2021...
It is time now to welcome the return of the light,
to start a brand new year...
I know many are excited to see 2020 go...but I invite you to ponder the many unnoticed gifts and important lessons of this unprecedented past year through a wider lens so that we can create something new that honors this present moment.
The losses of 2020 are ongoing. The pandemic has followed us into the new year. You may have been shocked to learn that we are not as healthy as we may have thought, that the systems that we take for granted may not be as supportive and caring as we may have imagined, that automatic pilot is really no longer an option.
We have been harshly reminded us of the fragility of life.
And this awareness gives us far more power than we know to optimize our capacity to heal as we move forward. It is time to change the way we have been living.
This past year has also brought forth amazing acts of courage and care, connection and community in ways that are heartening and encouraging.
We are beginning to be stronger in voice and action to insist upon a gentler, more caring way of living, of tending, of being a mortal human.
Though these huge transformations in living and being take time, we have finally begun in the midst of chaos to build something new.
I believe foundational healing is afoot.
Such great paradigm shifts are not easy.
While we all have the capacity for great resilience and deep healing, times like these wreak havoc on the immune and nervous systems, especially when we are overwhelmed. You may have found that your usual practices are not quite enough in this new life.
There is a greater than ever necessity to settle, ground and balance to allow for optimal vitality to manage these chaotic times. As hard as it is to do and believe, now is the time to rest.
Do not be misled
into thinking
you should be doing more.
Rest
Feed
Heal
Hold
Feel
These are the seeds,
the beginnings
be gentle with it all
Holy Days
~Vicki Rivand
So in these "holy days", I want to invite you to welcome the possibility of cracking the door open to let a ray of light in. This is NOT about being all "love and light", nor is it spiritual bypassing; it is about choosing to embrace the whole truth of what is already so-which I assert is NOT only darkness... if you are willing to look... This is the "rubber hitting the road" practice of mindfulness.
Of course, seeing the beauty and miracles of nature around you does NOT pay your rent or buy groceries or bring back lost loved ones-but it DOES relax your nervous system, allowing a reallocation of precious resources toward healing and restoration, revitalizing the immune system and balancing the overwrought nervous system. It can open you to new possibilities that you cannot see when in survival mode and thus contribute to greater resilience, vibrancy and health.
This is the medicine we all need and already have access to when we tune in.
Perhaps this year, instead of making the usual new year's resolution to be different, to lose or gain something, you might consider committing to becoming fully YOU, in your fullest, most magnificent, authentic glory.
Devote yourself to seeking and finding your unique strengths and skills and bring your dreams to life in this auspicious time. Be willing to see if your head and heart are headed in the same, or disparate directions and make choices that bring you into greater alignment with your heart.
One of the most important teachings I have ever received is that we are each here in this lifetime to bring a special and unique gift that only we can bring.
You are one of a kind and your only job is to express that in its fullness. Sadly, as we try to "fit in" to someone else's expectations, we cut off parts of our authentic self. This I believe is one of the many causes of our individual and collective Dis-Ease.
To do this healing work, we must INSIST that everyone have their basic needs met; that everyone have their unique gift/skill set nurtured so that they can thrive.
We need to realize our responsibilities and take our places in the sacred web of life, knowing in our bones that the health and healing of one is health and healing for all.
It is time to commit to interconnection and thriving for all human and non-human beings, and for
the earth which is our home, refusing to turn a blind eye toward, or tolerate greed, abuse, hatred, separation or marginalization for one more second.
This is the time for Fierce Compassion and will require a new softness, gentle tenderness and curiosity, rather than the more familiar harsh judgment and fear, as we navigate our shared reality to a bigger more inclusive place.
To facilitate all of us in our healing in this New Year, here are the offerings for January
🙏💕✨❄️
January Yoga Nidra
Community Based Yoga Nidra for Razz Yoga
* free for Razz Community
$20 drop in
Friday January 8
7pm EST
Global Donation Based Yoga Nidra via Zoom
~Tuesday January 12 at 7 pm EST
and
~Sunday January 24 at 1 pm EST
**NOTE NEW TIME**
Join me LIVE via Zoom for a deeply restorative and healing practice, especially beneficial for the nervous and immune systems
and enjoy the physiologic effect of
2-6 hours of RESTFUL sleep!
* All registered participants will receive the full audio recording after the class
* No prior experience required -this is a restorative practice done lying down-NOT a posture practice
Can't join us live?
The recording will be offered on my website after the class for $10
Individual guidance via Zoom
These sessions are tailored specifically for you, with your unique life history and circumstances. They are meant to be empowerment sessions to help you see your own magnificence
I offer a customized blend of mindfulness meditation, yoga, yoga nidra, energy medicine and life support to guide you in finding your gifts so that you can share yourself with the world
These self empowering tools and practices have transformed my life-and continue to do so.
I'm honored to share them with you.
Remember: your healing work serves us all🙏
Email me to inquire about cost and availability
MORE FOR YOUR HOME PRACTICE
(AND awesome gifts for those you love💝)
ALL MP3s are still 33% off 💕
I cannot overstate the fact that deep restorative rest, quiet, and stillness are so very necessary for all of us right now! Practice at home to maintain vibrancy and resilience
Visit my store for NEW full length yoga nidra recordings
from the last virtual sessions-
**If there is someone you know who may benefit from my work but does not have the means to invest, please either consider offering a gift if you are able, or reach out to me. I am willing to discuss payment plans or reduced rates because I personally know the power of these offerings that I am honored to share.
Like so many, I too am trying my best to keep my small business alive but will not deny anyone in need🙏💕
✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
Here's MORE good news confirming our interconnectedness💕🙏💫
"Every individual’s energy affects the collective field environment. The means each person’s emotions and intentions generate an energy that affects the field. A first step in diffusing societal stress in the global field is for each of us to take personal responsibility for our own energies. We can do this by increasing our personal coherence and raising our vibratory rate, which helps us become more conscious of the thoughts, feelings, and attitudes that we are feeding the field each day. We have a choice in every moment to take to heart the significance of intentionally managing our energies. This is the free will or local freedom that can create global cohesion. "
– Dr. Deborah Rozman -Heart Math Institute
Scientists Explain How Earth's Magnetic Field Connects All Living Systems
In this New Year,
as I offer good wishes, classes and healing practices that have been transformative for me in my healing journey, I am aware of the power of words and am trying my best to not be tone deaf to the suffering in this world, in your life. I do not willfully intend to be disrespectful of anyone, minimize or disrespect your unique and precious story.... yet I know that sometimes I accidentally will, because I am human and cannot possibly know the experience of any others in full. None of us can, as we are all unique with our own lenses through which we see the world.
May we cultivate the capacity to enlighten and educate each other, to come together in gentleness with the true desire to realize our common humanity and to be honest about the many disparities and inequalities that cause so much suffering and to be curious about all that we do not know about each other and our life experiences.
It feels essential now for all of us to work to learn our triggers, and with this awareness, to shift from automatic pilot reactivity to a conscious, present moment based response.
Let's engage with this life in this moment just as it is, not getting lost in past experiences or future projections....because this moment is already just like this and it is precious precisely because it is the only moment in which we can act to affect what comes next.
"Please take responsibility for the energy
you bring into the room"
~ Dr. Jill Bolte-Taylor
With practice, I believe we can come to a gentler way of communicating with ourselves and others, honoring our different life experiences so we can all learn and grow.
I wish for all of us to become curious rather than defensive, not to ignore our traumas, but to learn to know them so they can be tended and healed.
This year, let's lean deeply into letting difficult people and situations teach us. To not hide from the hard truths that can lead to a more honest and whole version of each of us and our relationships with the world and ourselves.
The only thing any of us can control is how to relate to what is...and that is the practice.
I invite you to join me in taking responsibility to the energy you are adding to the field.
Let us aspire to be honest about the many ways, large and small, that we are privileged and use that power for those who are not, for whatever reason, able to have that luxury in this moment.
To be willing to learn and grow and heal and connect and repair misunderstandings.
May we be willing to move from a place of heart rather than ego, especially in conflict, to be willing to simply stop contributing to unnecessary suffering because we ALWAYS get to choose how and where to place our attention...It's all PRACTICE.
May we be courageous enough to care about each other and stand up and fight for equality and human dignity and love, even if the issues in question are not our own, all in the spirit of respect and kindness for our fellow travelers in this precious and rare human life. May we all not just survive, but begin to thrive in this new year, as a fragile and impermanent human community on this precious earth.
May we enter the age of Aquarius with the intention of inviting the harmony and understanding that this time is ripe for, embracing essential feminine qualities long disparaged and oppressed like nurturing, tending, understanding and supporting each unique and precious member of this earth family rather than continuing in the old, worn out, divisive, toxic masculinity that dominates, demeans, overpowers and has prevailed for far too long.
We all have both masculine and feminine qualities.
Let this be a year where we recognize this longstanding imbalance and strive to find a new integration and harmony between the two polarities.
Let's practice deep listening and the patience to wait until the way forward clears rather than pushing toward an ego driven goal. This opens us to even greater possibilities, as we are stronger together in inner and outer balance and wholeness than we are in separation and competition
For last years words belong to last year's language and next year's words await another voice
And to make an end is to make a beginning
~TS Eliot
This has the potential to be a very potent year. We have been challenged to the point of survival, and will still be for the foreseeable future. Yet there is light...
May we all commit to helping ourselves, our brothers and sisters in any way we can, large or small. Just find your lane/skill/talent/strength and commit to working for the health of the Whole. AND remember, that your self care and healing work is essential for the healing of all of us💝
In closing, I'd like to leave you with a poem of hope and possibility for all that CAN potentially be if we are willing and able to relax, be present and see-even in the midst of the chaos.
BLESSINGS
occur.
Some days I find myself
putting my foot in
the same stream twice;
leading a horse to water
and making him drink.
I have a clue.
I can see the forest
for the trees.
All around me people
are making silk purses
out of sow's ears,
getting blood from turnips,
building Rome in a day.
There's a business
like show business
There's something new
under the sun.
Some days misery
no longer loves company;
and puts itself out of its.
There's rest for the weary.
There's turning back
There are guarantees.
I can be serious.
I can mean that.
You can quite
put your finger on it.
Some days I know
I am long for this world.
I can go Home again.
~Ron Wallace
Thank you from my heart if you have made it through this long missive.😍
I'm hopeful that a word or two has resonated
🙏💕
I wish you big love, good health, great peace, deep compassion, infinite possibilities, trust, balance, and the hope that you take gentle note of the many simple, warm pleasures every single day brings.
I celebrate each of you in your perfect uniqueness 🎉
Happy New Year💝
Take gentle care
Love
gina💕🙏✨
