Today is World Mental Health Day. It was first observed in 1992. I’m grateful that the conversation has gained visibility, respect, and foreground since I was a young teenager struggling with my own depression – when it was considered something to be ashamed of. So, it feels apropos that lately all the things going on all around us have felt cumulatively dismaying, and I notice a tension within my own mental health.

Many of you know that I took the summer off of teaching public group classes. While I still maintained teaching my private clients, I took Sunday evenings “off” for the first time since I began teaching over 11 years ago. While admittedly it was a little odd at first (like when you keep thinking you must be forgetting something), it was a fun exploration having two full days off in a row for 2+ months. I’ve heard some of you call this “a weekend”. 8-)

Here in Seattle, while today will be nearly 90˚, summer’s hold is slipping… the light has softened as the sun steadily draws itself back toward the south. We can all sense autumn’s whispers.

My summer spanned a broad human experience. I cherished playful and relaxed time with my family in the Midwest. I sat in awe (and getting soaked) during wild and epic thunder and lightning storms. I celebrated my half century mark! I observed the magic the spiders and the pollinators. I hiked among the tree gods and along rushing rivers. I listened to others share vulnerable and powerful things. I witnessed and held space for dear family and loved ones who experienced profound loss – multiple reminders that life and death are, in fact, eternally and always dance partners.

Have you ever unexpectedly come upon a red currant bush heavy with June’s bounty – its plump orbs glowing in the summer sun? It’s nothing short of hypnotic, and will stop you in your tracks.

Just another reason why slowing down can be so rewarding…

My cup runneth over. I feel blessed to have such bounty in my life. Daily, I am humbled and grateful to be doing the work that I do. I am nothing less than honored to be in my yoga therapy certification program alongside exceptional people who also love this work. I love making things happen in my world. I am loved and supported in so many ways.

Vast and changeless,
the ground of being
is not rocked by
ripples on the pond.
…

Happy Earth Day! When it comes to beauty, we need look no further than Nature itself. It inspires me every day – even in the middle of a metropolitan area. Please enjoy these few photos from my albums – and may we get outside and embrace this planet’s remarkable diversity, creativity, and beauty today and every day.

Some of you know that I have been increasingly vocal and open about my journey through perimenopause thus far. Half the world’s population has gone/will go through it, and with those odds, I guarantee you that someone in your life is going through the menopause transition right now! (Probably several someones!) And they might not be talking about it because it’s still considered taboo in many circles. But that is changing, and I’m proud to be part of that sea change.

Friends, near and far,

My wish for you this week is a precious pause where you might notice and admire the emergence of the small signs of springtime… the birdsong, the flowers, the tiniest of new leaves, tender blades of grass, the longer hours of daylight, and so on. What do you notice?

Wherever you are, may you find some delight, joy, and play in these early days of spring.

Spring is springing in Seattle. So much so that I couldn’t choose just one photo for you today! And, with the change of season, comes two announcements for changes to my group class teaching schedule.

During this late winter stretch of gray, cold, and very wet that is so stereotypically PNW, I have to double down on my winter “medicines”… yoga, regular gym workouts, lots of soup, vitamin D, my happy light, friend time, fur-baby snuggles, consistent bedtime, and generally doing less.

We’ve had a couple days that whispered of spring, but it’s not here quite yet. It is quite lovely that the happy hellebore and daffodils are up, and the earliest cherry blossoms have begun to appear.

Thanks to my SF teacher-friend, Brenna, I recently discovered the Big Bear Bald Eagle Cam…

My favorite partner in rest, Claudette Evans, and I are teaming up again to offer our Level 1 Restorative Yoga Teacher Training this weekend at 8 Limbs. Whether you are yoga teacher, a mental health counselor who wants to add Restorative to your practice, a student who wants to nerd out about Restorative yoga, or something else wonderful – this training is nourishing, educational, relaxing, and fun!

I’m fresh off my monthly 3-day immersion weekend for my yoga therapy training program… and my brain is very full! As is my heart. I feel deeply privileged to be on this path.

I feel the need to say less today, so I’m keeping it simple with a photo, a quote, and a recipe. And, of course, my wishes for you to find warmth, beauty, and peace in your coming week.

Here’s my $0.02: Resist the urge to rush headlong into this new year, business as usual, without carving out time to slow down. Hurry and rush are self- and culturally-created habits. We have the power to unhook from that cycle, despite how it may feel or what others might be impressing.

Slowing down is also a habit. And, it doesn’t have to be a lot or some major time commitment. In fact, it’s much more potent if we can sprinkle small moments as we go about our day. Pause for even just one minute, take a slightly deeper breath (in and out through the nose), close your eyes if it feels right, stop doing and just be with your body/breath/mind/emotions for that one full minute, and then go forth with a bit more calm and purpose.

A new year has arrived. And in the midst of the surreality and heartache of the news headlines, somehow I have found myself overcome with waves of gratitude.

I cannot pinpoint what has shifted, but these waves feel more tender, more urgent, more precious than usual.

“Pay attention!” they intone, “This IS the ‘wild, precious life’ Mary Oliver wrote about. You are already living it, and approaching 50! A whole year has again passed, and a whole year is again ahead (if you’re lucky), but here you are, NOW, again. What is being taken for granted? What can be cherished? What can be let go? What is ready to be birthed?”

I hope today and this holiday weekend finds you healthy and nourished on every level, amid an abundance of joy and peace. It’s been some time since I’ve sent something to your inbox. It seems like there is much to say, but lately my practice has been an endeavor to listen.

Do you need some beauty in your inbox – instead of another Black Friday email promotion? :)
Here are a few of the beautiful things with which I’ve been soothing my senses lately:

The Pause Pod (in its prior form) has been on hiatus for awhile, so I’m very excited to share that Jaime and I are offering a “mini” version of The Pause Pod this October: Yoga for Perimenopause – an in-person, 4-week series at 8 Limbs Yoga (Phinney Ridge location) in Seattle.

This upcoming series is geared toward those who are either in the initial stages of the transition (or suspect they might be getting there).

Participants can expect discussion, embodied yoga practices, and plenty of rest time – all in community with other folks on this meno-adventure. Our goal is to reframe the conversation, support and empower participants with resources, self-care tools, and the reassurance that they are not alone at this time in their lives!

“Let go of certainty. The opposite isn’t uncertainty.
It’s openness, curiosity and a willingness to embrace paradox, rather than choose up sides.
The ultimate challenge is to accept ourselves exactly as we are, but never stop trying to learn and grow.” 

My invitation to us all today:

Let’s remember that behind the Labor Day holiday lies a critically important, centuries old, sometimes violent continuum-history of sustained and often heroic efforts by countless human beings to gain basic and decent working and living conditions for us all, including the right to rest.

I’ve said this before, and I will say it again: We do not need to earn rest.
It is a birthright.

I remember being told as a child that time would feel faster and faster as I grew older. I have found this to be 100% true. Is it simply because we have so much more lived experiences and memories stacked up in relationship to the span of a single year? I don’t know, but here we are at the end of August. Somehow. Already.