* * * * * Unassailable SERENITY . . . . . . .

I believe I know the only cure, 

which is to make one’s center of life inside of one’s self, 

not selfishly or exceedingly, 

but with a kind of unassailable serenity 

— to decorate one’s inner house so richly that one is content there, 

glad to welcome anyone who wants to come and stay, 

but happy all the same when one is inevitably alone.

- Edith Wharton

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I've been loving meditation more and more these days after years of fighting with it. It used to really seem like a chore, another thing on my list of things to do for the day I didn't want to and could easily knock off and not feel bad about it.  It used to seem kind of selfish and indulgent.  But I look forward to now as much as my asana practice.  I find boundaries in my breath that decorate the walls of my inner life like nothing on the outside can and now I can't get there fast enough.  

A Little Bit of SUMMER in WINTER * * * * * * * *

A little bit of Summer in Winter. If you asked me that question about the deserted island my Vitamix would be 1 of my 3 things. I know there's no electricity but I would figure out a way. (Plus, like I'm really going to get stuck on a deserted island). I feel like I get a little hit of summer every morning even when it's wintery and cold. #juiceforlife #theressummerintheresomewhere#beneaththesnow

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A NEW Story for a NEW Year \ \ \ \ \

/// START A NEW STORY


As we live through each season we move forward through cycles, change and choice. Within us and all around us.  On the solstice we move from the time of Ether to Earth.  Each of the seasons is symbolized by one of the 5 elements: Winter = Earth, Spring = Water, Summer = Fire and Fall = Air.  The element of Ether is symbolized by the time between Halloween and the Solstice.  The element of ether is symbolic of our intuition, our ability to close our eyes and sit still.  It is a place of creativity before boundaries, judgment, insecurity and this freedom is what ignites the creative spark at our core. It's where the story begins. It gives us a light in the dark, our word for the year, an idea about how we would like to tell our story for a new year.  

But in order for our word, dream, desire to manifest it has to become physical, like a seed.  It has to take shape, to have a place to root into and grow.  The element of earth is symbolic of the body.  As we move from ether to earth we start to manifest our idea physically.  We begin to make choices about the way we breathe, move and rest to build a body that reflects where we are now and what direction we want to go.  Our bodies literally take the shape of our hearts and minds, each pose a reflection of our awareness as we weave and unwind our narrative of experience.

 Next week we move from Ether to Earth.  We will move from one season to the next and into a new year.  We will step into a new cycle of change and choice and create the story of a new season in our lives with us as we go.


w LAUREL VAN MATRE

Monday 12.21

6:30 - 8:00 PM - All Levels Vinyasa

Stay for a toast to a New Season after class!!!!

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) ) )) 1 Minute MEDITATION (( ( (

Lord knows we could all use a little down time during the holiday season.

Enjoy the first of many podcasts and recorded meditations and classes to come in 2016!

p.s. - you can also go to the YG website and download the MP3.

+  SHOW Up EVERY Day +

www.yogagardenmpls.com

 $ $ $ $$$$ $ $$ $$$$ $ $ $$ $ $ $ $$ // / / / / / / / / /\ \ \ \ \ \ \\ \\\ \ \ \ \\\ \ \ \/// / // / / // ///// / //// / / /

> > > Our Body's Potential To Wholeness < < <

Realize Your Body's Deep Potential to Wholeness Yoga Garden is a space—physical and spiritual—very dear to my heart, where I have realized the deep potential of my body’s relationship to grace, empowerment, community, and wholeness, and my capacity to continually evolve in my practice, through the brilliant guidance of Laurel Van Matre. In more ways than one, Laurel has facilitated healing in my life, and has instilled in me a deep understanding of yoga’s expansive potential to create openings, in the body and in the world, for healing. I was especially impacted by Laurel’s gift after experiencing a fully ruptured disc in my cervical spine, which doctors insisted required nothing less than surgery and spinal fusion. Laurel’s research into this condition, and her personal attention both in class and private sessions, supported my eventual full recovery with literally no medical intervention. In addition to fostering all levels of asana practice, Laurel also cultivates arts and culture events among her students and in the community—I, along with many other artists, have been warmly hosted in performance and sharing, and her classes always incorporate metaphoric resonance and myriad portals for not just somatic, but imaginative and intellectual comprehension as well. She is a goddess! And Yoga Garden Minneapolis is truly a special, welcoming, peace-affirming refuge.  —Sarah Fox /// / / / / / / // //\ \ \ \ \\\ \\ \\\\\ \ \ \\ \ \ \ \ \ \  + + + +++++ + + + + + +++ + +++ # # ## ## # ##### # # A lucky lady am I to be surrounded by such a great community of students and teachers.  We have an amazing group of yogis, artists and entrepreneurs @ YG I am forever proud to be a part of.  I love and appreciate each one of your voices and the energy you bring to the studio.  Thank you to Sarah Fox for the beautiful words and insight on her experience there.  For any of you looking to deepen your body's potential check out the info below.  A TTing is for all teachers and students and anyone looking for more.  Love to all.  LVM Understanding Alignment Through Action EXPLORING DEEPER INTO STUDY, PRACTICE AND TEACHING YOGA FOR TEACHERS & STUDENTS Winter/Spring 2016 /// February 18th – May 19th Weekly schedule will be: Thursdays 5:00 – 10:00 pm Saturdays 11:00 – 5:00 pm Sundays 12:00 – 4:00 pm REGISTER HERE There will be a break March 17th – 20th.  No class Easter Sunday. For questions please call Laurel @ 763-458-2190 or email laurel@yogagardenmpls.com Training taught by Laurel Van Matre $2,650 by January 13th /// $2,850 after January 14th, 2016 Credit Cards Accepted + Show Up Every Day + www.yogagardenmpls.com \ \ \\ \ \ \\\//// / / / / / /

* * * You're a STAR -- and so am I * * *

I am a competitive person I will admit.  I LOVE to compete and I hate to lose.  But I am most competitive with myself.  And for the sake of growth and to learn not just because I hate losing.  The part about losing isn't the loss in not winning the game it's the loss in not moving ahead.  It's about feeling like I didn't grow.  So competition to me equals growth.  And in order to grow we need each other.  

I will never be more competitive with you than I am with myself because you're a star.  I want to compete with you because I think we're all amazing and we all have our own weird way of seeing and experiencing the world that needs to be shared.  

Level playing field were we all get to compete and work together is so much better than dividing us up into winners and losers.  The competition is the game.

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You're a star -- and so am I. I'm a genius -- and so are you. Your success encourages my brilliance, and my charisma enhances your power. Your victory doesn't require my defeat, and vice versa. 

Those are the rules in the New World -- quite unlike the rules in the Old World, where zero-sum games are the norm, and only one of us can win each time we play. 

In the New World, you don't have to play down or apologize for your prowess, because you love it when other people shine. You exult in your own excellence without regarding it as a sign of inherent superiority. As you ripen more and more of your latent aptitude, you inspire the rest of us to claim our own idiosyncratic magnificence . . . .

Rob Brezsny  /// Free Will Astrology

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www.yogagardenmpls.com

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"There are years that ask questions and years that answer"
- Zora Neale Hurston

The winter solstice is out there and not that far away.  Only 5 weeks from now our sunlight will already start to get longer each day. As we come up to the last month of the year we start to think about what it is we want for the future.  What direction do we want to be headed as we cross over that line from this year to next?

Yoga philosophy has it's own stories to tell through the wonderful world of Hindu Gods and Goddesses.  In these stories we learn to see and develop a better understanding of ourselves and the world through metaphor.  The story of GANESH, who is referred to as “the remover of obstacles”, “the lord of new beginnings” and “the lord of the threshold” is perfect for this time of year. He is symbolic of crossing the threshold of where we are now into a new experience.  Ganesh represents having the courage, will, and strength to move from what is familiar to us into ambiguous spaces in order to learn and grow and create the lives we want.

So, we head into the dark, toward a new year and prepare ourselves for something new.  We make an alter (literally or metaphorically), or in the yoga world it's called a "puja," and place in front of us what we want to become.  We layer ourselves with experience as we make our way through a new year.  We start again, and again and again.  The sum total of those experiences is what makes the shape of our lives.  It's way we tell our stories for a new year and every year.  What is the story you want to tell for 2016?