Have you ever been in a yoga class and heard the teacher ask you to tune into your inner being, or turn your focus inward, or to let the outer world fade away? This is what that teacher was talking about.

The practice of yoga ascertains that through practiced and intentional breakwork (and believe me it is work) one can both rejuvenate the body, calm the mind, and extend the longevity of one’s life span.

Yoga was not created for the sole purpose of looking baller in a pair of yoga pants. It’s just an added bonus.

Practicing the Niyamas gives us a reminder of the consequences of our actions and reactions to things, which are closely kin to our inner life.

Each of these 5 restraints can be observed in the most literal sense but I will propose thought provoking questions just to begin to get the wheels turning in your own relationship to the Yamas.

How can it be after so many years of advocating and fighting for feminism, after the me too movement, after sensitivity training in the corporate workplace, that this could just so casually happen.

I work with the tools of Yoga in a way that I hope honors the Kripalu lineage that I am apart of, and incorporates wisdom gathered during my over nine years as a social therapist working with a Neuro Diverse population.

It is no coincidence that there are phrases such as mental cobwebs, or a cluttered mind.

My hope to you is offer you an understanding that there is no right or wrong way to meditate, it is a deeply individualistic experience, and that it takes time to cultivate

I am not huge of resolutions (gasp!). Statistically they just don’t work. What I am about is saying today is the day to take on instrumental change and ownership of your life and your destiny. That takes predated thought and consideration.

Authentic living in the physical expression of your true nature. It is when you live in such a way that you are in harmony with the universe at large because your truest self is a bit of distilled universal essence.

I love the quote by J. Beuys “Each human being is an artist!” because, it really is that simple. We each have something to share with the world.

So how do we get back to that place of unconditional love? How do we open ourselves up to all the positivity that the universe has to offer?

Without awareness, cultivation and intention any spiritual connection can become commonplace and lose its meaning. It takes our devotion and reverence to take an ordinary act into the realm of nurturing the spirit.

Once we can compassionately empathize with the world and the people in it we can see their worth. The reality is that through our differences we are all made stronger.

I personally believe that when a person feels heard, understood and validated it can be life changing. Despite being on a planet with over seven billion people we can often feel alone. When we feel heard it brings a level of connectedness that many of us are lacking.

Without making these conscious and healthy choices we choose traditions that tear us apart rather than bring us together.

Learning to commune with nature needs to be an intentional act, a remembrance of something that is buried deep down in our soul. It is the work of our ancestors waiting to be reawakened.

Your body is the means by which you are able to manifest your destiny. It is through your physical body that you can share acts of love, live a life of service, create a life worth living, and literally create life! These are epic things. You as a living being are epic, so it is time to own it.