Learning how to slow down, one moment at a time.
It’s finally fall (though with the scorching heatwave in the Bay Area, it feels more like the start of summer) and for me that means it’s time for cozy season! It’s a time for bundling up, sipping on hot chocolate, and snuggling. What more could you ask for?!
Read MoreWhat is a balanced life?
Sometimes life calls for an afternoon of doing nothing. Sometimes life needs a night of partying hard with your best girlfriends. Sometimes life requires you to sleep for 10 hours straight. And sometimes life demands that you get up at 11:30pm and wait in the cold for one of the most spectacular views of your life.
Read MoreWhat better place for a spa enthusiast to visit than the land of natural spas? One of Iceland’s most abundant and valuable resources is its geothermal heat. Because Iceland is located at the meeting place of three tectonic plates, the country experiences a lot of volcanic activity, including multiple active volcanoes, and heat from within the earth is often released in the form of gas, liquid, or magma. The heat warms the water in springs located deep within the earth and essentially makes jacuzzies out of them.
Read MoreOver the past few months, I’ve been re-discovering what it means to be social again. Lately, I’ve had a very complex feeling of loneliness and isolation paired with anxiety from not knowing how to interact with people post-pandemic. My therapist challenged me to explore what community meant to me. “Who are the people you resonate with? Who are the people who can support you?” she asked me.
Read MoreAs a Restorative Yoga teacher, I’ve led a lot of sound healing and Restorative Yoga events. I have a good idea of what makes people feel comfortable and safe and I know what cues to say to help people settle down and tune in. But I don’t frequently experience sound healings on the other side, as a receiver of the healing.
I’m so accustomed to holding space for others and being considerate of everyone else, that I often forget to give myself that same space and consideration. And isn’t it funny how that goes? The restorative yoga teacher has difficulty giving herself restorative space!
Read MoreI often find myself in the perfection mindset: I strive to make my life perfect. But you and I know that perfection is an unattainable goal. Perfect is impossible. The perfect life does not exist.
I am on a journey to change my mindset. Instead of trying to find perfection, I am learning to accept that life, like yoga, is a practice. Practice includes consistency. Practice means I have to show up. Practice is commitment.
Read MoreAs a yoga teacher, I try to find the places where the practice I offer complements the community I am offering it to. As a yoga teacher that has chosen to specialize in Restorative Yoga, the number of complementary places significantly diminishes.
Over the past few years, I’ve taught yoga in lots of places trying to find that complementary fit. There were times when imposter syndrome crept into my mind. Questions like “am I qualified enough to teach this practice?” and “does anyone really want this type of practice?” repeatedly found their way into my thoughts. But I still kept searching.
Read MoreI love going to bathhouses. They’re my happy place.
There’s something so sacred about a place that requires you to unplug, be quiet, and take care of yourself. But I wasn’t always so excited about quiet and slow spaces like this.
When I first started going to bathhouses, I didn’t know what to do with myself. What do I do with all this solo quiet time? My restless mind led me on this never-ending rotation from the hot tub to the cold plunge to the sauna and back to the hot tub again. It’s like my mind wanted my body to do something for the sake of keeping busy and staying productive.
Read MoreSometimes, life delivers a reality check that feels like a slap in the face. My brutal reality check came in the form of getting sick with COVID during a particularly event-filled week. Every ounce of my being wanted to go out and be productive. Deep down, I wanted to believe that I would recover in time to attend all my events, but I knew that the best and safest thing for me to do was to clear out my schedule and take care of myself.
Read MoreSometimes, I just wanna do what I wanna do. I wanna make my own plans and not need to consider what other people think about my plans. I wanted to do something for me. The solution: Solo dates.
Read MoreAs a Restorative Yoga teacher, I hold space for my students. Even though I enjoy holding space for others, it is tiring. To replenish my energy, a part of my personal self-care routine is to find ways and spaces to be held. One of these ways is to take a Restorative Yoga class from other teachers I admire and trust. Thank you, David Rios (at Ocean Yoga), for your replenishing Restorative Yoga class. It was very much needed.
Read MoreI love being at Pedro Point Firehouse. I love the spaciousness and coziness of the space. And I’m sad to be leaving the space. After 10 months of classes, Joe (of The MATS Meditation) and I are saying goodbye to the firehouse for now. I’m sure we will return again, but for now, we’re parting ways. Thank you to the community of Pacifica for welcoming us into this space and helping us get the word out.
Read MoreThe weather is warming up and the days are longer here in the San Francisco Bay Area. Do you know what this means? It’s walking weather!
I love walking around San Francisco. I think the golden hour hits differently and the views of the Golden Gate Bridge are spectacular. I especially love when the sky becomes a rainbow swirl of colors.
Read MoreIt has been a crazy last few weeks. I wasn't busy. In fact, I tried to stay not busy. But you know what was busy? My head. My thoughts. My stories.
Read MoreRoutine is comforting and safe. Comforting and safe are not a bad things. Society encourages, praises, and rewards those who constantly push “past their boundaries” or “outside of their comfort zone”, but this mentality is not sustainable. Comfort, safety, and familiarity are a place of rest.
Whenever I go to New York City, I visit Russ & Daughters. It has become my routine. It feels comforting and safe, which is very much welcomed after an entire day of trekking through Manhattan.
Read MoreI recently attended a yoga class held at the San Francisco Public Library (Mission Bay) and taught by my friends Andrea and Emily at Tendwell Collective. Andrea and Emily co-taught the class and each of them demonstrated a different variation. Andrea demonstrated with a chair. Throughout the class, we were encouraged to listen to our bodies, try different forms of movement, and stick with the ones that worked for us. This was truly an all-level yoga class and it was reflected in the people that showed up.
Read MoreI realize how relevant the saying "it takes the right tools to get the job done" is to many aspects of life. Tools not only include the physical things, but they also include the time you have, the space you give yourself, and the company you keep (even if it's just yourself).
Read MoreSlow creative mornings are my favorites, especially when it's filled with music. 🎶
I often lose track of time when I’m finding ways to be creative. This morning, I chose to spend time making music for myself in my office. It felt like a special treat. I let go of any criticism and played music for the sake of hearing music. The music fed my heart and soothed my soul.
Read MoreLately, I've been thinking about what makes a space safe. After the Lunar New Year Shootings, it seems like nothing feels safe anymore. Not dance halls. Not farms. Not yoga studios. Not schools.
Read MoreToday, I sewed patches onto blank shirts. I stumbled upon some really cute patches at Hot Topic and thought it would be a fun project to personalize blank shirts with patches. What a slow labor of love!
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