The National Kids Yoga Conference: From Fragmentation to Collaboration

20015 National Kid’s Yoga Conference:

From Fragmentation to Collaboration

By Lara Hocheiser

Last month I had the great fortune of attending the second National Kids Yoga Conference, held in our nation’s capital.  It was an inspiring coming together of industry leaders, teachers, and newcomers, seeking collaboration on what has too often felt like a fragmented industry.

The event kicked off on a Friday night with a mix of excitement and exhaustion.  Anyone who knows a kids yoga teacher knows how hard he or she works. But even the ambitious Friday night start time could not contain the group’s enthusiasm.  By its conclusion Sunday afternoon, it’s fair to say that all in attendance left the conference with a wealth of new knowledge and inspiration. About twenty keynote speakers shared their experiences and expertise on yoga business, research, school yoga, and innovative implementable tools. Breakout sessions gave teachers a chance to bridge the divides that have often left them feeling like isolated islands. Above all what was most striking weren’t necessarily the formally orchestrated events, but the much-needed feeling of ‘togetherness’ that emerged from personal connections made, and experiences shared.

Three Takeaways from NKYC:

A Need to Collaborate

Until recently, the grass roots kid’s yoga movement has been largely fragmented. Individual organizations and teachers have made incredible progress, but a lack of a kid’s yoga regulatory organization, and opportunities to learn from each other has challenged our mission. Among other reasons, that’s why this conference was so important and successful.

At a business centered discussion group, people had the opportunity to ask for advice and support. Women asked for help, unsure how to proceed with their businesses. Others who have been there were able to step forward and offer support and love.  The sense of camaraderie was palpable and the need for more opportunities to get together in this way became increasingly apparent.

The Ethical and Inclusive Yoga Path

Both on stage, and in between sessions, one of the most noteworthy issues I heard discussed was on ethics and integrity in kids yoga. These subjects are under-addressed and can be scary, which is why they are often not included in kid’s yoga teacher trainings.  A recent court case in California highlighted the complicated feelings people have regarding yoga in schools. Keynotes presenters Jennifer Cohen Harper, Adi Flesher, Joanne Spence, and Leslie Booker together addressed the great need for yoga and mindfulness practices to be offered in an inclusive, adaptive, and secular manner. They warned that our work may be exclusionary if it is not done with extreme care. This means creating a safe space and relevant content for students of all religions, genders, ethnicities, socioeconomic backgrounds, and abilities.

To aid teachers and school administrators to better understand, The Yoga Service Council recently published The Best Practices for Yoga in Schools book. It has pointers for communicating, creating appropriate programming, and for staff training.

Also highlighted was the need for kid’s yoga to be secular. This can often be a challenge for yoga teachers who have come to this field on their own spiritual journeys. By leaving out religious mythology and the use of Sanskrit language, for example, these problems can be avoided. Much of the existing children’s yoga music, books, and props may have non secular content built in. This highlights the needs for teachers to be aware of their use of language, music and other tools and a need to separate personal practice from teachings.

We need more data

Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, a Harvard and Kripalu affiliated researcher in the field of mind body medicine, reported that there have been approximately 50 peer-reviewed studies on yoga in schools. His edifying presentation recommended that yoga educators become familiar with the work and have it ready to share with schools. Although great research has been done, he insisted that thousands more studies are needed to substantiate the movement.

Presenters recommended that all yoga programs create a pre and post assessment of that is given to the children, parents and or staff, and school administration where applicable. Childlight Yoga founder and author Lisa Flynn recounted how she went about this process. It was challenging, required help from multiple people, and took years. Despite the difficulty, collecting this information is important. She recommended inputting the data into Survey Monkey or a similar free or inexpensive app to help calculate data.

Sat Bir implored that both qualitative and quantitative studies need be done. When it comes to schools willingness to invest in programming, data and research are pivotal. Without the research, schools cannot be sure their children are getting appropriate and effective programming to justify spending money on kids yoga.

Looking ahead, with the warm and fuzzies of this conference still with us, we must plan to continue the path of collaboration. Area kid’s yoga people can organize continuing ed. gatherings, similar to Boston’s Christyn Schroeder of Kidpowerment Yoga. Teachers can hold meetings online and in person, facilitate and participate in regular professional development, continue to take relevant trainings, and hold discussions about what is happening in the field.

If kids yoga is going to be a legitimate instrument of of social change, we have to be teammates, friends and colleagues.  That means making sure the conference was not the end of a conversation, but the beginning.  

The Accidental Vegan

I have always been sensitive and as such, have spent much of my life vegetarian. I was happily eating cheese and eggs until...

I learned that most cheese is made with (animal) rennet, which comes from the stomach of cows mostly. Unfortunately I could not unlearn that and have since stopped eating non vegetarian cheese. I also learned that (and saw a video of) baby male chicks being ground alive in giant grinders because they can not be used for eggs or meat. This is a practice of chicken farming globally. I decided to change my diet to change my impact. Here are two things that have been a yummy result of those choices.

Corn-co-nut Muffins:

Heat oven to 350 and line cupcake tin with coconut oil then

I mixed:

One box trader joe’s corn bread mix

Tons of unsweetened coconut flakes

Half a can of coconut cream

Half can coconut milk

Lots of chia seeds

Lots of flax seed meal

A heavy handful of frozen corn

·        
   If you want sweet, you could add honey or brown sugar, but the mix was slightly sweetened and the muffins were delicious. 

Mix well, maybe adding cranberry raisins or pomegranate seeds if you desire.

Scoop ¼ of batter into pan. (Yields approx. 11 muffins)

Bake for 20-ish minutes until firm and the fork comes out clean. These are delicious monsters of nutrition. Serve with butter or coconut oil and enjoy them warm or cold.

I bought a Nutribullet RX. I have been experimenting with it, as I am not one to follow a recipe. Tonight I made an alfredo-like pasta sauce that is highly satisfying and nutritious.

Alfredo-esque pasta

If you want hot comfort food of dense nutrition and low guilt.

Process:

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1-2 heavy handfuls of raw spinach (or any green)

1 jalapeno without stem (remove seeds to taste)

some vegetable stock

some coconut cream

a small handful of raw almonds

generous dash of celery salt

a handful or tomatoes

a squirt of tomato paste

black pepper

celery salt

one dash asafetida (hing)

To add to sauce:

Chunks of tomato

Mushrooms cut to taste

One handful frozen green peas

Flax seed meal

Anything else you want

Boil high quality and textured pasta of your choice. When its aldente, drain water. Put pasta back in pan, add the raw base, and throw in the tomato chunks, mushrooms, and green peas. Cook for about 10 minutes and then add a dash of flax seed meal to thicken and a bit of salt and pepper to taste. Super duper yummy.

Review of the Flower Yoga Teacher Training

I participated in the 95 hour Flower Yoga Teacher Training led byTara Rachel Jones. T.R. Jones has an extensive background in education, with nearly 25 years in the field. She also has a 2 decade yoga practice, accompanied by many teacher trainings. Her expertise in child development, knowledge of Montessori and Waldorf education, and synthesis of these with the Sivananda style of yoga is a much needed asset to the world of children's yoga teachers.

What most affected me, as a children's yoga professional with over 6 years in field, is that Tara is offering a complete yoga experience. I realize that my own teachings may have been lacking a well-rounded approach. Tara demonstrated how to incorporate the 5 points of yoga and the 4 main paths of yoga in a kids' yoga class. I will explain this as briefly as I can. Tara taught us about the 5 main points of yoga as laid out by Swami Sivananda which are: proper exercise, proper diet, proper breath, proper relaxation, proper meditation. She taught us yoga classes as if we were the child participants and included all of these aspects. It was tangible information because she envelopes everything in a perfect package for a child to open with interest and comprehend based on their developmental stage. She takes all of these factors into consideration and weaves them into a beautiful, peaceful age appropriate practice.  Also, she manages to incorporate the 4 main paths of yoga which are rajas or self-discipline and practice, jnana or yoga of the intellect, karma or yoga of selfless service and bakhti or the yoga of love and devotion. Again, she is doing all this with the age and development of the children in mind. So whether its by singing songs, chanting sanskrit, reading stories, acting like nature, or having the children take on responsibility, we did it all with under her gentle guidance.

Her training has changed me as a teacher in many ways. I take the complete yoga view she offers to heart when I am planning my classes. I also plan in a much more structured and predictable way than ever before. Though I understood the need for and use of consistency and repetition, she has presented how to do so in a beautifully polished way, offering poetry and call and response to motivate children to care for the earth. I am moved to incorporate more of this stuff into my teachings.  I appreciate having her words and melodies to use should I need them, but I am more of a write my own kind of gal. What she offers in her training is perfect for the creative types to see her model and adapt it in their own way with their own super powers in mind.  For the newer teachers who might need to use her words exactly as they go, they are all in the manual and Tara allows us to practice all of it. Then they have the experience of having done it and the support of the manual to refer to should they need it.

 The manual is extensive, detailed and broken down by modules. Each module is a little miracle, detailing the development of the child in that age range, how to lesson plan, examples of lesson plans, examples of art projects, meditations and relaxations with practice space to make your own. It ends with a written final exam that helps teachers build scaffolding for their teachings and use their own words to express who they want to be as a teacher and what steps they will take to get there. Her other manual is an asana manual broken down in sections that relate to the foundational pose or pose you start them from. It is illustrated by her husband and adapted from the life's work of Sarabess Forester, Jone's mentor, colleague and teacher.

Tara offers this training twice a year. Once is over a number of months near her home in the Boston area. The other is over a 12 day period at the Sivananda Ashram and Yoga Ranch. I participated in the latter. And although it was a lot to cover in only 12 days, I would not change the experience for anything. I was able to learn all the invaluable children's yoga stuff while waking up at dawn to meditate, chant and learn about yoga philosophy with the swamis every day as well as receiving one hour of asana practice. If you are contemplating which to participate in, it may be best to consider your location and learning style.

I highly recommend participating in Tara Rachel Jone's brain (and heart) child, The Flower Yoga Teacher Training. Please reach out to me if you are, too!

And absolutely pick up her book, It's Time for Yoga for your children and students! It is beautiful and her husband did all the artwork. She created this masterpiece with time tested yoga sequencing based on the evolutionary movement patterns seen in children as they develop.

Om namo sivaya,
Lara

Laughing Lotus NYC

I moved to New York City (I know, very exciting) a few days ago. After over a month hiatus of asana practice due to a medical emergency, I have been feeling the gaping hole that a lack of asana and guided physical teachings had left.

I have been internet-stalking Laughing Lotus for months preparing for the move.
I was intrigued because they offer advanced teaching modules, rather than a straight up 300 or 500 hour training, so you can develop yourself as you see fit: Ayurveda, flying, etc.

After having visited a few other unmentionable studios and being very disappointed, you can imagine my relief walking into a beautifully painted, vibed-out love den that is Laughing Lotus.

I called and was assured before my class that the instructor Kenny would be all-level appropriate. I have been worried by my diminished strength and physical and emotional state that an un-attuned teacher may blow past stop signs. I found my serpent spirit alive and ready to ascend. He spoke RIGHT TO IT. He used quotes about opening the self through alignment so the endless power from your SOURCE can be positioned to put right in. I FELT THAT.

His voice, cueing, use pf quotes, fun add-on style flow and amazing sequencing saved me. I broke into heart openers for the first time in weeks and literally hug-cried on him after. The guy even got me into hand stand, a major FEAR and ACCOMPLISHMENT. He just said, "straighten your arms and GO!" He grabbed one leg and I felt held and safe in his presence.

Even the desk staff were AMAZING. They were patient with my thousand questions and endless feedback and yes, TEARS!

If you are in NYC, stop by Laughing Lotus or check them out i Brooklyn and Cali.
I got the month trial for only $39!

More reasons to visit me in NYC.

ENDLESS GRATITUDE,

Lara

Review of the Continuing Ed Gather for Children's Yoga Teachers

On Saturday, March 14, the inaugural gathering was held at Bow Street Yoga. It was hosted by Christyne Shroeder  and Checka Antifonario. I was excited to see other outstanding experts in the field.

As I arrived, there was a family style yoga class being held by the aforementioned amazing ladies. Christyn's booming, gorgeous voice greeted me before I even stepped inside. I could hear her from the driveway! I walked into a friendly circle of small children, moms, and (yoga) teachers. I slipped right in next to the duo and I am glad I did. Their positive vibrations, experience and skill were welcoming. I loved the natural flow that Christyn employed going between her teacher voice and singing a song. The flow we were moving to as she (as we all joined her) sang, "If the the Little Rain Drops." Checka and Christyn led us through a spring time yoga class where we melted snow and planted seeds. We took turns, letting the kids be the seeds as we watered and gave them sun and then we switched. Everyone, tiny and grown, was having fun. Then we deeply relaxed. Lovely class! I especially appreciated how Checka went around to make sure all the seeds, grown up or child, got to feel the sun and rain on their backs. It was super sweet. I did not mind the foot rub either!

Once the class ended, we reconvened for Tara Rachel of Flower Yoga's presentation. What was amazing about her class is the deep knowledge she clearly had about the developing body's mechanics. She was using simple language so it was easy to follow. To me, a lot of the information felt intuitive but I never knew the basis in anatomy before her presentation. She was impressive, leading us as if we were the children while filling us with knowledge as educators. I was impressed with her story telling. I felt relaxed listening to her story about the lifespan of a seed. It was beautiful, and daring how she took us from the exhilarating beginnings of the seed wanting to break out from the cold ground, through the life of the flower, to it losing its seeds, shriveling and dying off. She didn't leave out the gorgeous language as she managed to tie in the cycle of life so beautifully and softly.  She also taught us from her own book which I have seen in homes of the children I teach yoga to, It's Time For Yoga.  I am usually skeptical to train for more than a single weekend with any kid's yoga teacher, but her presentation was so amazing that I am singing up for her 95 Hour Teacher training this July.

We were blessed to then have the renowned Elizabeth Goranson of Stretch What Matters. Her shtick is inclusion. She was a special education teacher for 15 years before starting Stretch What Matters. Her program is spoken of so highly that before I met her in person I recommended one of my Flow and Grow teacher trainee graduates register for her upcoming training this April. She has touched a lot of lives. What was impressive about Elizabeth, beside her amazing sense of humor was her passion and emotion for her field. She got teary eyed presenting. Although her time was short, we got to see and understand modalities for inclusion and implantable ideas. We discussed real issues we face as teachers of children who are far from typical. What is typical, anyhow? And she drove home the point that if we slow down to make the information accessible for one child, they all benefit. It may seem like a lot of work upfront to prepare so thoroughly, but it makes learning comfortable and possible. In my experience, inclusion is left out of most general (kids yoga) trainings so I was thrilled to have this topic offered.

Finally, Sara Andres Gardener, the founder of Yoga Reaches Out charity presented on fund raising. Her time was short but she managed to drive home that if you have an idea and plant it like a seed, work hard, and work for a greater good, BIG THINGS CAN HAPPEN. She is an inspiration.

I am so grateful to have spent my time with these women who are leaders in the industry in the Boston area. I am leaving the area shortly to pursue my dreams in New York but plan remain involved in the yoga industry and with these stunning colleagues of passion and intention. I highly recommend signing up for the subsequent date in May!

Can We Stop "Getting Back In Shape," and Instead Move Forward?

I am a daddy's girl. I was raised by my dad and have seen him in so many forms. I have seen him as a gladiator gym buff saving the world, I have seen him sick and frail, I have seen him bloated with stress, and lean. I have seen him in many shapes in between. I am thankful that today, he is well and in good form.

One thing I hear him say is that "he wants to get back to where he was…" I also hear so many other people use this seemingly harmless language of "getting back," whether it be getting back together, getting back in shape, etc.

I was at a wedding luncheon yesterday and a former marathon runner, now Phd and mother of 4 kids between 8 and 18 and 2 step children saying she was so out of shape and wanted to get back to how she was before. She looks vibrant and healthy to me. Though, I can understand her wanting to improve.  We all do. Yet that specific language causes bells to go off. In my mind, when I hear "go back" two things happen. First a connection to the speaker. I understand the speaker may be referring to that elusive "back" like a place holder in time to where some ideal and perfect form existed whether in their mind, body, financially, professionally, or in any other aspect. Then next thing I do is hurt for them because I know in my own experience, when idealizing the past, it causes the memories to feel like reality and creates a yearning for what was. This is a dangerous slope to try to ascend. Getting back literally means you have to go back in time or backwards on a path to get there where you once were so that you can improve some aspect of self. I imagine it like trying to walk up a wet slide with flip flops on. Not pretty.

Let's explore this more. What if insead of trying to "get back," we just move forward. We can use our past experiences in wellness, success, fitness sand relationships to inform our future but we never need to get back to where we were. That time is no longer available to us. We will be searching endlessly to no avail. There will not be contentment just yearning which leads to suffering.

Then, how about we move forward. Move forward toward wellness. Creating rituals that will honor where we have been and where we are now and where we wish to go. A ritual is more effective than a routine because we make it sacred by the attention and intention with put it. It also changes based on season and let's face it, we have to tweak our routines to suit what actually is going on inside and out, rather than attack goals indiscriminately regardless of circumstance. That way we incrementally grow into who we want to be with compassion and no expectation that each day will be or feel the same. We account for the realities of what happens in life and shift our focus or duration based upon that. Yet, incrementally we can move toward massive goals and move up one notch at a time. And we never have to move backwards, in time or space. We move forward with the progression around us. Honoring the cycle of birth, life and death is important with any goal. And the past is dead and its ashes build our futures. It is not morbid, its real. We can move into our future by letting the past die. But just as those we love and lost stay with us in our hearts and minds, so can the lessons of the past. And the best part is, we don't punish ourselves to become a form of us we once were and we move with the grace of time, honoring the cycle.

I appreciate my father for all he has done. I support him in any shape he wishes to take. I only hope for his own love and for all of our own love of self, that and he we move forward and not back.

I am grateful for language and its ways to unlock our perceptions. We can use semantics to draw our feelings out, like the feeling of a need to move to a past existence, "a getting back to," notice and honor how this emotion arises and reframe our goals with present and future direction.

Now, let's move forward with this insight and never again back.

Knowing emotional intelligence versus having it

While spending a great deal of time in schools, predominantly preschools, I have seen a lot of import placed on emotional intelligence. I watch the curriculum about feelings being taught by use of pictures, puppetry and vocabulary about feelings. Problem solving is taught. Sometimes real solutions to emotional reactions are taught and learned by the smallest children. They make huge strides in their ability to use words rather than hit or scream, they develop words for expressing feelings and this is paramount to their development as children.

It is all very encouraging to watch this emphasis on emotional intelligence and social interaction. I am struck, though, that more emphasis isn't put on the personal development of teachers. Teachers must have a lot of academic and professional experience. They must get continuing education credits each school year. I know teachers are doing their best with what they have. I love and respect the profession. Many of my colleagues are teachers and I used to be one myself in the traditional classroom. Yet, while I watch these people teaching emotional intelligence, I can't help but wonder about their own emotional and social development. The yogis have systems of theory AND practice regarding the mental and social behavior  called the Yamas and Niyamas. While I will not turn this article into another lesson on those concepts (but you are welcome to google it or read literature!!!!,) I will say that the teachers need more practice when it comes to the mental processes involved in processing feelings and then the way they behave in response (not reaction to) feelings and stimulus. This does not involve just a theory-based approach, but experientially based approach involving self-examination, meditation, deep relaxation and practice to be able to actually see and hear the present moment. To be able to ascertain just what kind of judgement and physiological response one has to stimulus, whether that stimulus be in the classroom, on the road, or in one's own mind.

I won't lie. With more than a decade of practice in this by doing yoga, meditation, studying and self-study, I still find myself reactive sometimes.  Yet, I have the anchor of practices and intention to come back to. I am sure that, with more of an emphasis on teacher's personal, emotional and pro-social development, with more emphasis on mindfulness and meditation, they would start to evolve, too. Teachers who can let stress roll off them life rain off a raincoat because of their practices will be more resourceful and more able to give the children what they need. Teachers who study their own mind to see patterns, and then begin to shift to patterns more in line with what they intend to do rather than what they automatically do, will be more effective in their classroom (and life outside of school.)

I support teachers. I recognize their part in brining up the next generation. The children spend a huge amount of time being led by teachers. Why wouldn't we support teachers, then, to continuously develop from within not just professionally but personally. Schools providing opportunities for teachers to learn about their mind, to learn how to deeply relax, and get to know one's own self, will come out ahead. They will better serve children and the results will be tangible and even measurable. By simply repeating workshops so the skills are taught, retaught, examined and applied in more precise ways, we can move this world forward and create adults leaders of children who MODEL exactly the type of pro-social and self-directed behaviors we would want of our kids. Imagine a world where a teacher makes a mistake and in her mind, instead of belittling herself, she sees the opportunity to shift towards another thought pattern, behavior pattern and outcome, a positive one. This is possible. Please ask me how I can help you bring this kind of learning to your teachers! I want to help every single child and every single teacher needs to be brought to a higher consciousness so that goal can be attained.

Email me for services (or I can recommend someone amazing closer to your area!)

flowandgrowkids@gmail.com

Empower them to rest

I have been visiting schools, teaching yoga to very young children for years. I play yoga with toddlers and preschoolers, teach them important lessons, and then end by deeply relaxing them. Often, the children struggle to relax or resist completely. So many times, I have seen their classroom teachers yell at them to get them to relax. How counterintuitive is that? I do not ask for or need the "assistance" in the first place. I find it unproductive to scream a child into blind obedience rather than empower them to experience relaxation. I am not judging the teachers, either. I used to be one. I was a preschool teachers for years. I know how patience can be tested and retested a hundred times an hour some days. Yet, the yelling is merely showing them that it is ok to lash out when someone else doesn't meet your behavioral expectations. So we are teaching them to yell to get what they want and jerking them out of feeling relaxed rather than getting them there in a fluid, calming and empowering way.

What can be done? Give them the power back! Give the kids the power to reach inside, find the skills and reteach them.

Give each child a stuffed animal. Ask the children if they know how to be calm and peaceful. They will say yes. Then say, "as amazing teachers, you guys can teach the animals how to be peaceful, still and relaxed by showing them how to properly do savasana." The kids LOVE to help. They want to feel their own power. They can do it. Of course, you'll need to guide them. All you need is your calm voice as a presence to talk them onto the floor. To lay them down. To have them hold their animal to their heart. To let the animal feel the peace that the child is holding inside. This child is able to teach peace by simply being empowered to do so. Watch their little bodies become still and melt onto the floor as you guide them into deep relaxation. Then, when you reawaken them, congratulate and celebrate them. Learning to rest is a life long process. You can open doors for these kids by teaching them true balance. To move and then to be still. To teach and be the student. We can do this, together!

Lessons I learned From Teaching Teachers

I have now led 3 Flow and Grow Kids Yoga Teacher Trainings over the past year. I am happy to report the trainings are enriching in so many ways. First, I thought it would just be a way to show others how to do what I do. As I worked on to create the manual and develop the content, I realized it would be more than that. I would be a way to empower adult leaders of many walks to reach children specific to their skill sets and backgrounds. It would be a program to adapt for age, ability, setting, duration, intention and much more. It would allow us to match the right teacher to the right group or individual children and to make attainable goals. It would be a program to catalyze self development of both teachers and students.

The training blew me away this past weekend. It exceeded any expectation I had when creating it. The program not only gave the teachers in training the skills they need to be excellent children's yoga teachers, it gave them their very own breakthroughs.

Although there were some tears, they were tears of awakening. One of the participants learned she could benefit from the very same self-love material that was offered in the Therapeutic Yoga section of the book. This is a lesson I myself have learned over and over doing what I do for a living. All the participants recognized where loved lacked in our own self-thinking. As adults who had previously been young girls, we knew that there was plenty of need to reinforce this awakening to offer love and softness to the SELF first to that it can be authentically directed to others. So, by teaching these very lessons to children, we are learning to love ourselves and that in and of itself is enormously invaluable. We felt as if we sent healing back in time to our childhood hurting selves and this began a mature healing process.

There is so much more I can say about this but I will leave it for future entries. I want this simple message to be enough.

Weaving practices into the loom of life

As a yoginni of over a decade, I rely on many practices I've established to maintain equanimity. Though, the more practices I have established, the more I notice I do them and then discontinue or shift into other focuses of practice. And over time they all weave together to form the action of my life.

 I have breathing practices I use throughout the day,  some for the morning, some for getting pumped for work, one for relaxation or meditation. I have writing practices I use to record my mind as I study myself/Svadhyaya.  One of the most successful writing practices I established was my journaling project last year. I was to write as often as possible, about once a day. Each day, no matter how hard, I looped the writings back to gratitude as their foundation. It proved to be a sturdy foundation and it shaped my mind. Though old patterns show(ed) up frequently, especially in the absence of practice.

As I added in new practices, naturally some of the others faded away. I completed my last journal and in the new one, I shifted from gratitude to innovation as the interweaving common ground. And I found myself writing much less. And I find myself over the past week angry and, not surprisingly, not so grateful. The beauty of it all is having a mind I observe and practices to come back to or tweak.
This morning, I am pleased to report, my first thoughts were of counting my blessing and expressing gratitude. This morning I have more energy and I am excited to be part of the world. What a relief after weeks of feeling down and pessimistic.

The yoga sutras say, to practice/Abhyasa and to detach/Vairagya. So as a yoginni (and libra) I am balancing the scales between never giving up and constantly letting go.

I'm glad to have the discipline/tapas to implement practices and the self awareness to notice which ones are effective and when to go back. One important note will take away from this is seeing how easily I got down on myself for feeling "negative" thoughts and for struggling. Rather then judge myself so harshly next time, I hope to remember that the threads/Gunas of life will braid, leaving different strings on top and they will require different approach and practices to feel balance and equanimous.

Regardless of how beautiful or challenging a moment is perceived, I pledge to never give up and always let go. With the recent suicide of Robin Williams, more people I think could benefit from practices such as writing, breathing, expressing gratitude to combat fatalistic thoughts. Nothing is permanent. What feels like a big deal and intense, will simmer over time. Letting go of needing things to show up perfectly and never giving up on trying new approaches are crucial to wellness and survival.

Wasted on Waiting

Often times when I am teaching a yoga class and I have the students rest after a vigorous exertion, I ask them not to waste energy waiting to relax. I have them authorize their rest and then notice any amount they are waiting to do the next thing so they can fully surrender NOW. Then I see the whole room melt into the wood floors.

In my own life, I like to think of myself as generally mindful. I tend to do the practices I teach to in my real life and on the mat. Except when I don't... We are all works in progress/process.

A few weeks ago I went to a concert with friends. I was unfamiliar with the band. We got there around 9 and being early (relative to show times, not bed times ;-) ) I assumed the band playing was the opening act. Fast forward over an hour and I comment in my head about how long this opening act is jamming for. Then it occurs to me, DUH, this is the main act!!!!

I wasted my energy waiting for the real thing when all along it WAS the real thing. So I learned that whether its waiting to relax, waiting to enjoy or waiting to be happy, WHY WAIT? What a waste of time and energy. I am grateful for this moment.

I learned something profound from the experience and I hope you can see how this applies to your own life, too.

Much love,

Lara

Transforming a Generation: Awakening to the Great Impact of Awareness, Education and Practice.

Transforming a Generation:

Awakening to the Great Impact of Awareness, Education and Practice.

By Lara Hocheiser

5/11/2013

The truth about learning is that teaching any subject matter solidifies personal understanding. We need to model exactly the change our world needs in order to perpetuate peace and raise  our youth to be innovators, compassionate problem solvers and intellectually curious life-long learners.  We all have a role in shaping our world for the better and if we don’t see our part in the solution, the problems magnify. In a world dominated by sensationalism in the media, widespread violence , religious extremists and  the first generation of youth with a shorter life expectancy than their parents, we need  to promote self study and the yoga path to wellness. Accountability for our actions begins with awareness of self and the world around us. I will prescribe a shift that will take place  as one develops a greater sense of self and a perspective shift on the impact that one’s actions, thoughts and words have on others, especially our children. Applying yoga techniques and philosophy at home ,in the classroom and in the world at large will have an enormous impact on the generation we are raising and it begins with you  right in the present moment. That’s now!

What if we could have a generation of emotionally literate, self-aware individuals all comfortable in their own skin so that they share their gifts with the world while conscious of their thoughts, words and actions? What if we can raise these wonder kids by simply waking up to our own influence and then deciding to open up the to possibility of being at our best in attitude, even when we make inevitable mistakes and blunders. And we choose to do so gracefully,as if each imperfect brush stroke in the canvas of our lives were part of a bigger plan. Rather than cover them up, learn from them and work them into the masterpiece you leave behind. Creativity and thoughtfulness can be your all access pass to sharing yoga and its deep fountain of knowledge with those in your home, classroom and community. Please join me as I share my own experiences as a student, teacher and community leader. I will shed light on the shift in my own life and how it has impacted my teaching style, my student base and their loved ones.

Ride that wave

Spring has come in with a splash. The waves and ripples of this season of new life and blossoming can be quite impressive and pick us up, knock us right over or wipe us out. The force of nature, the birth, creation, and utter awakening of the season, the birds and bees, the day light and bright light, the constant chatter of the animals and insects procreating all over the air, water and earth can be distracting, invigorating and eventually draining. I'm working weekly with over 400 children and adults so I get a pretty good idea of whats going on in peoples minds, bodies and spirits during our yoga check ins. The energy of all beings seems to be up and down like waves in the ocean. The tides can be violent, rising high and suddenly crashing down. The weather has been all over the place and we are recovering from an uncharacteristically hard and long winter. We are all affected by the environment and each other. Consequently, I have noted that some typically wild children are dragging themselves around exhausted. Conversely, I've seen some normally centered adults running around like drunken undergrads. I've even spotted people I consider spiritually well to be especially sensitive and volatile.

What's it all mean? The meaning is whatever meaning we decide it is. I choose to see it as a moment of chaos and loving vibrancy that is exciting and simultaneously exhausting. But what about balance? If you're one of the many people experiencing seasonal imbalances, make sure you are keeping up with practices of wellness. Do the four part breath, eat balanced foods, get into bed at a reasonable time, keep up your routines even if you feel like dumping them, journal, talk to a mental health professional or your support system, run, go to yoga, and most of all, self-observe. Notice when your energy is way out of whack and respond with a suitable practice to come back in the direction of center.

Worry not about a little extra energy or exhaustion, just notice and manage yourself. Keep up the good work. Buzz on little bees os spring.

Namaste,
Lara

Yoga Where You Are: Dream Life

Yoga Where You Are: Dream Life: Developing conscious awareness in waking life brings forth presence. It provides the tools to take in what is as it happens. Being conscious...

Take a breather, be a LEADER

On a whim I decided to take a vacation to Nicaragua. I had been working, focusing, doing doing doing with limited time off for 54 weeks... but who's counting?

At first, I tried to plan a trip out West but it wasn't harmoniously coming into fruition so instead I jumped on an opportunity a friend casually mentioned in passing. Why not seize the day?

I thought about it and decided for me as a proponent of balanced living and wellness, it was hypocritical not to rest and recuperate. I'm constantly reminding my students young and old to rest often and  surrender acts of doing to just be.

That's exactly what I'm doing here. The change of climate and schedule is just what was lacking on my path towards joyful vibrancy.

In a sun and moon universe of balancing opposites, hopefully everyone will dedicate time to mini acts of restful surrender, such as naps, long lunches and weekends home. Deciding to take a week or longer from time to time to kiss the sun, taste the earth's rainbow, meet lovely strangers, dance freely until glowing with joy is just as responsible and forward-thinking as a calculated career change or going back to school.

Can you imagine a world filled with energized humans who take off the masks of daily life to experience it? The rejuvenation will reverberate in waves into our collective work, home and love lives. The people we touch will feel our healed spirits and heal in our presence.

Go on vacation. Be a leader!

Into Fruition

I am very excited right now to be putting together my life's work. I am making my first official book and the raw copy will become my Kids Yoga Teacher Training Manual. The training is half full and I am glad to see the variety of backgrounds the different teachers have. If you are interested, space is very limited. Click here and scroll to the bottom. Please make sure you meet the standard requirement of some experience in both yoga and children of any age. The training is adaptive and will meet anyone at their needs to be able to create yoga curriculum for the kids they presently have in their life in the specific environment.Therapists, teachers, parents, yoga teachers, you are ideally suited for this training.

I have not been writing much on my blog because most every moment of my free time is focused on development, including book writing, teaching, creating new mentorships. Coming into the space of mentor and leader from the space of mentee and led is exhilarating.

I have a lot to learn. My new relationships are helping me see my growth points. I am comfortable leading in certain areas and need a lot of work in others. I am feeling blessed and continue to literally count my blessing every day.

I slow time down by reflecting in my journal every day. I have a special jar by my bed I put post-it notes of good things of 2014. Time can fly, events unnoticed, without these practices of seeing and appreciating.

All of the the happenings of my life began as intentions and ideas. I spent most of my time working on the life experience and practices aspects. I became the person I foresaw completing these huge goals. I am happy to say practice and presence are major components of the focus it requires to chip away day after day.

There have been many challenging moments. There have been obstacles in my professional, social and love life that have gotten in the way. I decided to redirect focus to my goals over and over.

 What are your goals? Who do you need to be to bring them into fruition?

Set your intention, create your practices, work hard, rest often.

With love and peace,

Lara

On Your Own (Race) Track

I am blessed with a career that mixes my talents of early education, yoga and language. Today, in a class of 4 year olds, we were preparing to play a game about driving a car. I went around and asked what everyone was driving. Some kids said fire truck, ice cream truck, purple car and then "Lightening Mcqueen!"' is yelled out. Lightning Mcqueen is a red racecar from the movie Cars. After that, the next child said, "Well, I'm driving a racecar too, and it's faster than his." Then another child spoke over him, "mine is fastest."

I decided to interrupt. It was disheartening to see the first child who chose Lightening Mcqueen change face from excited to slighted. I asked the kids to image this: Everyone one of you has your own racetrack. We are all driving and some will enjoy a slow ride and the view, others will speed by and that will be ok for them. Everyone has a different racetrack. If we look to someone else's track, we will compare ourselves and that causes us to feel different. (And, in the untrained mind, comparing to others will tend to cause one to feel superior or inferior, i.e. I'm better or I'm not enough.)

The children followed up with beautiful questions.

Q: What if I drive off my racetrack and then go on to another track?

A: That overlap is called family, friendship, love and togetherness.
Q: What if you crash into another car?
A: Then you slow down, recover and get back on track.
Q: What if I want to park?
A: Then enjoy the scenery.

I was really glad this lesson came up organically based on the natural competitive nature of children. We can not expect them to reduce comparative thinking unless we demonstrate ideas on their level. Children require, more so than any words or lesson can tell, adults and role models exhibiting desired behavior.

As adults, if we are comparing ourselves to others, like our bodies to models in magazines, or our careers to other peoples', we are showing kids that comparing is appropriate behavior. When, what we need to show them is praise for ourselves when we do well and acknowledgment when we make mistakes. We can raise humble, accepting children if we become a bit more humble and accepting ourselves.

I invite you to try to notice when you compare yourself to others and to redirect! Then, lead by example.
On your mark, get set, GO!

From Perfectionism to Freedom, How do you Grow?

There are so many awesome resources of inspiration out there for how to become a better you. I watched a Ted Talks today on trying something new for 30 day intervals. Doing something every day for 30 days can break or establish a new habit and change patterns of thought and behavior. The speaker wrote a 50,000 word book, rode his bike to work, changed his diet, and took a picture every day. He said days slowed down and time was enjoyable when he did one thing every day. He could remember every photo he took, where he was, what he was doing and how he was feeling. Amazing.  I love this idea. I made a list today of things I'd like to do for thirty days and I have a calendar I received for free in the mail yesterday that I will mark the month of each idea. I jotted down: take a picture every day, learn a language, learn an instrument, work on a web site, publish and finalize teacher training materials, publish and finish children's yoga books.

When I taught preschool, a teacher tip of the trade was to use a chart and help kids grow into or out of a new behavior by practicing and marking off with stickers every time they accomplish the goal over the two week span. This seemed to be a pretty good way to learn new skills that are doable every day. Part of learning, I think, was sometimes missing the mark.  The ego hoping to be perfect, unflawed and all-knowing hesitates to be imperfect, yet it is mistakes and struggles that really help individuals remember, change and blossom humbly. For example, I'll never forget when I was learning to speak Spanish and I accidentally ordered condoms instead of jelly. I really had to laugh at myself and admit that mistake making is memorable and if we can lighten up about not knowing before knowing, it can be fun(ny.)

I was at a party last night with mostly Russian first language speakers. One young lady was brave and despite not knowing exactly how to express herself, she slowly spoke her mind in English. She was not perfect and made some mistakes, but we connected and she said she felt a sense of freedom. Later, I tried to communicate with another girl who admitted she was too embarrassed to make mistakes and she refused to talk. She also decided not to listen. She said she felt bad having everything I said translated back to her but she didn't trust herself to understand so she didn't even listen to what I said out of fear of not understanding. Coming from an approach of self doubt and fear of being wrong  paralyzed her. Where, conversely, the other young woman was empowered by her chance taking willingness to be imperfect and learning. I know from experience, its not until using a second language every day for a great deal of the day, while explaining oneself in words only of that language and making mistakes, that make a proficient speaker become fluent and a beginner more advanced. It is the application, the doing, and the willingness not to be perfect that makes one's learning a process and not a destination. We can be free when we say no to being perfect archetypes, say no to perfectionism and instead and be curious learners, like the children we once were and will always carry in our beings.

This is a time of year to consider one's growth points and be intentional and disciplined while we map our evolving paths'. Yet, rather than strive to be perfect at something, why not allow ourselves the space and time to try things just for the experience and not the outcome. What strategy or approach appeals most to you?

To a year of individual growth and shifting our collective consciousness,
Love and Light,
Lara

Inviting in and Letting Go

My teacher Rebecca Pacheco gave us the opportunity to invite in and let go during our yoga session on Thursday night.  Her words reminded me that I can not only exhale and unattach, which I frequently do, but also bring in something I need.

I've been having a hard time getting things accomplished on my long term goal list lately. I decided to invite in focus. 

I determined letting go of negative self talk was a necessary compliment to move forward.

I inhaled focus,  exhaled negative self talk.  Simple.  Mindful.  Mine.

What might you invite in to your life?  And let go of?

"Once you level up, the bosses get HARDER!"

After teaching class early this morning, I was talking to my friend and student Lionel about practice. He has been practicing more than ten hours a week yet he still confessed that class this morning was difficult. I remarked that lately, I have been extremely challenged in class, too. Yet, we both noted that as our strength improves and postures transform, that it just keeps getting harder.

I reflected back on my ten plus years learning and practicing yoga. I realize that every time I progress and evolve, that along with this movement life's problems get bigger. The practice remains important and even more so than ever as the daily grind I'm faced with gets bigger and the unexpected challenges arise with more frequency. Beyond needing physical strength, I need more emotional, spiritual and mental strength than ever. The poses help me learn to breath through the discomfort and sit with the uneasiness with ease and grace.

Yet, last night in class my mentor and teacher Roman told me he observed my breathe as short and shallow. I was falling out of poses and coming out of them before he moved us out of them. Despite being a teacher, being well practiced and having guidance from my teacher, I still managed to breathe shallow and to be taken out of ease and grace.

Its ok, though. Moments like these are great teachers. Just because I KNOW HOW to employ technique, doesn't mean I am. Just because I am reminded to use the tools in my toolbelt, doesn't mean I'll hammer the nail sticking out of the wall. By observing that I had not been utilizing the breathe fully, I can then choose to. It's ok. No need to be perfect.

Lionel said, as if life were a video game, that "once we level up, the bosses get harder." This is so true. As we level up, we can take the skills and techniques with us. And every once in a while, when the boss beats us, we can come back to using what we know works. Remind yourself, but also be surrounded by teachers and leaders. We are a community bringing one another up.

With gratitude,

Lara