The Year of the Female Pelvis: 2011

The year 2011 was an awesome year of accomplishment. In the beginning of this year I was doing my research blog: mulabloga about mulabandha, the pelvis and related topics. I deepened my work with my pelvic floor yoga teacher/goddess: Leslie Howard. And this Fall I taught two successful and well-attended yoga and the pelvic floor workshops for women: Root Wisdom Yoga at Yogaview, and Pelvic Empowerment at Yoga Circle.

Model pelvis holding a celebration of flowers.

I received some beautiful feedback via social media:

And in 2012: the pelvis continues... Some projects are already in the works for this coming year!! I will tell you more as we go forward. I'm so excited!

Thank you!!

Happy 2012!!

The Meaning of Life... Seriously.

The meaning o' life
is a broad topic. If you
want to enlighten…

Go away! Don't want
that from you! If you want to
be a friend—coolness.

Don't have the patience
for a fatherly teacher,
but I like to laugh.

Ruby Room Love.

I Love the Ruby Room...

It is really no secret, but it is also not public enough yet... 

The above picture is a thoughtful gift from a friend who knows how much I like it. Can't wait to spend my gift card!

And it's really not a habit of mine to gush about a business (except occasionally about places where I work), but I am grateful for my experience this year at the Ruby Room. I don't have any official connection with them other than being a customer, but I do get a helpful discount on their services since I work next door to the spa at Yogaview on Division Street.

Paul

I first went in on a tip from a friend that Paul does awesome eyebrows. And he does. Over the course of months we moved step-by-step to a shape I really like. At first I was afraid to let someone in on my brows, but I did know that I  wanted some help with this (but not too thin...). Then, when Ruby Room had their "Spa Week" insane discounts I tried a facial with Paul. He is a master and a professional. I am always so impressed by his level of preparedness for his work. He just always seems ready for doing an awesome job. Extremely knowledgeable, super-sweet and fun, I totally trust Paul with my skin and eyebrows.

Thanks, Paul!!

Jenifer

During one of my visits, I noticed makeup in the store. I hadn't worn makeup for years! But I was looking to update my look, and learned from the desk staff that Jenifer is great with everyday makeup. And she is! I learned a lot from the session, and since I bought some make up the service was free! I am super-happy with what I bought, and months later I am still enjoying and wearing what I bought on that fun day!

Thanks, Jenifer!!

Melanie

I just always felt so good going in and out of the Ruby Room. And I became curious about their "Intuitive Readings". I heard someone say they were really good. It took me a while to get around to it, but I tried a session with Melanie, and she did not disappoint. Melanie is super-warm and knowledgeable on subjects related to moving one's life energies in an intended direction, and great at finding opportunities for healing. She offers great support in times of change and has good ideas about things. I believe that Melanie's guidance comes from a beautiful and good place. Thanks. Melanie!!

During the "Spa Week" discounts I also tried a massage at Ruby Room. I made the appointment with a therapist, and I thought I heard the name "Jane." I thought to myself, "Whew, a relief to have a female massage therapist." (You see, I had recently received a suspicious breast massage from a male therapist at another business, and I just didn't feel good about it. I don't think I gave permission for that...) 

James

Anyway, I arrived for my appointment and found that the massage therapist's name was actually "James." I'm glad it worked out that way, though, because if I would have heard the name correctly at first I would have not followed through with scheduling the session. (I was just a bit traumatized from the earlier experience that I had received somewhere else.) James is really sweet and easy to interact with, and he does a great job. I liked him from the start, and also told him about my discomfort over the strange breast massage, and he sort of joked about it and it was okay. I felt safe, and he was nice. I had a bizarre sense during the massage that his hands were very much like mine, meaning very perceptive and respectful. I do adjustments with my hands in my work as a yoga teacher, and have though a lot about touch. So I was impressed and fascinated with James...

Thanks, James!!

And thanks again to the Ruby Room for helping me to feel a bit more beautiful in 2011, 

both inside and out!

Women, let's be pelvic pioneers!

Join me on Sunday, December 11 for the workshop: Pelvic Empowerment.

In the region of the hips, pelvis, low belly, butt, low back and crotch it can seem a bit cloudy, as in the awareness is not clear.

Why do women tend to reject this awesome part of the body? If this seems like too strong of an assertion we might ask: might the awareness be better?

Could the lack of clarity be related to feelings of vulnerability, emotional pain, or trauma?

Well, on this coming Sunday at the Yoga Circle we are going to cover this topic and more…

I have found in my work with Leslie Howard that the first step is to just get to know the pelvis. In the workshop I will teach from my life sized model pelvis and helpful illustrations. We will also discover our own pelvises with some yoga poses along with safe, clear instruction about what we are doing.

Another layer of clarity comes as we uncover stories from our own lives that have defined the pelvis for us.

How does our culture define femininity? How does this affect how we feel about ourselves? Does this affect how we feel about our bodies?

This is a small peek into the realm of Pelvic Empowerment…

Anatomy/Actions/Relaxation Techniques/ Understanding Our Stories/ Living with strength and deep love for the whole body…

A celebration honoring the female pelvis! Yes!

And bring a friend/sister/mother/daughter/aunt/cousin/loved one!


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Way beyond women in yoga…

I'm realizing that there are "feminists" who like to blame other women for cultural imbalances… it's taken me a while to get it. (there is a source behind this revelation, but I think it was more of a trigger than one article to "call out," so I'm not naming it here…)

I believe that it's only in an atmosphere of mutuality of support and understanding that we might move to something greater. In striving to understand situations that baffle us from a mind that is seeing where the expression of person or situation could be coming from there is a possibility that we might see things differently (and heal).

I narrow my eyes at the whole "eww, look at her" critique. I'd like to say it makes me tired, but it actually makes me mad. (it could be because I have been at the "butt" of such criticism in the past…)

I'd like to see a world where we can look at one another openly, and appreciate what we see. I'm not suggesting that we "like" everything we see, but it could be helpful to consider how a given person or situation might be contributing to an understanding of reality that we are entertaining in any given moment. We can then more fully use our wisdom to make communication choices that will help instead of hurt each other.

Am I in dreamland?? (maybe just a little…) Competition seems to rule things right now. The pressure and illusionary need to be right or above others confuses our predicament.

A Nice Haiku.

Friendly engagement.
Warm people from different
generations. Nice.

I Forgive Thanksgiving.

Here a couple of things that I forgive about Thanksgiving:

1. It can seem to be a time of fake behavior, a time of pretending and make-believe… "Yes" we really like :) and enjoy one another—not always true…

I forgive my perceptions of fake behavior. I am a sensitive lass, which means I really feel things, which also means that I may feel your subconscious sleights. "You," (I am digging deep here, so please don't assume that I actually mean you.) I'm pretty sure are somewhat unaware of how your behaviors affect me. I've allowed myself—once again somewhat unknowingly—to be entertaining, or perhaps I was somewhat occupied by, victim-style interfacing with situations.

Victim-style interfacing means to me that I am looking to others to define my self-worth. I look to you to see if I'm likable or worthy, or I look to you to tell me how to feel about myself when I am coming from what I have come to know as my victim filter.

When I am using my victim OS (operating system) I am wide open and vulnerable to attack, and am also available to be harmed by "friendly fire" which is known to come from someone you love who happens to be in a bad mood or a challenging situation.

So I also forgive my victim OS, and I'll try to be better at recognizing if I've forgotten to use my software upgrade—I need to make sure that I'm using the right version of my OS, else I can experience a system crash, as evidenced by a negative-thought avalanche, when I am interfacing with the buggy software of my friends and family. (Of course I also acknowledge my own "bugs" or glitches… I did in some detail just above.)

2. I'm ashamed of a culture that appears to celebrate dominance, greed, violence, and victories achieved through slaughter. Thanksgivings were celebrations of the massacres of native North Americans in the 1600s.

I've always felt embarrassed about the displays of abundance associated with Thanksgiving. It always seemed to say, "We are the fortunate/blessed/rich people." This is dependent on others being less fortunate. Instead of over-filling our bellies, wouldn't it be better to share?

Well I've decided to forgive the situation, in favor of appreciating the good of people getting together around the topic of gratitude. It's great to be thankful for what we have.

I just hope that we can remember the people who are beyond our own dinner tables, too… (I find myself wanting to remember the living, the dead and those yet to be born in my prayers today.)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Haiku Gratitude Travel…

Have traveled many
lives worth thanks to stories shared
by students and friends.

Pelvic Empowerment Yoga Workshop with Brooks.

Welcome to an all-levels yoga workshop for women with Brooks Hall.

Sunday, December 11, 2011
Yoga Circle
401 W Ontario Street, Suite 210, Chicago, IL
1 to 4 pm
Cost: $40

Yoga includes living vibrantly in every part of the body. At the same time there are many factors that can cause a woman to reject femininity as well as the root of vitality, creativity and stability, located in the pelvis. For many women, the pelvis is stagnant, neglected or strained by tension, self-judgment, and abuse. This affects our yoga, as well as our health and life expression beyond our yoga mats.

Brooks will give a talk exploring aspects that impact how we think about our female bodies, for the pelvis contains so much more than anatomy. The pelvis holds some of our most precious, sacred and embarrassing stories. It is a treasure of emotion, power and creative inspiration, and when we cut ourselves off from this beautiful resource, our lives become sapped of the vitality that is our birthright.

The anatomy of the pelvic bowl will be discussed, as well as how to most effectively activate and relax the pelvic floor. Safe, detailed and clear instruction will be provided. We will practice postures and techniques for activating the pelvic floor, as well as those where we can stretch and relax ourselves.

Whatever your history with your body, you can begin now to discover the powerful resources within.
~Tami Lynn Kent, Wild Feminine

Call the Yoga Circle to sign up: 312-915-0750

Every Action Thanks.

Every action thanks,
and every inaction scorns.
Choose what you will do.

Thank you! I am alive haikus.

It seems strange: I am
wondering if I have time
enough in my life

to be grateful for
all of the blessings that I
have known so far in

this life. And even
more amazing is the fact:
I am living now.

So even more thanks
are called for: thank you for YOU!
Thank you for my life.

Thanks for work to do,
and for problems for me to
solve or ask advice…

Nothing finished, and
everything in motion: I
can apply effort.

Affect the way things
go by participating:
speaking, doing and

seeing; much thanking.
Forever loving. Thank you!
Every action thanks.

Relishing the warmth of a haiku dream…

I reached back to find
you. Your warm hands found my arms.
I relished the warmth.

Time to fly haiku!

Feeling stuck, like a
warm leaf whose stem is holding
tight to the cold branch.

Dear everybody haiku.

Dear everybody,
I love you. Sometimes you hurt.
Hi again. Welcome.

Spent banana haiku.

Spent banana brings
monkey glee, if I only
know where ooh ooh be…

Grateful for headache haiku.

Grateful for headache
that reminds me to take care.
Do not ignore this.

Haiku of the Brown Roses.

Flower-like bundles,
seeds revealing a lasting
and lovely promise.

Spiritual path always happy with Anusara?

I have been really interested in all the blogging about the “Anusara Exodus”. I’ve enjoyed my share of Anusara yoga, and will enjoy more, I’m sure… But I’ve always felt a bit isolated from certain aspects of it. Christina Sell pretty much nails it for me when she says (about her teacher outside of Anusara):

...Lee didn't care at all about whether things were essentially good or not. He sided, I think, more with the Buddhists on that. Life, he taught more than once, is essentially nuetral. We are the meaning makers. He was influenced heavily by the Fourth Way work and so as much as he taught us that we were supported in the process of waking up, he had a very healthy respect for what they call the "denying force" and the ways that such a force manifested though the unexamined facets of our psychology and unconscious involvement in the world and would, when given a chance, work to kick us off the path without us even knowing it. The denying force might even dress up as a church or as a cause and steer us off the path with promises of salvation that appeared to be our dream come true. He wasn't a teacher who was concerned much about happiness. Not his own and not ours, when you get right down to it. He taught a lot that the deepest aim of sadhana was to become transparent to the flow of Grace, to be in service to the shakti to such a degree that he described his essential teaching as "Spiritual Slavery." He said that Spiritual Slavery was the deepest freedom a human could experience and there were no guarantees that your psychology would dig it. None at all. He was not casual and he was not in it as a hobby. He was also fiercely loyal, loving, compassionate and I think he may have been the kindest person I have ever known.

I know through my life experience that right aspects of life don't always feel good. I think that "flowing with grace" in Anusara yoga means moving in one's life path connected to one's spirit in a way that feels good. But true spiritual living is in line with what is best for one's self, community, and world and I think that it can require some honest heartache and serious work. I have gotten the sense from people in Anusara yoga that this is supposed to be always ecstatic and outwardly happy. And in my sense of it, the path of truth or spirit is neutral, as in the above excerpt. If I'm not blissed in a particular moment, it doesn't mean I'm wrong. My emotional content is information, neither good or correct depending on happy or sad feelings, just there to experience, acknowledge and decide how I might like to proceed from there.

If I'm not happy in a given moment, it's okay! It's not wrong. I'm not bad if I don't feel good. It just means that something is happening.

Something is happening!

For more coverage, check out the following:

A Letter to the Yoga Community about The “Anusara Situation.” ~ Amy Ippoliti 

Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis: John Friend, founder of Anusara yoga, re: Darren Rhodes, Christina Sell, Elena Brower—& lineage in America.

Root Wisdom Yoga Workshop with Brooks.

Announcing:

Workshop on the topic of Yoga and the Female Pelvic Floor*! Read on...

Root Wisdom Yoga workshop with Brooks Hall.
Saturday, November 19th
1:30 - 3:45 pm
cost: $35
Here is the Yogaview Workshops page where you can sign up (you will want to scroll down to find "Root Wisdom"...).

Yoga includes living excellently in the whole body. In this workshop we will clarify what is happening in the region of the pelvis for women with safe, clear instruction. We will map the actions of the pelvic floor, as well as techniques for relaxation so we might more skillfully use the whole body in yoga.

Root Wisdom Yoga is for women who are curious about how the pelvis might better contribute to their experience of yoga, creativity and life. Brooks has found a more vibrant, powerful, joyful and comforting connection with herself in yoga and elsewhere by including the anatomy “down there” in her practice.

All levels welcome.

Location:
Yogaview
1745 West Division
Chicago, Illinois 60622
773.384.5569

*Brooks is grateful to Leslie Howard for introducing her to this work. Teachers at Yogaview have been essential to her own development as a teacher and she has completed Yogaview’s level 1 and 2 teacher trainings. Gratefulness also goes to Gabriel Halpern and the Yoga Circle for helping her to nurture her teaching skills since 2002. She would also like to thank Woman Within International and her Empowerment Circle for giving her insight into what it means to support women in a healing environment. 

A Gushingly Positive Review of Writing Yoga and a Counterpoint.

It's true.

Once I started reading Bruce Black's Writing Yoga my attention soon turned into a love-fest for a cool book.

Jay Winston's review, while almost more about himself and his issues than the actual book, did raise a point that I agreed with: that the set off sections that were specified as having come from Mr. Black's journal were actually especially polished little teaching points—which annoyed Jay, but I thought they were good. But Jay might be right when he points out that we might be getting more of the real personal scoop from some of the things shared in the main body of the text.

And I think that Writing Yoga is yet another yoga memoir—a very good one—disguised as a how-to-write book. I enjoyed the story! ...a really beautiful book! But I wouldn't have picked it up right away if I hadn't received that review copy... Thank you Rodmell Press!

And while my review might be more about my swoon of a memory of a blip in my past than about the actual book, I hope that it's still a worthwhile read!

The Article at ElephantJournal.com:
On Writing Yoga, Honoring Teachers, and Having Fun on the Path.

Yours truly,
Yogic Muse

Demystifying "down there" with Leslie Howard.

I'm excited about this upcoming workshop to be presented at the Yoga Circle, located in Chicago:

DEMYSTIFYING “DOWN THERE”
Sunday, October 30
The Female Pelvic Floor: A Workshop for Women with Leslie Howard.

From the text on Yoga Circle's website:

Leslie Howard

Proper strengthening and stabilizing of the pelvic floor helps to create the correct foundation of each movement in the body. This is the true meaning of "core work." Whether you experience any of these conditions, or are just plain curious about this region of the body, this workshop is for you:

I fell into the "just plain curious" category the first time I took Leslie's workshop. However I had experienced fear about my pelvic health on and off throughout my adult life. It just seemed kind of scary and mysterious in the area "down there", and I have found that education about what is happening in the pelvic floor can go a long way towards deep healing and peace in a woman's body:


I heartily recommend this workshop for women!

More from Yoga Circle's workshops page about the kind of concerns women might bring to the workshop session for education and clarification, "demystification" indeed:

• pelvic pain 

• leak when laughing or sneezing 

• lower back, hip or groin problems 

• have to go the bathroom too often 

• discomfort during sex or while using tampons 

• prolapsed organs 

• skin irritation

• pregnancy and birth 

In this workshop we will locate, assess, soften, stretch, strengthen and exercise the various muscle groups of the pelvic floor, discuss mula bandha, abdominal health and how to utilize the pelvic floor in asana.

The afternoon will begin with anatomy, lecture and discussion, followed by subtle experiential movements to awaken your understanding of this often ignored area. A series of specific exercises and asanas for the pelvic floor will follow. Time permitting, asana that spotlights the pelvis and hip joints will be practiced. Handouts will be provided. Bring your friends, sisters, mothers and daughters.

Okay, so come to this workshop if you are a woman in the Chicago Area and can make it, and want to take the next step in body awareness. And if you have women friends and family in the Chicago region tell them about this workshop. I can't recommend it highly enough!

Call the Yoga Circle to sign up: (312) 915-0750.

Post Rape Victim Advocates Benefit Yoga Class Notes.

Welcome, reader!

I posted an article at ElephantJournal.com on sexual assault and our culture, as well as what it means to address a difficult topic like rape in a yoga class setting. Read it here:
Is rape culture Darwin's Fault?

Thanks for reading!

Keepin' it real at Intent.com

I can see that I was in a rough patch when I was asked to participate as a featured blogger for Intent.com's 30 Days of Yoga Intents. It was kind of hard for me to crank one out. I wasn't feeling hopeful enough, I thought, to write an intention. I was thinking that it needed to be all light and perfect—which I am not...

But I did write a short blog for them, and I think I managed to keep it real with this one:
The Art of Choosing Light

Blessings!
Brooks

Yogathon for Rape Victim Advocates

I'm thrilled to be participating in:

 3rd Annual Mind Body Spirit…  
 And a Good Cause  
 Benefiting Rape Victim Advocates  
 September 24 & 25, 2011 
Click on the image or text above to see the flyer.

Yoga studios and teachers are participating in the event, sometimes referred to as a yogathon. Participating classes are donating to Rape Victim Advocates.

I am impressed by this description of Rape Victim Advocates (received from a representative):

Every day in Chicago, women, children, and men are dealing with the immediate - and often life long - effects of sexual assault. Since 1974, Rape Victim Advocates (RVA) has been here to help rape victims, offering personal support, accurate information about their rights, and experienced advocacy. From a hand to hold in the emergency room, to clothes to wear home, to an advocate to stand beside them in court, RVA offers survivors of sexual violence the individualized help they need to begin moving beyond the trauma to live healthy, whole lives. Then, RVA goes further, changing attitudes and preventing future sexual violence through education. To improve the treatment of sexual assault survivors, RVA provides training to police officers, state’s attorneys, and health care professionals.

Something I hate about the aftermath of rape is that the victim of this crime is called into question, and their character is scrutinized. What was the person wearing? Were they drunk? Out late at night? Homosexual? Transgender? Slut? Convict? (See my SlutWalk piece at ElephantJournal.com)

Everybody deserves advocacy and protection. Nobody deserves to be raped. It is never appropriate for someone to rape another person.

So I am glad to use my voice in this way, and offer together with the Yoga Circle the proceeds from the yoga class I will teach on Sunday September 25th at 4pm at the Yoga Circle, 401 W Ontario St, Chicago.

Come to class! All are welcome! Let's support this vital cause.

What can I say??

I think that I'm breakin' through the barrier...

Could it be as simple as a stretch?

S'pose it might be...

(Isn't it cool that even my student's dogs experience the benefit of their human receiving yoga instruction! Witness the above "down dog." Total excellence.)

It's only taken me ten years...um, do I mean lifetimes?

But anyway, I feel ready to take a fresh look at my resources and to start dreaming and doing in a way that is different for me, and a bit more outward regarding. I previously thought that the problem was me, almost as if I was a problem... This is centered in child-thinking where the child internalizes whatever happens as being their fault. The old solution was to focus in on myself to try to eradicate the problem... As you can imagine this may have caused a problem for myself. But along the way I also have learned so much about myself, so making myself the enemy was not without benefit.

I am confident today and trust myself in radically new ways, and well, we'll see... Could it be as simple as reaching beyond the old ways, like a stretch to release an old stiffness? I understand that I am not the enemy, and nobody is. The prognosis (I give myself regarding the "stuckness") seems good.

And if this seems like a totally cryptic post, well: it is... A somewhat abstract wondering...

Yours truly,
Brooks

...and Thank You for reading!

I knew there would come a day…

I believed on February 21, 2011 that the day would come when I would want to use this picture (I took it on that same day):

I remember liking the way the light dusting of snow had highlighted the links of chain that were binding old splintered wood onto old stumps that probably once supported something usable. This mass of old stuff is in the Chicago River. I took the picture as I was walking across a bridge on a cold day. I looked at this and thought to myself: How stuck can you get??

When I look at this image I just think that it shows useless holding on. No current consciousness or utility seems to be holding this stuff together. It has just been left to allow time and weather to shift it at will. But it has sufficient mass to hold on for a long time, so it would require a big expenditure of human effort to move it any time soon.

So I thought that the image would probably represent a downer post or something when I think of myself as appreciating the flow of experience.

But If I’m only appreciating the flow and movement I might allow my attention to be selective to only see such movement taking place, or doing, or more precisely thinking things that create an illusion of flow when there have been parts of me that have been bound like those old logs—for years.

I’ve focused so much on the inner work of what I’ve understood about yoga (the parts that I thought would help me), and perhaps I’ve learned a few things, and I believe that I have—even though I also understand that one’s work is never finished.

“Enlightment” in a human body is not a situation when the person in the body knows something and stops taking in new input—because they are already knowing and perfectly spiritual. Someone in an enlightened state (in my opinion) might just be a bit clearer on seeing the changes that are happening in the world a bit closer to when they are actually happening, and I think that they are also capable of acting on them. I think that it could be hard to see what is really happening to the planet and ourselves because we tend to be married to our memories and dreams (or is that just me?).

This might sound a bit harsh, but I think that what I am proposing to myself is to break off my engagement with false thoughts (even the nice ones…).

A few years ago I married myself (I’m not kidding…) with a little private ceremony because I wanted to formally pledge my support to my life path—my personal path, not the one that I thought that others had directed me towards.

Now I want to clearly see the results of this work and readjust my path to be true to what I’ve learned. A part of me has really been dragging her feet.

Thus the above image…

Life like a sunflower...

Is my life like a sunflower?

It is now September, and just like this sunflower has so many maturing seeds in it's big, round sun, I, too have some options for future growth... And like this sunflower there are so many options, presented in the seeds, that some might not work out. Some of the seeds will probably be eaten by birds or shriveled by neglect. But some will make it. Some will grow!

For my potential futures and possibilities, a crucial factor will be the attention and attentive action I can offer to the options (seeds) I choose to develop.

For a seed to grow, it needs a proper spot. It seems that I also need to do a bit of weeding so I can take care of the ones I want, instead of trying to nurture old things that are no longer fitting in the garden of my dreams.

I'm goin' for a Sizzlin' September of Action towards those possibilities I want for my future. Which includes lettin' go of the old (and throwing a few things in the trash...) as well as attendin' to the new!

Of course I'd like to keep my presence rooted in the Present Moment: I'll pretty much have to in order to get anythin' meaningful accomplished... The only place I can do ANYTHING is in the here and now...

As you can see, I'm goin' for a chilled 'tude... But I really am intending to turn up the gas and cook the food I want to eat (so to speak...)!

See me smiling.

Or not...

I am not someone to ever be confused with the smile police. However I like to smile. And I like to remind myself that I can smile for no reason and I can smile for me.

This is really about my Tumblr blog:

http://yogaandbrooks.tumblr.com/

I have been posting quotes about smiling and pictures of myself smiling, as well as quotes from books I've been reading and stuff like that.

And since I have a contrarian aspect to my personality I haven't posted any smiles in this post, but you can see plenty at Yoga and Brooks...

Yogic Musing on Change.

Hi, Yogic Muse Reader!

Thank you for YOU! I appreciate all readers.

...Even if there has been a bump or some kind of difficulty in our relationship: I'm glad you're here (even if you don't like me, and of course I like it when you like me.).

Changes are here! I believe them to be the kind of changes that I explained in this video about my reading of The Magic Mountain, by Thomas Mann—changes that slowly ripen over time...

I am a changing being—no joke. I believe it because I am living it.

I've heard people say oh such-and-such, they are always this way... And there seems to be assumptions about people not changing, well, I am changing.

And I don't mean that I reject my old self (or selves): I love her dearly. She is my precious one.

I've had some insight from a recent makeup consultation—I'm not kidding! At some point I would have thought that to be so superficial, but I really valued the experience and results (which you can see in the above image).

It was about bringing this one (the person I am now) out more vividly into the world.

I saw something in my eyes that I'd never seen before.

It's someone who has secrets (in a good way).

In the past I have felt raw, open and unprotected. I seemed to require approval from everyone I met, which is (of course) not possible. Even worse, I think that I wanted everyone to forgive my sins, which is something that nobody else can do for me... What was so bad about me doesn't really make sense for this woman in an adult body. It had something to do with childhood wounds which I had zero control over.

The makeup brought out my eyes in a more vivid way, while offering a boundary—a mask if you want... I'm thinking that I want to present myself vividly to the world while maintaining a safe and nurturing interior space for the images and memories from my past. And only sharing what I want.

It seems very feminine (another concept that I've had some difficulty with) to maintain safety in a protected internal space while sharing what I want. Offering what I choose to as a gift to my friends (instead of desperately looking for their approval or love to fill my old wound) seems like a really awesome way to be.

In the past I see or remember myself almost compulsively over-sharing to just about any friend who offered a generous ear, or I was completely shut off from them. This was due to my unattended to internal pain—it really seemed too much to bear on many occasions. And so I needed others to save me, yet nobody else could. Only I can.

And I can.

I like her, too:

The above picture is good old me without makeup, early in the morning at the Willis Tower Skydeck.

Yoga at Skydeck Chicago.

Hi! Read my latest article at ElephantJournal.com :

Grabbable Buns, Media, Glitz and Yoga on the 103rd floor.

I visited the magic mountain...

Hi! Check out my new post at ElephantJournal.com:

The Magic Mountain of Love, Freedom and Death

See the Sunrise over Lake Michigan!

It is so beautiful to see the sunrise! Have a great day!

And see it now (no matter what time it is) on my latest video:

The sunrise reminds me of generosity...

…finally invited to the party in my belly.

New post at mulabloga about an awakening belly:
Maya Abdominal Massage Revelation


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Dryer was left in the Tumblr Cycle!

During this past weekend I was *very busy* on my Tumblr page. You will find poetry, wisdom and videos! Check it out:
http://yogaandbrooks.tumblr.com/

Have a great week!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Project Self-Respect

See my new video about my latest project on self-respect!

Yogi Lovin' for Björk’s Crystalline

See my recent post at Elephant, Slathering Yoga-Infused Love all over Björk’s Crystalline, to hear the song and read my ponderings on poetry, crystals and earth magic. I hope you enjoy it!

xo

Brooks

Then and Now: 3 years of Yoga Blogging!

Article and short video at Elephant:

Yoga Blogging Chronicles of Brooks Hall

Being Brooks

Being Brooks might have something to do with blue toenails... It's a new video at Yoga and Brooks.