please welcome Jennifer, my replacement at Sports Club

I am happy to announce that Jennifer Earley will be replacing me at Sports Club, starting in September. She will be assisting my last few classes to make the transition for both her and you more comfortable.

Jennifer has a true passion for yoga that I know will take her far. Please introduce yourself to her when you see her in class and let her know of any injuries, old or new.

Jennifer and I will continue working closely together through the end of the year.

"goodbye" party: Aug. 30

As you know, my last day at Sports Club is Aug. 30, and there will be a get together that evening.

It is strange to announce my own goodbye party, and even stranger because I hope this will not be a true goodbye for us. I do hope to stay in touch and see you in classes at the studio.

However, Samantha has been kind enough to organize a little parting celebration for me, and I hope you can all attend. Feel free to bring spouses, etc.

[when] Saturday, Aug. 30 from 5-7 p.m.
[what] pot luck party (contact samantha to coordinate what to bring: 630-740-3998)
[where] the deck at the Greenville Sports Club on Congaree Road (I've been told it's out back by the tennis courts)

class recordings, anyone?

I plan to record my last classes at Sports Club so I have something to leave with my students who (will or) will not be able to take classes with me at North Main Yoga, starting next month when I switch over.

I'm looking into ways to post the recordings online so you can download for free whichever classes appeal to you. Check back later for links and such.

If you'd like to do it the old-fashiond way, I will list the classes available and you can bring me 1 blank CD for each class you want and a list of the class date(s) by Aug. 30, my last class at Five Forks. . .

weekend yoga events: Aug. 15-17

I've advanced these events already, so here is a reminder about yogic things to do this weekend.

*Friday [8.15] is the Yin Yoga class at the FF gym (6:30-7:30, no fee). bring extra blankets if you have them.

*Saturday [8.16] is the day of free yoga at North Main. I teach from 1-2:15 if you want to come check out the studio. 75-minute classes run all day, starting at 9 and ending at 6:45.

*Sunday [8.17] there is a meditation lecture on Giving at NMY. (3:30-5. $7)

For more info on any of these events visit the special events page at http://www.northmainyoga.com/specialevents.html.

Max discount deadline today & his (sat) breathing workshop is full

Just a quick reminder: today (Friday, Aug. 15) is the deadline to get Max Strom's workshops (sept. 5-7) at North Main Yoga for $50/each. As of tomorrow, they will go up to $60/each.

I know many of you have already paid to secure your spot, so thanks.

Also, the Saturday afternoon workshop ("How Well do you Sleep" on breathing) is full. If you have already registered for that class, please pay as soon as possible to keep your spot.

If you did not sign up for that class, but you'd like to be put on the waiting list, e-mail your name and phone number to nmyoga@bellsouth.net. She will let you know if spaces open up.

leaving Sports Club

After much, much, much thought, I am leaving Sports Club.

I submitted my resignation letter Monday morning, effective Aug. 31. I hope to teach out the rest of the month, but may hear otherwise from the management. I'll keep you posted. I am leaving on good terms. It was a personal decision, made up of many factors.

I cannot express with words how deeply I will miss you, my students at Sports Club. Some of you were patient enough to bear with me through my first class--when I was too nervous to look up, much less venture off my mat.

As much as some of you have said I have taught you, you should know you have taught me so much more. The last 20 months of teaching have let me evolve and learn each day, and I thank you.

Thank you for your commitment to your practice, your openness to going inside yourselves, your support and enthusiasm, your willingness to breathe.

I will write more later, but for now, please know that I hope to keep in touch if you are willing. I will be expanding my schedule at North Main Yoga, starting in September. [I will be teaching my community yoga class Monday-Friday, from 4-5 ($5), and Saturdays and Sundays from 9-10:15 a.m.]

Namaste.

namaste greenville

View my page on Namaste Greenville

[guest blog] liz: being content, on and off the mat

[note from kelly: I copied this post from the namaste greenville site (click here http://namastegreenville.ning.com/ if you want to read the comments section). thanks liz]

"why it's harder to look inside ourselves" by liz delaney

There is this great story that I first read in a children's book, but later discovered it is a Sufi tale as well. Here goes... A man is outside his house looking for his keys. His friend comes by, sees him and asks what he is looking for. The man replies, "I lost my keys."

The friend says, "Let me help you. Where did you lose them?" The man says, "Inside." Friend says, "Then why are you looking out here?" The man responds, "Because there is more light out here."

This describes some of us so well... It is so much easier to look outside of ourselves rather than within. This is part of the human condition. Look around you and I am sure you see people who seek happiness in the form of money, accomplishments, food, shopping and the accumulation of things. Always wanting more, more, more, but never finding the thing for which they are searching. What would happen if they turned inside?

The same is true in yoga class. Brian and I have been practicing a similar sequence for eight years and have been content with this. We never questioned it until someone asked us why we never teach the "harder" poses. It took us some time to really think and process through this.

Slowly, it occurred to us that if you are always seeking the "harder" poses, aren't you really trying to achieve something? Maybe trying to add it to your list of accomplishments? Our teacher once said the best way to lose the ego is to do the same poses over and over, but hold them longer and breathe deeper. The ego tells us we need more to be happy, again bringing us outside of ourselves. Isn't the aim of yoga to lead you within?

Our yoga practice should be just that- a practice for your daily life. Whatever manifests itself on your mat is usually what goes on in your daily life. When you practice yoga, do you strive to push yourself as hard as you can? What happens when your teacher changes his or her style, do you rebel in your head and do what you want to do anyway? Can you be content doing just what the teacher asks of you or do you always have to add more? What happens when a distraction occurs out the window, can you keep your focus or are you silently cursing the person causing the disruption?

When you are in yoga class are you thinking about what you did before or what you will do after? Can you enjoy your yoga practice for exactly what it is in that moment? What would happen if you just turned within?

Take a few moments today and think about your yoga practice and then think about your daily life. How often are you content in either situation? Are you happy just existing, being fully present, or do you need to consume more to be happy? Try spending a day (or even a yoga class) simply existing within to find the light that exists there. You never know what you may find.

[comments for liz? post them here]

new studio on woodruff road opening

Announcement, everyone: my friend (and guest blogger) Chris Brown is opening a new yoga studio on Woodruff Road sometime in September.

The studio will be located in the Maxwell Pointe strip mall at the intersection of Woodruff Road and Highway 14. I'll let you know more details when I have them.

Just wondering: how many of you would be interested in taking classes there?

how much environmental distraction is too much [when practicing or teaching]?

I am sure there are people out there who have never taken a yoga class in an environment that is nothing less than serene, "zen" and heavenly.

For the rest of us, have you ever been taking (or, for that matter, teaching) a class where the number of distractions present makes it almost impossible to be present? Or more specifically, where sounds from the racquetball elimination game and the nursery behind the neighboring walls are competing for attention, or where the room temperature is in the general vicinity of an industrial freezer, or where people are coming and going like a speed dating service?

Ok, I might be dramatizing it a bit. But only a little bit. The question is this: at what point does an environment make it impossible for yoga to happen? Or does it ever?--Is my struggle to concentrate in the midst of construction noises, for example, a sign of my non-enlightenment?

I am serious here. This is not a question I like asking, because it could (and probably will) turn out that the second answer is the correct one. But I do need feedback.

So: where is the line between living (or practicing) in the midst of confusion and distraction while being calm and in the moment AND teaching or practicing in an environment that is soooo not conducive to yoga that the struggle to overcome it ceases to be yoga at all?

Am I the only one with this dilemma? please comment.

help the hungry; get $5 yoga classes [all month]

Just a reminder, since I've mentioned this many times already, but the North Main Yoga studio is offering all classes this month for $5 when you bring in a canned good.

The studio is celebrating its third-year anniversary and using the month to give back to the community while collecting food for a local pantry. [the food pantry has not been decided, so if you have a suggestion, e-mail Brian or Liz at the studio--their info is listed along the right.]

The community yoga classes are always $5, so you are welcome to bring a canned good to these classes, but they will not be discounted.

free yoga: Aug. 16

As part of North Main Yoga's third-year anniversary celebration, the studio will be hosting a day a free yoga classes. Come try a new style or teacher or your favorite (for free).

The schedule is as follows [all classes are Aug. 16]:
9-10:15 [Iyengar style] Janice
10:45-12:15 [Vinyasa, level 2-3] Brian
1-2:15 [Community Yoga: gentle vinyasa] Kelly
2:30-3:45 [Women's Health] Jennifer
4-5:15 [Vinyasa, level 1-2] Liz
5:30-6:45 [Sivananda] Caroline

For style descriptions, visit the studio's website at www.northmainyoga.com.

slim august schedule

For those of you who have been asking, my teaching schedule for August at the gym was cut almost in half this month (not by my request). I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

If you would like to give feedback about the schedule changes, Libby Stewart (group fitness supervisor for all 3 clubs), is the one you'd need to contact. Her e-mail can be found online at www.sportsclubsc.com.

(I don't know that I even need to say this, but) If you do e-mail Libby, please be polite and constructive.