Yeah Yogi!

Well, it's official.  I'm a certified yoga teacher!   

The rest of my teacher training was excellent.  No doubt for me I chose the best one.  The most beautiful guesthouse in Bhagsu; most open and caring teachers... An experience I will always remember and be grateful for.  New friends; family... And definitely a transformative experience.  I feel relaxed, rejuvenated, and happy :-).   

So, what next?  I was going to stick around for another month, and enjoy some retreat time up in the mountains, but my little green dream house is not available.  I now feel less inclined to just hang around town and feel a deeper call to start venturing further into the Himalayas, and deeper into myself.  I'm going to stay around here for a couple more weeks...do a five day yoga intensive; see the Dalai llama; and have a few more lessons with my music teachers.  Then around the 12th, I will catch a bus a few hours north up to Manali and surrounding areas.  I'm sure it will take me a couple weeks to land my retreat home.., but hopefully by July, I will have my mountain dream home...  A sacred time of going inward; deeper into yoga, meditation, nature.  

For now, however, I am here... And it's getting a little hot here!  The air quality has declined as well.  Lots of typical burning, as people just don't know what else to do with garbage.  Another reason to head up into the mountains... Fresher air, cooler temps.  

I still love it here, however... I'm grateful for all the opportunities I am being given.  It's a wonderful life ;-)

Every day we are born, and everyday we are new

This morning found its birth in the wonder of heart song... On the wall of the garden, bathing in the sun as it crested over the mountain, was a man... Swathed in a wool shawl and singing his praise of glory to the morning.  How could I resist but to fall into the sweetness of this moment??  I happened to know the words to the song he was singing, and I joined him in a holy moment of joyful expression.  We sat on the wall, sharing songs and moments of meditation; and within us was watered the seed of unity's grace... And the seed grows in the love light of the sun...  

Give thanks to the pure moments; the glorious sunshine; the gift of song... Each day, each moment is prescious...

Magical Adventures and the Morning Blues

It's our weekend, and yesterday and today have been an adventure full of magic; mystery, and mayhem.  The intrigue began yesterday in the form of huge balls of hail raining down from the sky, always a mystical phenomenon.  I spent the day wandering around all three towns (McLeod Ganj; Dharamkot; and Bhagsu), enjoying the people and events which I stumbled into or who stumbled into me.  I had a sweet connection with a very old Tibetan lady; had a sketchy Indian man try to talk me into going off to sit in the woods with him (yeah right); had a long talk and a cup of tea with an elder American archeologist of Tibet, on consciousness; the soul; and the nature of life.... And I was hijacked by a 90 year old British woman to go bush whacking through the forest.  This was definitely the most interesting part of my day.  I was just walking up the steps at the Vipassana center, when she sidelined me and told me to follow her into the woods... She is my new inspiration!  She hiked all around and she told me that her family was still trying to get her to "settle down"; that she is too old for this... Yeah, my arse.  She is as agile and fit as someone my age.  She pointed out a house way up in the mountains, accross the valley, where she used to live.  She said they rent it out by the month, and I declared I would love to live there!  I'm determined to find my way up there and look into this little mountain hideaway...  My day ended with a synchronistic meeting and dinner with my good friend Halo, and some incredible guitar work from another traveler who has an amazing style of playing the guitar like a cello... It was a long day that didn't see me to bed until midnight... But I reassured myself with the promise of a long awaited morning sleep in... The first in two long, exhausting weeks.  But, as the Universe would have it, my plan was spoiled...

5:30am erupted in an explosion of drums, horns and cymbals, in some kind of dramatic ceremony right outside my window.  For two hours I lay in bed, exhausted, wondering what kind of insane Indian event was requiring a marching band at 5:30 am on Sunday morning?!!  The procession finally moved on around 7:30 am and unable to sleep, I walked out of my room and asked some of my teachers what the heck that was all about.  Apparently, it was a celebration/offering to the deities because some wish had been granted.  Unfortunately for my heart and that of a sweet being, they sacrificed a poor goat!  If you look at my Facebook pics, you will see a pic of a goat that has funny hair like a wig.  The caption mentions that "this goat has a wig on ".  It was this very goat who no longer bleats upon the world... Poor goat.  This culture has some of the most radical practices and traditions I have ever known.  What a crazy world we are creating....

I Heart Yoga

It's my third day of my yoga teacher training, and I am in absolute heaven!  3 hours a day of yoga; breath work; meditation; philosophy of yoga, life and consciousness; anatomy; documentaries; learning to teach... Most of it is how I would want to spend my free time, so it's like being on retreat more than "training" or "school".  

The 3 teachers are extremely different in their teaching styles.  One of our teachers, an Indian, who is very traditional, is very focused on accuracy of the postures and correct alignment, and very much into breath work.   He is in Love with the new age yoga style, and having an indian relate to yoga in this way is so beautiful.  Another teacher, also from India, but who is more traditional, is focused on holding postures and bringing awareness into the mind/body to observe.  He is in love with the traditional yoga, the vedas and sutras and it is deeply moving.  The third, western gal, is focused on free flow and listening to your body and giving space for us to find our own proper alignment.  Every style is totally unique and they are all perfect for me.  I really love all the ways of yoga.   

We all went out for dinner last night and were hysterical the whole time laughing.  What a great opportunity to get to know some local Indians.  We all get along so well, and it's really a fresh perspective in life.  

We are finally seeing some sun here.. It's been unseasonably cold and rainy... Not so fun to do yoga at 6:30 am in 40 degree weather...  The mornings and evenings are still quite cold, but the days are warm and beautiful!

So, yes, yoga is going great... I'm sure I chose the perfect course for me.  What a rich and beautiful practice in its original and true form, which is not just the asanas or poses... But every moment of life is yoga.  From your meditations, to your work and chores.  The poses, although good for health, are just a physical expression of your inner experience... Gaining strength, flexibility, forgiveness, patience, compassion, attention, concentration, and  breathing(!) in all aspects of our lives. Giving, is yoga (karma yoga), caring for your family; planet; animals... Yoga (Bhakti); contemplation is yoga (raja yoga).... Yoga is a state of mind, of heart, of body and soul... It is irrelevant of age, health, ability, size... Yoga is our nature.  It's the movement of life.  WE.. Are yoga...

Another renegade blog post!! From April 28th

Ben left four days ago already!  I had been so busy I have hardly had time to process it.  Yesterday I was so tired and run down, I had to come home and just lay in bed.  I think my emotions just caught up to me and I was requesting myself to be still and just FEEL.  It felt good to tune in for awhile and just rest.  

Ben made it home after his long journey, and is now already on his way to his 6 week natural building apprenticeship!  The next chapter begins...

For me, I am being coaxed onto the stage tomorrow night to perform a few songs with three other female students!  There is another concert of our classical music teachers, and they are having us start off the show.  Our teacher is really encouraging us to work on not only our voices, but our stage fright as well.  I just learned two of the four songs today, and I still dont quite know how they go... Should be interesting!  I'm nervous, but at least we are all singing together.

I have also been taking drum lessons (djembe).  Today was my third lesson; it's quite fun... Studying so much here!  It's great to make such good use of time.  I start my yoga teacher training on Tuesday.  What play in the dynamic arts of music, meditation, body and healing.  

It's been raining almost everyday here off and on.  It's cold and uncharacteristic for the season.  Keep having to buy more layers...

So, all is well.  The time is moving into deep studies.  Will tap in when I can!