Self-love is the instrument of our preservation.
— Voltaire
I miss so much from the past.
I miss busy Saturday morning classes and the buzz of a full studio.
I miss running into old friends and chatting up the person on the mat next to me.
I miss the excitement of learning something new and the familiarity of holding space together.
I miss the in-between class moments, the hugs, the smiles, the community vibes…
In a few days, 42 Valentine Road reopens its doors for the first time since the pandemic forced its closure—a project I’ve been working on since I joined She's Lost Control in January. It’s going to be a one-of-a-kind space in the heart of Hackney in London. A space for yoga, sound meditation, moon circles, and togetherness—with all sorts of workshops on modern spirituality, self-exploration, and collective care.
You’ll find me there on Monday nights, too, teaching candlelit lunar yoga. Just as the moon affects the world around us—ebbing and flowing the tides, lighting the sky for nocturnal beings, and anchoring the earth to its tilt—so too does it affect the world within us.
Lunar yoga is a complementary practice to vinyasa yoga that activates our nourishing, feminine, and yin energy. The practice includes gentle and quieting movement, soothing breathwork, and moments of meditation set within a low-lit space alongside crystals to encourage reflection, intention, and relaxation.
Classes evolve in alignment with the phases of the moon but are invariably slow, supportive, and fluid allowing students to connect with the moon's soothing and grounding energy. We'll move through moon salutations—the sister sequence to the sun salutation—and we'll move around our mat in different ways—front to back, side to side.
I'm so excited to share this intuitive and fluid practice. Fluid like water, fluid like the ebbing and flowing of the tides, fluid like the waxing and waning of the moon. ✨
✨ yoga etc. is my newsletter on yoga, social justice, collective wellbeing, and 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 ✨
My class schedule for this week is below.
Sunday 20th March ✨ Sunday Soul *online* ✨ an invitation to slow down, rest, and restore through vinyasa flow movement, yin, breathwork, and meditation (book)
Monday 21st March ✨ Candlelit Lunar Yoga *in-person* ✨ a movement and introspection practice to encourage reflection, intention, and relaxation (book)
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 access to the recording.
I'm also available for private and corporate classes, and I offer complimentary private classes to nonprofit and not-for-profit organizations. Reply to this email if you're interested!
Yoga of action ✨
I'm tithing a portion of my income from my online yoga classes to organizations working towards justice, equity, diversity, and intersectionality. 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 March donation will go to Black Girls Code a nonprofit that introduces young girls of color to technology education to increase the number of women of color in the digital technology space.
Black Girls CODE's vision is to increase the number of women of color in the digital space by empowering girls of color ages 6 to 17 to become innovators in STEM fields, leaders in their communities, and builders of their own future through exposure to computer science and technology. The organization offers services in computer programming, coding, as well as website, robot, and mobile application-building, with the goal of providing Black youth with the skills to occupy some of the 1.4 million computing job openings in the U.S.
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 hope. How do you sustain hope during hardship? (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 ✨
Russia blocks its last independent TV channel (The New Yorker)
Decolonizing yoga for sacred activists course (Rebel Yoga Tribe)
Why you feel like you’re friends with your favorite celebrities (VICE)
The queer young comics redefining American humor (The New York Times)
Becoming a tattoo artist helped me connect to my Asian culture (Refinery29)
The degree to which you deserve food, shelter, recreation, and a dignified life should not be determined by your occupation. Life with dignity shouldn’t be contingent on your job title. Caring for children, organizing a neighborhood barbecue, checking up on family and friends—these things aren’t any less necessary for the sustenance of our social lives because they don’t come with a paycheck attached. (The Anti-Racism Daily)
On repeat: Moth by Burial + Four Tet (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!