SWEET RETREAT - TULUM, MEXICO
With Stephanie Filardi October 31st - November 5th, 2017 Relax, Renew & Nourish yourself in this amazing Mayan land. Start the day with meditation and yoga in front of the sea, savor healthy and fresh meals, unwind with free time by the Caribbean Sea or explore the wonders of the area, connect with like minded people. Open to All Levels! Learn More. Stress is Growth by Stephanie
Last week I spoke about daring to dream. I shared that we get to choose if we want to take control back of our life by learning from our fears. For many of us, stress, fear..being uncomfortable is to be avoided at all costs!! Yet, the wise one knows that it is exactly stress...fear...discomfort that helps us grow. Without growth we stay stuck. Watch this video and you decide. Other ways to manage stress include: my personal favorite meditation, yoga, energy healing and yes, go PLAY and have FUN!! One of the reasons I love my cats is because they remind me to stay curious and PLAY. Physical Pain, by Stephanie
Did you know that physical pain in the body is often a sign that something else in our being is needing our attention? True, sometimes our physical body gets injured, and we literally are "in pain". Other times, our emotional, mental and/or spiritual body gets injured. Over time, this injury may manifest physically as "pain". Why does this happen? It happens to help us. Really? How is pain helpful? Well, pain is discomfort and the discomfort is meant to get our attention so we deal with the "injury" and heal it. Here at the Sanctuary there are many ways we support this process of uncovering pain. How so? In addition to relieving physical pain, massage and yoga are often doorways for us to explore the other types of pain: emotional, mental and spiritual. For those of us ready to enter through the doorway to a deeper place, we may be curious about reiki energy healing or shamanic energy healing. These forms of energy healing are designed to bring us more fully into "what's really going on" so we may heal at the rootlevel. The result? The pain is gone once and for all. Speaking of pulling up those roots...more on this next time! Congrats Peter Love Those of you who have had the JOY of meeting and working with Peter over the years understand his being and how he radiates LOVE. Here at the Sanctuary we are eternally grateful for Peter and the gifts he selflessly shares with everyone who crosses his path on a daily basis. Today we celebrate and congratulate Peter for another step on his journey. The name chosen for him, is perfect... Here's what Peter has to share... "As many of you may know, I have embarked on a year long training called Acharya Intensive, a program which deepens my knowledge of yoga and integrates practices for healing. Together with my 11 other Acharya brothers and sisters guided by Devarshi Steven Hartman and Jovinna Chan (pictured with me above), we spent time in "Devine play" this past week. During this special time I received my Sanskrit name, Kamesh which means means lord of love. I'm honored and humbled to take on this name they have chosen for me. Zen In A Storm, by Peter Some of you heard that last week I was in a head on collision. Since I am writing this, clearly I have an angel beside me. I'm not one who seeks the spotlight, or likes to have attention drawn to me. However, after an experience that could have resulted in serous bodily injury or death, I feel blessed to be in one piece. In re-counting the story to Stephanie, she encouraged me to share the details with you. Why? Well, as she always says, all experience is an opportunity for learning, especially the painful ones. And... if one person is more relaxed and mindful behind the wheel, well, you know, lives will be saved. My experience in the head on collision is yoga "off the mat"-- at its best. Here's what happened. I pulled up to the intersection, with my signal on to make a left turn. There was a car coming straight at me going very fast. The driver crossed over the double yellow line and slammed into my car (see picture). With no time to get out of the way, I realized I was going to be hit. The feeling was awful. Thankfully, all my years of yoga and meditation kicked in!!! I realized there was nowhere to go. I surrendered. In a split second, I had the presence of mind to make a choice to take my foot off the brake and my hands off the steering wheel. I knew if I did this, I would be relaxed enough to absorb the impact. My friends, a relaxed body will fare better on impact then a tense one, so that is what I did. I exhaled and relaxed. After the car crashed into me, with my morning Starbucks now in my lap, I realized what had just transpired. The first thing I did was an inventory check of my body. I had to make sure I had both of my feet, my legs, arms, and hands. I wanted to make sure I was still intact while I looked around for blood. All intact and no blood, I said to myself, "you seem OK". Next, I opened the car door, got out and automatically started doing yoga stretches!! Some of you know them-- yes, the 6 movements of the spine: back-bends, forward bends, lateral bends, spinal twists. You know Stephanie loved hearing this!!! When the police officer and ambulance personnel ran over to ask me if I was OK, I said I am fine and would like to stretch some more. They stood in awe that I was intact. Then they asked me what I do for a living. I handed them my business card!! I actually started laughing as they shook their heads with amazement. They were shocked that not only was I in one piece, I was calm and clear. Now more than a week later, I am sore and have a mild concussion. I don't yet feel myself. However, I am here, intact and grateful. So, what's the learning from this story? There are a few: 1. Practice awareness and gratitude daily. I feel blessed I am still here to walk this path with you. 2. Yoga saves lives, in more ways than one, on and off the mat. Let's all do more yoga on and off the mat -- and share the benefits with others. 3. Zen is possible in the midst of a storm when we practice it in our daily life. Our ability to stay calm and mindful in the midst of a storm affects the outcome in a positive way. Speaking of Zen... Yoga Classes - Start September 13th!! |
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