Belonging—the Longing to BE

Yoga is a journey into the heart of possibility. Our lives can be overwhelmed with the details of daily living. We are constantly being bombarded by unlimited outside stimulation of distracted bias opinions.

The amount of information being directed at us on a daily basis is never given an opportunity to be digested, assimilated and ultimately eliminated. Even as I write this piece for our newsletter, I question how many of us are able to actually read it and even sit in reflection on what my heart is trying to share.  

Life is at times extremely lonely for the soul when our lives are too busy just existing. When we are fully engaged in all our various roles, who can pause enough to make space for being insightful to our deeper longings?

Our inner landscape is ignored when our outer commitments take our attention into worry and fear and ultimately exhaustion. It is in those deep moments of inner pain, that we are humbled to our knees asking for help. It is in those private moments in the willingness to ask that we begin to listen to our inner voice begging to belong.

Every human has the profound need to belong. We find ourselves searching for our tribe, our familiar company that feels inclusive and welcoming. We strive for connection, looking outward to be included in community that nourishes and validates our existence. And yet, there is still an emptiness that cannot be filled with external attachments.

This longing to be seen is an inside job. The depth of true belonging exists in our willingness to remove the barriers of hiding behind our roles, our personalities, our patterns of learned habits. It is a willingness to open and reveal that essence of our true nature, our inner light, our heart.  The longing to BE.

Belonging is not to something attached outside but to be present to our beauty, our grace, our magnificent light of our intrinsic nature—kindness and love. Resting in this quality, which is beyond words to describe, presents itself as a peaceful pabable experience.

The pathway is not easy and it takes a courageous longing but our souls are always seeking for this BELONGING. As I journey deeply into the teachings of yoga, I return daily to my practice not just physically but as a way to nourish my emotional and spiritual wellbeing, as a way to be enough.

I hope that this inspires and encourages you to begin to listen to the longings inside yourself and know that nothing can fulfill that void of loneliness except going into your own beingness. YAF is holding the space for your own inner journey! LONGING TO BE IS BELONGING to the space of self love. Anything is possible when we feel enough! 

We are thrilled to be a community of yoga for twenty years and on September 15 we are inviting everyone to help share in our celebration! Please save the date. 

Blessings,

Laura Jane

*Our June newsletter mistakenly listed the date of our 20th anniversary party as September 15, 2019. It should be September 15, 2018 - THIS YEAR!

Let's Celebrate the great MAHA (mother). Moms Practice for FREE on Mother's Day!

My Dear Friends,

I want to thank again everyone who supported our benefit for the trees of Gray Bear and the many who expressed concern for the property. We raised over $1500 and I know that the energy will only continue to grow in the months ahead. 

We have some special ideas for fundraising which we hope will inspire the community to participate in our upcoming workshops and events. I have found a passion in nature and understand on a profound level that the environment around us will only thrive when we commit to the respect of our inner landscape.

Healing is actively happening all around as we are witnessing the vibrant color burst of new life unfolding in the grace of spring. The dogwoods and magnolia trees are in full expression this week, and I am thrilled to see the animals starting to be born. 

I am always in awe of nature and the wonder of how the grand intelligence just returns each spring as a reminder of faith. My joy is to get out and walk later into the evening or get up earlier to the sound of the birds. 

I hope that we can remember how important our practice is in facilitating the wellbeing and vibrancy of our own aliveness in our relationship to nature. The mental mind must think less as the deeper consciousness of our intrinsic nature is experienced with the ability to live in pure contentment in the present moment.

Nature can bring us to that moment. To trust in nature is to live in the wonder of beauty whether the sun is shining or not. To link to nature in our meditations is the most direct path to the heart. The heart being the seat of our soul and our true nature.

As Mother’s Day approaches, come celebrate the great Mother Earth. Let everyday be in gratitude for our ability to breathe and share in life’s abundance. Respect ourselves, each other, and our inner environment of humankind.

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Mother's Day, Sunday, May 13, 2018

Honor your mother by bringing her to yoga on Sunday, May 13. Pay for your class, and your mom practices for FREE.

Limit one mom per paying student. Valid for 9am Hatha Vinyasa or 10:30am Vinyasa Flow Class. Must arrive at least 15 minutes before class starts to register. 

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Many blessings and ENJOY this season celebrating the great MAHA (mother).  

P.S. Here are some photos from our Earth Day Fundraiser class.

Namaste,
Laura Jane

To keep balance restored in our beautiful earth, we need to remember our inner balance.

Happy Spring! I love the study of yoga and how it offers balance of the mind, body and emotions in holding the space of the opposites. All pairs of opposites come into the equimity with the path of the middle way.

To hold the opposites with our world today is embracing the true understanding of the word compassion. I want to be held accountable for what is my truth and to be able to keep open hearted to the extremes of bias opinions that keep pulling on my soul. I want to be able to listen and not judge that which I don’t understand. I want to walk in someone else’s shoes with a clarity that is experienced by being open to differences.

I understand that balance is not being rigid to what is seen through my lens, but to hold a respect for all beings, knowing that we all see differently through our various memories, which color our life experiences both joyous and painful. Can we just find a way to use words to convey deeper connections of the heart?

Our intellect gets in the way as fear leads to anger, and anger leads to rage, and rage leads to separation. In coming together as a community, we need to embrace our different stories, lifestyles, and beliefs, from not only the logic of intellect, but from the depth of our soul.

Embrace the mythos of our journey by sharing the concept that life is precious and a blessing. I am not here to harm you, but to join you in kindness and respect. I want to share my table with an abundant attitude that life is greater when engaging in service. 

On Earth day, I am hosting a benefit for the trees, my spiritual oasis in found in nature. As a child, I grew up in the woods surrounded in what I still believe to be the magical realm of the gods. I would walk for hours lost in my deeper thoughts of make believe and create all kinds of games that only children can do in the woods.  

Lounging in the woods at Grey Bear Lodge

Today, I long for my trips back to Grey Bear to renew my spirit with the magic of those acres of trees. Unfortunately, because of my schedule this year, I will not be hosting a retreat, but instead offering a day of gratitude to practice yoga and meditation in honor of my sacred home.

The property is having some major financial challenges. They must come up with much needed assistance, or they risk losing the acres that keep their property out of the hands of developers.  

Please join me on Earth Day, Sunday, April 22 for a special yoga class and fundraiser, and I promise to take you into balance as we celebrate the gift of nature and our profound relationship to the source. To keep balance restored in our beautiful earth, we need to remember our inner balance. Hopefully, we can hold that space for all souls to thrive in a world nourished by the grace of Mother Earth.  

Enjoy each day with love and light,
Laura Jane