Hi yoga friends,

I've been feeling energized by the first days of spring (especially the warmer ones), appreciating the pink and white magnolia trees in Chestnut Hill. I've also been appreciating the large swaths of yellow flowered ground cover that is blooming now in my neighborhood and in the Wissahickon.

New Class Themes:

The idea of spring cleaning comes to mind for our next class theme. What might this look like for a yoga practice? It might look like backbends and twists that wring us out and unstick our upper back. It might look like moving away from habits that aren't serving us. It might look like expanding our breath capacity so we can more effectively detoxify with our exhales. It might look like working up a sweat, another way our body detoxifies.

We'll also consider some interpretations and reflections on the third yama, which is asteya - non-stealing. In Deborah Adele’s book “The Yamas and Niyamas”, the sub-headings in the chapter on asteya give us several ways to think about the concept. The sub-headings are Stealing From Others, Stealing From the Earth, Stealing From the Future, Stealing From Ourselves. More on that in class!

From our community

Our artist yogi at the Roxborough Y, Francis, was inspired by a passage that I read in class called "The Energy of Being Real" (from The Book of Awakening by Mark Nepo), in which mana is described as "An extraordinary power or force residing in a person or object, a sort of spiritual electricity that charges anyone who touches it."

New Strong Chair Yoga Class

I'll be offering a chair yoga class for the first time this spring, through the Mt. Airy Learning Tree. I wanted to offer something similar to what I do in "Yoga for Strength and Stress Relief" but without being on hands and knees or making quick transitions up and down from the floor. A section at the beginning and end of class will be done sitting in the chair, and a large portion in the middle will be standing behind the chair and using it for poses like downward facing dog, plank, side angle, and lots of balancing poses. The emphasis in this class is on building strength and balance, but there will also be a component of quieting and centering.

Details:

register at https://mtairylearningtree.org/

8 Wednesdays, 10-11:15am

April 19-June 7

Chestnut Hill United Church

$100

New "Balance Practice" Video on webiste

I recorded a 30 minute practice with lots of opportunities to practice balancing in different positions. You'll find it under pre-recorded classes at jmayyoga.offeringtree.com. (Scroll over a few and you'll find it) It's a donation-based class, so pay what you want. Let me know what you think!