Recent Posts
10.29.2009
restorative yoga
10.21.2009
please excuse the mess...
10.19.2009
Completely Gratuitous.....
10.16.2009
A Yogini Reflects on Football....

Last fall, Mike and I had student season tickets to the UF football games. Now, mind you, these season tickets are not easy to get - so when we won the lottery, I was so excited! There is nothing quite like live football - the crowd, the cheers, the adrenaline rush. I had not participated in football since high school. I was really looking forward to college ball. Little did I expect to be confronted with actions so blatantly opposed to my yogic philosophy.
One of the primary principals of yoga is that of ahimsa, or non-violence. It's funny, I had never really thought of football as violent - despite watching the games over all those years and witnessing the physical injuries...until the UF vs. Kentucky game, that is. It was BRUTAL. The Gators were so far ahead in the second half of the game, there was no hope for Kentucky. And yet, the Gators kept tackling, running, passing, scoring. The crowd kept cheering - relentlessly flapping their arms in the Gator chomp over and over and over again.
The chomp takes on a whole new significance when the opposing team is practically bleeding on the field and the band starts that ominous chomping riff.
"It's football, not Sunday church, Ellie," our friend, Brad, proclaimed to me as I squirmed on the bleacher. I could not even stand at that point, let alone cheer.
How could I support such brutality? How could I admit to enjoying football after seeing annihilations - both physical and mental - like this one?! How does football fit into my yogic worldview? After some deep thought, I have come to some conclusions.
Football has many levels - some of which could be seen as yogic. For example, wearing the team's colors and chanting with the crowd - these are actions that help fans find union with fellow fans who were previously strangers - this is very yogic. The word yoga actually means "union" and, to a certain degree, there is some unity with the crowd. (Disregarding for the moment that unity is found in opposing the other team, it is nevertheless, a step toward unity with fellow mankind. Perhaps we need to find unity with some before we can find unity with the whole, and before the ultimate union with the divine.)
The contest of the game is also similar to the opposition found on a battlefield - a storyline familiar to yoga through the Bhagavad Gita. In this ancient text, the main character Arjuna is forced to go to war against friends and some members of his own family. Arjuna becomes filled with doubt and seeks counsel from Lord Krishna. Krishna discusses the principal of dharma, or duty, and universal harmony with Arjuna. He explains that because the soul is eternal, any 'death' on the battlefield is merely shedding the physical body. The soul lives on.
Perhaps like the battle in the Bhagavad Gita, football can teach us about duty and death. By coming together with our team and experiencing small losses represented in a game, we realize that we are not alone as we face what appear to be the great losses. Like Arjuna, we are learning that we have duties to teach us lessons. And, as some yogis would say, that although life appears to be real, it is not necessarily - that like the concrete physical world of football, life is actually a very unreal game - with changing players, wins and losses, and steps toward the ultimate union with the divine.
Life, like yoga, is also about balance. Each person has to decide where they draw their line of non-violence – finding a personal moral and philosophical comfort zone somewhere amid the extremes presented by our societies. It’s about following our inner compass as we navigate between Jainism, vegetarianism, and murder or war.
So, this year, did I re-enter the season ticket pool - did I go for it? You BET! Because "it's great...to be...a Florida gator!"
9.03.2009
Get to know a yogi: Lisa

8.17.2009
Fall is coming so here is the new schedule!!!!!!
monday
*4:00 to 5:15 pm / Pre natal Yoga / Jen / Please pre register
5:30 to 6:45 pm / Hatha / Samantha / all levels
7:00 to 8:15 pm / Beginning Yoga / Leah
tuesday
9:00 to 10:15 / Hatha / Kim / all levels
10:30 to noon / Gentle Yoga / Anisa / all levels
*5:30 to 6:45 pm / intermediate practice / Melissa & Susan / Please pre register
7:00 to 8:15 pm / Ashtanga / Melissa / level 1
wednesday
7:30 to 8:45 am / Hatha / Erin / all levels
10:00 to 11:15 am / Yin and Vinyasa / Melissa / all levels
noon to 1:00pm / Community Class / Lisa / all levels
($8 or free for County and City employees)
5:30 to 6:45 pm / YogaWorks / Susan / level 2
7:00 to 8:15 pm / Hatha Flow / Elisa / all levels
thursday
9:00 to 10:15 am / Hatha / Gretchen / all levels
10:30 to noon / Gentle Yoga / Anisa / all levels
5:30 to 6:45 pm / Hatha Flow / Lisa / all levels
7:00 to 8:15 pm / Ashtanga / Tom / all levels
friday
10:00 to 11:15 am / Hatha / Erin / all levels
*4:00 to 5:15 pm / Mommy & Baby yoga / Ellie / Please pre register
6:00 to 7:30 pm / YogaWorks / Melissa / level 2
saturday
10:30 to noon / Hatha Flow / Betsy / all levels
*12:30 to 1:15 pm / Kids yoga / Sarah / Please pre register
sunday
*4:00 to 5:30 pm / Kundalini / Kim / Please pre register
6:00 to 7:15 pm / YogaWorks / Susan / level 1
*series classes
Series Classes:
Kids Yoga with Sarah Byrd
Saturdays 1:30 – 2:15 pm / Sept 12 – Oct 17
6 classes $48 pre registered or $58 day of 1st class
Yoga is a fun, and supportive way for children to develop awareness, confidence, motor skills, and creativity.
Kundalini Yoga with Kim Holton
Sundays 4:00-5:30pm / Sept 13 – Oct 4 / Oct 11 – Nov 1 / Nov 8 - 29
4 classes for $48 pre registered or $58 day of 1st class
An uplifting blend of spiritual and physical practices, this
yoga style incorporates movement, dynamic breathing, meditation, and chanting.
Intermediate Practice with Susan Perko and Melissa Montilla
Tues 5:30 – 6:45 pm / Sept 8 – Oct 13 / Oct 20 – Nov 24
6 classes for $72 pre registered or $82 day of 1st class
Deepen your practice and work into more advanced poses.
Yin Yoga with Melissa Montilla
Tues 5:30 – 6:45 pm / Dec 1 - 22
4 classes for $48 pre registered or $58 day of 1st class
Explore a passive form of yoga that opens up connective tissue
and energy channels through out the body for more flexibility
and greater healing potential.
Mom and Baby yoga
Fridays 4:00 to 5:15 pm / Sept 25 – Oct 6
6 classes for $72 pre registered or $82 day of 1st class
Mom and Baby yoga is a wonderful way to exercise, take care of yourself and connect with your baby.