There's a certain magic that occurs in travel. Navigating unfamiliar terrain keeps the mind alert and the senses sharp. Even a mundane trip on public transport or a walk along what might be seen by the locals as an unremarkable residential street is seeped in intrigue. Strange bird song, a shocking scent of juniper, a crescent moon hanging in the sky so close it can't be real. My time in Australia, on the other side of the world, quite unexpectedly turned my world upside-down.
Read MoreKeep changing, you just get more who you really are.
I'm crazy about this poem by Roger Keyes. Susan Lip Orem shared it in her class at Heathen Hill Yoga a few weeks ago. It's been near to me ever since. Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) is a famous Japanese painter of the Edo Period. You may have seen his iconic images of waves.
Read MoreHome Practice Love Affair
A dedicated home practice is a rich playground for exploration, living with questions and treating yourself right. Yoga teachers: This is an absolute must for honing an authentic voice and clear point of view.
I've listed the top five reasons I cheat on my yoga classes with frequent (sometimes twice daily) practices at home. My list includes some tips for getting started and inspiration for falling deeper in love with your own yoga at home. I intend to add to this material in the coming months -- to flesh out the information below with practical guidance on your personal journey.
Read MoreSurfing and Falling Down Laughing
According to the Yoga Sutra, one of the five Kleshas (afflictions of the mind) is Abhinivesha, most often translated as “clinging to life” or “fear of death.” This affliction dilutes mental focus and compromises one's ability to discern the real from the unreal – an obstacle on the path towards liberation. It's not that I actually thought I was going to die out there in the water, but deep down we all have an innate survival mechanism that signals a flashing red light when danger is near. The tough part is discriminating between legitimate danger and an overactive mind.
Read MoreNew Year. New Moon. Blank Page.
I don't make new year's resolutions, but I do place great importance on process. Whatever grand aspirations we have for the new year, they are as blank as the pages in this book until we act.
Read MorePut down the phone and be a person.
Striking a balance between overusing social media vs. confronting feelings of isolation is a challenge I face living alone in a foreign country. My life in Japan presents both challenges and opportunities on many levels, but an interesting conundrum arises where technology and communication are concerned.
Read MoreThe Idea of God
The idea of God is one that has confounded me for as long as I can remember. Growing up with a family mix of Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Pagans, Thespians, Poets, Hippies and Tree Huggers, I was left to paint my own picture of the big spirit in the sky. Now, immersed in the diversity that is New York City and from my time spent in Japan, I've added a few more colors to my palette.
Read More"it could be weeds in a vacant lot, or a few small stones; just pay attention..."
I took this photograph at the start of my vacation in Santa Monica. The view through a camera is captivating. A lens provides a portal to seeing the foreground, the background, and most importantly the relationship between the two.
The shore is a long distance away. The plants in the foreground are nowhere near as big as they seem in this image. But what if everything in the foreground of our experience could be this big, this meaningful? And what if we coud see what's right in front of us while still keeping an eye on the horizon?
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