The best thing about rock bottom is the rock part. You discover the solid bit of you. The bit that can't be broken down further. The thing that you might sentimentally call a soul. At our lowest, we find the solid ground of our foundation. And we can build ourselves anew.
― Matt Haig
It takes guts to sit with your pain—
to sit on the grill, as my teacher says.
to sit with it,
and sit with it
and sit with it
even when you want to run.
In a world full of distractions—
full of small universes for us to explore
instead of the universe within,
it's an act of love
to turn your attention inward
and be still.
Healing happens at home—
when we stop the doing
and begin the being,
the remembering
that we are alive
just as nature is alive.
There is no condition to your aliveness—
no need to achieve
to feel worthy of this life.
You are here just to be.
And can you let that be
enough?
It takes guts to sit with your pain—
to sit on the grill and let yourself feel.
That feeling
is the way in,
it's the entry point
to healing.
Let yourself sit without judgment—
no expectation for things to be a certain way
so that when you make that trip
from the head
to the heart,
you'll find strength.
You'll find the solid bit of you—
the immovable mountain
the unshatterable rock
the foundation of your being
that can't be 'fixed'
because there's nothing to fix.
Remember remember—
this world profits off of your busy-ness
benefits from your being distracted
from your feelings of not-enoughness
so remember remember,
it really isn't you.
It takes guts to sit with your pain—
and it's okay to take a break sometimes
but keep the invitation open
continue inviting yourself back
back to silence
back to your seat
back to you. ✨
Have a lovely week ahead, dear friends.
yoga etc. is my newsletter on yoga, social justice, collective wellbeing, and collective healing. Every week, I share a piece of me—a weekly dose of mindfulness—hoping it resonates. The best way to support my work is by sharing this newsletter with those you think might find a piece of them.
Yoga of movement ✨
I'm teaching one online class this week as I'm traveling for the next two weeks.
Tuesday ✨ Rejuvenate 45 (book)
Sunday ✨ no class
If you'd like to practice with me, I have some lovely of pre-filmed classes, below:
15 min ✨ Arms + abs flow
15 min ✨ Mindful + slow twisting
45 min ✨ Flowing through joy
75 min ✨ Lunar flow + yin
Please try to sign up at least 3 hours before the start of class, and if you can't make it in real-time, you'll get the recording in your email.
I'm also available for private and corporate classes. I'm offering complimentary corporate classes to nonprofit and not-for-profit organizations. Reply to this email if you're interested!
Yoga of action ✨
I'm tithing 10% of my income from my online yoga classes to organizations that fight against white supremacy. Every month, I'll pick a new organization and highlight it below. If these organizations call to you, please consider contributing (no matter how small).
My November donation will go to The Afiya Center, an advocacy organization dedicated to transforming the lives of Black women and girls through reproductive justice. The Afiya Center provides refuge, education, and resources on reproductive justice, HIV programming, abortion access, and maternal mortality for Black womxn and girls in Texas, where abortions have recently been banned after six weeks.
Have a suggested organization? Leave a comment to share.
Yoga of words ✨
Grab a pen, grab your journal. Have a seat somewhere comfortable. Close your eyes, take a breath in, and let it go. Your weekly writing prompt is below.
Write about a time you experienced something for the first time. How did it feel? What did you do? What is a new experience that you want to have? (15 minutes)
Feel free to share what you've written by clicking the link below. But, of course, you’re also welcome to keep this practice as just yours.
Other musings ✨
The last great master of the mind (The Guardian)
Playlist: spooky low-key Halloween vibes (Spotify)
Negative language v. positive language (Instagram)
Female California condors don't need males to have offspring. (National Geographic)
The case for reparations: San Jose apologizes to the Chinese community for destroying the city’s Chinatowns (The New York Times)
A group of dads spend time at a local high school greeting students in the morning and helping maintain a positive environment for learning, rather than fighting (CBS News)
On repeat: Change My Mind by Alina Baraz (Spotify)
I'm here for you—for class, advice, or anything you need or would like to share. Always a phone call/text/DM/reply button away.
LBC ✨
P.S. If you like this newsletter, please share it with your friends! And if someone sent you this newsletter, you can subscribe below!