THE REAL COST OF OIL (Global Seva Amazon)
“The earth does not belong to man; man belongs to the earth. Man did not weave the web of life; he is merely a strand in it. We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.” (Chief Seattle) Global Seva Amazon: Environmental Justice & Indigenous Rights Off the Mat, Into the World’s (OTM) Global Seva Challenge is a fundraiser that builds community, provokes awareness and action around global issues, and raises funds to support communities in crisis. Since 2007, more than 600 people around the world have taken the Seva Challenge and raised [...]
EYI 2013: Sweet Surrender
According to the Yoga Sutras, yoga should be easeful and restful. There is a certain awareness of ease that comes after any big release, yet the contents of that release are often fraught with tension, fear, tightness and ego. It was not part of my upbringing to be aware of these feelings in myself without judgment and repression. If things didn’t feel right, they were buried in my body while my head kept itself busy with other things. The result? A swamp of emotions that were repressed, yet present, in my daily existence. On the outside, my life has been [...]
EYI 2013: Yoga Class
A group of yoga students gather on a Thursday morning across a crowded play yard. Words of welcome and handshakes are exchanged, mats are rolled out and shoes are removed. As the teacher begins to speak, attention is given. Breath is encouraged and movement begins. Simple and dynamic all in one, a slow Hatha practice is what these yogis seek and will receive. Laying on my mat, hearing my own breath intertwine with the collective souls surrounding me, I begin to hear the words being spoken. “We will now begin Yoga Nidra.” Exploring a different level of consciousness, a request [...]
EYI 2013: Experience Resides in the Cells
“Experience resides in the cells.” –Angel Kyodo Williams This statement slapped me in the face. As a yoga instructor this information is not new knowledge to me, nor is it something I have not said myself multiple times. Yet on the first day of the Empowered Youth Initiative training it resonated with me in a much more powerful way. I love teaching challenging arm balances, inversions, the face your fears, “oh shit!” poses. Not only that, but I love the shake and quiver of a long intense hold in Utkatasana (it’s named fierce pose for a reason). My students often proclaim [...]
EYI 2013: Permissive Language
As I lay in bed reflecting back on my first full day at the Off the Mat, Into the World Empowered Youth Initiative training, where the day was spent discussing the importance of language, I’m left feeling speechless. Not wanting to say the wrong words. Evoke negative emotions in others. Do harm. It’s easy to become overwhelmed the more you learn. Yesterday I probably would have said that fear is an emotion that does not cultivate change. Today I learned from Angel Kyodo Williams that change doesn’t always mean moving forward, there’s also the possibility of regression. I invite you to think of a moment [...]
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