Sunday, November 23, 2014

// / / /// / GIVE THANKS



LET'S GIVE THANKS

Thanksgiving morning practice All Levels Welcome before we eat and drink and celebrate our lives with our friends and loved ones let's weave and unwind together 10:00 - 11:30 All Levels Welcome.

+ SHOW UP EVERYDAY +


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Monday, November 3, 2014

YOGA HOME * * *




I got back in the studio today after a 5 day trip to SF.  As much as I LOVE to travel and meet new people I always miss the studio.  It was lovely to water the plants, restock candles, sweep the floor, check the mail and then meet up with the Monday night yogis for practice @ 630.  I love the quiet time I have to myself before class and the change that takes place when you all get there and bring the energy of the space up as you check in on whatever topic we start off w…movies, books, disco, what you'd like to work on that night.  We've got such a great community of people to collaborate with and I'm so happy to be home and see you all again and weave and unwind as we make our way on our mats together.  Love to All.

+ SHOW UP EVERYDAY+


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Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Carry With You As You GO > > >




We bought a house!  The whole thing happened really fast.  We were not really looking and our finances were only in the process of getting approved.  We looked at our new home the first weekend in September, closed and moved in the second week in October.  We got a sweet little house with a great view and are now officially, proudly Nordeasters.  

This obviously means we also had to move.  It's been years since I've had to move.  I had forgotten what it was like to LITERALLY PICK UP EVERYTHING YOU OWN and drive it across the city and deliver it to a new location.  I had crazy, lovely dreams of friends and relatives I had not thought of in years.  I had forgotten what is was like to carry the memories with me too.  You think you know what you have.  Like you've been good about what you've decided to keep and what to hang on to for a little longer and let go of when you're ready.  But there is always more there than you can remember.  At first I was kind of dreading the move until we got going.  It felt SO GOOD to see all my stuff again and have all of it laid out in front of me.  It was wonderful to move everything and to know exactly what I had kept and what I had forgotten about including that box of notebooks from high school.  The first few trips I took to Salvation Army were practically Euphoric.  It felt good to let some things go too.  

So now I'm thinking about what I want to carry with me as I go toward a new year.  As the days get shorter and colder and we move inside physically and metaphorically.  I kind of want to lay it all out in front of me and gently create the new patterns to replace some of the old.  It's the work we do in the dark.  When we move on Halloween from the element of Ether to the element of Earth by the Winter Solstice.  And I'm looking forward to it in my new little humble abode.


+ SHOW UP EVERYDAY +


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Monday, October 27, 2014

+ Your Year in a Word 



A couple years ago I started a project for myself.  Around this time of year I would pick a word that would be my 'guide' for the upcoming year.  I would start thinking about it this time of year as the summer ended and I had more time to focus on my yoga practice...Over the course of the year the words evolved from the curiosity of what they meant in general to what they meant to me.  They began to create narratives and tell a story.  They moved dynamically, grew and changed from word to phrase to sentence to paragraph to a story…



"We will sit still, go into the dark and start thinking about the story we want for a new year…"

Thursday, November 6

630 - 800

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 + Show Up Everyday + 

www.yogagardenmpls.com

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Sunday, October 26, 2014

STOP Thinking About Art Works As Objects > > > > > >





Stop thinking about art works as objects, and start thinking about them as triggers for experiences. 
- Roy Ascott

 That solves a lot of problems: we don’t have to argue whether photographs are art, or whether performances are art, ...because we say, ‘Art is something that happens, a process, not a quality, and all sorts of things can make it happen.’ 

…[W]hat makes a work of art ‘good’ for you is not something that is already ‘inside’ it, but something that happens inside you — so the value of the work lies in the degree to which it can help you have the kind of experience that you call art.
- Brian Eno

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I've been reading this quote in class for weeks and probably will keep reading it for many more.  It just aligns so well with what we've been talking about as far as getting on our mats and making shapes.  Each pose is a shape, like an art work is an object.  Like a letter each pose is a shape and communicates something individually.  The poses collectively tell a story like letters when you string them together into words to form a sentence.  But it's important to think about the poses as triggers for experience of what it's like to live in the landscape of YOUR skin, muscles, bones and breath.  We speak these shapes, we make them beautiful through our understanding of them as opportunities for experience.  And it's a PROCESS, a language we learn to speak individually and all together at once.  


+ Show Up Everyday +





Thursday, August 7, 2014

> > > Finding Comfort in AMBIGUITY

I was the kid that couldn’t sit still ….When I was 6 I participated in my first track meet, when I was 9 I ran my first 10K.

In the spring of 2003 I got a postcard in the mail that was about to change my life forever.  It was from the Jivamukti Yoga School in NYC.  I was 31 and had been practicing yoga for 7 years and was obsessed.  I had played around with teaching classes in my apartment and it became clear I needed more.  There were 2 month long trainings that year, one in upstate NY and one in Austria.   I loved to travel and had set up a garden design business so I could work for myself and jump on a plane and explore whenever I felt the need.  So I signed up.  I chose Austria, it was mysterious and far away.  I had never been there before and it just wasn’t a place I could see myself going with out a specific reason.

I tell my business partner I’m leaving for 5 weeks.  As she’s like “what”?  But agrees I should go.  I get a loan off my credit card at 2%, because this was before the market crashed and you could basically get money for free to spend $8,000 on a yoga training in some far off exotic place you’ve never been.  So now I’ve cleared the way.  I’m in.  I’m going. I’m psyched.  New adventure.  A new place I’ve never been.  I’m going to some tiny mountain village in Austria called Oberndorf.

And then I get the required reading list.  We have to do 5 book reports on books such as The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, a ancient text that covers the history of yoga and I feel my first tinge of panic.   I didn’t read a book until college.  I know nothing.  What have I signed up for?  I have no idea how the history and philosophy ties in with the physical practice.   I have no idea who else is going to be there and a pretty good idea that I will be the only one from the mid west.  But I don’t cave in..I wanted to know what I didn’t know even if it made me feel vulnerable.

So I labor through the book reports, which is brutal, get on a plane and go.

I fly from Mpls, connect in Amsterdam and then in Salzburg.  I jump on a train from there. In preparation for the trip it became clear that there were no less than 5 mountain villages called Oberndorf so I’m not completely sure I’m headed off to the right place.  The mystery begins, it’s thrilling and a little scary and I’m hoping I’ve headed off in the right direction.  I take an incredibly beautiful train ride through the mountains.  When I arrive at what I hope is the right destination I see men in lederhosen, cows and yoga mats.  I am far, far away from home.

I arrive at the dorm and I step into this totally new world.  It’s akward and immediately clear I am indeed the only other person there from the Midwest.  I meet or I should say, behold from across the room the founders of Jivamukti Yoga, Sharon Gannon and David Life.  They do not disappoint.  They are every bit as interesting and theatrical as their pictures and performance art backgrounds promise.

Our studies begin and I’m horrified to find myself among yoga afficianados.  These people know what I don’t know inside and out and I’m hoping my dedication to the physical practice carries me through.  We get grilled.  We start at 7 am and meditate, study scripture, practice yoga, sing, chant watch many, many videos on ethical vegetarianism until midnight each day.  This turns out to be what I later understand as a typically classical school of yoga.  We sit on the floor for many hours at a time and are not allowed to lean up against anything or show the soles of our feet to our gurus.

At the end of the first day after dinner we attend the last event of the day, which a gathering called satsang.  We are required to wear white clothing and chant and review what we covered that day.  This is apparently also the time when Sharon will be picking questions from the day and calling on us randomly.  I am lucky enough to be the first one picked out 75 people to answer a question about a list of 6 esoteric cleansing practices called Shat Karma Kriyas and expected to recite and explain them on the spot.  I will never forget the uncomfortable stillness in the air and everyone staring at me for what felt like minutes but was probably only seconds and the sound of us all furiously paging through our notebooks to find the answer.  We attend satsang in fear but I am determined to be prepared next time.  I am she asks me another question a couple weeks later and I nail it.  My confidence grows.

I realize in my quest for more information I am in the company of celebrity.  Sharon and David have taught yoga to Madonna and Russell Simmons, Sting has written the foreword to their book.  Things are getting competitive, people are clawing each others eyes out to get their attention.  So I start to rebel a little bit.  I start wearing jeans to class in an effort to level the playing field.  I’m feeling a little more comfortable as time passes, I can see patterns emerge and I make a few friends.

We are also required to perform.  The first night, they ask for a volunteer to do a chant.  They come up with Guitars and Harmoniums, sing a very George Harrison inspired version of Hare Krishna and knock it out of the park.  These people are professionals.  It is explained to us we will be required to pick a chant, sing it, translate it and explain it’s relevance from a classical point of view in front of the entire group at some point during our training.  I’m mortified.  I sit through every satsang for the remainder of the training absolutely dreading my turn.  We get to the last night of the training and it’s my turn. My Guru’s, Sharon and David wait for a volunteer and all 74 people turn and look at me.  I’m the only one who hasn’t gone, everyone knows and they can read the terror in my eyes.  I pick a 3 word chant, sing it flatly, mumble something about being steady and joyful and make my way back to my seat.  I head immediately up to the only bar in town after class with my new friends, we celebrate our last night of training and fly back the next day.

Even though for most of the training I felt completely overwhelmed I knew I wasn't going to get this experience again.  I knew I was getting an amazing amount of information and stories on personal experiences from these two people who had immersed themselves in yoga for decades and trained with BKS Iyengar and Pattabi Jois.  So I tried to stay present.  I had luckily made lists of everything.  Once I was home I realized this experience would take me years to unpack.  It enriched my practice and informed my teaching in ways I could have never imagined.  I feel so lucky to have had the courage to  step into this unfamiliar, uncomfortable space.  It's that place of ambiguity that is what allows us to grow and learn.



Wednesday, July 2, 2014

SUMMER 2014 PLAYList + + + + + + +



Here you go…a fun soundtrack for your holiday weekend.  Loving this playlist.  And the studio as it steadily grows.  And all of you as you do too.

Happy Independence Day to you and yours  LVM 

+ Show Up Everyday +

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Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Upper Back Back Bends \\\\




We've been doing a lot of work with upper back bends lately and they seem to be getting good reviews.  Back bends did not come easy for me.  I've had to really do a lot of work to stabilize my lower back to open my upper back.  It took me years of playing around to figure out how exactly the best way to do this for myself.  It's changed my practice completely.  I love mapping new territory and the way it changes how it think and feel.  And I'm so lucky to have a beautiful place like Yoga Garden to share it with all of you.


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Saturday, May 17, 2014

" " " " " " I love weekends like these...


I love weekends like these.  It finally feels like Spring.  I've got a full day of planting ahead of me.  I get to take small, urban spaces and make them feel expansive and pretty like an open field.  NE will be vibrant and full of artists and creative types for Art A Whirl.  I've got my coffee and I'm ready for the day.  I'll be teaching my usual time @ YOGA Garden tomorrow @ 430.  All levels welcome…


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Friday, May 2, 2014


> No Class on Sunday 


 I will be celebrating the wedding of my friends Heather & Jodi this Sunday, so no class on 5/4. This is a good chance for those of you who have been talking about wanting to jump in on Thursdays.

AND in case you were wondering here are my regularly scheduled class times:

Thursdays 630-800 (all levels vinyasa)
Sundays 430-600 (back to basics)
Mondays 630-800 (advanced vinyasa)

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 + HAPPY SPRING!+ 

LOVE, LVM

www.yogagardenmpls.com

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Tuesday, April 15, 2014

+ LOOK Underfoot +


The lesson that life constantly enforces is ‘look underfoot.’ 

You are always nearer to the true sources of your power than you think. 

The lure of the distant and the difficult is deceptive. 

The great opportunity is where you are. 

Don’t despise your own place and hour. 

Every place is the center of the world.

Naturalist John Burroughs


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* * * * * * There's kind of a lot to work with here. It's a reminder to let the effort find us.  We don't need to make things difficult to feel like we've done our work or are in control.  If we show up to do our work the effort will come and find us.  It takes a lot of strength and courage to stay when we feel lost or under stress.  Much less put your lipstick on, tuck in your shirt and keep going when we want to run.  I'm surprised to be reminded of this again & again when I step on to my mat.  I refer to it as Carry With You What You Know as we weave and unwind our way through a practice.  We all have our own world to offer as who we are in this life here and now and it's so fun to explore and we are lucky to have each other.  xo LVM  

P.S.  This is in the forest overlooking the ocean 45 min outside of SF where I hugged my first Redwood.  



Sunday, April 6, 2014

> > > the Goal of LIVING is to GROW


“in time of daffodils(who know
the goal of living is to grow)
forgetting why,remember how

in time of lilacs who proclaim
the aim of waking is to dream,
remember so(forgetting seem)

in time of roses(who amaze
our now and here with paradise)
forgetting if,remember yes

in time of all sweet things beyond
whatever mind may comprehend,
remember seek(forgetting find)

and in a mystery to be
(when time from time shall set us free)
forgetting me,remember me”


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I have my mom's e e cummings book she used when she was a student at The University of Wisconsin Madison in the 60's.  It's one of my most prized possessions.  It's earmarked and dog tagged with her studies and inspirations.  Throughout my life she has been a well of the right quotes at just the right time..many of them from e e cummings.  This poem is one of my absolute favorites…the perfect description of what it is we try to capture when we practice on our mats and off > The Goal of Living is to Grow after all ..isn't it?




Thursday, April 3, 2014

) ) ) ) NOW I Become MYSELF ( ( ( (

Now I become myself. It's taken
Time, many years and places;
I have been dissolved and shaken,
Worn other people's faces,
Run madly, as if Time were there,
Terribly old, crying a warning,
"Hurry, you will be dead before--"
(What? Before you reach the morning?
Or the end of the poem is clear?
Or love safe in the walled city?)
Now to stand still, to be here,
Feel my own weight and density!
The black shadow on the paper
Is my hand; the shadow of a word
As thought shapes the shaper
Falls heavy on the page, is heard.
All fuses now, falls into place
From wish to action, word to silence,
My work, my love, my time, my face
Gathered into one intense
Gesture of growing like a plant.
As slowly as the ripening fruit
Fertile, detached, and always spent,
Falls but does not exhaust the root,
So all the poem is, can give,
Grows in me to become the song,
Made so and rooted by love.
Now there is time and Time is young.
O, in this single hour I live
All of myself and do not move.
I, the pursued, who madly ran,
Stand still, stand still, and stop the sun!
-May Sarton

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Sunday, March 30, 2014

\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ REACH & STRETCH / / / / / / / / /




\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \  REACH & STRETCH / / / / / / / / /

Lean into your back body > find your breath and the strength to hold it

 today @ 430 w LVM

xo 

+ LISTEN to GROW +


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Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Birthdays & All Things SF + + +










Wow, I just got back from such a great trip to SF.  Only my 2nd time there and I can't believe that city is real.  I was lucky to spend 5 days w my rockstar friend Holly Munoz (literally and figuratively) camping next to the ocean, soaking in mineral baths, yoga, dreaming, walking, & kicking it all off by celebrating my birthday with Linda Wu and Laura McCabe and Co.  An effing fantastic trip.  Makes me feel lucky to know such good people and to get to spend time w them in such a lovely place.  The puja in the top is from a Burmese restaurant they treated me to on my BDay and I would have to say has to be the puja of all pujas…a sight to behold and a nice find on that day.  Not to mention the food was incredible.  Green tea salad, who knew?  The ranunculus was a gift and totally made my day…I love ranunculus and how sweet to get a bouquet of flowers on your first day of vacation.  We then went camping and as you can tell by the pics it was fairyland beautiful.  The ocean was feet away.  The sweet little cabin is on the campground and overlooks the ocean.  I got to make a new friend with the introduction to Holly's friend Mimi.  I love meeting new people.  The 3 of us then headed north about 2 hours and soaked in mineral baths built in 1860.  This is all in the surrounding area of SF.  I was also lucky enough to visit Tiny Telephone which is the studio where Holly recorded her beautiful & soon to be released album "Maps & Lists" w John Vanderslice.  It's a beautiful space, humble & open & full of possibilities…it felt like Yoga Garden in that way.  A memorable trip for so many reasons.  And now I'm happy to be home @ YOGA Garden thinking about it all as I handstand & back bend & water & sweep.

+ LISTEN to GROW +

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Tuesday, March 11, 2014

^ ^ YOGA Trees ^ ^



Gorgeous space, gorgeous people & pretty poses.  Good company to keep as we move from the elemental earthy boundaries of a long damn winter into the watery, nurturing hands of SPRING.  You can almost smell the lilacs. . . . 



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Tuesday, March 4, 2014

* * The ART of ASANA * *



Sitting at my desk with high-lighter in hand and stapler near by happily organizing yoga poses into various lists.  I'm getting organized for The Art of Asana portion of LISTEN to GROW this weekend and could not be happier.  The first 2 weekends have gone swimmingly, diving in deep but moving through the material with relative ease.  If you care to jump in feel free, people who could not sign up for the entire workshop are showing interest in individual weekends.  $185/per workshop....you can get the skinny here:


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Monday, March 3, 2014

>>>> More & More LIGHT Everyday




You can tell by the chit-chat, there's more & more light to practice in everyday.  It just makes everything easier and more fun, like hanging out in the studio with a good group of friends.  A lucky lady bird am I to have such a great group to soak it up with.

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Friday, February 28, 2014

MUSEUM DAY!










We are a lucky lot to have so much amazing art in our fine city.  I spent the afternoon at the Walker and MIA w my friend and fellow yogini Rachel Hiltsey.  A great escape on these the coldest of cold days.  Nothing like great art in a beautiful building to warm us up through the eyes.  Plus there were brightly colored letters painted on a wall.


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Thursday, February 27, 2014

* * * GREEN = GROWTH . . .




Thank god for gardens.  Seriously.  It makes me so happy to get to have an indoor garden full of succulents for the duration of such a cold winter in our beautiful studio.  Green equals growth…a good reminder of what's beneath the layers of ice and snow.  And only weeks away but who's counting.  <3

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Wednesday, February 5, 2014

) ) ) ) ) ) ) PLAYList ( ( ( ( ( ( ( (



This is one of my favorite playlists to date and I'm not just saying that.  It's got a nice even flow from beginning to end with a little bit of a kick in the middle.   A sweet little soundtrack as a lullaby for a long and cold winter.  

+ LISTEN to GROW+



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Tuesday, February 4, 2014

2014 > > > >




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