Sirsasana and Article on Yoga Farm

Here is a comprehensive article on The Sivananda Yoga Farm. It is a good summary of the readings and conversations I've had over the past months about TTC and the Sivananada ashram experience.

Traditional Hatha Yoga class was fantastic last night at Baltimore Yoga Village. I've learned that I can achieve much more than I ever thought possible, physically and mentally. My biggest challenge has been fear, but through my teachers I realize that if I put fear aside I will find joy and peace.

I even held a headstand for a few seconds last night, which I would have never thought possible a few months ago. The headstand photo isn't of me or my class, but you get the idea.

Sivananda TTC You Tube Video

Vacation is over and unfortunately I was sick and unable to attend Kripalu. Luckily, they offer a credit, so I'll have the chance to attend in the future. I found this You Tube video documentary of a Sivananda TTC program in India. In case you are interested in a glimpse of life in an ashram, check it out. I am interested to hear your thoughts!

I've been posting a lot of blogs at www.about-baltimoremd.com and I hope you'll check them out too!

Namaste

My New Blogging Gig- "About Baltimore"

I am very happy to announce that I am blogging for a company called 451 Press. I am writing the Baltimore Blog that you can view here. It is exciting to have a freelance job writing about something I love-my home. I hope that anyone reading this blog will check out my new blog that covers Baltimore on a bigger scale.

Only one week until Kripalu! I scaled down to a weekend program after signing up for TTC at Grass Valley Yoga Farm. I'll be participating in The Inspirational Teacher workshop with Angela Farmer. I hope it is a good warm up for TTC. Kripalu describes the course as:

"This workshop is an exploration of ourselves, our practice, and our teaching. We will explore asana and breathing in an intuitive, creative, and playful way, opening up new channels of energy that can change concepts of "right ways" and "wrong ways" to practice, and lead you to greater joy and freedom in yoga."

Starting tomorrow evening, I am on vacation for 10 days! I am going to fill it with meditation, yoga, writing, reading, spending time with BYV folks, and relaxing with my soon-to-be husband...only four weeks until the wedding!

SmartWoman Magazine Articles (by me!)

The day began with a rejuvenating yoga class at BYV. I made it through the morning without a cup of coffee, but finally bit the bullet and walked to Artifact Coffee at noon. SmartWoman Magazine caught my eye on my way out of the cafe with my sweating cup of iced coffee. I noticed that it was the new issue! Quickly flipping through the pages, I found my "Something New" article on breathe books. After a quick read-through, I skimmed the pages again and found the Learning Column that I submitted:)


The next thing I knew, I was tearing down Union Street to my car in the sweltering heat. I couldn't stop smiling the whole drive to the Avenue. My first stop was Lovelyarns to show Sue the Learning Column. She was delighted! It felt wonderful to give something back to Sue, as she has been so kind and welcoming to me. I left a copy at her shop and set off down the street to see Susan at breathe books.


I stepped into the cool, air-conditioning of breathe books store and found Susan's shining face behind the counter. Again, it was a fantastic feeling to give back to someone who has spent time listening to my aspirations, interests, and troubles over the past six months and provided a special place to visit that is filled with tools for awakening the mind and body.

I floated through the rest of my day.

Teacher Training...here I come!

I've been accepted into the Green Valley Sivananda Yoga Farm Teacher Training course! The course takes place October 3-November 6. It's a little scary, but I'm following my heart and I've taken precautions to cushion me when I arrive home in November.

I've posted a few pictures of the ashram. Since I've figured how to post pictures, I'm going to go back to past entries and add some nice photos.

Here is the typical day in teacher training at the yoga farm:

TTC Daily Schedule

DAILY SCHEDULE
5:30am	Wake-up Bell
6:00am	Satsang (meditation, chanting, lecture)
8:00am	Asana & Pranayama Class
10:00am	Vegetarian Brunch
11:00am	Karma Yoga (helping in the ashram)
12:00pm	Chanting or Bhagavad Gita Class
2:00pm	Main Lecture
4:00pm	Asana & Pranayama (Teaching Techniques)
6:00pm	Vegetarian Dinner
8:00pm	Satsang (meditation, chanting, lecture)

"The regular and intense schedule will help you to develop the self-discipline necessary for you to practice on your own in the future. The schedule is for 6 days of the week – you get one day off for resting, studying, etc." (http://www.yogafarm.org/ttc/ttcdailyschedule.htm)

Here is a photo of the cabin I'll be staying in (or one like this) with three other students. I am told that there is a bath house nearby. Below is a picture of the Krishna temple by the pond.
I feel peaceful just by looking at the photos. In the meantime, I have been working on my asanas everyday. I am determined to do a headstand as soon as humanly possible. My fiance has been helping me practice every day at home. I hope that by the time my teachers get back from the ashram in Quebec, I'll be able to do one on my own!

I hope to get involved with Baltimore Yoga Village's non profit project once I have completed my teacher training. BYV's webpage explains:

"Baltimore Yoga for Youth is a project of a non-profit organization, Fusion Partnerships. In 2006, Anjali Teotia, owner of Baltimore Yoga Village, began the Baltimore Yoga for Youth program, in order to introduce a series of Hatha yoga workshops for inner city school students and teachers as tools for developing inner calmness, mental clarity, and much needed stress relief." (http://www.baltimoreyogavillage.com/baltimore_yoga_YOUTH.cfm)

My New Hammock Swing

My fiance gave me the greatest birthday present I've ever received this year...a hammock chair. He installed it on our back deck yesterday. It is pure relaxation and joy. It cradles your body, stretched out in your favorite position, swinging you slowly and gracefully. I could lay in it for hours. Its difficult not to close your eyes. If you could float on a cloud, that hammock chair takes you away on a big fluffy one.

This afternoon, I sat in it twice. It was a perfect summer day. There was a cool breeze, a few white wispy clouds and a bright blue sky. A hammock ride was a wonderful combination with my morning coffee (after an early morning yoga class at BYV). There are two humongous trees in our backyard and their leaves made perfect music with the wind. My second hammock ride included a reading session this evening. I am reading The Buddha In Your Mirror: Practical Buddhism and the Search for the Self by Woody Hochswender, Greg Martin, & Ted Morino. A good friend of mine from BYV thought it would be a beneficial read for me. So far its fantastic.

I also took a trip with the fiance to Eddie's Market on St. Paul St. this weekend. It is a small market in Charles Village. We did all of our shopping for the week and it was surprisingly inexpensive. The produce was great too: Asian pears, mangoes, and blueberries! It was also nice to be almost the only people in the store. That doesn't happen too much at Super Fresh.

I am happy to report that I've been to yoga 6 out of 7 days this week. The Traditional Hatha class is my favorite and Vinyasa Flow is a close second. I am very interested in the teacher training at the Sivanada Yoga Farm in Green Valley, CA in October. I love yoga and everything it encompasses more each day. We shall see. For now, good night.