The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.  ~ Tony Robbins
St George's Castle, Lisboa, Portugal, 6/2024 Andrea
 
Life is not about getting to a far-off end goal and then you'll be happy or satisfied.... it's about the journey and being fulfilled while you're living it. In our very busy and distracting world, it can take practice to actually live intentionally in the moment.  To practice staying present requires being mindful and aware of how you show up in any given moment, recognizing your external and internal influencers, having a plan to navigate those distractions and then choosing how you want to show up.  The more aware you are the more choices you have. It's the art of self-mastery; being who you are vs what you are doing defining you.  

The outcome is not the point. It’s the quality of mind that accompanies the work that is of value—the ability to nurture a calm, curious, observant intelligence.  Yoga Sutra 1.12.

As you scurry around packing in the tail end of the summer season and ramping up for what your Fall shift, consider how you approach your days... by default or with intention.

Some simple tips for being present and mindful:

• DO YOGA!  
• Meditate.
• Journal.
• Do one thing at a time with your whole attention.  
• Breathe.

With immense love and gratitude!

Andrea

Each moment describes WHO you are & gives you the opportunity to decide if that's truly WHO you want to be.  All of our actions and words whether chosen consciously or not, are a reflection of WHO we are, our values our beliefs and what kind of person we are.
I have found the profound, yet simple guidelines of the Four Agreements by don Miguel Ruiz to be a great tool to lean into when I need the prompt to raise my awareness of how I am interacting with the world. 
Four Agreements 

1. Be Impeccable with Your Word.
2. Don't Take Anything Personally.
3. Don't Make Assumptions.
4. Always Do Your Best.

Often easier said than done, yet I encourage you to sit with each of these concepts.  Maybe start with first one, "Be impeccable with your word", dig deep!  What does that mean to you.  What would it feel like to live by this guideline?   Imagine yourself as always honest, (no white lies, no hiding truths), giving credit to others where due, kind and compassionate, not exaggerating or gossiping, owning when you're not impeccable with your words... WHO you are and how does it feel to be this WHO? 

How does this tie into Yoga?
Patanjali's Yoga Sutra's Chapter 2 the Yamas:
Satya – Purity of Speech and Truthfulness. 
The observance of satya, or truthfulness, means we speak the truth and live from a place of authenticity. We don’t deceive others, nor deceive ourselves.
We know ourselves at the deepest level and live from that place of WHO we are.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT:
How do your moments reflect WHO you are?
What could you do to more authentically show up as the WHO you want to be? 

When was the last time you sat down and truly reflected on your "Core Values", those principles and beliefs at the center of WHO you are that are so critical to your wellbeing? It's relatively easy to choose several words and say: "I believe in honesty, compassion, family, etc.", so what exactly do these concepts mean to you?  Then take that a step further, how do these values actually show up in your life?   Then never mind "how do they show up", how do you want them to show up and what can you do to make sure they do?!
Still more digging to do.  Are these truly your values or are they someone else's that they think you should follow.   Those that you were taught by your parents, cultural, societal or religious beliefs, etc. 
And more...why is that value important?  Is it fear based, based on past experiences, or truly at the root of who you want to be, a conscious choice?   
​When your life is synced with your core values and beliefs, it's like the Universe has aligned to put you in exactly the right spot!    Maybe it's worth the time to sit with what's important to you?

I'll help you get started with a few ideas:   ​

1. Awareness
2. Balance
3. Community
4. Compassion
5. Creativity
6. Curiosity
7. Discipline 
8. Empathy
9. Family
10. Freedom
11. Friends
12. Gratitude
13. Happiness
14. Health
15. Honesty
16. Humility
17. Integrity
18. Knowledge
19. Leadership
20. Love
21. Peace
22. Purpose
23. Responsibility
24. Service
25. Spirituality
26. Success
27. Trust
28. Wealth

Food for Thought:
What are your Core Values?
Dig deep:  What do the concepts really mean to you?  How do you want to live in accordance with your values?
What needs to shift?

I don't know about you, but I am sure that I am my hardest critic.  So when Steven Conway, at my most recent iPEC weekend, had us sit with the concept: "You cannot make a mistake.", I sat with it!
My thoughts:
We don't deliberately make mistakes, rather they are accidental.    In any moment, aren't we all doing the best we can to move though life given our current circumstances?   So, couldn't a mistake be a series of actions or decisions that lead to an outcome, that we don't like?  It's easy to look back and say whoa, that was a mistake...but was it at the time?
As Alexander Pope so famously says:  To err is Human; to Forgive, Divine...

From a Yogis Perspective:
​Sutra 2.35: “ahimsā-pratiṣthāyām tat-sannidhau vaira-tyāgaḥ”
Patanjali introduces ahimsa: non-violence, the first of the Yamas, the yogic principles of social discipline.  No violence includes negative thoughts about yourself and others. 

If we are doing the best we can when a "mistake" occurs is it a "mistake"?   This line of thought does not release us from the consequence of the decisions and actions, yet it does offer an opportunity to give yourself a little grace and to learn and grow. 
Own it, do better. 

Food for Thought:
Can you apply this perspective to what you may consider past mistakes?

I was reflecting on what my energy felt like this week, which lead to the concept of "The Law of Attraction" which sent me down the rabbit hole...  I first bumped into Albert Einstein, who states that EVERYTHING is energy.  A good place to start!  If we are energy, then our thoughts are also energy.  
Digging into the philosophy of the "Law of Attraction".  Very simply put, "like attracts like".   I can embrace this belief that positive thoughts and actions will bring you a positive response and energy and negative thoughts and actions will have a negative result.  Anecdotally, I've experienced this "ripple effect".  
Continuing down the rabbit hole, I find support in "The Secret", Cognitive Behavioral Therapy principles, teachings by Dr. Joe Dispensa, the concept of Karma, and the Yoga Sutras.  I also found articles, arguing against the concept of manifestation and the danger of people believing they can heal themselves or will themselves to abundance. 
For me, positive energy and thoughts attracting positive energy and thoughts resonates! 
Food for Thought:
How might you recognize and measure the power of your positive thoughts to attract positive energy?
How might you recognize the power of any negative energy or thoughts that you are experiencing?  
How might you shift your thoughts or behaviors to bring more positivity to your life?

 “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” —Sir Winston Churchill

In Kute Blackson's book the Magic of Surrender. He proposes that we, as humans, spend a great deal of time trying to define our purpose. What if our purpose is as simple as to grow and evolve at a soul level? If that is the case, then every experience the "good, the bad, the ugly" is an opportunity to learn, to grow and evolve...and we have found our purpose.
  
This does not mean that some experiences are not painful, nor that it is easy to embrace the lesson in a challenging moment. It offers a lens with which to view your life experiences with curiosity and an open mind.

Now imagine that you apply that curiosity to your yoga practice. Each experience, each posture, each breath, an opportunity to gather information, to be more informed about what is going on for you physically, mentally, and emotionally, without judgement. How much kinder to yourself could you be now?

​Food for thought:   How do you conscientiously explore opportunities to grow and evolve in challenging situations? 

“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” —Reinhold Niebuhr

The only constant is change.  We are immersed in it.  It can be empowering to recognize that we live in a constant state of flux and more importantly...that this is a normal process in life. Rather than trying to control what we cannot, when we allow life to flow, we can choose to respond rather than to react to that which arises.  

In chapter 1 of the Yoga Sutras (the basis for Classic Yoga today).  
Patanjali says essentially that if we learn to quiet the mind then we will find pure awareness.  This takes practice and nonreaction to patterns: our right perceptions, misperceptions, ideas, memory and deep sleep.  Once we have achieved no attachment nor judgement based on our patterns, we can see clearly without reaction, and be in the moment with pure awareness.  Once there or even close to there, we can choose how to respond or NOT.    

86,400 seconds in a day.  There are for more options than we think.

Patanjali is very clear, this takes practice and time.  Accepting that we are all human and therefore not perfect, certainly helps when you find yourself reacting vs responding.  

Food for thought:  What steps could you take to accept the things that you cannot control, and the courage to change those that you can?  

I love the start of a New Year!  It's a prompt to reflect on the prior year (what worked, what didn't, what was missing and what to dump), and to set an intention for what you want your life to look like moving forward.  I realize that you can do this on any given day, yet there is some symbolism or ritual to doing this in January, to saying this year "I WILL..."
​ 
This relatively simple exercise may help identify some "I WILL..." options:

• List the people in your life (personal and professional), your habits, and elements of your environment. 
• Put a + or - next to everything you listed.  (**There are only two options + or -)
• How can you decrease the -'s? 
• How can you nurture the +'s?  
• What other +'s can you add?   
• Your answers should be SMART:  Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time Bound.

Think BIG think LIMITLESS!  What will your 2024 look like? 

You alone of all the animals have the ability to envision the future shape of things to come.  What a faculty - don't waste it!  Dan Zadra