Agni On The Mountain, Yoga Off The Mat

It has been a week of transformation, between myself and my many wonderful Yoga students that after my last class last night I felt the pull to go be with nature. I had no clients scheduled for Wednesday (today) so I called my partner who lives upstate and asked if he would like to go with me onto our Earth Mother and hike up a mountain; the reply was Yes, I was super excited.

So today I take the train to Beacon, N.Y. and we decide to stay nearby so we park and go to the trail. We look on a map, he realizes that he had thought of another mountain to climb (Anthony's Nose) but we proceed and begin our climb.

What we thought would be a 2 hour climb (the time frame in our mind) was to be a 4 hour climb on what we read after we got down; "Despite its relatively short length, this is generally considered to be the most strenuous hike in the East Hudson Highlands."

We get up to the flags in about a half hour, enjoy the breathtaking views, sounds of the wind and smells of sweet surrender. We see a woman with a helmet on which was the perfect sign of what was to come for the next 3.5 hours, including a 1.6 mile walk back to the car on 9D.

It was an adventure full of spirit, passion, love, fear, challenge, triumph, perseverance, gratitude and presence.

As my Yoga practice deepens, so do the possibilities as I continue to find more freedom physically, mentally & spiritually.

Thank You Beloved for sharing this spectacular day with me, truly blessed!

My Adventure in Slowing Down

Slowing Down is this fascinating journey for me, just when I feel slowed down, I realize how fast I am still going. The amazing part about this is the more aware I become in how quickly I move through stuff, the more possibilities there are to shift the habitual patterns that have been created over time. It is a gift, an opportunity to witness without judgement how I move through my life. Here is an example:

Last night I was in a Yoga class called "slow flow", with the mind as quick as it is, I

chose this class because of the teacher (*See Below) but did not even notice the words 'slow flow" on the schedule.

As I began to slow down the breath, the mind followed and as the mind followed as did the body. There was this beautiful harmony that was emerging between the internal and the external and the unconscious to the conscious. As I mindfully moved through each posture extending the breath I was able to use the intelligence of the body while letting go of the mind.

I felt spacious, expansive, & energized. Here I was able to access what is already within me, it is the connection to my awakened spirit.

As I made my way to Savasna, the final resting pose, my mind went right back to thinking but the more I practice Yoga the more consistent I become to accessing the spirit that lives within me, On and Off the mat.

Mmmm Inspired or Inspirited


* To check out the teacher I was referring go to her website: www.ericamather.com