KonaYoga.com

...and Baby Makes Three

Danielle won't be in class today, now we're certain. She gave birth to Ayden Danger Deshotel this past Tuesday, March 18, at 4:24pm. Ayden weighed 8.2 pounds and stretched out to a full 21 inches!

Congratulations, Dani and Ben. This will put a smile on the faces of those still doing their wall squats! :D

An Infinite Expectation of the Dawn

We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aid, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn.
-Henry David Thoreau

Danielle Ramsey's baby is due and as I was adding a photo of her to my blog, I thought about the power of expectation. Aside from a burgeoning belly, every woman in my Prenatal Yoga classes keeps a constant focus on her due date and the birth of her child. It even serves as a name tag and conversation starter: "I'm due in October", "When are you due?", "I'm not due until August", etc.

They may have some physical complaints, it's true, but they don't identify with them. Low back pain, nausea and sleep deprivation are just part of the trip. These women come to class expecting a happy ending within a matter of months and that's what they get.

What are the implications here for us non-gestating human beings? What if we chose to create something within the next nine months, could we hold on to our excitement and anticipation during all that time? What would we have to do in order for our creation/project to rapidly grow and evolve on a daily basis? We would have to expect it to happen, and therein lies the challenge.

The reproduction of another human being is something so miraculous yet we don't doubt that it will happen. But move an adult human being from point A to point B? Learn to speak another language? Change jobs? Lose 20 pounds? Clean out the garage? Do a headstand? Oh, that might not ever happen.

I feel so privileged to witness this march of strong women with joyous expectations file past me, month in and month out. There's something from that magical parade that needs to be extracted, bottled and injected into the rest of the human race. Expect it.

Photo: Waimanu Sunrise by konaboy

The Lights Are On Because Somebody's Home

People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

"Thank you for bringing such interesting people together in your classes", a woman said to me on Saturday. Yoga for Women, follows a novel format in that it lasts for two hours because we gather in a circle for the first thirty minutes to introduce ourselves and discuss a chosen topic before the experience of yoga postures.

This past week, each participant was asked to share something about themselves that others might find "interesting". What prompted me was the fact that we have many part-time residents in our classes who come away from very different settings and lifestyles when they enter the studio.

Carole Kaeding is one example. She'll be returning very soon to Michigan where she owns Gratiot Lake Basketry. When she retired (many years ago, she says) and took up basket making, she found a need for a consistent supply of materials. She became that supplier and today has a successful business staffed with the most capable people, which allows her the time to come back every year to Kona and yoga.

Surrounding Carole were some other very special women who varied in age and life experience. They have travelled the world solo or taken up a new language. They are exploring different cultures and art forms or discovering hidden talents and hobbies. They seek the excitement of exploring lava tubes, beginning a new service for the elderly or just having fun in life playing and travelling.

I then introduced a restorative yoga sequence meant to alleviate fatigue by soothing and then energizing the adrenal glands. Some of the dozen or so postures had to be modified for the varying degrees of yoga experience and physical limitations but once everyone reached their perfect position, it was a sight to behold! When we learn how to be comfortable in our bodies, wherever life might position us, we can remain calm and peaceful; everything flows and everyone glows. It doesn't matter what it looks like from the outside, the light is on inside because someone's at home!

At the end of class, phone numbers were exchanged so that conversations could continue. I doubt that fatigue is something that these women experience very often...they seem to balance their lives quite gracefully.

Photo of the Duomo in Florence, Italy: GeneBurch. com

REQUIEM

If we can get Jen Groark out of the water long enough to dry, we might be lucky to see her in class again soon. But, we're so proud of what she and her husband Bryce are doing that we want to support them in any way possible.

They have recently completed a shark conservation film entitled Requiem through what they call a "super low budget Jen and Bryce production":

The story follows Jen - as she learns more about sharks and their battle to evade extinction from finning and over-fishing. Over 100 million sharks are killed worldwide every year! That's 275,000 killed every day on average!

The film has been playing all over the world and recently won an Accolade for the 2007 Best Nature/Wildlife/Environment Category and was nominated last weekend for Best Film at the North Sea FilmFestival (The Hague, Netherlands).

We made REQUIEM in association with WildAid, a non-profit organization that is on the front line protecting sharks. We have started selling copies of the film on DVD for $20 + $5 shipping. A donation of $5 from every sale is being donated to the WildAid shark fund.

Watch the Trailer (2 minutes).

Need a Christmas gift or two? You may buy some via Pay Pal from Living Ocean Productions, the Groarks' company. Alternate contact information is available on their website.

Not Full Grown...yet.

We do not yet possess ourselves, and we know at the same time that we are much more.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Not long ago, we were waiting for him to appear. Then we reveled and cheered when he finally (on time by his standards) showed up on the fourth of June. Now he's coming to yoga class every Friday (Yoga for Moms and Babes) and this past week decided that he was ready for a pose of his own, Upward in Downward Dog.

While I was cropping this photo of James Dylan Graves, I wondered what it would take for me to step onto my mat with the same wide-eyed, open body and fresh mind attributes of this baby. He hasn't learned to crawl, but he will. He hasn't learned to stand, but he will. He hasn't learned to walk, but he will.

What if he came to class and said, "I heard yoga was good for me but I gotta tell you, I don't crawl, I don't stand and I don't walk"? He might then never progress beyond that one pose, sweet as it is.

The magic word is YET. It holds so many possibilities and promises. Luckily, it was one of the first concepts I learned in yoga and it continues to draw me forward nearly twenty years later, on and off the mat. The inclusion of the word yet, does not allow my statements to become my sentences.

We would speak well for ourselves, and others, just by adding that simple three letter word. As for James, he's not talking, yet.

A similar topic:
Argue for Your Limitations and They're Yours by Richard Carlson.

Peace Tags

Last week, my friend Patti was in town from Seattle and stopped by for a personalized yoga session. We talked about connecting mind to body, breath to movement, actions and results. She told me about a very graceful project that she's been involved with: Peace Tags.

Resemblant of military ID "dog tags", the sterling silver tags are engraved with quotations of your choice and net profits are donated to non-profit organizations that support our troops and their families.

Like the algebraic function, square, good is multiplied by itself. Whether it's a gift, a statement or a beautiful reminder....no square number is a negative. I know what I'm getting myself for Christmas!

Watch: Peace Tags in the News (King5).

Photo:PeaceTags.com

Our few minutes of fame...

This is a quick scan of the article that appeared in today's issue of West Hawaii Today (WHT). Reporter Jen Reeder, contacted me as I was leaving for West Virginia last month to attend memorial services for Armand Singer, for an interview.

We finally connected when I got back to Kona and a few weeks ago, WHT photographer Mike Darden, captured the essence of a  restorative yoga class.

The folks in our Gentle Stretch Class are diligent practitioners and it's difficult to distract them, especially during a restorative class.   Thanks to Jen Reeder, Mike Darden and West Hawaii Today for spreading the word about the benefits and joy of yoga!

Note: that's my dad, Fred Uechi, with his hands in namaste. He's usually the only male in the class.

The Beginner's Mind

"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, in the expert's there are few."
-Suzuki Roshi

 

Krista led the first Moms and Babes yoga class on Friday. Each of the moms pictured above, attended our Prenatal Yoga classes until the birth of their children. The mothers and babies (left to right) are: Alissa and Tessa, Joy and Bruein, Megan and Ruby, Krista and James, Misty and Jonathan.

Bruein is the only walker (more like runner) for now. They are all healthy, eager and curious little babes. The physical world is so new to them that everything is worth grabbing and inspecting, with all of their senses. They possess the true beginner's mind.

Somewhere along life's time-line, we lose that innocent, questioning mind as we strive to become "the one who knows", the expert of life. Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman cautions us:

We all want to be the one who knows. But if we decide we "know" something, we are not open to other possibilities anymore. And that's a shame. We lose something very vital in our life when it's more important to us to be "one who knows" than it is to be awake to what's happening. We get disappointed because we expect one thing, and it doesn't happen quite like that. Or we think something ought to be like this, and it turns out different. Instead of saying, "Oh, isn't that interesting," we say, "Yuck, not what I thought it would be." Pity. The very nature of beginner's mind is not knowing in a certain way, not being an expert.

Growth and changes are visibly apparent in newborns and so the world readily accepts their daily advances. Adults are expected to be 'full grown' and mature so perhaps that's why we conform to a static image.

Congratulations to Krista for beginning this new class and for not being an expert yoga teacher or mother. Hurray also, to the new moms who maintain a beginner's mind and revel in the possibilities of yoga, their children and themselves.

Beginner's Mind, a lecture by Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman.

A Beginner's Mind, a business version found in an article by Richard Watson for Fast Co. Magazine.

Winners all!

Deylin Lees

Look at the photo of a class doing a downward dog up there in the banner (second panel from the right), the woman on the left is Brenna Lees. While she lived in Kona, she was one of the most devoted yoga students. She and her husband David, and son Deylin, moved back to Las Vegas but we're still in touch through e-mail.

Yesterday, Brenna sent me a news video of Deylin, who used to attend Kahakai School. He made a Hole-in-One! Congratulations, Deylin! You can tell how proud his dad was in the interview, and we're proud of all of them. Way to go, Deylin!

Watch the interview: Download DeylinLees.wmv (1511.5K)

Zappos

I got another piece of good news from my brother, Jason, who forwarded a heart-warming blog post about a woman's experience with Zappos. An on-line store, Zappos says "We are a service company that happens to sell!" They certainly do keep to their promise.

Here's the post from Zazlamarr: http://www.zazlamarr.com/blog/?p=240

These are the kinds of stories that should be circulated by e-mails. I don't mind sending it to 10 friends within the next 8 minutes. Even if I don't get a surprise visit from the Lucky Charms leprechaun. (I hope it's still politically correct to use that term).

Photo: BBC-Hereford & Worcester

Haumea's Garden

Thalia Davis, a Kona Yoga regular, kindly forwarded the news of this weekend's Haumea's Garden- A Local Food Exposition to be held at the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort.

Thalia says that 85% of what we eat on the Big Island is shipped in. INcredible! Thanks to organizations such as The Kohala Center, our own conscious farmers, and progressive educators, we will:

...make a strong positive statement for the future of our Island’s agriculture, with an emphasis on the keiki, their education and their future participation in our communities as leaders.  We can assist our island to eat in a healthier way, creating a thriving and resilient economy while preserving our precious natural and cultural resources.-The Kohala Center

Not far from our studio, Innovations Public Charter School has started a garden program to teach kids about our environment, food and cultural history. Thalia's son attends the school so you can be sure she'll be at the summit and at the benefit concert on October 6. The proceeds from the concert will provide support for youth gardens and agricultural programs around the island.

Look at all of the participating farmers, businesses and organizations listed here:

http://www.kohalacenter.org/food/haumea.htm. It'll warm your heart and tummy to know that the Big Island is eating its way to sustainability!