October Offerings

Welcome to Fall! 

There certainly has been a change in our weather.  Fall is my favorite season, but I must admit, I’m a little sad watching my flowers and garden vegetables shiver in the rain and cooler nights.  Alas, it is the circle of life. 

For me October is an exploration of balance and alignment.  At the fall equinox, as with the spring equinox, we experience a moment of equal day and equal night. Symbolically I embrace that as an opportunity to balance our inner and outer worlds.  I naturally find myself taking time to re-evaluate where I am in life, where I have been, what is out of balance, what needs my attention, what is coming to end and what is beginning. 

Last year at this time I said goodbye to my parents. Both passed away within in 27 days of each other.  This October I’ll be traveling back to California to inter their ashes. There was no conscious decision for us to wait a year. It just happened this way and had a lot to do with coordinating everybody’s schedules.  As I prepare for this trip, I realize that I have been grieving all year.  No, I was not always sad. In fact, most of the time I wasn’t even really aware I was grieving at all. I knew the end was near for them. My dad had a very slow decline. My mom had Alzheimer’s and had been “checked out” for some time. Yet, I found this year that I could not quite get going. I was moving through life, but not really moving forward.  I started many projects, but completed few.

In September, I felt a shift, an awakening and a deep need to move forward.  Throughout the past year, my outer world stood still as my inner world re-arranged itself.  It wasn’t really a conscious process. However, in my yoga practices I found myself drawn towards restorative postures and slower meditative hatha practices.  Perhaps it was my way of trying to still or slow my outer life to bring it into better balance with my inner world.  It feels right to journey to my place of birth and say goodbye again to my parents. To thank them again for giving me life, and teaching me how to walk in this world. It feels right to begin to move forward again, gently.

I invite you to take the time to do your own internal investigation as we transition into fall.  What is seeking balance in your life? What is happing in your inner and outer worlds?  Yoga is a wonderful tool for self-investigation.  It can help us find balance. 

Dive deep to ascend,
Andrea
 
October 1: Full Moon Workshop, Fierce Warrior
October’s Full Moon will be in Aires, the warrior of the zodiac.  Where in your life do you need to be a warrior?  Using a Mandala practice we will weave yoga postures with shamanism and astrology to create a sacred space to explore our own personal patterns. Come find out where the October Full Moon is illuminating your chart and energizing your inner warrior.

October 15: New Moon, Right Relationship
October’s New Moon will be in Libra.  In the zodiac, Libra’s focus is on finding balance in relationship with self and with others.  New Moons are a perfect time to dive deep within and discover what is emerging.  This Mandala Workshop will include a personal astrology teaching, restorative yoga and reiki.  Come join us as we connect more deeply with ourselves and the rhythms of nature.

Tuesday/Thursday Intermediate Series, Balance
October 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
October 12, 19, 26
This yoga series will explore Balance: physical, mental, emotional and spiritual balance.  We will continue to explore the deep inner core, drawing upon it to stabilize our postures and our lives.  Using the breath, we will practice calming and centering ourselves.  Our practice will be slow and powerful, ending in a long restorative posture. This practice can help with our transition into fall and may also be a tonic for our troubled times.

Wednesday, Beginner & Special Needs
October 4, 11, 18, 25
In this yoga class, the focus is on the basics.  We spend time finding the proper alignment and make the necessary adjustments using props to help you find your perfect pose.  We explore meditation and simple pranayama (breathwork) to help reduce stress and calm the body and soul.  This class is perfect for beginners and for students who have special mobility or health challenges.
 

---