Articles/Writing

Triple Crown….

It's with a heavy heart that I lead this last class.
I've been at this studio for over two years and I see it growing leaps and bounds but without a place for me.
So, today, I move on, with a full room of students and a great topic that resonates with all things yogic.
We are now well into fall, a very contemplative and retrospective place in the year and in our lives.
Things are getting chillier, we are rethinking and revisiting where we are with our careers, friends and commitments.  I saw the first bright red and orange leaf fall on Montana Boulevard on my run yesterday, the same day I saw my first sunset over the water.  To many of our east coast friends, they think the sun sets over the water all year round but for those who live by the water, we know that sunset, prime, ready and perfect over the sea starts around the first of October and shifts slowly until Spring when it sets lazily over the Santa Monica Mountains.
And so, we see the seasons most prevalent when the Pumpkin Spice lattes make their way to the Starbucks menu.  It's subtle but so so nice and we imbibe the calories and comfort and the holidays...they are right around the corner to surround that comfort.
This week marks a record breaking moment in Major League Baseball, the triple crown.
I don't think Miguel Cabrere sought to break this record per se, but his skill, timing and effort made the record breaking moment happen which hasn't occurred since 1967.
Every day we hit our mat, we have no idea what personal records we will break.  Every day and every practice is a new chance to succeed, test our boundaries and try something different, even if we take styles of yoga that lean toward the same sequence.
I love being surprised with the sequence I go to practice but I often teach the same sequence steeped in the idea of history.  Today marks a new day in history.  You don't have to be a baseball fan to appreciate reaching and achieving success.  I'm often amazed at what people think is and is not successful.  To some, you need to be in the public eye, on television or written about.  To some, its monetary.  To me, it's breaking out of my own comfort zone. As soon as I feel fear, I know I need to do  whatever it is that scares me.  Once that decision is made and said aloud, there is no stopping me.
I know there are patterns where I get stuck or just get used to the day to day, but as soon as I place myself in a position where I am uncomfortable, I know it's right.  A lot of the times, the things I try, I'm just glad I did and don't have to do again, scaling tall heights, trapeze, running a marathon - ok I did that a few times or jumping out of a plane - they are all adrenaline fueling moments.
Just recently I went to ComicCon in San Diego, by myself on a press pass from LA Yoga to suss out the scene for my comic strip, Lady Yoga, Superhero that's published every month in LA Yoga Magazine.
To me, that was scarier than jumping out of a plane or living in NY on 911.
To be alone in a huge crowd and try to be heard or scene, it was terrifying.
But I did it and the energy that was created after that was amazing.  I was able to get done things I wouldn't normally do in a week because I was reeling off the superhuman strength it takes to get out of the 'routine'.
I was inspired to do and live more and there was no one tracking that record for me, just me and every time I stretch beyond my comfort zone, it is a success.  It is an Oscar winning, triple crown success, for ME.
Let's use the idea of reaching past what we THINK we can do and lean in to the fear of what we think we CAN NOT.
Any thing is possible.  Anything.
Anything.
Anything.
So go into it.  Breathe deeply.
BOOOOOO!
Are you scared?
Good.
Go for it!

Triple Crown 2012
He Dreamed. Reached. He Succeeded.  In honor of the triple crown, let's use his record, and hit our practice out of the ballpark. Reach past what you think you can do and go for it. Strike out, fall and pick your butt up again. Set your record, beat it and set a new one. It's all good. Hot dog!
It is more rare than a perfect game and about as uncommon as an unassisted triple play.
Miguel Cabrera won baseball's first Triple Crown in 45 years Wednesday night, becoming only the third living player to achieve the feat.
Cabrera led the American League with a .330 batting average, 44 home runs and 139 RBIs, making him the 15th Triple Crown winner and the first since Boston's Carl Yastrzemski in 1967.
 
"It's an unbelievable feeling," Cabrera said. "It was hard the last two days because everybody talked about it. I just had to focus, I had to go out there and do the job. The hardest part was to go out there and focus and win games. I said, 'If we win the division, everything would take care of itself.'"
 
Cabrera joined an honor roll of Triple Crown winners that includes Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig and Ty Cobb. Ted Williams and Rogers Hornsby each did it twice.
 
"I am glad that he accomplished this while leading his team to the American League Central title," Yastrzemski said in a statement. "I was fortunate enough to win this award in 1967 as part of the Red Sox Impossible Dream Team."
 
Los Angeles Angels rookie Mike Trout was second in the AL batting race at .326, while New York Yankees slugger Curtis Granderson and Texas star Josh Hamilton finished tied for second with 43 homers. Hamilton ranked second with 128 RBIs.
Until Cabrera's run, Triple Crowns seemed to be a relic from another era. When the feat was last accomplished, the World Series was still played in the daytime, there were no playoffs and each league had eight teams.
Cabrera had topped each category before, winning the home run title in 2008, the RBI crown in 2010 and the batting championship last year. His remarkable 2012 season ended the longest gap in baseball history between Triple Crown campaigns.
"He's the best hitter in the game," Trout said. "I think his approach, the way he battles with two strikes; you leave one pitch over the plate that at-bat and he's going to hit it. He had an unbelievable year."
Don't let the fear of striking out hold you back. - Babe Ruth
Every strike brings me closer to the next home run. - Babe Ruth
Never let the fear of striking out get in your way. Babe Ruth
The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don't play together, the club won't be worth a dime. Babe Ruth
You just can't beat the person who never gives up. Babe Ruth
And some other home runs...
To accomplish great things, we must dream as well as act. Anatole France
We need men who can dream of things that never were. John F. Kennedy
The key to realizing a dream is to focus not on success but significance - and then even the small steps and little victories along your path will take on greater meaning. Oprah Winfrey
Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal. Henry Ford
Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars. Les Brown
The important thing is to strive towards a goal which is not immediately visible. That goal is not the concern of the mind, but of the spirit. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Some of the world's greatest feats were accomplished by people not smart enough to know they were impossible. Doug Larson
Goals are dreams with deadlines. Diana Scharf Hunt
Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. T.S. Eliot
If you want to make your dreams come true, the first thing you have to do is wake up. J.M. Power
Life's problems wouldn't be called "hurdles" if there wasn't a way to get over them. Unknown
Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. Unknown
God gives us dreams a size too big so that we can grow in them. Unknown
The question isn't who is going to let me; it's who is going to stop me. Ayn Rand
Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresea, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein. ~Life's Little Instruction Book, compiled by H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
The best angle from which to approach any problem is the try-angle. Unknown
How am I going to live today in order to create the tomorrow I'm committed to? Anthony Robbins
Sometimes the path you're on is not as important as the direction you're heading. Kevin Smith
The impossible is often the untried. Jim Goodwin
The vision must be followed by the venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps - we must step up the stairs. Vance Havner
It is easier to go down a hill than up, but the view is best from the top. Arnold Bennett
I am looking for a lot of men who have an infinite capacity to not know what can't be done. Henry Ford
One of the secrets of life is to make stepping stones out of stumbling blocks. Jack Penn
There are no shortcuts to any place worth going. Beverly Sills
Know your limits, but never stop trying to exceed them. Unknown
Part of the issue of achievement is to be able to set realistic goals, but that's one of the hardest things to do because you don't always know exactly where you're going, and you shouldn't. George Lucas
The greatest dreams are always unrealistic. Will Smith
Out of the strain of the doing, Into the peace of the done. Julia Woodruff
The only thing that has to be finished by next Tuesday is next Monday. Jennifer Yane
Map out your future, but do it in pencil. Jon Bon Jovi
Most people would succeed in small things if they were not troubled with great ambitions. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
You must have long-range goals to keep you from being frustrated by short-range failures.Charles C. Noble
Arriving at one goal is the starting point to another. John Dewey
Fuck fear.  Go for it. 
Yours always, 
Lady 

PhenomeMOM 2012


Today is Mother's day.  Whether you have a strong mom in your life, you are a mom, you have no mom, you are mom to a pup, you are a dad or whatever, today is celebrating MOM - the idea that the nurturing nature of MOTHER is strong within us, guiding us towards our passion and purpose, taking care of us so that we can take care with ourselves and everyone around us.  
Let's tap into that strength, the strength of the mother as we practice or go through our days. 
Strength...

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger
Stand a little taller
What doesn't kill you makes a fighter
Footsteps even lighter- Kelly Clarkson

So tenderly your story is
nothing more than what you see
or what you've done or will become
standing strong do you belong
in your skin; just wondering
Jamie Cullum


"If you don't take care of your body, where will you live?" -- Anonymous


There is a light that shines beyond all things on earth,
Beyond us all, beyond the heavens, beyond the highest, the very highest heavens.
This is the light that shines in our hearts -- Chandogya Upanishad


Let your life lightly dance on the edges of time like dew on the tip of a leaf
 -- Rabindranath Tagore


If we could read the secret history of our enemies we should find in each
man's life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.
--Longfellow


What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly.
 -- Richard Bach


You are a child of the Universe, no less than the moon and the stars;
You have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
No doubt the Universe is unfolding as it should. -- Max Ehrmann


'There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated
through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of
time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never
exist through any other medium and it will be lost. The world will not
have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how
valuable nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your
business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel
open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You
have to keep yourself open and aware to the urges that motivate you.
Keep the channel open. -- Martha Graham


Should you shield the valleys from the windstorms,
you would never see the beauty of their canyons. -- Elisabeth Kubler-Ross


Just think out for yourselves, if a man who was good yesterday has become
bad after having come in contact with me, is he responsible that he has
deteriorated or am I?   -- Mahatma Gandhi


Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding
of ourselves. -- Carl Jung


Think of all the beauty thats still left in and around you, and be happy. 
--Anne Frank


Your own mind is a sacred enclosure into which nothing harmful can enter
except by your permission. -- Arnold Bennett

The thought manifests as the word
The word manifests as the deed
The deed develops into habit
And habit hardens into character
So watch the thought and its way with care,
And let it spring from love,
Born out of concern for all beings
--Buddha

Enlightenment
means choosing to dwell in the state of presence rather than in time.
It means saying yes to what is.  --Eckhart Tolle

Who can tell what miracles Love has in store for us if only we have
the courage to become one with it?
Everything we think we know is only the beginning of another knowing
that itself has no end
And everything we now can accomplish will seem derisory to us
When the powers of our divine nature flower in glory and act through us 
--Iqbal, Sufi Mystic

"The Sun Never Says" --Hafiz
Even after all this time
the sun never says to the earth, "You owe Me."
Look what happens with a love like that,
It lights up the Whole Sky.

"Your Mother and My Mother" -- Hafiz
Fear is the cheapest room in the house.
I would like to see you living in better conditions,
For your mother and my mother were friends.
I know the innkeeper in this part of the Universe,
Get some rest tonight,
come to my verse tomorrow,
We'll go speak to the Friend together.
I should not make any promises, but I know that if you pray
Somewhere in this world -- something good will happen
God wants to see more love and playfulness in your eyes
For that is your greatest witness to Him
Your soul and my soul once sat together in the Beloved's womb
playing footsie.
Your heart and my heat
are very, very old friends.

"A Great Need" -- Hafiz
Out of a great need
We are all holding hands and climbing.
Not loving is letting go.
Listen,
the terrain around here
is Far to Dangerous for That.

"Desiderata"

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly andclearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and
lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you
to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit
to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be
gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the
trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it
is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
-- Max Ehrmann

"The Guest House"

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meaness,
some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house empty of is furniture,
Still, treat each Guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes, 
because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.
-- Jelaluddin Rumi

We have come into this exquisite World
 to experience ever and ever more deeply
 our divine courage, freedom and light!
 --Hafiz

Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a Judge of Truth and Knowledge 
is shipwrecked by the Laughter of Gods -
--Albert Einstein

If you could only keep quiet, clear of memories and expectations, 
you would be able to discern the beautiful pattern of events. 
Its your restlessness that causes chaos.      
--Nisargadatta Maharaj

What we are is God's Gift to us; What we become is our Gift to God.
-- Eleanor Powell














A light is bright and guides the way but it also attracts the flies.  Just keep shooin so you can keep movin'


N.P., Conductor