Greetings From Lawrence: November 2021

Hello!

May this first newsletter (of what I hope are many) find you healthy and happy.  It was my goal to have learned the Mailchimp application by now to make for a more fancy debut, but just not gonna happen with all that Miki and I have going on in our lives with the relocation to Oahu.  So, this will have to do for now.   While it’s only been a few weeks since teaching my last group class here in the South Bay, I have to tell you I already miss you all very much.  The energy and light you all brought week to week was uplifting to say the least, and I look forward to getting back into swing in January with more online and in-studio/outdoor yoga and cycling sessions from Oahu, as well as occasional workshops back in California.

Preparation for this move has been quite a process, not without “big kine” waves filled with excitement, joy, sadness, anxiety, anger, laughter, fear, etc, with so many moving parts needing to come together in a very short amount of time.  Thank goodness for our yoga practice, which inspires me over and over to show up each day with what I have, doing the best I can and with lots of love.  Breathing.

Preserving Culture – Educating Children – Taking Care of the Elders – Connecting People From All Backgrounds Through Food and Farming – Environmental Education In Schools and Community

I’m thrilled to lead an event that will enable us to connect from all parts of the world, bring an abundance of joy and give us an opportunity to offer up love and support by raising money for a few of my favorite communities.  Come December I’ll be completing my 60th tour around the sun and wish to celebrate through three of my joys: Yoga, Cycling and Service. Mid December, we’ll be on the beautiful island of Maui to ride our bicycles from Paia (just a few hundred feet above sea level) 34 miles to the top of Haleakala at 10,000 feet!  The following day, I’ll lead all of you wishing to join (in person or via zoom) through 108 Sun Salutations. Drop in and say hello, practice as many salutes to the sun you wish and help celebrate our beautiful community. My only ask is that you consider donating whatever you feel comfortable giving to one, two or all three of these amazing organizations to reach our overall goal of $10,800. Simply follow the links below to each of their respective GoFundMe pages:

Tibetan Children’s Education Foundation
Kokua Hawaii Foundation
Veggielution

Over the next few weeks I’ll be posting more information on my WebsiteFacebook and Instagram about each of these foundations, as well as schedule and logistic details.   And for those of you who have no clue what a Sun Salutation is, no worries as I’ll be sharing a number of helpful hints on the three sequences we’ll be experiencing along with modifications so that we can all participate and enjoy the yoga.  Please feel free to share this with those interested in participating!

Gratitude Flow at Bay Club Redwood Shores

 For those of you at Bay Club, I’ll be squeezing in one more yoga class at Redwood Shores this coming Saturday November 20th at 11:30am.  All levels are welcome, coming together to celebrate all that we have in our lives.  Hope to see you there!
 

Practice

Halloween is behind us, Thanksgiving is just a week away and before we know it, a new year will be here, just like that.  During the ups and downs, remember to take the occasional pause, the breath… presence.  Reflect on all the lessons we learned through Shelter In Place.  Bring your yoga daily, even if it’s just a few minutes sitting and breathing on your mat.  I’m currently reading an excellent book by Eddie Stern titled, “One Simple Thing”, where he visits the science of yoga and how it transforms our life.  “Within the practice of postures, there are three areas that we must pay attention to:  the body, the breath, and the mind.  To put it very simply, postures steady the body, breathing steadies the nervous system, and gazing (drishti) steadies the mind.”   Over time, this steadiness and joy spills over to our day to day life.  Cool?  Yes.
That’s about it for now.  Have an amazing Thanksgiving Holiday, and I’ll be back in touch in December.  Be Joyful, be Healthy, be Free.
With love,
Lawrence