asked me to list five things that would describe what this next stretch of time looks like for me. More specifically, what is important to me in the creation of potential working relationships. I'm not exactly sure what he was expecting, but this is what I came up with:

1. To listen more & to be heard. Truly listen. Truly be heard. To love & respect more fully & freely and to feel loved & respected.

2. To illuminate individual's gifts and talents through creating space for Dharma to be fulfilled (a Soul's truest purpose or calling in this precious life).

3. To share what moves me and to be inspired to move.

4. To be in service (Seva) to Spirit and the many Souls that cross my path.

5. To nurture, build and be an active part of strong communities of Bright Souls. Elevate.

This also triggered a long journal entry that morphed into some what of a visionary practice for what's to come. It's all really exciting! I can't say exactly what the next year looks like as life seems to be changing at unprecedented rates. I truly feel like I have no idea of what's to come. However, it's the way I want it to feel that feels clear.

I'm wildly open to opportunity, hope to continue to travel and teach yoga, and at the same time continue to cultivate this steadiness and ease that has washed over in the past year.

Life is good people. Life is good.

What's your list of 5 things for 2012?

First Day Back on Canadian Soul... 'er Soil

2011-04-14T01:04:00.000-07:00

I've never really been much of a poet,
under the influence of jet lag, I feel I should show it.

Hong Kong International prayer room brings peace,
Each handstand an offering for the waiting to cease.

Side body long, Inner body bright,
Please Stand-by Gods, Get me on this flight!

Anxiety surprises me as the airplane door closes!
I must get her back, to inspire my poses!

Balinese Saraswati rolled up in a tube,
Left on the bench, I am such a Boob!

Land on home turf, hop on the train
Canada Line, you've done it again!

New skype app, free wifi
I try to find my guy

now that it's done, where am I now?
it's all starting over, it's all really WOW!

One day at a time, each moment so precious
My memories of ALL will be truly momentous.

<3

Always a Beginner

2011-04-08T03:15:00.000-07:00

Each new day, I step on my mat, there is something new to discover. Yesterday, I had a conversation with my warrior postures. Start with my feet. How do they connect with the earth? What happens if I put a little more weight into the inner edge of my heal? Moment by moment, checking in with Anusara's Universal Principles of Alignment (UPA's) and loops as I work my way through my body from my feet all the way to the expression of my fingers.

As I work with these postures that I've done a million and one times before - how do I keep it fresh? How do I continue to learn new things? There was a moment as I worked with the placement of my femur bone in my hip socket in Warrior II, examined the relationship between the four corners of my foot and the freedom in my pelvic floor, I realized - of course it's always new. Each new day, as the story of life unfolds, we are privy to new realms of the self. The way I felt my hip socket 10 years ago and my relationship with my hip socket now are completely different. The basics are where I get to explore the deeper realms. By creating a strong basic foundation, as the practice unfolds, integrity can be maintained in the complicated positions. If every day I step on my mat with the intention to learn something new - they journey is endless.

With about a week left in my journey, I've been pondering coming home. For the past 3 months I have been traveling into essentially, the great unknown. There have been guidebooks, friends and pushy rickshaw drivers to guide me, but the true travel began when I lost my guide book. I must have had a different look on my face as I got off buses because even the rickshaw drivers didn't bother me anymore. Something shifted. I've been doing this traveling on and off for14 years now. I have a pretty good idea how it works. My first trip compared to this trip are quite different. Just like my relationship with my hip and femur. I've got pretty comfortable with this life as a traveler, moving from place to place, living out of a back pack, making new friends and stepping into the great unknown every day. Every day I learn something new.

The paradox of this travel thing is now that I am preparing to come home - home now seems like the great unknown. When talking to friends and family from home, I realize how far away I am. I know everything will be just as it should. The right classes will land in my teaching schedule. The whole process is like starting new again. Come back to the basics. As I come home and humbly work to fill my class schedule at the local yoga studios, all I can do is make my offering and hope you all show up to play along!

To quote one of my greatest teachers: "My wandering nature is always focused on voyaging back to the Source. And through it all, I really don’t know what the practice of yoga is; all I know is that it always meets me where I am, and never leaves me where it found me."

Namaste

Stepping into Fear...

2011-04-06T02:27:00.000-07:00

There are very few things I actually fear. One fear that is so deep rooted, so unexplainable, completely irrational is my undying fear of water. I have no idea what's in there AND I don't have gills! While in Australia and Thailand with Stormie, I spent more snorkeling time quickly turning around in the water, sure that a shark was sneaking up on me. Thankfully Stormie was there to reassure me of my irrational ways. In New Zealand, snorkeling with Craig, it had gotten out of control. We went into the water, I made him hold my hand and continued to hyperventilate through my snorkel. Haha! At one point, I actually climbed over & on top of Craig kind of like a piggy back in fear of what may come out of the great unknown. There was nothing relaxing about it! So what do I do here in Bali? I take an open water Scuba diving course!

Here's how this story began. Rewind back to India - mid-March. The plan at that time was to go to Bali for Ally's training, then I was supposed to go to Japan for some Anusara training with John Friend. With the earthquake, nuclear & natural disasters Japan has recently experienced, I debated for a couple weeks if I should go that way or not. I was debating going there for the training and then serving to help the people of Japan rebuild or even access things like food & clean water. I really had no idea what or how I would do it, all I knew was that it scared the shit out of me. Eventually, John decided to postpone his training until May and the severity of the radiation issues increased. So no more Japan.

Once the decision not to go to Japan was clear, I was amped to do something that scares me. I mean legit, paralyzing fear. What could I replace that with in Bali? Diving. Terrified!

When I got on the airplane in Delhi, I had this Scuba idea set in my mind. Because of my fear, I figured I would sort out my diving as soon as I got there so I didn't chicken out. I had no guide book for Bali & hoped to meet someone to help me figure myself out. As I was picking up my luggage, I found three guys with backpacks & made friends. Turns out, one of the guys is a dive instructor. Of course he is! He's from Sweden, his girlfriend is Canadian & the Dive shop is in the Gili Islands.

Over the next couple weeks I contemplated why I am doing this. My fear is so irrational, I actually think I died in water in a past life. I'll be over coming a fundamental fear & connecting with nature on a profound & literally deeper level. The thought patterns of irrationality will be swept from my cells. Strength & capability will be so present within my Being. A releasing of another limit I impose on myself. Gone!

The breath leads the way in yoga and the same is true for diving. I need to learn to breathe. The main focus of diving is to learn to breathe under water. The breath is everything. Learning to transcend fear through the breath. My understanding of life & learning new things is that if someone else has done it before, I can most definitly do it.

The experience of learning to dive has resonated on so many levels. Bringing yoga off the mat and into life is our work as Yogi's and this is how it's showing up for me now.

A Test of Truth

2011-03-25T02:33:00.000-07:00

One of the most profound experiences of my travels was a moment when truth struck me so clearly it was like the time-space continuum stopped. I was walking with a friend and as it all started to unravel - all I could say was: "Can we find a tree? Get in nature? Some where I can be still?" I couldn't think about anything else, let alone find my way to a quiet place. Like a champ and a great friend, I was guided to a safe place where trees were abundant and the blue expansiveness of the sky was breath taking.

We entered an ashram courtyard in Rishikesh. At the entrance there were men keeping a watch on the place. It was perfect because we had to pause as we entered. I was silently in my own process of an impending melt down. My friend was in a creative space with a camera and beautiful scenery to capture, paying little attention to me.

In that moment of pause at the entrance, I could feel the devotional energy of the Akashik field. It felt like I went home. The ancient ashram hugged me in and whispered to me that it's okay to break here. I found a slanted, hammock-like tree to lean my spine into and fully sink into the truth that was being revealed to me at that moment. It was a clear answer to a question I had been pondering for much of my journey. The main reason for my trip. Never in my life have I had a prayer answered so clearly and concisely. As my whole body sunk into the tree trunk, I felt my organs melt into my back body, as if they realized that there was no need to hold on. The structure of all life was there to support me so completely as this download of High lesson was upon me. In that moment, I realized that the only way to live this life is to embody truth in the fullest manner possible. In that moment, I made a promise to myself to live life following the truth of my Heart.

Enter Bali.

I am here for an Advanced Yoga Teacher Training with Ally Bogard of Gaiatri Yoga and Beyond. On the first night we introduced ourselves and were asked to share two things:

What flowed well to get you here?
What resistances tried to get in the way of you coming here?

I was the second last person to answer. As soon as the questions were asked, I knew the answer. EVERYTHING flowed ridiculously well to get me here and there were ZERO resistances in the way. Nothing. Really. There was one point when I thought finances were going to be a problem and before I could complete the thought, a text message came through indicating that the Universe was supporting me financially to be here. When I left India, there was nothing holding me there. I left with nothing grabbing at my mind or tugging at my energetic body. On my last day, in the most peaceful way, I paused for a precious moment with the Ganga while crossing the Laxman Jhula bridge one last time as I started my journey to the Delhi airport. Bali is exactly where I am supposed to be on Planet Earth right now. It was so clear.

As everyone started introducing and answering the questions, most everyone had something. It really doesn't matter what was holding people back - what mattered is that I felt this urge to try to fit in. Something in me at that time thought - maybe I wasn't digging deep enough? If most everyone else feels that there were some type of resistance, I must have had something. When it was my turn to talk - I made something up about selfishly wanting to stay in India longer. I compromised my truth to fit the status quo. It wasn't a big deal outwardly to anyone else, but as I started to close down the night, it really bothered me. Why did I do that? Why would I compromise my truth on something so simple? My main desire in life is to Serve selflessly. That doesn't even make sense. Was it a fear of being boisterous? Was it an effort to be polite? I don't know exactly.

In the morning I woke up with a new perspective. Every day in our lives we are pushed and pulled in so many different directions. There are requests, demands, responsibilities and expectations. In fulfilling all these duties in the past, I feel at times I have compromises of my truth. Some times really small and other times quite large. It was a test of the application of the lesson from that day in Rishikesh. This is my first integration into life back home after India (sort of) and I faltered in a challenge at the biggest lesson of my entire journey! It wasn't a big deal, but a great lesson. So, I thank the lesson and start again. I'm not saying that I will never compromise again, but on the things near and dear to my heart - I must be true.

Oh India! I love you so!

2011-03-20T02:07:00.000-07:00

Leaving India happened so fast. As much as I was ready to go to Bali, I could have stayed there a while longer. The stories range from beaches, cruising through the backwaters, being hit on by creepy men on the train, meditation and bajan in a group of some where between 10-15,000 people, elephants and camels in the city, sari shopping, a camel safari during mating season (I think I'll write a blog about this one eventually), being ripped off while in prayer (? Cheeky bastards!), shopping in Pushkar, hanging with a Baba, a Nepolize and a Karla for a few hours of learning, being attacked my monkeys, learning how much I can hate and love the exact same thing, being so sick I just prayed that it would only come out one end at a time, being so sick that I was hallucinating, a 5-day Tantra workshop, being scolded by a Tibetan Buddhist Nun, silent snow falling in the Himalayans, 10-days of silence while learning about Tibetan Buddhism 7000 feet up the Himalayans, The Tibetan Book of the Dead documentary, hanging out in the land of the Dalia Lama, Losar (Tibetan New Year), watching the changing of the guard at the Pakistan border, serving at the Golden Temple in Amritsar (chopping onions and potatoes for hours!), falling off a motorbike (don't worry Mom! I'm ok - not even a scratch!), jumping in the Ganga (Wah! Shakti Blast!!), mangy dogs, cute puppies, cows chewing garbage with poo smeared all over their bum and tail, people missing limbs, black toothed smiles, spitting men, people peeing in the most random places, cooing babies, smiling faces from all around the world, beggers, inspiration when I least expected it, random acts of kindness, being sung mantra to by the old man sitting next to me on the bus followed by a lesson on the Bagavad Gita, having different Baba's grab my hands and telling me what they see (funny thing is that they all said many of the same things), falling in love over and over again, having my heart broken over and over again, avoiding the major cities, loving the smaller villages, being fed by my new Punjabi friends on the train, learning how to cook some Indian dishes, Satsung, being cared for by my Indian Uncle-ji, smiles, laughter and tears, massive realizations on life, lots of meditation, lots of prayer, lots of love.

There's really so much to share. The entire trip was offered to Spirit, open to be guided, never knowing quite how things will turn out. Full of coincidences, remembering that there really are no coincedences. Everything happens for a reason. I'm sure most of the stories will come out in yoga classes and over tea when I return.

The only thing I know for sure is that I'll be back.

Thank you India. Thank you Spirit. Thank you Rinpoche. Thank you to all the Uncle-ji's. Thank you me. Thank you you.

Namaste-ji

10 Days in Silence and this is what I have to say...

2011-03-03T01:07:00.000-08:00

Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you times infinity I love you!!!!!

The seat of my Guru

2011-02-20T00:51:00.000-08:00

I remember a few days ago closing the door of my guesthouse with my backpack on, ready to move on. There was a pause just before the door closed where in a moment, it was like a film strip played through my mind on fast forward. That same morning Karla and Carly (our new friend from London) had left for Delhi and then home and I was now stepping out on my own. In that moment, I realized this whole trip just changed. I paused, closed my eyes and set strong intention. This is now a trip for me. There is no one else here to concern myself with but myself. I bow my head to my teacher, Mother India. Thank her for all the lessons and guidance I have received and express my love. Nothing about this trip has been decided by me. Everything has been offered to Spirit, I'm open to be guided, ready to receive whatever teachings are necessary for my highest good.

I've mentioned how I feel I have to be careful what I ask for here - well here's another example. As I shut that door and set my intentions, I decided I wanted to be on my own, in quiet contemplation and meditation. I have signed up for a 10-day course which is an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism taught by Buddhist Nuns where I take a vow of silence throughout the course. Perfect. Before that is to happen, I had to finish up the course I signed up for here in Rishikesh and have 5 days off. It seemed on the first day solo that I would really have to work to be alone. I had just completed a great course, made a whole bunch of new amazing yogi friends and it was fun to hang out with everyone. I've really been enjoying hearing everyone's stories. Of course, you all know how much I love to talk, so there wasn't a whole lot of quiet contemplation happening. Then - I lost my voice. In one day, without much warning - my voice is gone. I can whisper and that's about it. Well, I asked for silence right? I am amazed how much more silence there is in this world without my voice! Haha!

So - to complete the story of moving out on my own. One of the girls we met along the way talked a lot about seeing signs as guidance on her path. I moved into a new place closer to the yoga school. The guesthouse host was walking me to my room, we stopped right beside door 108 - a very auspicious number in the yoga world. I was thinking - hum. I'd like to stay in 108. Then I realized - I'm in 109. If you look at a mala, there are always 108 beads and then one more - the Guru bead. The 109th bead. As I walked through the door to my new home, I realized: Now, I sit at the seat of my Guru. It's time to heal me. No more looking outward, no more teaching, no more searching for something outside of my self. I now sit at the seat of my Guru for me. Full studentship, no more walls, only truth. Only love.

I'll be heading into noble silence soon, so there will be no communication from me in any form. Until I re-emerge - I'm sending love and light to all of you.

This place really is a magical wonderland.

Hanuman did it!

2011-02-02T02:44:00.000-08:00

After the eventful bus trip, we arrived in Hampi. It's a town with the most mind boggling boulders every where and huge stone temples. Many of which are filled with stone works of Hanuman - the Monkey God representing Bhakti (loving devotion) and Seva (service).

We arrived during a festival that only happens every 100 years, so the town was buzzing, mostly with locals and people from villages, many of which seem to have never seen a white person before in their life. While watching the parade - there was a moment when we questioned if the entertainment was the parade or us white girls. A crowd of men formed around us with wide eyes hoping to catch a glimpse of eye contact from any of us signalling that it would be ok for them to come talk to us or touch us. And those were the respectful ones. Mostly they just come up, touch us, ask us where we're from and want to take a picture. It's fine for the first few, but as soon as anyone sees that we're willing to smile for the camera - there are hordes of men lining up for their turn. Carly, the beautiful English girl we're traveling with isn't so good at not making eye contact yet - so she attracts heaps of attention. Karla has a professional style camera, so everyone wants her to take their picture. I was left dodging eye contact and working as a body guard trying to keep the three of us girls together and finally having to say 'no' to the crowds of men wanting their chance at love.

At one point, I thought maybe they won't want our picture if I make faces at the camera. However, that quickly backfired as they thought it was hilarious and wanted more cross eyed, flaired nostril, twisted tongue Kali-inspired pictures. Whoops! At least it made us laugh about the mob attacks.

After enough mob photo sessions, we retreated back to the tourist side of Hampi. There is a thriving climbing community here as the town rests in and among massive boulders. There are tourists walking through town with what looks like a portable massage table on their backs. This seemingly portable massage table is actually a crash pad for bouldering. If you're not familiar with bouldering, it's like rock climbing without any ropes or harnesses. The climbers wear climbing shoes and have chalk pouches attached at their waist and figure out how to climb up the boulders the hard way. It's interesting to watch this ballet-like movement on the rocks. Many of the climbers are also meditators which helps them to focus.

I quickly established a routine here of waking before the sun, trekking out onto the boulders and doing my sunrise yoga practice followed by my seated practice while welcoming the light of day. Once I was done on the first day, I went back to the guesthouse, woke up the girls and told them that they HAD to get up with me from now on... there's something so magical about sunrise.

I chose to climb up the rocks the easy way so I can perch myself up high for meditation and contemplation. The rocks have huge lines of quartz crystal in them which is quite powerful to sit on. Each of us girls had our own contemplation of how this landscape came to be. One afternoon, we walked out to the rocks with a climber from England who was sleeping in the hammock of our guesthouse. Carly asked him if he knew how the rocks got like this. He looked at us like we must have just arrived and said "I guess Hanuman was mad one day and started throwing rocks around."

I think: "Of course that's what happened... we are in India."

The love deepens for this land...

Rapid Co-creation

2011-01-28T21:32:00.000-08:00

One thing Karla and I have quickly learned traveling here in India - thoughts become things at exponential rates. Here's an example:

We're heading onward from our magical beach location on a night bus. It's supposed to arrive at 11pm at a random hotel. We met a guy from Austria to hang with us while we wait. The man at the restaurant is so proud of his food that he comes out to watch us take the first bite. He's so happy we're happy! As we wait, every time a new bus comes up - he has some hot chai to sell to the people on the buses. Everytime a bus comes and goes - he gives the left over chai to us (the people that liked his food). Many busses come and go... we wait, we drink more chai, wait, drink chai with every passing bus. At midnight he takes our heavily refilled metal chai cups back, closes up shop, and locks the bathrooms. It's ok - we have our Austrian friend who's been to India 5 times and is cool as a cucumber about the delay. At 1:00am the bus finally comes. We take care of business (as you do before a long trip) and hop on the bus.

Within about an hour the following conversation unfolds:

Karla: Jana! I don't know how I'm going to make it! Too many chai's! I'm going to pee my pants.

Jana: There's got to be a bathroom on here. (Thinking there may be a hole in the ground of the bus to pee out of).

We poke our heads out of the curtain of our sleeper space. No toilet.

Karla: Jana! I don't know what I'm going to do - there's no way I'm going to make it.

Jana: I hear sometimes people hang their butt out the window to pee here in India. How adventurous are you feeling?

Karla: No Way! I'll pee in a bag or a bottle before I'll do that!

Jana: Wha? Are you sure? (Again, I poke my head out the curtain and assess the situation. Definitely no toilet.) The bus has to stop sometime, Karla. It's a 8 hour ride... it's got to stop. (When I look back into the sleeper space, Karla's literally cleaning out a ziplock bag.) ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?!?! (What if she spills? I have to spend the next 7 hours in this tiny space!) Are you sure you don't want to hang your butt out the window?

Karla: Yes! I don't know what else to do! (making an 'Oh My I have to PEE face!!') (she tells me later she would have, but was afraid that she'd actually fall out the window as the roads were right ragged).

Jana: The bus has to stop. The bus just has to stop!

Just then, the bus stops! Seriously! The driver doesn't come around to open the door, so I try to get out. It seems as though we're locked in from the outside. I think 'No way this is happening! Now I have to pee from the chai's!' I try again to open the door. Finally, a smoker comes and helps me out. We run out of the bus to pee. I run around the where the driver is to tell him we're getting off for a minute so he doesn't leave us behind. He's cleaning a HUGE splat of dead something off the windshield! 'Did we do that?'

Karla and I are so excited that we get to pee that we literally run into each other! After all the curfluffle ends, we lay back down in our sleep space and laugh for a good 15 minutes. Phew!

That's just one example... there are many many more. The adventure continues. Hampi is fresh out of a scene from the Flintstones. Time to go explore.

<3

India, India, India

2011-01-27T23:12:00.000-08:00

We woke to the sounds and smells of prayers and offerings at 4:30am for our first few days. Incense, chanting, devotion. There's nothing quite like that for a wake up call. Before all the hustle and bustle of the day begins, the calm of the morning is comforting.

As we come out of our jetlagged haze, we meet our new travel friends, Silvo from London & Mona, the Norwegian. Mona knew a local man named Riyas in Alleppey and wanted to support his family guesthouse. We were heading that way anyway, so off we go! She's been working in India on and off for a few years. She rightly took us under her wing and taught us a few things about traveling India.

Riyas joins us for dinner and teaches us how to properly eat with our hands. The food at his guesthouse is unreal. The best we've had in India. Karla made a comment about waking to morning prayers. He tells us its his people, the Muslims. They pray 5 times a day. He doesn't understand why people go to the temple to pray though. He tells us that God is not in the temples, God is in the actions we make. Feeding a hungry child, being nice to a friend, taking care of a stranger. We all agree.

The next morning, we sit out in his cafe on the beach and slowly enjoy breakfast. I'm shocked at how the other tourists treat him. They are demanding and rude. Embarrassment sweeps over me. I applogize to him for them.

We spent the full moon on the Backwaters of Kerela and then travelled North to Goa. From Goa we decided to go with Silvo to meet his friend, Carly at some random beach in a different province. We were already at a nice beach, so we decided to enjoy the day and travel once the sun started setting and the heat cooled down. It involved a 2 and a half hour taxi, then a rickshaw down a road that was clearly not a road any vehicle should be going on and then all of a sudden, the rickshaw driver stops and says: "Ok, you get out now and walk."

He asked us for our flashlight and guided us to the path. Alright then. We walk with our big back packs into the unknown. There is seriously not a light to be seen, there's no information of this place in the guidebooks and he drives away, leaving us there. Trust. My gut tells me this is the right place to be. The stars are amazing! Once we got over the other side of this little hike, we see the beach and have a mission to find Carly. She's amazingly lit up and beautiful, full of love. Perfect. We have a tea, eat some food and get settled into our little huts for 150 Rupes a night (about $3.50). It's basic and wonderful all at the same time. We wake up to Heaven on Earth, knowing this place is surreal. So untouched that I don't even want to tell you where I am. It's full of hippies, who like me, don't want to share the location with anyone. I love and appreciate every peaceful moment. The entire place sits on massive Quartz crystals. Powerful place. We were to stay 2 nights and now, 4 or 5 days later... I'm already lost in time and space.

Tonight we leave. The adventure continues. Tomorrow we'll wake up in the mountains. Hampi. We were planning on going to see the Dalai Lama speak in Banglore on the 30th, but Mother India already has had her way with us and our plans have been derailed. I'll go hang at his house in Dharamshala once I get to the North. Hopefully he'll be around.

I feel like I'm cheating a little. We haven't been to any big cities yet, so we haven't had the true shock of India everyone speaks so fondly of. I went for a healing session with a man yesterday who asked me why? Why would I go there? Why not enjoy the villages, the beaches, the mountains? Why go to an Indian city and be in the filth, the smells, the chaos and danger. There is nothing wonderful about Indian cities he says. We'll see what happens. I'm a small town girl who loves the peace and quiet. Who's to say I haven't experienced India if I don't go to the city? Every time I travel, I keep to the smaller places... why would I do any different here? Curiousity I suppose? Really, heaps of Indians never leave where they're from - so it's the real India to someone. There are over a billion people here. It's all pretty real to me.

Love

Winter 'Soul'-stice and Full Lunar Eclipse!

2010-12-20T12:11:00.000-08:00

According to NASA a Lunar Eclispe landing on the Winter Solstice has not been seen since 1554, until TONIGHT! This rare and special event is not to be missed.

Check out this video with a beautiful message bringing us together in collective consciousness as we watch the eclipse in awe:

A few of my greatest teachers have been sharing this around lately for some perspective on the Universe. Please watch and share any thoughts or feelings after watching this one:

and lastly, I found this clip from a movie made a couple decades back called Baraka. If anyone knows how to get ahold of the whole movie, please let me know. I watched it about 8 years ago and it truly left an impact on me. I'd love to watch the whole thing again. Different expressions of devotion from all parts of the globe. There are people all over the world falling deeper and deeper in love...

Now, go sit. Meditate. Get clear in your intention. Love this life and everyone in it. Put on a snow suit and go play in this fluffy snow sent to us in the form of a million little sparkling gifts. For tomorrow starts the return of the light.

Love love love

Inspired by Anusara... always...

2010-11-16T21:36:00.000-08:00

Today it is finally official! I am deemed "Inspired" in the eyes of Anusara.

Most 'Significant Other's' (or Lover's as I like to call him) would bring home flowers or something on a day like today. Not mine. Nope! Craig brought me home an ICE CREAM CAKE!!! He knows me all too well.

Anusara is fairly new here in Edmonton and so often I get asked "What is Anusara? What makes it different than other styles of yoga?"

Well - I can't answer what makes it different from other styles as I honestly don't understand other styles in the same capacity that I understand Anusara. I came across this article about Anusara that does a great job of explaining Anusara Yoga. (Minus the technical stuff). Click here to check it out! In a nut shell, the way I see it is, Anusara Yoga is about celebrating life, seeing the goodness in all things and remembering our Highest Self while opening to the big picture. Along with that, it uses a bio-dynamic set of Universal Principles of Alignment we use to align our body with nature and into great health. If you're like me and like to experience it first hand... come check out one of my classes. For a list of where I teach, click here.

Love & Blessings to you all! A huge wave of Gratitude to all those who have helped me on this path, continue to guide and teach me along the way. An even huge-er (is that a word?) amount of Gratitude to those who have held the space for me to fall down and helped me get back up and loved me through it all :)

And Today We Remember...

2010-11-11T23:11:00.000-08:00

Remembrance Day. 11:11 - November 11, 2010.

Today, a National Holiday to Remember those who fought and died in the wars past.

This morning, Craig and I took our dog, Grace, for a walk. We entered Starbucks at around 11am. It was buzzin' in there! Literally, not an empty seat in the house and a long line-up of people waiting. The Barista had just passed me my to go mug filled with a yummy Chai Misto. As I held it close to my nose to smell the yummy, spicy goodness, that same Barista, in an assertively loud voice says:
"Excuse me. We'll all observe 2 minutes of silence please."
It took only a few seconds for everyone to clue in to what's happening. A few people make funny faces, a few whispers ensue, but alas - the whole place became quiet. Not only quiet - but everyone was still. I'm absolutely amazed at this place that is always buzzing, filled with so many different stories playing out at once - pause, still and silent. I close my eyes and Remember.

A few long breaths before the Barista's timer goes off to release us of this magical moment of still silence - a man walks in the door on his cell phone, I open my eyes to see. He's shocked, confused and amazed all at the same time. The look of bewilderment on his face is priceless... "Why are all these people frozen in time?" He freezes too.

How cool?

This week, I knew I would be teaching yoga today - so I took time to reflect on what Remembrance Day is to me. Staying true to the history of the day; honouring the men and the families who fought and died and were effected by the war, while celebrating the freedom that we all experience living in Canada, I began to question.

What if we started to use this day as a day to create a new future? A future where Freedom is the norm. Where peace and love reigns the lands. Where there are no borders, no separation between races, religions, beliefs or politics. Where everyone is so loving, kind and accepting of the diversity of us all. Thoughts become things - so let's use the day to remember that we create our experience here in this life.

A day when we take time to remember our greatest reason for Being. Why did your Soul chose to come here, in this life as Human to walk this path, at this time, in this place? How lucky are we to be alive? These are Auspicious times we live in. Times of great transformation - that we are all co-creating! When we were pure Spirit, before manifesting this body to live this physical life, we had a reason. A mission. What is your mission? What is your greatest purpose for (Human) Being? We take time to remember our Truest Self. This life is Sacred... May we always Remember the big picture and create lives filled with love, happiness, abundance, freedom and most of all peace.

My 10-10-10 Prayer

2010-10-10T10:10:00.000-07:00

This past week I was so Blessed to be in Maui studying with John Friend for an Anusara Therapeutics Training and a weekend workshop where Ram Dass joined us for a couple hours of Satsung on both Saturday and Sunday. Sunday was a bit of an Auspicious day as it was Oct 10th, 2010 or 10-10-10.

John taught an amazing couple classes and at the end of the first class - I was inspired to write this prayer for my 10-10-10 experience:

May I expand and increase my awareness infinitely within my own being and of the Universe. May my consciousness rise beyond my wildest expectations. May I live my Dharma fully throughout my life and do my part to unveil the Heaven that is on earth and enhance this greatness of this human experience and our reverence for Spirit. May I be so blessed to experience Ecstasy in my loving relationship. May I continue to be so blessed and dance with the Divine in this life and beyond. ~Om Namah Shivaya

May we all be so blessed to ride the currents of Grace in this life. May we all forever live in an upward spiral of life enhancing experiences. May we all become more aware and conscious and blissful in our life experiences. May we all answer the deepest calling of our hearts to live to our ultimate fullest!

Fall Equinox & The Universal Principles of Alignment

2010-09-23T08:10:00.000-07:00

Did anyone see the full moon last night? What about this morning? It was brilliant! Apparently, this was the first full moon to land on the first day of fall in quite a few years. Fall Equinox the day of the year where the night begins to outlast the day. This means a whole lot more to us up here in the North than it does to our Southern neighbours. I spent a good portion of yesterday setting good intentions of exploring the dark with bright eyes. Dancing in the darker areas of my own life to learn and understand my own essence of being at a greater level. For it is through the dark that we can even begin to understand the light.

This morning, I found this video. Please watch it! Especially if you've been in any of my classes lately where I've been talking about Anusara's Universal Principles of Alignment.

I hope your day is as full as last night's moon!

Open the Portal!!!

2010-08-25T22:22:00.000-07:00

The portal has opened, I'm only able to have a quick glimpse inside... and WOW!! I am overwhelmed! What is this portal? It's the door to all the things I don't know... I see that there is a door. I see that it opens. I see inside is like a black hole, completely unknown. Looking into the portal is crazy, wild and my awareness seems to go through some what of a metamorphosis...

In my meditation I'm only given a quick glimpse of the vastness of the unknown. The milla-second glimpse is long enough to humble me beyond words, and quick enough to call me to dive deeper into exploring the unknown.

This coming week I am start another leg of this yoga teaching journey. I have no idea where this will lead for sure - but I have a goal. Ally Bogard of Gaiatri Yoga and Beyond has opened her arms and heart to have me audit Gaiatri's Level 1 teacher training next week. The intention is to facilitate the teacher trainings in the future. So - I'm entering a training to become a teacher of teacher trainings. With these days fast approaching, my mediation practice has become oh so important to me. Sit, pray, listen.

When I initially asked for this, the motivation was (and still is) to be in the environment of teacher trainings over and over and over again. To continue the journey deep deep into this sacred practice. During my initial 200 hour certification, I quickly realized that every single Soul there was a teacher to me. I admired the work my teachers were doing, inspiring such grand transformations in others. It's my desire to continue learning from others who walk this path. I didn't think for one second that I would be teaching anyone anything. Strange. "Um, yes, I would like to teach teacher trainings... No, no I don't think I have anything special to share. I'd just like to do it. I'd like to continue watching humans on their transformation into Awe-Inspiring Souls."

I asked about a year ago. Never questioning if this was the right place for me at this time. Just knowing. Serious knowing that this is where I am to go.

About a week ago - Ally sent an email saying that if there was something I feel inspired to teach in the curriculum, to let her know and I might be able to run with it. 'Me? Teach teachers? Oh no - you must have me mistaken for someone else... I'm just coming to learn.' 'Who am I to teach teachers? What do I know?'

In my contemplation of this upcoming experience, I am humbled. There is more to learn on this path than I can imagine is even possible in one life time. I imagine these people are all going to know more than me. I feel tiny in this Universe of Wisdom and Knowledge. This is an ancient art form of seriously unlocking our individual life's purpose. A journey into listening, understanding, and answering our individual heart's deepest whispers. A surrendering to Spirit. An adventure into Service.

Then I remember - when Ally and I first talked about this almost a year ago she told me some thing along the lines of: Jana, it's about learning how to hold space. Create and hold space for the work to be done.

And I'm reminded of this beautiful quote I saw on the Bodhi Tree Yoga Center's website: "No one is ever really taught by another; each of us has to teach himself. The external teacher offers only a suggestion, which arouses the internal teacher, who helps us to understand things."

This humble feeling that I've been bathing in, I'm sure is only a foreshadowing of what's to come. Within this humble feeling I feel loved, supported and right. There is a grounded feeling along with it that tells me that everything is falling together exactly as it should, and this is good. I feel for this ride, I'm more like an experienced surfer riding an ocean wave than a passenger on a roller coaster holding on for dear life!

Life is good.

...and it just keeps getting better every day, in every breath. I can't wait to see the light of the Soul's who are coming together next week.

August Sunrise!!

2010-07-26T22:52:00.000-07:00

For the month of August, I am teaching the sunrise sessions at Lotus Soul Gym downtown!

It runs Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays - August 3rd - 31st from 6:30am - 7:45am. It costs $100 for the 13 sessions, so that's less than $8/class! Best deal in town! Plus, if you miss an early morning session - you can make it up at any drop in class at any of the three Lotus Soul Gym locations! Click here for details

Since I am on the verge of applying for my Anusara Inspired license, I plan on teaching this sunrise session as an unofficial Anusara Inspired 101 course. Not necessarily for beginners, but beginners are welcome. Also very appropriate for anyone who has experience with yoga, but is interested in understanding alignment and Tantric philosophy at a deeper level. Each day I'll weave a theme through the class and focus on one or two alignment principles. Some days will be more workshop style to help deepen your practice and understanding.

Anusara Yoga is one of the fasted growing styles of Hatha yoga. Founded by John Friend, the Anusara system uses elegant biomechanical alignment principles that have been trademarked as the "Universal Principles of Alignment." (or UPA's). Anusara focuses on seeing and celebrating the innate goodness that is at the root of all, strives to create community (Kula) and aligns with Tantric philosophy.

One of the coolest parts of Anusara in my eyes is the Universality of it. I gravitated toward Anusara after I broke my back. I needed to understand proper alignment to help me heal. After studying and playing with the UPA's in all the yoga postures that I can think of - I started applying the UPA's to other aspects of my life. I've applied them to my golf swing, the way I walk, gardening and the way I sit at my desk. I can see how you could apply them to skiing, swimming, jogging and the list goes on. They are truly Universal. Then there's the philosophical side of them - they each establish something in your body, mind and soul.

***I have been studying Anusara for some time now - more seriously over the past two years. I have completed all the requirements to teach Anusara yoga as an Anusara Inspired Teacher, including having my class observed by a Certified Anusara Teacher, who is now recommending me for Inspired. The only step left is to put in my application which I plan on doing before the fall. I hope this session helps me to grow as an Anusara teacher and helps to build community among all the students.***

Wake up, enjoy the most peaceful time of day and join me for this great summer session!! If you have any questions - please feel free to email me: jana.renee@gmail.com

Blessings,

Jana

Determination

2010-07-05T15:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I experienced my first Triathlon. No... I didn't participate, I experienced. Craig participated (for those of you who don't know, Craig is my Long time Lover). He does these Adventure Races which are fairly intense - they are 12, 24 or 36 hour races that include anything from orienteering, climbing, kayaking, biking, snowshoe-ing, and whatever else they put on the course. There's no time to sleep, it's non-stop until they complete the course. Even with all his adventure race experience, this was his first triathlon. Grace & I drove him to the start line to send him off. I was completely clueless. He checked the website that morning and found out that there was a time cut off for the swim. If he wasn't out of the water within 1h:10m, he wouldn't be allowed to move on to the bike portion and would want a ride home. I told him, he was going to do it! Since he hadn't been swimming since before we went to Peru last year October, he wasn't sure that he'd make the 2km swim, but he really wanted to finish the race.

During the swim, Grace found another dog, Lulu, to play with in the sand / water. Lulu's dad asked what Craig's usual time is for the water. I responded "I'm not sure, this is his first race. He hasn't gone for a swim for about 10 months."

Lulu's dad laughed. "And he entered a half Ironman for this first Tri? Well, go big or go home, right?"

What? Half Ironmann Craig?!?! Are you serious? I had no idea.

Craig was out of the water just under the hour mark. He was the only competitor to swim in doing the breaststroke. Grace and I cheered him on as he moved into the transition station. We watched him get changed and ready for the next portion of the race. He took 8 minutes in the transition and looked confused for about 5 of those minutes. Finally, he grabbed his bike - a mountain bike with cycling wheels - and started on his way. He was the only one with a bike like that! Grace and I gave him a high five as he passed.

Grace and I went home to do some yard work and eat, then showed up again at the finish line. We cheered him across the finish line, gave him a congratulatory hug and a high five, Grace went to town licking his salty legs. For the first 5 minutes after he was done he didn't say much other than "I still can't believe I got out of the water!"

I think the part of the race I enjoyed the most was his re-cap of the days events when he was talking to his Mom later. (She may just be the most supportive athletics Mom on the planet! It was probably driving her nuts that she couldn't find live updates on the internet like when he was playing hockey).

Mom: So, how did it go?

Craig: I finished! But I still can't believe I made it out of the water! You know how they say to do something that scares you every day? Well, I think I have the month covered with that one! There's over 850 competitors who jumped in the water at 8am. There were feet and elbows everywhere! And it was COLD! I got about 50 feet out into the water and thought - There's no way I'm going to make it! I'm going to have to go back! But, I already got the wetsuit wet, so I couldn't take it back. Might as well keep going! When I checked my watch at the halfway mark - I did the first km in 23 minutes. I thought 'I can do this!'

Mom: What did you do once you got out of the water?

Craig: Honestly, I didnt' know what to do. I started veering off track and they had to point me in the right direction.

Mom: Were you disoriented?

Craig: No, I was looking for Jana and Grace. I couldn't believe I made it out! I wanted to tell her! The transition team had to help me out with my number and all that stuff. I had no clue what I was doing. I seriously couldn't believe it!

Mom: How was the bike?

Craig: (laughs) I need a new bike. There are a few points when we doubled back. A couple guys ahead of me were doubling back and saw my bike and I heard them say to each other 'He's doing it on a mountain bike?!? Wow! Good for him!" At one of the water and snack tables the guys noticed: 'You're the guy on a mountain bike! Good on ya!' I probably could have shaved off some time if I had a lighter bike. Even on the bike, when I figured out my pace after the first 30 kms, I realised that I could actually finish this race! I had to keep going. Only 60 km bike to go!

Mom: And the run?

Craig: I jogged the whole thing. 21 kms. No walking. I'm pretty stoked about that! The only other time I ran that far was in a half marathon in New Zealand 4 years ago. I finished 9th. There were 12 people racing and all the men that came in behind me were over 50! Haha!

Mom: Are you glad you did it and will you do it again?

Craig: Yah! For sure! I said I was going to do one by the time I was 30 - doing it while I'm 30 counts. I'm happy about it! Again? Yes, but not this year. The sportsmanship out there was unreal. People helped me out with the most random stuff. I need a new bike and should probably spend some more time in the pool.

Wow! I'm so impressed with him! I know he's an outstanding athlete, but to finish a half Ironman with minimal training in under 7 hours is impressive. I could never do that! There's a level of focus and determination that goes behind that type of race. The power of positive thoughts and positive affirmations. I think it's pretty cool. He didn't have the right equipment, nor had he trained seriously for the event, but he showed up.

Disclaimer: By no means am I endorsing that anyone show up for a race of this magnitude without the proper training... Craig is an abnormal specimen of athletic capability with some what of a soldier mentality. He is always in training of some sort, just not specifically for triathlons. (Thankfully for me - he's a soldier of the light!)

It's kind of like in yoga - showing up is where it all begins!

Prayers for the Gulf

2010-06-09T15:45:00.000-07:00

Hello my fellow Yogis,

Today I write from a place of deep love. Love for our planet, our Divine Mother, our Oceans, all Beings and our Future. As each day passes that the oil leaks in the Gulf, I am moved to prayer. I am asking that you join me. Call it Prayer, call it meditation, call it sending love vibes, call it what ever you will... but let us come together now and send out loving, healing vibes out to the Gulf. To the water, to the fish, the turtles, dolphins, birds, algae, plankton, and the plants... all the Beings in the oceans affected by this devastating leak. We have to turn our energy to love and send it that way.

Every time I hear anything about the oil leak, I take a moment to send love to that area of the world.

If you have every heard of Dr. Emoto - you will know the power that intention and pray has on water. This Doctor has devoted his entire life to studying water. Read this interview with Dr. Emoto to hear his research.

http://www.life-enthusiast.com/twilight/research_emoto.htm

Dr. Emoto sets intentions on water. As the water freezes, under a microscope he captures photos of the crystals that form from the water that he has set these intentions on. He does before and after photos. Here's a before an after photo of tap water. The significance of this photo is that the prayers were sent from afar. Energy knows no distance. From our place, where ever we are in the world we can make a difference.

Here is the prayer he has suggested:

"To whales, dolphins, pelicans, fishes, shellfishes, planktons corals, algae and all creatures ion Gulf of Mexico

I am sorry.

Please forgive me.
Thank you.
I love you. "

It's that simple.

The Council of 13 Indigenous Grandmothers have also asked us to stand up and serve the planet through prayer. Here is their call to action:

"We ask you to cast, anchor, and hold the Net of Light steady for the Gulf of Mexico," the Grandmothers said. "This crisis is affecting the entire world, and humanity is asleep. Wake up!" they cried. "Animals are dying, plants are dying, and your Mother is writhing in agony. If you hold the Net of Light steady at this time you will help stave off further catastrophe.

"You have been lulled into a false sleep," they said, "told that others (B.P.) will take care of this problem. This is not so," they said. "And this is not the time for you to fall into oblivion. Determine now to stay awake, and once you have made that commitment, think of, cast, and hold the Net of Light. Hold it deep and hold it wide. Amplify its reach to penetrate the waters of the Gulf and dive deep beneath the crust of Mother Earth. Anchor it at the earth's core and as you hold it there, ask it to unify with the mineral kingdom of this planet. It will do this and will harmonize with all the solid and liquid mineral states on earth-including oil and gas. The Net of Light will call these minerals back into harmony. Men have wreaked havoc. They have abused the kingdoms of life on earth for many years, but this time their destruction has reached crisis proportions.

"Whatever human beings have damaged, human beings must correct," the Grandmothers said. "This is the law. We repeat: This is the law. You cannot sit back and ask God to fix the mess humanity has created. Each of you must throw your shoulders to the wheel and work. We are asking for your help. Several years ago we gave you the Net of Light so you would be able to help the earth at times like this. Step forward now. This is the Net of Light that will hold the earth during the times of change that are upon you," they said.
"First move into your heart and call on us. We will meet you there. The Net of Light is lit by the jewel of your heart," they said, "so move into this lighted place within you and open to the Net of which you are a part. Bask in its calming presence. It holds you at the same time that you hold it.

"Now think of magnifying your union with us. We, the Great Council of the Grandmothers, are with you now, and all those who work with the Net of Light are also with you. There are thousands, even millions now connected in light," they said. "Along with this union, call forth the power of the sacred places on earth. These will amplify the potency of our joint effort. Then call on the sacred beings that have come to prevent the catastrophe that threatens to overwhelm your planet. We will work together," they said, nodding slowly.

"Think of, cast and magnify the presence of the Net of Light in the Gulf of Mexico. See, imagine or think of it holding the waters, holding the land, the plants, the sea life, and the people. Holding them all!" they said. "The Net of Light is holding them steady; it is returning them to balance. Let the love within your lighted heart keep pouring into the Net of Light and hold, hold, hold. Calmly and reverently watch as the light from your heart flows along the strands of the Net. It will follow your command and continuously move forth. As soon as you think of it, it will happen. We ask you to practice this for only a few minutes at a time, but to repeat it throughout the day and night.

"We promise that this work with the Net of Light will do untold good," the Grandmothers said. "We are calling you to service now. You are needed. Do not miss this opportunity. We thank you and bless you."

In each class I teach right now, I will lead you through meditation and visualization. Together we will send love, heath and gratitude to the Gulf.

Tell your friends, share the message, I ask all teachers that see this or hear the message to do the same. One Love!

Thank you and Blessings,

Jana

Anusara Video

2010-05-03T11:04:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday to you!

This morning - I found this lovely video about Anusara... It's a great introduction to the practice and lays out the deeper meaning behind why we particpate in this Conscious Movement.

Om Namah Shivaya!

Satya

2010-04-22T09:34:00.000-07:00

***Week 2 of "Ten Weeks of Yamas and Niyamas". ***

Satya

Truthfulness

Satya - the second Yama of truthfulness. It is about more than simply being truthful. Satya is about being authentic and genuine. Having integrity and being honourable. It is about honouring your truest, most authentic self. At the same time, it is about honouring and holding space for all those around you to live their highest truth. Allow others to have their own truth, even if it is in conflict with yours or doesn't seem to make sense to you.

I was reading a book called "How Yoga Works" by Gesne Michael Roach and Christie McNally. (It's a great book for learning the Yoga Sutras in the framework of a fictional story). There is a chapter titled 'Matching Pictures.' The chapter basically says, when telling a story, the person listening should have a very similar picture painted in their mind as the truth of the situation. Refrain from exaggerating and include the relevant details.

It is extremely important to mention that in order to truly live the yamas and niyamas - one must act in accordance to all of them. So, if telling the truth is going to hurt someone, it is probably better to keep it to yourself. There are times when it may seem that telling the truth, in unpleasant situations, may provide for great growth and better understanding of the self and the Universe. In these moments, if it is absolutely necessary, a very careful and diplomatic approach may be taken. My teacher, John Friend, teaches us about the Four Gates of Speech. I think they fit nicely with Satya.

Is it truthful?
Is it necessary to say?
Is it the appropriate time?
Can it be said in a kind way?

On our mats, Satya is recognizing where you are in your practice and staying true to that. The truth of the situation is, we all come together to practice, however it's not about the physical expression looking the same as much as it is about the heart's expression! Two people can do the same pose and look very different, but have the same fullness as an expression of their true self! For example - there is a beautiful student that comes to my mind who has arthritis. Every class she come to her mat with the knowing that her yoga is about creating beauty. She stays within the boundaries of her body which doesn't always lead to the same looking posture as the yogi next to her - but the softness in her eyes and the joy she spreads into the room from her heart is inspiring! Every day, in every way, she continues to grow and expand all ways. That is her truth! Never once have I seen an expression of frustration in her eyes during her practice. She finds the beauty where she is working in her body, arthritis and all! That is Satya in action!

What does Satya mean to you? Share your thoughts...

Ahimsa

2010-04-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

***Week 1 of "Ten Weeks of Yamas and Niyamas". (Yes, I'm a little behind in my posting - I'll catch up)!***

Ahimsa

Non-violence
Non-harming
Compassion for all things

Ahimsa - the first of the Yamas. It is said that if one were to live a life in line with Ahimsa - all the other Yamas and Niyamas will fall into place.

The most obvious interpretation of Ahimsa or non-violence is to refrain from injuring others, whether it be another human, animal, insect... no violence toward another being. (actions) What about the way one speaks to another? Do the words used come from a place of compassion? Are you mindful in your speech?

Something that helps me to act in alignment with Ahimsa is to see the Divine in another. If you saw the Divine in everyone, how would you treat them?

Now, I know that the Yamas are supposed to be used to govern your behaviour when interacting with others and the environment, but if you do the work on yourself first, it makes treating others in line with the work easier. Love yourself. How do you think about yourself? Do you have self limiting thoughts such as "I'm not good enough." "I'll never get into that pose / get that raise / meet Mr. Right." Or do you have self expanding and loving thoughts? "I am getting a better at this every day!" "You did such a great job today!" "Wow! That pose was tricky! With a little work, I'll be there soon!" "I know that I am a valuable part of this company. What steps should I take to ensure I get that raise I deserve?" "I am beautiful, radiant and ever expanding!" "I am strong and able" "I am calm, cool and collected." Acting in alignment with Ahimsa when dealing with myself has truly been a transformative action and lead to greater understanding to thinking non-violently toward others.

I'll never forget a conversation I had in 2001. I was in Malaysia. My traveling friend, Andy and I decided to hire a driver to take us around to a few places. It was my first day in an Asian country, a new experience all around, but especially as far as driving was concerned. There were lines on the highway which in Canada would be respected as lanes. I'm not sure even why they decided to paint lines on the road there. If I remember correctly, there were 3 lanes drawn out on the road. The cars drove every where! At least 5 lanes of traffic, under no real semblance of order - people driving at the pace that suited them and our driver was moving fast. I was amazed at how our driver wove in and out of traffic so gracefully. Drivers were cutting each other off non-stop! There was no cursing, shaking fists / heads or honking their horns. I asked the driver why? How could this chaotic driving situation be so calm? As our driver got cut off - I explained to him that back home, many people would honk at the driver that cut him off and be mad. "Oh? Really? No, not here," he said. "Why would you want to cause harm to another driver? Not even with my thoughts do I want to cause harm toward him. He has a family, he has children, I wish him well."

"Wha?" I was confused. Within the organization of the street in Canada, if some one cuts another off on the street, there is sure to by some sort of backlash.

He went on to explain. "In my religion, we believe that with every action comes a reaction. I would never want to have poor wishes for another, just as I would never want poor wishes on my family. I think well of all people. Wish all people happiness and love. Causing harmful thoughts toward another, first I must have harmful thoughts in my head. That hurts me too you know! Why would I want to do that?"

We stuck with this driver for the entire day. I learned a lot that day.

Another way to think of Ahimsa is how one interacts with the environment. How much waste to does one person contribute to the world? What type of products do you use? What is your carbon footprint? This, on it's own could make up it's own blog posting. I'll let you think about this on your own.

Ahimsa. Think about it. Wrap your mind around it. Act upon it.

Please comment with your thoughts, experiences or stories. Together we grow.

Anusara Inovacation

2010-04-16T09:20:00.000-07:00

Good Morning!

This morning at Lotus Soul Gym I had the honour to teach the Peaceful Warriors! These Yogi's have taken a vow to practice yoga ever morning for 30 days. Lotus does this once a year (hopefully more often in the future) - it's the Peaceful Warrior Challenge. The rules are - if they come to every class over the 30 days they get a free month's pass to practice at any of the three locations. They are allowed to miss a maximum of two days, but they have to make up the class before the challenge is done to qualify for the free month of yoga.

This was the third class I have taught and WOW! What a group! It is such a powerful room of 33 committed yogis! I can feel the Shakti growing in the space. This morning I taught them the Anusara Invocation. We talked about Mantra and the Sanskrit language first so they could appreciate the energy that flows through them while singing this beautiful Mantra.

The Sanskrit language is quite an intelligent language. There are 50 sounds that all Sanskrit words come from. If you were to look at a drawing depiction of the chakras - you would see that if you counted all the lotus petals on each of the Chakras there are 50 petals. Some say that each of these petals represent a Sanskrit sound. When you speak Sanskrit words, the vibration of the words helps to balance and align you energetically. You not only say and hear the words, you feel them vibrationally.

When we sing Mantra - the combination of sounds act as some what of a sonar - to bring you into alignment energetically with the deeper meaning of the Mantra. There is energy bound to the series of sounds in the Mantra. They can become quite powerful. Mantra is also a great tool to develop concentration (or dharana for us yoga nerds). In class this morning - we discussed the meaning of the Innvocation. Mantra meaning will deepen over time as one works with Mantras. Manta acts as a linkage from lower consciousness to higher consciousness (or Divine Consciousness). It is always a great idea to sit in stillness and enjoy the silence that follows. Feel your body and the space around you upon completion of the Mantra.

Mantra's are sacred in that they are to be passed down from teacher to student. In my experience - it's not about searching on the internet for something to chant or sing. Every Mantra that I use has been taught to me by one of my teachers.

The Anusara Invocation:

Namah Shivaya Gurave

I honour the essence of Being, the Auspicious One, the luminous Teacher within and without,

Satchidananda Murtaye

Who assumes the forms of Truth, Consciousness, and Bliss,

Nishprapanchaya Shantaya

Is never absent, full of peace

Niralambaya Tesjase

Ultimately free and sparkles with a Divine luster.

I've searched out a couple You Tube Videos for you.

Here's a version for my Ooommmmie's! You have to watch it for a bit to hear the Invocation. It's too fun!

Namaste!! Keep on Rockin' Peacefuls!

The Power of Visualization

2010-04-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

I borrowed the title for this post from a powerful blog posting that I read today:

http://atomicsafari.blogspot.com/2010/01/power-of-visualization.html

Then in my mini-feed on Facebook, I saw this video. I remember while Craig and I were in New Zealand, I saw a picture of a 90 year old woman balancing on one leg with her other foot above her head. The quote underneither said something along the lines of "If you want to be able to do something when you're 90, do it every day of your life. Here is my future:

The 91 year old woman in the video below is teaching yoga after her hip replacement dispite her doctors predictions. Wow! What an inspiration and a life long devotion to the practice.

Ten weeks of Yamas & Niyamas

2010-04-13T22:00:00.000-07:00

A wise person once said to me - teach what you need to learn.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was reading over my notes from when I was in Los Angeles studying with John Friend flowing with Goddess Shakti. Every couple pages there are these words that float their way up the side of the page. The words were sometimes quotes of John Friend or other students in the room:

"MATRICA is the power of the mind and thoughts to shapeshift!!" ~some beautiful soul from South America

"The more you Love - the more you will cry." ~John Friend

"Surrender is not giving up, it is giving faith." ~John Friend

And others were little notes to myself...

**The whole goal is to heighten awareness and embrace the love of the world!**

**Your classes are called: "Align with the Divine" & "Shakti!"**

**Teach a registered class on the Yamas & the Niyamas**

It's so funny - all this sorted itself out effortlessly basically as soon as I returned home. Opportunities to start up the Shakti class basically fell into my lap at two different studios. One Wednesday mornings (7 - 8:30am) at Lion's Breath and the other is Thursday evenings (7:30 - 9pm) at Lotus Soul Gym (downtown location). "Align with the Divine" is the name I hold in my heart for the Wednesday night "Yoga Alignment Foundations" class I teach at Prana Yoga Studio from 6:15pm - 7:40pm. They have decided they would like to stick with the name "Yoga Alignment Foundations" for now. I respect their decision. In these classes (and all my classes really) I practice teaching in Anusara style.

While I offered to teach a registered class on the Yamas & Niyamas at a couple different studios in town - neither worked out. Then it dawned me. I was about to start teaching back to back registered classes at Servus Place in St. Albert. One is a Smart Start class and the other is Hatha. They are each 12 classes long. Perfect to theme the first ten classes on the Yamas & Niyamas!

So here I am. We're on week two. Between the two classes today - I thought it would be a good idea to journal about the Yamas and Niyamas here on my blog. Then after class, I was talking to one of the students and said it out load. It shall be.

Here's a quick list of the Yamas and Niyamas. I'll write a post for thoughts on each one. Please add to the experience by posting your thoughts on them as well. When we all come together to share, we deepen our understanding.

What are the Yamas & Niyamas?

They are rules of governance or virtues that we can apply to our actions, words and thoughts. Yogi's live by the Yamas when interacting with others, nature and the outside world. The prefix 'Ni' roughly means 'without' therefore Yogi's use the Niyamas when conducting their behaviour with themselves (without others) in their daily lives and activities.

Yamas:

Ahimsa (non-violence or non-harming)
Satya (truthfulness)
Asteya (non-stealing)
Brahmacharya (self-restraint)
Aparigraha (non-greed or non-clinging)

Niyamas:

Saucha (cleanliness or purity)
Santosha (contentment)
Tapas (austerity)
Svadyaya (self-study)
Ishvara Pranidhana (surrendering to Divine will)

More to come... Please share your thoughts in the comment space... may be all grow brighter together!!

Namaste.

The Gypsy Journey's

2010-03-24T10:31:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a kick start to 2010! I haven't been writing as much because I've been busy living!!

On January 5th, I started a two week adventure. I had a few laughter filled, friend loving, gut busting, cosmic chatting, awe-inspiring nights in Calgary, followed by a weekend in Fernie with my girl Blaire. First time back on a snowboard since the broken back mountain day. It felt good to connect in with the mountains again. Forget myself and pulse with nature. On Sunday January 10th, I hopped in my little car and drove South to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho for part 3 of the Anusara Immersion with Karen Sprute-Francovich. What an amazing experience. Karen does such a great job of bringing the Kula (community) together. Her teaching style is admirable and her knowledge base blows my mind. I aspire to be so humble and graceful while sharing all this love!

After the Immersion, I was off to the Kootenay's. The land of magical people. Freedom of expression. I visited with my Wizard friend, Joe and my Gypsy Sista, Ally. Joe is a walking Miracle. This man has inspired me beyond belief over the past two years. I remember meeting Joe in Kindergarden. In high school, I remember sharing true friendship moments with Joey. He's a brother of the deepest sorts. On a soul level. Joe is a Healer and a Wizard and I can't wait to see the work he does in this world over the course of his life. Perhaps I'll ask him if I can share his story of his near death experience on the ski hill a couple years ago in another post. I am awe-inspired by this Brother each time we connect. This time was no exception. If there is one thing the world can learn from Joe it's that the healing powers of the human body is beyond all comprehension. Ally's a forever inspiration in my life. I did say she's a Gypsy - but more accurately, she's an Alchemist. All she touches turns to gold.

The weekend of January 22 - 24th I ventured out to Vancouver to study with Seane Corn for her Detox Flow Weekend Workshop. Seane has been quite the inspiration for so many! She has a program called Off the Mat into the World. The Detox Yoga Flow was about detoxing not only the physical body, but the emotional and spiritual body as well. That women has a strong Goddess force pulsing with her.

While working for WestJet - I was able to visit with Lisa & Danny and Krister & Max in Toronto and reunited with my Vipassana friend, Jessie, in Comox. The ability to stay close with friends and family is my favorite thing about working for WestJet! The airplane yoga sessions are a close second.

Mid-February Geordie and I flew off to Maui to host our Maui Yoga Retreat! It was such a beautiful collection of souls creating art, flowing with Shakti's love and revealing deeper layers of the heart. I am so lucky to be surrounded by such beauty, inspiration and love. Not to mention how lucky I am to work in an craft that I love wholeheartedly. It doesn't even feel like work!

When Geordie and I started planning the retreat - we had an idea what we wanted to share about this lovable island with others. What we didn't know is who would show up to create this experience. We left inspired, lifted and expanded in ways we could have never predicted. Thank you all so much for sharing your essence and creating such a wonderful experience for all of us!

Here are some photos from the retreat...

This is the crew from the retreat at our visit to Laulima Organic farms. Laulima is a sustainable operation, with intellegent garden architecture to maximize ground space that uses alternative energy resources when ever possible.

Here's Geordie working for his smoothie! The bike powers the blender!!

Sharon rockin out Visvamitrasana!

Heather hanging out in the Banyan Tree at our Retreat center

This is the state of relaxation a Yoga Retreat will put you in :)

I was home from the Maui for one week before heading to Los Angeles for a week to study with the founder of Anusara Yoga, John Friend. The first week of March, my friend Whitney and I met only to be fully immersed in the Shakti love of John's Annual Anusara Advanced Intensive. Intense it was! Days before leaving, John sent an email out to all the participants setting the tone. The theme of the Intensive was "Shakti - The Godess of Creative Power"

Here's a clip from his pre-intensive letter:

"The yoga room will be treated as a mandir or devi temple, so there be silence in the mandir before and after every session.

Treat the atmosphere of the space as the 3-dimensional garment of the Goddess. Walk slowly and move deliberately as you are making beautiful ripples in the Akasha. When not performing the pose directed by John, then please be still. You may sit or stand with focused bhakti on your mat facing the puja when not performing advanced asana. If the class is performing an advanced asana and you are pausing, then please stand or sit silently doing mantra repetition."

The entire thing was inspiring beyond comprehension. Literally! I am still sinking deeper into understanding the offerings of that session. Not only did we learn about and call forth the Goddesses Kali (and Durga), Saraswati and Lakshmi to lift us and light the path, practice asana and the Universal Principles of Alignment, philosophy - Shiva-Shakti Tantrica to be specific, sing magnificent mantra, and expansive meditaiton; we learned to create art with our bodies, to become a connoisseur of our senses and to offer more beauty into this world in the every day simple kind of ways. Life is a dance with the creative energy of manifestation, the Goddesses. On the first day John welcomed me into the room with a hug, a brief conversation and tied a blue rakhi bracelet on my left wrist to remind me to always remember the Goddess. By the end of the fifth day I noticed in Whitney's notes in huge writing: "All this Man aspirations are to raise awareness and cultivate more love and beautiful expressions of the collective Heart and Soul into this Universe!" Thanks to my new friend Mario - I will forever have a reminder of the ceiling we practiced under for this magical Intensive.

Humbled? Most definitely. Not only to the vastness of the teachings, the dedication of John Friend to his Dharma, all the teachers present, the depths of this sacred path, the work being done all around the room, our gracious host (Dr. Drake) and his dog, Vedder, with their warm welcome to their Hollywood Hills home; but also the creative expression of this 'Merry Band of Bohemian Artists.' Every day the beauty and Shakti love grew! My mantra quicky turned into pure gratitude for the entire experience! Noah Maze & Christina Sell were practicing in front of us for the entire second day... talk about inspiring! Check out this pose!

Now it is time for me to settle into Edmonton, enjoy all it has to offer, share the gems I have found over the lands and learn about all the gems right here at home. The gypsy's journey never ends...

Inspiration Much?

2010-03-16T09:21:00.000-07:00

Good Morning! Today is a beautiful day! I can't wait to get out and play.

Before I do - I wanted to share a friend's story. While studying in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho I had the honour of meeting an Anusara Inspired Teacher named Jenifer Harbour. Jen is a little tough, quick witted, extremely knowledgeable, Goddess of a teacher. The first time I met her - she mentioned that she taught yoga at the Juvenile Delinquent Center in her area. My interest was instantly peeked. Recently, I started reading her blog and thought I would share with you. There are two posts that really stand out, so I'll link them (click on the bolded title) - but the whole blog is worth the read.

"Hugs" and "I'm not Opening"

"Hugs" is about a conversation she had with a boy that literally moved me to tears. "I'm Not Opening" is a poem she got from one of the boys as he turned 18 and was moving to the big league - jail for adults.

The work that can be done through yoga is endless. One of the things I like the most about yoga is that it knows no boundaries. It's open to absolutely everyone - all one has to do is show up.

Jen must be an incarnate of the Goddess Kali.

The work is being done...

2010-02-12T00:00:00.000-08:00

I found this on one of my dearest teacher, Ally's facebook page under "Favorite Quotes." I'm not sure if she wrote it herself or if she got it from some where else... but I love it and thought I would share:

On the surface of the world right now there is war and violence and things seem dark.
But calmly and quietly, at the same time,
something else is happening underground
An inner revolution is taking place
and certain individuals are being called to a higher light.
It is a silent revolution.
From the inside out. From the ground up.
This is a Global operation.
A Spiritual Conspiracy.
There are sleeper cells in every nation on the planet.
You won't see us on the T.V.
You won't read about us in the newspaper
You won't hear about us on the radio
We don't seek any glory
We don't wear any uniform
We come in all shapes and sizes, colors and styles
Most of us work anonymously
We are quietly working behind the scenes
in every country and culture of the world
Cities big and small, mountains and valleys,
in farms and villages, tribes and remote islands
You could pass by one of us on the street
and not even notice
We go undercover
We remain behind the scenes
It is of no concern to us who takes the final credit
But simply that the work gets done
Occasionally we spot each other in the street
We give a quiet nod and continue on our way
During the day many of us pretend we have normal jobs
But behind the false storefront at night
is where the real work takes a place
Some call us the Conscious Army
We are slowly creating a new world
with the power of our minds and hearts
We follow, with passion and joy
Our orders come from the Central Spiritual Intelligence
We are dropping soft, secret love bombs when no one is looking
Poems ~ Hugs ~ Music ~ Photography ~ Movies ~ Kind words ~
Smiles ~ Meditation and prayer ~ Dance ~ Social activism ~ Websites ~ Blogs ~ Random acts of kindness...
We each express ourselves in our own unique ways
with our own unique gifts and talents
Be the change you want to see in the world
That is the motto that fills our hearts
We know it is the only way real transformation takes place
We know that quietly and humbly we have the
power of all the oceans combined
Our work is slow and meticulous
Like the formation of mountains
It is not even visible at first glance
And yet with it entire tectonic plates
shall be moved in the centuries to come
Love is the new religion of the 21st century
You don't have to be a highly educated person
Or have any exceptional knowledge to understand it
It comes from the intelligence of the heart
Embedded in the timeless evolutionary pulse of all human beings
Be the change you want to see in the world
Nobody else can do it for you
We are now recruiting
Perhaps you will join us
Or already have. Thank You.
All are welcome
The door is open

Isn't it true? Love to each of you and vibrations of success in your own silent revolution!!

Children are Beautiful Creatures

2010-01-29T21:22:00.000-08:00

The title: "Children are Beautiful Creatures" was the second title I wrote when I started this blog a year ago. When I wrote the title didn't have the words to describe the super-gianormous amount of love and admiration I have for those little people. My original blogging attempt turned into: "Imagine the Love..."

My latest inspiration is worthy of the title.

I've been teaching baby-momma classes for a friend and her mommy's group for donations. Our schedule isn't regular, but we've got together 3 times now. I love it. All the babies are 6-10 month boys, none of them can crawl yet. They sit or lay down at the front of their mum's mat and make funny faces. Some of them have a pretty sweet forward fold & happy baby pose, some like to grab their mom's hair in plank pose, or laugh. It's probably on my top 10 the cutest things in the world list. Each class the babies are more chilled out during the class and the mom's are able to get a better workout now. I watch these women & their babies with such complete admiration and forget myself.

I have a 'say yes' to everything once rule for subbing yoga classes. I trust that Leala would only suggest me to sub classes she believes I can handle. This week Wednesday and Thursday, I subbed 3 classes for Sara**. YogaKids: Ages 3 - 5 for 75 minutes. FitMomma Class - bring your children to yoga class. Unreal, awesome! I have never taught in a room with so much wild energy. (Hey wait! Is that a mirror of me?) YogaKids: Ages 6-11 - Sara wrote me up a fantabulous lesson plan. We started the class off with the kids sharing their feelings on a themed topic for the day. I asked them a rhetorical question at the start of class, except they're kids. They don't know it's rhetorical - they answer you. They each told me what evoked the negative emotion I asked them about, when it has happened to them and what it feels like in their physical bodies when they feel it in their emotional body! Then, through Sara's brilliance, I taught them breath work to learn to not get that "yucky feeling" when confronted with their triggers. These kids kick my butt at yoga! They're so tuned in with it all.

What a beautiful gift, these kids teaching me yoga: uniting body, mind and spirit! They're already united, that's what I'm striving for in my practice! Trust. Joyfulness. Beginner's mind. Love. Interconnectedness. The most pure open mind. No past experience to relate anything to. No ideas how things are going to happen. Surrender. Connection to Source.

Blow my mind! I loved it! In an adult class, no one answers. We stay to ourselves. I had my 'ah Ha! moment' when I subbed for Leala's Gentle Yoga class tonight. When I asked a question, knowing it was a rhetorical question, I thought: "Could you imagine what kind of community we would build if we started answering these questions out loud in class on our mats? Learn to dissolve our differences by talking about things and working it out, rather than pushing things down." This is one of the things Seane Corn was talking about at the Detox Yoga Flow workshop last weekend. She said that to achieve optimal health, it has nothing to do with an optimal weight. It's about an balanced physical body, emotional body and spiritual body.

Let's talk about stuff. Let's create friendships built on trust and respect, open minds and love. What stresses you out? What does it feel like in your body? What is bliss? What would happen if we started talking about this on our mats?

In Anusara they use they use the word "Kula."

"The Anusara yoga community (kula) is inclusive, life-affirming, and evolving. Individuality and creative self-expression, which glorify the greatness of the kula, are encouraged and celebrated." ~Anusara Yoga Website

In Kula, everyone is welcome.

**Sara's a YogaKids Certified teacher and a Trinity Teacher. Gaiatri Teacher Training was born from Trinity Teacher Training.

One year ago today...

2010-01-23T11:02:00.000-08:00

...right this moment, one year ago today, Craig was driving me to the hospital for my second back surgery. It was the long awaited day to get all the metal removed from my back. It was 11 months to the day that I broke it. My surgeon came to check on me once I was back in my hospital room. He told me how the surgery went, gave me a little bucket and instructions for home care. They sent me home that same day because I was so lively and energetic after the surgery. Here's a picture of the pail of metal they took out of my back with Craig giving a thumbs up that it's in a bucket and not my back!

It's been quite the journey. From the first day I got home from the hospital almost 22.5 months ago, I started working on my rehab using what I know about yoga. I had strict instructions not to do anything to my back or hamstrings for six full weeks. My friend Joe, who had a serious accident only a few months earlier was such an inspiration. He was on a mission to heal and his story helped me to believe in a miracle. I was in a brace that held my torso long and straight. I believed. Starting with my feet. How do my feet connect with the ground? Foundation. There are four corners to my feet - is the weight equally distributed between the four corners? Were my arches lifting? Two weeks out - all fours - how did my hands connect with the earth? Four corners of the palm connecting? Center of the palm lifting like suction cups? Four weeks out - sitting in dandasana working to get my legs straight... slowly but surely.

My desire to heal through yoga brought me to Anusara's Universal Principles of Alignment - which I still use daily to heal my body. Almost two years later - I'm still working things out, but it gets better every day. Here's a picture of me a week and a half ago. Big fish practice at the third Anusara Immersion. I'd say the principles have worked pretty good!

I am so grateful for this ~~injury~~ - er - gift. My understanding of my body and it's ability to heal is deeper than I ever imagined. The last two years has been more than a physical healing process, it's been a spiritual and emotional healing process too. It's been an amazing journey, bringing me to where I am now, were I had intended on being 5 years ago - teaching yoga, sharing this beautiful practice with anyone interested in learning.

This weekend, I'm in Vancouver at a Seane Corn Detox Yoga Flow weekend. I've only done 2 hours of the workshop so far, but this woman has inspired me huge already!! (And kicked my butt on the mat!) I'm looking forward to the rest of the weekend.

I hope you all have a blissed out weekend!!

Who am I, really?

2009-12-22T15:06:00.000-08:00

I am a lot of things. Ask anyone who's known me over 10 years. I am so many different things to so many different people. Just as we all are! Each different person in my life has their own idea of who I am and each are valid. Different people bring out different sides of me. There is only one who knows the big picture of who I truly am. The big guy. Yup, that's right not even me. I know what I know about me and the quest for understanding myself is never ending. I understand that there's a veil of illusion (Maya - for my yoga nerd friends) that we are all under and the journey to enlightenment is the path of deeper understanding of the self. Each layer of myself that is revealed to myself takes me deeper into understanding the Universe. Yah, that's an ongoing contemplation. Wow.

I have been so far geographically and expanded in ways I never thought imaginable. Seems strange really. How would I even begin to explain who I am? It's overwhelming. All my life my parents told me: "You can do anything you want to do. You can be whomever you want to be. You just have to put your Heart and Soul into it. You will become a Master."

Anything I want? Really? ANYTHING? Wow! There are lots of things I want to learn about. And I want to explore because there are lots of aspects about this Universe I don't even know about yet. How do I know what I really want, if I don't even know about everything yet? If I don't know, how do I even know that I don't know!?!?! Oh WOW! This is really overwhelming!

The other day, a friend of mine started laughing as she thought out loud about all the things I have been over the last 10 years of our friendship. She proceeded to make a list of things: a figure skater, a waitress, a friend, a bartender, a traveller, a University student, a flight attendant, a marketer, an advertiser, a yoga student, a daughter, a sister, a support, a volunteer, a mistake maker, a wakeboarder, a snowboarder, a soul searcher, a star gazer, a philosopher, an explorer, a recycler, a wanderer, an event management student, an event planner, a fun sharer, a smiler, a coach, a mischievous spirit, a lover, an auntie, a cousin, a liberator, a mediator, a meditator, an experiencer, a creator, an encourager, a facilitator, a gardener, a listener, a blabber, a spirit chaser, a questioner and the list goes on... often these things would overlap. And now - a yoga teacher! She's right, I am really so many things - I am dark and light and everything in between. I am a human full of emotions, exploring this world with open eyes, opens arms and an open heart. I am not perfect, nor do I pretend to be. I thank everyone around me who lets me be me and helps to create the fullness that I am.

She laughed even harder thinking about how I tried so many things and seemed to have no focus. I would get into one thing, pack my bags and travel, come home and be into something completely different. Then she said - I don't think the yoga thing's going to fall away. I asked her why. She told me that even though I had been all these things, the root of everything along the way is that I had the ability to connect with people on a soul level. No conversation stayed surface with me for too long.

This made sense to me. I know in my heart that yoga's here to stay. It's the underlying practice that has been consistent through all my travels, experiences and mistakes. I love the community. It teaches to live from my heart, live my truth, be pure with my thoughts. All things I strive for. My focus is my heart. To live from my heart. To connect with the heart of others.

Yoga also gives me focus. I am humbled each time I learn something new (daily). There is so much to this world, this universe, that to think for even a second that any of us know everything is ridiculous! What yoga does is give me a framework from which to explore the universe and my heart.

Recently, I met a woman who has blown my mind over and over with her music. She has a way of singing exactly what I need to hear. Although I've been listening to her music for some time now (as has the rest of the world), this song especially stands out as consciously go down this path of understanding myself and uncovering my heart's deepest desires. This woman always sings with full emotion from her heart. Shows her vulnerability along with her strength. She is so truly her that her words inspire the masses. The coolest thing I saw when I met her is that she's so grounded and normal. Along with her twin brother, Wade, and my friend Geordie, we all hung out just like I'd hang out with any of my best friends. I felt like I fit in and there was never a moment that anyone of us four was greater or lesser than the other. (Except for that silent moment after about half an hour in when I realized that I was sitting beside one of the more powerful women of our time. It passed when she cracked another joke!) She may be one of the coolest chics I've ever met!

I downloaded an iTunes exclusive album of hers after we met. Before each song, she explains her inspiration. I feel like today - I heard what she had to say about her song "Everything" for the first time. She said: "My aspiration has been about being transparent as I can possibly be. The more visible I've become...the more peaceful I've become. I fell like there's less to hide. There's so much energy that goes into hiding and secrecy. (She defines the difference between secrecy and privacy. Secrecy = fear / creates separateness). Being transparent is...a courageous act, it's a loving act. It also relates us to each other because I feel like if we were to put everything out on the table we'ed be really shocked to see the thread of continuity that connects us all. The biggest suffering moments for me are when I really do feel separate from people. ...It (the song) also points toward what unconditional love would feel like. When I hear that song it shifts my cells to the point where I can actually feel what unconditional love feels like just listening to it. It really encapsulates what the last few years of my life has really been about. It's been about, not only trying to attract into my life people who love me as unconditionally as the song describes, but for me to accept those parts of myself, you know? So, not wanting to be this perfect, good, happy person. But also not wanting to sort of drown in my own depression and cynicism, you know, and having everything in between be ok."

Couldn't have said it better about my own life Alanis! Thank you!

Check out this video to see what I'm saying:

Authentic Teacher?

2009-12-21T09:44:00.000-08:00

My family grew up in nature, on an acreage in a small town in Saskatchewan. All my childhood and teenaged life I moved at a pace or vibration that was in tune with nature's pulse. My mother taught me spirituality as it was guided by my heart. I remember searching and questioning my greater purpose for being here when I was still in single digits. As an adult I live in the city - the vibration is different here. Nature grounds me in a way that allows me to be myself. This is the reason I love snowboarding so much! I get to feel the wind on my face, crisp air in my lungs and move in a way that makes me feel alive! Fresh Air! It's what I miss about travel. It's what I miss about my life! In St. Albert - I'm quick to get outside to shovel my driveway because I get to be outside in the fresh air! Nature gives time to slowdown, to process, to get in tune. To me, nature and spirituality are one.

I didn't notice this vibrational difference at first. I hadn't spent too much time in Calgary consecutively. I travelled Australia, moved back to Saskatoon, traveled Thailand, traveled Canada. Calgary was essentially my homebase on and off for about 9 years. As Calgary changed, grew, evolved and boomed into what is known world wide as a one of the Oil & Gas capitals, the vibration changed. My partner and I left in the middle of it and moved to New Zealand. It was only once I got to New Zealand that I was reminded how much I love nature. The pace of life there was "cruisey." People put down their pens or hammers when the surf was good. Businesses were closed on Sunday's and had modified hours on Saturdays. Forget going to the bank after 4:30 any day of the week where we were living!

New Zealand reminded me that I need to be in nature to stay grounded so I can breathe! To be honest though - I did not see this right away. It's something I have learned in hind-sight.

It's amazing how nature parallels spirituality in my life. The more connected I am with nature, the more connected I am with spirit. In 2006, coming home from New Zealand showed me that in a raw way. (again - not right away, in hind-sight). We went from chilled out ocean front living in a culture that lives in harmony with nature's cycles, to BOOM-ing Calgary! Wowsa! People were doing the jobs of many, money was drawn in from the entire world through the oil and gas industry. From my work post on Stephen Avenue, right in the heart of downtown Calgary, I watched. I saw many beautiful, bright and loving people. As I spent more time in the concrete jungle away from nature, started to see the dark. I watched "Average Joe's" change into people who worked too much - I noticed the loneliness - I noticed people with waaaaay too much money and not enough love. With these traits together I saw good people make bad decisions. The greed and unquenchable thirst that pervaded the beautiful city of Calgary was astounding. I couldn't help but see this all as manic behaviour! Everything from the crazy rise in the price of housing, pocket millionaires, the hours people worked, the indulgence, the lust! Everyday, with pure amazement, I watched this go on. (When I read the Bhagavad Gita for the first time last year - Chapter 16 spelled out what I saw in some Calgary sub-cultures).

Me - being the one who likes to explore, did. I thought I would be able to maintain myself though it - but if one lesson my dad taught me rang true at this time, it was: "You are who you hang around with!" It was a lot of fun. Not all the best decisions were made - but I learned a LOT in the process. The biggest being that my consciousness wouldn't let me stick around to dance with the devil for too long. It had to stop. I had to shift my focus of what I saw in the city I fell in love with many years earlier.

The experience taught me so much realness, so much compassion, love, understanding, commitment, so much filth, hurt and pain. It taught me how important using power for good really is - big or small. It taught me the dark side of passion. It inspired me to work toward building something to get people out into nature (I'll save my vision for another post).

It taught me how transparent I am. How much I'm willing to share. It taught me that really good people can make really big mistakes and they should be forgiven. It helps me to spot my true friends. True friends are those I can share my darkest hour with and they allow me to have it, help me to grow out of it and learn from my experience.

Today, winter solstice, the darkest day of the year - I have been contemplating the days I danced in the dark. I have been contemplating my own pureness. I've been asking myself; am I a fake as a yoga teacher or am I an authentic teacher? As I contemplated this, I found three quotes:

"I found my purpose by going straight into what scared me. Whatever brings you to the mat - alcoholism, abuse, divorce - will be the place from where you'll serve." ~Seane Corn

"full awakening comes when you sincerely look at yourself, deeper than you've imagined and question everything." ~Adyashanti

"Those old habits don't have to be erased, they just become replaced by a new habit that is more in vibrational harmony with who you are and what you want." ~Abraham

My experience has freed me from judgment and moved me to understanding. It helps me to foster more love and compassion for those "bad" people. There are no "bad" people, only ignorant or good people making bad choices and they shall be forgiven. It drives me deeper into my understanding of myself and I know I am not bound to the decisions of my past. My experience IS what makes me an authentic teacher. Beyond all the studying of the practice, the philosophies, the eight limbs of classical yoga. Beyond all the workshops, all the trainings, all the daily practice - who I am at the root, at the core is what makes me authentic. The fact that I am me and I learn from my mistakes and am not afraid to share, makes me an authentic teacher. The realness that is Jana Renee is the authenticness that makes me a teacher. The only place I can teach from is experience, it is the only thing I know. I remind myself every day that these experiences are mine alone and not to apply my life onto others. However, I can have compassion from a place of an open mind and an open heart - that is what helps to build me as an authentic teacher.

My girlfriend Juliana said to me the other day, "The dark has no choice to become light if even just one candle is lit." I feel that even though I danced in the dark, I left a light wherever I stepped.

Winter Weekend Wonderland!

2009-12-09T13:02:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, my partner and I had planned to go to Fernie for a weekend on the hill. This would have been the first time I had been out since the weekend in Jasper were I broke my back on the hill. I had been imagining playing in the snow, wearing all my gear: my brand new boots, my beloved one piece snow suit, mittens, helmet - the whole sha-bang! I imagined my face hurting from the huge smile that graces my face every time I get on the top of a mountain, in nature, playing, feeling the wind as I carve down the mountain.

Funny how manifesting works some times! Mother nature had other plans for us last weekend. The roads were so bad that Craig (along with RCMP advisories to stay off the road) pulled the plug on our mini vacation! The snow kept falling all day, I think we must have got half a foot! When I was thinking about what I wanted to do instead of snowboarding in Fernie, the huge amount of snow on my driveway called.

I put on my entire snow gear - my brand new boots, my beloved one piece snow suit, mittens, toque - the whole sha-bang! Plus, I put my iPod on with my newly downloaded Shimshai album and my new BFF Alanis Morrisette's MTV unplugged album. Grabbed the shovel and got to work! It was seriously the most beautiful evening. I was practically dancing the snow off my driveway! Mr. Craig came out to join me. We both had our iPod's on and were in our own worlds, bumping shovels ever now and again. I was giggling out loud. Funny how we create for ourselves sometimes. I experienced ever part of my manifestation for Fernie - just in a slightly different setting! I supposed I need to get more clear in my manifestations. I forgot to imagine the actual act of snowboarding - just the clothing and the feelings that come along with it! And yes - my face hurt after from smiling!

Once our driveway was done, I wanted to stay out and play - we moved our way down the block and shoveled for our neighbours (we probably owe them a few!). I still wanted to play... so I went and filled my yard with snow angels! I did one for each of you who have inspired me over the past couple months... Thank you all my angels! (I only have the camera on my phone right now and it's not so good at night shots... here's one though!)

Sometimes when I'm out travelling I run into people who can't understand why I would choose to live in such a cold land. Last Friday was exactly why I choose to live here. The snow fell so softly, it was cold, but not too cold. The snow sparkles! When I woke up last Friday morning and got stuck driving to my morning yoga session - all I could think with a smile was "Oh Canada!!! It's like billions of little blessings from the Heavens! Thank you!!"

Communication with my Soul

2009-12-02T14:17:00.000-08:00

What is the breath? Beyond the exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen and all the technical stuff about the breath I've been taught in science class, what is the breath?

With this body, I took my first breath shortly after being born. I came out with my umbilical cord wrapped around my neck three times. My dad held his breath until I took my first breath. My mom said he almost passed out! When I take my last breath - it will be the end of this magical carpet ride with this physical body. For years, I barely paid attention to my breath. It grabs my attention when I laugh so hard its difficult to catch. Or those times when I've cried so long and hard that my breath comes in two or three mini inhales and out with a sigh. (You know the one...). During a jog or a good work out my breath becomes apparent. When I was working a desk job, I would be sitting in complete concentration focused on my computer, working so heavily in my head and all of a sudden realize that I was holding my breath! I would take a huge gasp and think, "Wow! How am I still living?!?!" In Peru hiking at high altitudes - I couldn't believe how quickly I was out of breath! The sights themselves were enough to take my breath away!

Understanding my breath has never been a task I have taken on until beginning the practice of yoga. Nor did I realize that it's something I would even be interested in. To be perfectly honest, it has been something I have taken for granted.

In Donna Fahri's Book "The Breathing Book" she talks about how in other languages, the word for breath has much more meaning. "In Greek, psyche pneuma, meant breath / soul / air / spirit. In Latin, anima spiritus, breath / soul. In Japanese, ki, air / spirit; and in Sanskrit, prana connoted a resonate life force that is at no time more apparent to us than when that force is extinguished at the moment of death."

The definition of yoga at its most basic form is to unite body, mind and spirit. With this in mind, I start my practice. Seated. Tuning in to my breath. Every time. Think about this. If breath is synonymous with spirit or soul - at the start of every practice I tune into my spirit, my soul. As do the vast majority of yogi's out there. To tune in without judgement or an attempt to change anything - simply observe my breath - I listen to my soul. What is it saying?

After a few moments of pure awareness of my breath (soul), I summon my breath forth. Welcome it deeper into my body, lengthening my inhalations and exhalations. I summon forth my soul. To do this I must engage my mind. Before I have even started moving - the practice of yoga begins. Eliciting my breath (Soul) deep into my body by means of my mind.

Using the English definition of breath - I failed to see this connection of breath with spirit. Drawing upon the wisdom of other languages has deepened my practice even further. Now everyday when I take time to sit and observe my breath - I listen more attentively. I notice how it is moving through my body, the length and the ease with which it flows with new meaning.

My soul talks to me and I listen.

No wonder yoga has such a focus on breath!

Why not take 5 minutes out of each of your days to communicate with your Soul?

A Conversation between a Yogi and a US Border Guard

2009-11-09T15:13:00.000-08:00

Serious US Border Man: "May I see your identification please?"
Yogi: "It would be my pleasure Sir."

Serious US Border Man: "What is your purpose for traveling to the US?"
Yogi: "I am heading to a yoga immersion."

Serious US Border Man: "What do you do for a living Mam?"
Yogi: "I teach yoga, Sir."

Serious US Border Man: "Business is slow?"
Yogi: "No Sir, A good teacher is a perpetual student."

Serious US Border Man: "Are you bringing anything into the USA with you Mam? Money over $10,000US?"
Yogi: "No, but that would be nice!"

Serious US Border Man: "Any firearms?"
Yogi: "No Sir, we practice non-violence."

Serious US Border Man: "Pop your trunk please!"

When studying with John Friend and Ram Dass at the end of September, Ram Dass said, "See the Soul, not the Role."

The very Serious US Border Security Guard challenged the Yogi's ability to see the Soul. The Yogi maintained eye contact with a huge smile the entire time only to be stared blankly at in return. After him searching the trunk and finding a yoga mat, slippers, a whole bunch of comfy pants and tank tops with peace signs on them, he told the Yogi she could carry on. The Yogi smiled at him and wished him a wonderful bliss-filled day.

Finally, he smiled back...

You gotta Be the Soul to See the Soul...

Where to find me!

2009-11-09T14:46:00.000-08:00

Hello!

Thank you for checking up on me! I created this page to list the classes I teach.
Please come join me for some Anusara-Inspired goodness!!

Scheduled Public Classes:

Tuesdays:
9:30 - 11am - Anusara-Inspired - Noorish
2 - 3:30pm - Kula Practice - Shanti Yoga Studio
5:30 - 7pm - Anusara-Inspired - Shanti Yoga Studio

Wednesdays:
9:30 - 11am - Anusara-Inspired Yoga Jam - Noorish - The talented Brian McLeod comes to play live music in this class. Come join us!!
7:30 - 9pm - Anusara-Inspired - Prana Yoga Studio

Thursdays:
9:30 - 10:45am - Yoga Flow - Prana Yoga Studio

See ya on the mat!

Namaste

Best Spaceship Ever!

2009-10-22T20:41:00.000-07:00

I love the wind!

Tonight again, we climbed one of these massive sand dunes I have been hanging out on here in Peru. We watched the sunset from different points of the dune in silence. I dug my legs into the sand to stay warm as the sun went beyond the horizon. The entire time the sun was making it's way down, the moon waxing away from the new moon of the 18th hanging in the sky above the sun. They seemed very close to being in line with each other... although not quite. The moon was West of the sun and much higher in the sky. I again did an evening yoga practice on the sloap of the dune as the sun was going down. Aligning, imagining, loving, thanking. This time I felt myself grounding into the sand after hearing all the desert spirit stories from my new friend, the jewelery / drum maker. I felt it was important to pull my spirit in close before leaving this land.

The sun was down and the stars were out. I crawled back up the dune to see where Craig and Mat were. At the top of the dune I was no longer sheltered from the wind. At that moment, I had an thought that brought me a new love for the wind. As I sat perched up on this grand sand dune, after spending days contemplating the idea of this desert being the bottom of the ocean at one time. Reflecting on the contrasting, but similar transformational elements of water and wind and their individual effects on this desert over ages of time. The stability and adaptability of the Earth and Space elements through all the changing times of water and air. After spending nights watching the sun set, the moon and stars shining with the occasional shooting start, connecting with the Universal, massive exchanges of energy... I lay belly down on the top of that sand dune, kneeding my hands into the sand like a kitten, digging my toes in, lifting my head up high, feeling the wind go through my hair, listening to the sound of the wind and sand, staring at the stars. Imagining that I am holding on for the greatest ride of my entire life! Me, on the top of a space ship soaring through the universe at mock speeds! We are riding on one of the best spaceships ever! Earth! Thank you wind - for reminding me :)

What a mystical, stunning place.

Inspired Meditation

2009-10-21T11:48:00.000-07:00

There are lots of blog entries I need to catch up on. They´re currently sitting in my edit post files waiting for their turn to be finished. Sitting in front of a computer just doesn´t seem to be the right thing to do when I have this beautiful country to explore. However - I do have some inspiration right now and feel it is important to share.

A friend of few good friends is going to through a tough transformation right now. It was started a few days ago when this healthy, loving 31 year old had a stroke. Rather than attempting to re-tell the story, here is a link to the blog that tells her story: http://www.shanbow.blogspot.com/

Upon reading this story - I felt a huge pouring of love from me to her and the wonderful people she has surrounding her during this time.

Most of you know that I have been travelling around Peru since the start of October. Peru is a diverse ecosystem, with many energetic power spots. I haven´t been doing as much yoga as I thought I would in my travels. What I have been doing is meditating everywhere! If you look at the photos Craig´s been taking, it´s me meditating over and over again. I just can´t think of anything else to do in these places! I´ll add pictures when we get home.

We are currently in a place called Haucachina - it is literally the largest sandbox I have ever played in in my entire life! Last night I read all about Shannon just before a really great crew of us set off to have a bon fire on the dunes.

When you hike up and over the dunes, away from the lights and sounds of the town, you get to this place where the horizon is sand dunes the size of mountains. Sunset unveals the glory of the heavens. I melt into the sand. Stars are twinkling. I feel small in relation to the universe. I begin to move into a yoga practice, the first real practice of our trip... I move away from the crew into the shadows of the bon fire, far enough away that all I can hear is nature and the sounds of my breath and heart. My practice is one of devotion, I feel myself aligning with the Universe and tapping into the raw power of the Desert, the Cosmos, and the Universal Life Force that pulsates through it all. It feels as though the love that flows through each heart opener could travel the globe. I felt so grand after the practice, instead of the small feeling from the beginning, I felt as though I was as larger than the world, that I could see everything clearly, that I could think of one person (like my mom) and just go sit with her energetically, even though I was on the other side of the world. The globe seemed so small in relation to the Universe. I finish my practice with one of the most powerful Savasana´s I can remember.

When I rejoined the group all I could think of was Shannon and I asked my group if they would be interested in participating in a meditation. I told them what I know of Shannon´s story. I shared with them Leisa´s account of Shannon pointing at the two girls telling them she was grateful (gaft) for them. Then I lead them through a heart oriented meditation and asked them to share some of their love with her. One of the feelings I got when I was meditating was that energy knows no distance and the power of love in healing is endless... There was no doubt in my mind that the love vibes would make it to her.

In a nutshell... here´s how the meditation went...

Start by getting comfortable, whether its seated or laying down it doesn´t matter. What matters is that the area around your heart is open and facing out into the universe. Start by focusing on your breath, letting thoughts or worries float away (a fairly easy task when you´ve been travelling for a while). Realizing that thoughts are always floating though your mind, try to bring our attention to that which you love, what ever it is that fills your hearts with love. So much so that your heart begins to warm up and glow. With no parameters of time attached, take that warm glowing love feeling and send it out to Shannon and her support team, eventually bring attention back to your own loves. Let that pulse. I felt the group energy growing. It was really cool. The final element to the Shannon inspired meditation is to bring attention to that which we were grateful for. The silence during this meditation was so strong.

I think anyone could do this. It´s great to be able to do this practice in nature, but anywhere works! The more love and gratitude we have in this world, the better place it will be. If everyone that reads this sends a little love to Shannon, it will go along way!

I must get back out to play now :)

With all the Love and Gratitude in the world,

Jana

Letting Go

2009-09-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

Letting Go. You hear it all the time - but what does it mean?

It's one of those statements that is so unique to each individual that there really is no explaination. I have been working at letting go lately. The letting go I have been working on is letting go of all that which is no longer serving me or making the world a better place. If it's not contributing to the greater good of the universe - let it go.

That sounds like a huge request! Really, it is. There are so many demands on each of us that the task of sifting through all of that which makes up our lives and determining what serves the greater good and what doesn't is quite daunting. In my situation - it came to a breaking point before I took action.

I have been balancing that which pays the bills at the same time as trying to make a life as a yoga teacher and water guru ;)

The problem that was arising: Too many demands from that which pays the bills leaving no time for that which fills my heart.

Outcome: A battle to maintain an open heart. My day job, in advertising was becoming more demanding, while my heart was screaming out that it was being smothered! My brain kept kicking in, "if you want to pay for all these trainings - you're going to need your day job!"

So I did my commute. A weekend warrior to heart expanding yoga workshops, lunch time classes, Tuesday night sessions - only to come back to the mind intensive advertising world. As I commuted back and forth to these different worlds the differences became so clear. Then the day job demands started creeping in on the weekends. I was sacrificing the work of dusting off the heart, making the world a better place, for what?

Then it hit me. Like a sack of bricks to the noggin! The advertising company asked me to put together a promotion for National Tobacco. We would be targeting University kids with smokeless tobacco. WHAT?! Ok - that's enough! No more, not one more promotion. I could gladly work on a campaign to bring awareness to the amount people litter, providing solutions to the problem. I could help put out the message to drive safe. I could even have my staff promoting not-quite good body washes. SMOKELSS TOBACCO to 18 - 24 year olds? Nope, no way!

I finally gathered the courage to end it right there. It does not matter that I have big plans for training and travel and need money. I finally surrendered to the Shakti energy flowing through my practice, my studentship and my teachings. In order to let that Shakti flow uninterupted - I had to let go.

The first Universal Principle of Alignment in Anusara Yoga is 'Open to Grace.'

At that very moment when I realize how big this commute from the way of the heart and the way of the wallet had become, I decided to 'Open to Grace,' leave the job which no longer served my heart. Which morally, back up plan or not, no longer sat right with my ethical guidelines for life.

Shortly after making this decision - I had the pleasure of an 11 hour drive to an Anusara Immersion where I could start sifting through my life and experience those mind expanding ah-ha moments. What is it in my life that works for the greater good? Focus on that. I have been working toward this for a while, but now I've been called to action.

Now that I have let go of the ball and chain I called work, there is room for the yoga to come in. There is room to pick up the sub classes when teachers call last minute. There is room for the workshops I want to attend and learn. There is room for the travels. I have surrendered to the Divine flow of Shakti Energy knowing that money comes when you need it. Between my 4 regular classes, all the subbing I can pick up with this open schedule and the alkaline ionized water machines - I know I will be taken care of financially.

It helps knowing that I have some savings and a wonderfully supportive partner, but the ultimate help is the trust and knowing that the universe will provide when you follow your heart. One of my favorite books, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho says: "When you want something, all the universe conspires to help you achieve it."

...And with this knowing - I can let go... and let the Shakti flow!

Eckart Tolle Quote

2009-09-03T13:42:00.000-07:00

"Do not be concerned with the fruit of your action – just give attention to the action itself. The fruit will come of its own accord. This is a powerful spiritual practice."

~ Power of Now

The Desiderata

2009-08-30T22:07:00.000-07:00

Saturday, I was enjoying dinner in this new vegan/vegetarian restaurant in Kensington (Calgary) with one of my nearest and dearest friends, Blaire. We were talking about shifting to a land of consciousness and awareness and when it all started clicking. The story Blaire shared with me - reminded me of a story of one day on my path in 2001 in Australia. (I remember profound questions, contemplations, and realizations as a child which I would argue were part of my souls movement to conscious awareness. Maybe my soul was never asleep? Maybe this waking up started in my last life? Or the one before that? How do we know really? But there are definite "Ah-ha Moments" that peel away another layer as we walk through this life.)

I was travelling with my soul sista, Stormie, up the East Coast of Australia. We had arrived in Cape Tribulation during the dry season. The bungalows we stayed in were on stilts about 5 or 6 feet off the ground, there were no real windows on our simple bunk bed bungalow - just bamboo shutters. We were truly living in nature. There was a little green frog who hung out with us, a HUGE spider who had set up his home right outside our door - this thing was HUGE! I mean it. He was black with yellow knees. Yes, I said knees! There were these lizards about 4-5 feet long that slowly made their way around the area while we were there. Wild turkeys roaming around. It was awesome! I had met this woman, who had wild hair - brown, blond and grey strands - I remember her hair was thick and raw, untouched and natural. She had these piercing eyes full of wisdom. I sat down and talked to her for a while and she told me a little of her journey. There was something so magnetic about her. She shared with me this writing. She thought maybe the author was a soldier from the times of war. After I read it, she asked me to share with her which part stuck out for me. When I did, she laughed. She said it never fails - everyone picks a different part. I copied it into my journal that night. I have shared it with different people along the way and done the same thing. She was right.

I thought I would share it here again:

The Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or
bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
~written by Max Ehrmann in the 1920s

She wrote in my journal "Dearest Jana, please pass this on and Remember "Stop + smell the roses," Life is not a rehearsal, THIS IS IT!! Love Sara x

Feel free to leave a comment of what stands out for you. I would love to hear.

Silence

2009-08-27T07:44:00.000-07:00

Have you ever spent days on end in silence?

I highly recommend it. There's this quiet, magical place about 20 minutes outside of Merrit, BC were you can sit in silence for 10-day Meditation courses. Vipassana Meditation. I sat for my first time in February of this year. It was one of the most transformative processes I have gone through. (The list of transformation is getting longer as I follow this path - but definitly a key step along the way). The style of meditation is one of truth and experience. Its really hard to discribe to someone who has not had the experience themselves.

The Dhamma Centre (Dhamma means wisdom) is set up so that the only thing you have to focus on is yourself. Selfish you say? Well, kind of, however it is such a beautiful gift to give yourself it is worth every second. The place is away from the noise - there are people there who cook and take care of your every need. The day's schedule is posted each morning when you wake up for your morning meditation. The food is delicious, healthy and designed for a meditator's needs. There are no phones, no computers, no music, no distractions, no books, no journaling. Nothing. Silence. The work being done here is quite serious and deep. It is a non-denomiational place where people from every religion or non-religious background are welcome. They say the practice is universal.

The Centre runs off donations. So once you have sat your 10-day course, you are able to give a donation, or Dana, as they call it in the Pali language. No one can make a donation if they have not had the experience themselve. The people working at the centre while you're meditating are servers (Dhamma workers), working for nothing in return, just in hopes that other meditators can have an environment to go deep in their practice, selflessly serving from a place of love. You can only serve once you have completed a 10-day course as well.

I just got back from serving a 3-day old students course. The experience as a server is quite a bit different from the experience as a meditator. When I was there the first time, I sat in meditated over 100 hours in the 10 day course. I swear at times I was meditating instead of sleeping! This time I was working. We still have our 3 manditory sits a day. Sits of strong determination where you don't move. However, we are up in the morning making Oats for breaky, after breaky we clean and then go sit for an hour. Once that hour sit is done, we start preparing lunch, serve lunch, clean lunch, sit. Back the the kitchen! It was great. A lot of work - but so is sitting. I learned how to cook for 60 people. I made bread (12 loafs) from scratch using the left over oats from breakfast. It says right on the recipe that if you're not getting a workout - you're not doing it right. I learned how to better incorporate meditation into my daily life. It was a great experience. I also served with a man who's goal is to become a monk. I have never met a man with this goal. He would already be one if he could, but you can't be a monk if you have debt, so he is paying off his debt right now. We work a bit more deeply with Metta Meditation. Such a beautiful and amazing practice. I think I like the Vipassana because it gets me to a place where the Metta is stonger and more powerful.

If anyone is interested in this style of meditation or meditation in general - I would love to share with you. Tell you more of this magical place. When I left there the first time - I swore - if everyone had that experience even once in their life - the world would be a better place!

Corporate Yoga

2009-08-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

What a better way to stay focused, keep stresses low and maintain that inner vibrancy than adding yoga to your routine? Studies have shown that people who maintain a regular yoga practice are more productive at work and home.

If your office is interested in offering yoga sessions as part of their wellness program, or if there is a group of yogi's in the same office - why not have the teacher come to you?

We can make use of the space available in your building. Whether it be a boardroom, workout space or lunch room. There's always a way to make it work.

Rates are negotiable.

Please contact me via email: jana.renee@gmail.com

The Power of Service

2009-07-31T19:33:00.000-07:00

This past Wednesday, I had the honour and opportunity to teach at Lotus Soul Gym as a guest teacher. I knew about it for a couple weeks and had a chance to think about it and invite a few friends.

There was no thinking to prepare myself or create an expectation of what happened that day. The morning seemed rather normal, I was doing my regular Lotus Karma shift and seemed to have lots of energy for the day. Chantelle took her class out to practice in the park and enjoy the beautiful day. I had the studio to myself! Hooking my iPod into the sound system, I did my own practice during that time. I imagined the room full of people and leading them through a practice. I thought of stories I would like to share, poses I wanted to teach and envisioned my success as a teacher.

The day went on seemingly normal. The company I work for is getting busier and busier. My workload is getting heavier and heavier. My boss needed a few quick answers and my focus was becoming more and more distant from the office & more and more on the evening's class. I kept working to keep myself present.

Around 4:30, my whole body was vibrating. My boss asked me the same question twice and I realized how distracted I was. Finally I had to explain to her that my head was on the night's yoga class. Before I could finish that thought tears started surfacing. They weren't tears of fear or anxiety... It was this overwhelming feeling of something greater, support, something... The realization of how important this work is, the service, the impact that my words or guidance will have on some people. It swooped in while at my desk! Before anyone noticed, I grabbed a kleenex and my phone and head into the washroom. Out the tears came. I got in touch with my teacher to let her know what was happening with me, searching for some wisdom or strength! Of course she came back with some simple wisdom & sent some strength. Her first word was "Great! It wouldn't be right if you weren't feeling something!"

There were a few points where I seriously didn't think the tears would stop in time to teach the class. Haha! When I asked Ally how to get the tears stop - she gently reminded me that it wasn't about me, it was about the service. That made good sense. I relocated to a back office and hung out in child's pose for about 10 minutes just feeling. I wanted to stay in this feeling. Embrace it, feel it, enjoy it.

I decided to walk to the studio. It would let me explore and ground myself at the same time. I put on my iPod, grabbed my bag and my mat and started walking. It was awesome. Tears flowing under my shades, not caring, singing along with the Gayatri Mantra, feeling. I had to look behind me a few times, it felt like there was an army of people or spirits walking along with me. The support was strong. I realized that it's not about me teaching, it's about channelling teachers past and all the wisdom of the practice and presenting to the students.

Leonie gave me some great feedback once the class was over. It was an unforgetable experience. One that will make me stronger for all the other classes I teach & hopefully open some more doors. The strange thing is that I haven't had that experience before any of my other classes, I did feel small flair-ups related to grounding for my first few corporate classes, but nothing like that. Must be something special about the space.

Tuesday Night Sessions ... on hiatus!

2009-07-10T09:39:00.000-07:00

***The Tuesday night session has been cancelled. I'm now teaching two classes at Servus Place in St. Albert on Tuesday nights - 6:30 - 7:30 Beginner & 7:45 - 8:45 Hatha (similar to what I've been teaching at the house). Wednesday nights at Prana 6:15 - 7:40pm***

Each Tuesday night at our house I have been offering a yoga session by donation only. It has been so great to have all your beautiful like-minds together in a safe space to discuss whatever needed to be discussed that day. Practice whatever needed to be practiced. We've shared good times, big laughs and learned so much from each other! Collective creating. Community. Love. All things good. Thank you all so much for coming to support and practice together at my house!

If you're interested in taking a class with me either email me at jana.renee@gmail.com to make arrangements (privates or group sessions) or check out where I'm teaching around Edmonton and St. Albert!

I hope to play together again soon!!

Private Yoga Sessions

2009-06-30T00:04:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in booking a private session with me - I am definitely open to the idea. If you are a group of ladies, men, couples, sports teams, or some one looking for 1-on-1 (or more), please contact me to figure out if a private session would work good for both of us.

I am available to teach primarily in Edmonton. (Other locations can be discussed - all it takes is an invitation).

Send me an email at jana.renee@gmail.com

I look forward to building a plan that works right for you! After all - every body is unique!

Opening Hearts

2009-06-08T09:58:00.000-07:00

While the practice of yoga is definitely a physical asana (posture) practice here in the West, the true practice of yoga is far beyond that of the physical. The beauty of the physical practice is that it attracts all kinds of people, whether they come to tone bums, lengthen limbs, lose weight or breathe - more and more people are coming to their mat every single day.

As we practice yoga we become more present, more aware of our physical body. The more aware we are of our physical body, the more aware we become of our subtle body. We show our emotions in our posture every day whether we're aware of it or not. Think about a time when you felt sad, how did you stand? How did you sit? How did you feel inside?

Now, think of a time when you achieved an accomplishment. How did you stand that day? How did you sit? What does that pride feel like at the core?

When you come to your mat - feel your body. What does it feel like in Warrior I? What does it feel like in Child Pose? How do you feel in Svasana? How does your body feel different as you go through different things in your life?

There was a time not too long ago when I wasn't paying attention to how my body felt. I abandoned my mat. Previous to that, heart opening postures were no problem, I loved them. Put me in full wheel and I'd walk on all fours up and down the length of my mat belly to the sky. Loved it. Life became busy and I simply did not make time for my practice. I was sitting at a desk, working very much with my intellect. Sitting at a computer all day - my shoulders started to slump forward slightly. My heart was closed off. My intellectual mind knew that I had to change something in order to find peace and happiness. The problem was that there had been so much money spent on education, I felt I had to use my degree to earn money. Little did I realize that wasn't the way of my heart. My wonderful partner noticed that I was no longer my happy self and sent me off on a trip to the mountains to relax and have some fun while he was travelling for work.

That trip was the best thing to ever happen. A crew of us went snowboarding. Something greater took over that day and literally kicked me in the butt, laying me out flat on my back. My whole world came to a screeching stop and I had no choice but to lay back and observe where I was at. Instead of going back to the hotel after the day on the hill, I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance on a spinal board. My friend Danielle stayed with me. I truly didn't believe I was that hurt. I didn't accept pain killers because I wanted to feel my body. Shock is a wonderful thing.

The sensations that were arising in my body were fascinating. Even more fascinating was my mind's ability to adapt to this new reality. At the time, I did not have a very good grasp on the medical world. Lucky for me Danielle's does! Once the doctor came back to tell me the results of the x-rays (which took some time) things started happening really fast! I turned my head toward Danielle and asked "This is pretty serious, hey?"

She looked at me with a huge grin and nodded her head "Yup!"

A nurse basically told me pain killers weren't optional any more. They gave me a light anti-inflammatory. Since there was no known nerve damage at this time - it was imperative to maintain that by keeping the swelling down. Another nurse came in and started to prepare me for a catheter. I seriously thought I was going to have to pee in a bag for the rest of my life. The strange thing was how quickly I decided that would be ok. If this is my new reality, I was prepared to go with it. Thankfully Danielle picked up on the fact I had no idea what was going on and let me know that it was a temporary fix. No dragging a pee bag around beyond my hospital stay! Phew!

They sent me to Edmonton for a CT scan to decide the next move. The surgeon came to talk to me the next day. They were going to have to do surgery. He put four screws and two rods to stabilize the area. They were to come out about a year later.

I digress - however, this is the pivotal moment to the re-opening of my heart. That day, February 23rd, 2008 I stopped taking my body for granted and started to feel my body again. About two and a half months after my 10 day hospital stay, I got back on my mat.

I had no idea how closed my heart was until I tried to open it again. I'm sure it was closed before the accident and that was in part why it even happened. During the recovery period my heart center was physically quite closed. It didn't truly start to open until November when I did a Yoga Immersion with Gaiatri Yoga. Until that point, I kept saying "When the screws come out, I will..."

The Immersion made me realize that I didn't need to wait for the screws to come out to do anything. I started growing open. I did a unique workshop shortly after with Breanna Johnson where she asked us to feel different emotions each time we worked through the same four postures. How did the postures feel? What did you want to change in your alignment as you brought the different emotions in? So simple, yet so profound!

When they took the screws out, it was the hugest release. Like I had been on a leash waiting to run free and January 23rd, 2009 - I was free!!!

It's been a heart opening journey. That day on the hill brought the attention back in to my body, awakening my awareness of my subtle body. Without the practice of yoga now - I have pain. The practice of yoga liberates me not only from the residual physical pain left from the break, but the emotional pain of not listening to my heart. Every time I think I am open, another layer peels away and I realize that there is so far to go. I don't know if you ever reach the full potential of opening your heart - I believe it to be endless. At each step more beauty emerges. This is a pretty amazing path. I think I'll stay here for a while.

Open hearts have been so profound in my experience. It helps get back to one's essence. It helps to figure out who I am and what my purpose is here. I plan to bring heart opening experience to my teachings. If I can share even a glimpse of a heart opening moment with even one person, I feel I am successful. This just may be my hearts purpose.

Imagine the Love...

2009-03-22T13:47:00.000-07:00

I am blessed with three beautiful nephews and one beautiful niece (so far). Every single time I go visit, my niece Adyson, 3 years old, comes running to the door with a huge smile yelling at the top of her lungs "Auntie Jana!!!!!!" Hugs to follow every time.

Right behind her is little Jack, 2 years old. It's not exactly clear if Jack is as excited for my visit as he is to chase around his big sister and copy everything she does. He always gives me a hug too. The love and admiration is so evident.

Fletcher is 5 months old, when I go say hi - he flashes me a gummy smile and even a laugh. Liam who is 8 & 3/4's comes to give me a hug and show me his latest drawing within minutes of arriving on the scene.

Can you imagine if we all greeted our friends and family with the same enthusiasm as a three year old? That is the definition of joyfulness.

I'm going to give it a try...

Life's Cyclical Nature

2009-03-14T12:29:00.000-07:00

Are we paying close enough attention to notice life's cyclical patterns? The reflections of ourselves all around us? Past, present, future. Good, bad and beautiful. The experiences we have are to some degree unique - but for the most part, the lessons are universal and can be applied to most situations in life.

The past year and a half have been quite the year for me. From moving to a new city, leaving beautiful friends behind, exploring my deepest relationship on a new level, finding a new job, making new friends, breaking my back, finding new yoga studios and teachers, discovering the beauty in things not so comfortable... It's been quite the year.

Looking back - I realize that the change was hard on me. I was not able to maintain myself through it all. I managed to get so far off track at some point that I almost didn't even recognize myself! I knew it was time to get down to work. Not the type of work where you earn a living, but the type of work where you work on yourself. Where you face the facts and realize what needs to be done to get back to the essence of self. To be a good person. To not cause harm on any other individual. To be me and be comfortable being me.

As I have been diving into this work, I am reminded of a lesson learnt a few years back. The lessons we learn, the ones we truly learn are the ones we learn from from experience. We are the lover, we are the loved, we observe the loving. We are the hurter, we are the hurt, we observe the hurting. We begin to feel compassion for another once we have had the experience ourselves. With this experience, we can become a beacon of light when we observe the experience of another. For each lesson we are here to learn, we may not have to play each role. Life, in all it's mysterious ways will present the lesson from as many angles as is necessary for us to learn. Experience from these angles will allow us to understand the actions of others. We may not agree with the actions, but to understand them allows us to open to them with love and compassion.

I see myself in others all the time. I see my past in my little niece - a playful child in all her innocent glory. I see my present in my love - my handsome partner. I see my future in my mother - the caretaker of our family. There are a million reflections of self if you are open to see. What a beautiful thing.

My family are my friends too...

2009-03-06T01:34:00.001-08:00

I love my friends!

I do! I genuinely love my friends!

Each being completely unique, with their own nature, their own beauty within.

I LOVE you! There's no point trying to outline a few, you know who you are. I love you. For all the things you bring to this world, for all the things you are, I love you.

How lucky is that?

(as my Dad would say:) I am luck.