Worth the Drive

Jamie, Karen, Suzanna and I had a very fun field trip today. We enjoyed a special viewing of the film Enlighten Up, complete with Yoga-Celebrity sightings and meeting the director in the flesh. I also had my first Thai meal ever, and enjoyed such rich company.

I can’t get over what a great piece of work this documentary is. First of all, I was delighted to be hit immediately with the director’s wicked sense of humor and very masterful editing skills. I can’t remember the last time a movie had me laughing out loud this intensely. Interwoven amongst the humor of the yoga world laughing at itself, were the very real themes of human consciousness, belief, faith, skepticism and inquiry. The big questions of Why? and How? and Who? were explored in a very honest, real way. I LOVE it when things are approached from that perspective of complete honesty, even if it’s awkward or unexpected or better yet – hilarious.

The movie chronicles Kate Churchill’s big Yoga Project, immersing Nick Rosen, a New York resident and yoga skeptic and journalist  through an intense immersion into all things yoga for six month. Nick is thrown into all types of yoga classes, met the big American Yoga-Rock Stars, and traverses to India to practice with and talk to the Indian Yoga-Rock Stars. Some of them are enlightened, and some of them are idiots. The whole time, as a westerner, I went from feeling Kate’s pain as Nick succeeded and failed, and feeling and understanding Nick’s perspective of “c’mon, really?” I definitely enjoyed hearing Nick, as the skeptic interviewing great masters with honesty and respect for something he really didn’t understand.

At the end of the film, I left feeling more connected than ever to my yoga path. I want to hit my mat and I although I’m still extremely curious and skeptical about many things, I feel an extreme release of cynicism. I was reminded by what my friend Suzanna’s philosophy of yoga, “Whether or not you believe that yoga can transform your life, it will happen. All you have to do is make room in your life for some time on the mat. I think of yoga as a moving meditation, a dance of strength and grace that unexpectedly brings the mind in tune with the heart.”

Word.

The film is definitely worth the drive to Berkeley. It will be showing at the Shattuck Cinemas, opening THIS Friday. The director will be there on Friday, and if it shows well, it will probably get picked up for another week or two. The DVD is set to be released this November, and I’m excited to give it out to my non-yoga family members for Christmas.

Enlighten Up!

Now this looks fun to me, mixing yoga and skepticism!

Livermore evolves

Our yoga friend Sandy Gutierrez has transformed the old firehouse on First Street into a beautiful bistro-bookstore. It’s right across from the new theatres and it’s called Firehouse Books and Bistro. I took my seven-year old out on a date yesterday for lunch; he had the mac ‘n cheese and I had the veggie-grilled sandwich. Yum! The place is beautiful, the food is great and you get to read while you’re there. What more could you ask for? If you’re looking to try something new, stop by, grab a bite, and give our friend Sandy a big yoga hug.

Halt!

Wow. I really needed the night off. Thank you for all of your kind e-mails as I shuffle things around in an attempt to take care of myself. Your understanding and support mean a lot to me.

For me, being sleep deprived means being very raw. It sounds rough, but throughout the last week, I’ve often found it a beautiful thing. I cuddled up in bed with a good book and realized it has been far too long since I was quiet and still.

Today marks the end of my 108 days of yoga. I did it. What an amazing experience to really be committed. Interestingly, it didn’t change that much for me. The biggest benefit was that I kept my committment to really live my yoga in the forefront of my mind. That was the biggest transformation.

After I gave birth to Drew, my wise yoga-teaching friend, Carol Atkinson came over to visit and see the baby. She brought gifts and a little bit of wisdom. Carol is old enough to be my own mother, she has raised two beautiful children of her own and has had a big influence on the yoga community of Livermore. I remember as I was feeling so post-partum and a bit frustrated and she said, “Oh Laurie, the beauty of yoga is that there is always something new right around the corner. You will never grow out of it.”

I’m reminded of her words tonight as I enter this new phase of life. It’s been one year since I started working for Be Well. That project ended quite differently than I planned and so has my whole life situation! I’m left in this beautiful space of open possibilities and rebirth. It has been humbling, disorienting and powerful all at the same time.

As I end these long, challenging 108 days of consecutive yoga, feeling tired and physically drained, I am immediately propelled forward. It’s just like kapala-bhati breathing technique… the inhale is coming without any effort.

I feel compelled to keep learning about yoga, truth, spirituality, energy and transformation. I fight the urge to leave my life, shave my head and put on the metaphorical orange robe, so I do the only responsible thing I know how. Jump back in and provide a structure for the swirling spirituality that is too fluid to hold.

So here I go, committing to 30-days of meditation practice for the month of November. Anyone with me?

Tuesday, Oct. 16th

There’s no class tonight, Tuesday Oct. 16th at the Livermore Dance Studio. I decided to cancel after several nights of insomnia and the need to take a bit of time for myself to recover from this relentless itch. It’s ice packs and sleep for me tonight, and tomorrow I’ll be back out in the real world again.

I’m teaching at the Yoga Company tomorrow night at 7:00pm, and I’ll resume the classes at the Dance Company in Livermore next Tuesday. Come and we’ll party…

Oprah stole my book

Last fall, I read the book Eat, Pray, Love. It was one of the best written books I’ve ever read and really tapped into concepts and language that I relate to. Elizabeth Gilbert chronicled her year off after a traumatic period of time, travelling through Italy, India and Bali. She is a yogi and a student of the world and tells her story with warmth, humour and insight. I loved every word of it. I especially loved her period of time spend in India, of course. She lived my dream of taking time off to become a renunciate of sorts and live in an Ashram learning more about spirituality.

Here’s the deal… I felt like it’s my book. I keep recommending it to people and I alone have sent about a dozen people to Barnes and Noble! Well, Oprah is asking for people who have read the book and want to be on her show telling their personal stories.  Her board is full of comments from people trying yoga like it’s some new fad.

It’s good… more people will discover yoga, Elizabeth will earn the recognition deserved for an amazing piece of work, and Oprah will get the chance to talk about spirituality instead of having another fashion show.

It just gets under my skin sometimes, this idea that we need someone famous to popularize yoga and spirituality. What is wrong with us? Can’t we find it ourselves? Yoga isn’t a fad, it’s been around for centuries. It’s always been there for us, but it saddens me that we have to popularize something spiritual in order to embrace it. Besides, I happen to know that Oprah hates downward-facing dog!

This week I’m fascinated by the concept that all suffering is caused by lack of acceptance of what is. So realizing that,  I am going to embrace the reality that is Oprah. Let me encourage you to read the book because it’s fabulous and extremely fun! I’ll get working on my bad attitude and when the show airs we’ll all enjoy the surge in class attendance together. Here I go – sending good vibes out in the universe to Oprah.

Peace out…