Our community suffered a terrible blow recently with the loss of four beloved men in our community. My morning Core Yoga class at Balance Studios will be donation-based on Friday, April 17th. All donations will be given to the families of Rusty Cheney, AJ Linnell, and Andy Tyson who tragically lost their lives in a plane crash along with the pilot and part-time Teton Valley resident John H. Short. 

Class is located at Balance Studios off of North Main Street in Victor and is 9am-10am. Please hold their loved ones in your hearts. I've also posted links to their families' online donation pages on my Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/JenWerlinYoga.


God bless.

As I write this all bundled up and watching the rain outside my window, it seems far off to believe that the summer solstice is this weekend! Needless to say, summer weather is forecasted to return to the Tetons with a high pressure system moving into the area in the next couple of days. 'Tis living in the Tetons and the constant flux or 'spanda' inherent in our climate and the change from spring into the summer season. Your yoga practice and Ayurvedic practices can help you to find balance whether its chilly and damp outside or hot and dry. Summer is dominated by the fiery element "pitta," one of the components of a persons mind-body constitution (prakriti). Too much pitta can create inflammation in your body and leave you irritable and cranky.

So, in honor of the summer solstice, here are three tips to keep you balanced during the summer months so that you don't find yourself overheated and all "hot and bothered" because of excess pitta.

1) Slow it down and be mindful of your breath. Think cool! Whenever you find yourself heating up, its important to take full breaths. Try not to overcommit your schedule. Practice Ujayi (the three part) yogic breath. As a person with a Pitta-Vata dosha, I especially like to do this when climbing a hill on my mountain bike or when feeling annoyed or upset.

2) Practice cooling asanas (yoga poses). Some great poses for warmer weather include forward bends such as uttanasana or wide-legged forward bend (prasarita padottanasana). Twists, sidebends, and seated or reclined poses are also great this time of year. Don't skip your savasana (corpse) pose at the end of class either. Savasana helps you to unwind, calms your nervous system, is refreshing, and allows all the good work of your practice to settle-in.

3) Hydrate and eat cooling, fresh foods! Start your day with a full class of lemon water. The Teton region is naturally dry, so make sure to find balance by drinking at least 8 glasses of water a day and even more when playing outside or exercising. Take advantage of summer's bounty and eat seasonally fresh, preferably organic foods. Eating raw veggies grown from your garden or the farmers market are great options to help balance your diet this time of year.

Yesterday, the world lost a great woman– Maya Angelou. The world's "intergoogle" is abuzz with tributes left and right, but I this is one of my favorite poems. Rest in Peace, Maya Angelou.

 
"When Great Trees Fall" by Maya Angelou

When great trees fall,
rocks on distant hills shudder,
lions hunker down
in tall grasses,
and even elephants
lumber after safety.

When great trees fall
in forests,
small things recoil into silence,
their senses
eroded beyond fear.

When great souls die,
the air around us becomes
light, rare, sterile.
We breathe, briefly.
Our eyes, briefly,
see with
a hurtful clarity.
Our memory, suddenly sharpened,
examines,
gnaws on kind words
unsaid,
promised walks
never taken.

Great souls die and
our reality, bound to
them, takes leave of us.
Our souls,
dependent upon their
nurture,
now shrink, wizened.
Our minds, formed
and informed by their
radiance,
fall away.
We are not so much maddened
as reduced to the unutterable ignorance
of dark, cold
caves.

And when great souls die,
after a period peace blooms,
slowly and always
irregularly. Spaces fill
with a kind of
soothing electric vibration.
Our senses, restored, never
to be the same, whisper to us.
They existed. They existed.
We can be. Be and be
better. For they existed.

My sweet son flew into the world on December 27th after a relatively easy pregnancy and quick labor. I credit my regular yoga and mediation practice for helping me to remain relaxed and open throughout the birthing process.

My husband and I are overjoyed with love for this little man. I'll be on maternity leave for the next couple of months, but hope to return teaching 1 or 2 classes a week beginning in March. I hope you have a wonderful start to 2014!

(Note: I began writing this post three weeks after returning from the trip we took in April and only now have finished writing. It's been very busy since we've returned!)

Three weeks after returning from a three week rafting trip through the Grand Canyon, I'm finally readjusting to being home again. The first week back, going to work was tough, and I was slow to regain interest in what happened in our absence. River life is simple and not once did I miss the Internet or Facebook. The river reminds you of what is important in life and the little things we often get hung up on in life, no longer seem like a big deal. As expected, it was a trip of a lifetime, yet it was much bigger and "grand" than I ever imagined.

Before we left, some friends of mine who have done the trip told me it was a spiritual experience for them. At times it was for me too, but not all of the time. What makes the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River so amazing is that it is "grand." I didn't always experience bliss on the river; there were moments of extreme frustration, cold, and craziness, as well as moments of extreme elation, warmth, and serenity. Even in the tough times, the beauty of the river and the canyon is vast and it only takes a moment of observation and revelation to get snapped out of the "river blues."

The trip was amazing and will be remembered as an experience much larger than myself.

Below is an excerpt I wrote in my journal on April 25th near the end of our trip:

"Time isn't the same in the Grand Canyon. When you look up at the Canyon walls and rock formations, its humbling and beyond anything in our lifespan or human comprehension of time to understand that its taken thousands-billions of years to sculpt and shape the landscape. The many faces in the canyon walls seem to speak and remind you that life is much bigger than yourself and that we are simply a mere blink in time and space.

The Canyon brings out the best and worst of people. At times, it brings our your primordial self- the part of you that doesn't first think of others, but is merely there for survival. Pure instincts. That part of the self deeply attached to the ego. The Colorado River and its many turns and currents reminds you that even the most selfish or egotistical parts of yourself are not all of you and perhaps even temporary. Revealing that aspect of yourself is like a drop of water amongst the vast river of life and our own individual experience. Our lives and even our own experience of the river are comprised of thousands of individual moments and droplets of time. Just like the canyon walls are built of conglomerates of geologic history, our experience on the river gets melded and shaped as the days pass and experiences fade into memories."

Scroll down below to view more photos.

Well, I finally have done it. For awhile, I have been on the fence about starting a blog. I wanted to share my thoughts, but have not had, or rather, made the time to start writing. You see, I am the type of person who volunteers and signs up for a lot. I don't like to say no, and when I do, I often feel like I am missing out on all the fun or not doing enough. So, since I tend to fill up all of my free time trying to do everything, I end up not having free time at all or time for activities for myself. This feeling of "not enough" is part of the three "malas."

What are the malas you ask? Malas are the veils or cloaks in life that prevent us from seeing our true nature, our intrinsic goodness and divine self. It can result in us not thinking that we are good enough, a disconnection from others, and preoccupation with ourself or our "ego." These feelings are summed up into Anava Mala, Maiya Mala, and Karma Mala.

Anava Mala:
The malas begin with Anava Mala, the mala that causes low self-esteem. It is the mala that prevents us from seeing how great we really are. It is the mala that makes us feel like we are small and alone. We forget that we have all the tools within ourselves to be happy and good, or rather that we are good just the way we are. It's the mala of impurity and inadequacy. 

Maiya Mala:
The Anava Mala then usually leads one into the Maiya Mala- the mala that causes us to think that we are different and separate from others. It can lead to one being overly critical of oneself, resulting in us feeling all alone. We worry about what other people will think of us. It's the comparison mala. Have you ever been envious of another student in yoga class who can do a pose that you struggle with, then you end up feeling bad about yourself?

Karma Mala:
Last, the Karma Mala is the mala that causes a sense of hopelessness- that your self worth is measured by how much you can do. This mala has led me to be a perfectionist in life, to try to overachieve, and the feeling that I have to do everything by myself. It's the mala that causes the fear that if I say no, then I am not doing enough- that I am lacking, and if I don't do it, then no one will. So, what do I usually do? I tend to compensate by trying to be perfect, by signing up and volunteering whenever I can, by trying to be super woman, and not trusting that there are others who can also do the work at hand, or that if it isn't done, that it's okay. My compensation for this usually results in burn out and the feeling that I do not have enough time or resources. Or worse, that people will disapprove and not like me, which is essentially all the malas wrapped into one. So, the malas cycle back and forth with one another. Dang those terrible feedback mala loops!

My 2013 Intentions:
So, with that in mind, I have set my 2013 intentions on combating the malas. (I no longer make New Year's Resolutions, as I think resolutions often set people up for failure. The difference between an intention and a resolution is that an intention is focused on small actions that you can do daily. Rather than having a resolution that is dependent on a particular outcome, an intention is more about the process and mindful actions you can take. Intentions are also much more forgiving.)

The mala that I most identify with is the Karma Mala. I have always been very busy in life and have lived by the phrase, "if not me, than who?"- a great phrase, but not so much in my case. So, the past few months, I have been trying to slow down. I've begun to meditate more regularly and have learned to say "no" more often. I realize that I do not have to do everything. So, for 2013, I am going to continue on this path. I have stopped over-volunteering so that I can have more free and down time. Before, I volunteered because I thought no one else would. That if I didn't, then bad things would happen, so I said yes and then resented not having any free time. I will choose my activities mindfully and will be much more present and engaged when I do volunteer. It will no longer be a chore, but rather an uplifting experience from the heart and not part of my long "to do list."

In addition, I also intend to be more kind and patient with myself and others. I am generally pretty empathetic with others and would like to say much more patient than I ever was as a kid- although more patience in life is always worth striving towards. Yet, with myself, I tend to lack the patience and care that I show towards others. I, once again, am hard on myself. My intention is to recognize when I am judging myself and when I am rushing.To pause and exhale completely. To give myself a break every now and then, to take care of myself and to forgive myself when I forget. It doesn't mean that I am complacent or not responsible for my actions. But, when I do mess up, to acknowledge it, do what I can to own up to my mistakes, and then to forgive and move on. To not beat myself up about it and to move forward, while recognizing the lessons I may have learned.

Thanks for reading. I am curious, what are your New Year's intentions or resolutions? I'd love to hear your feedback.

Here's to a fabulous and healthy 2013! Happy New Year!