shifting energies in a home

i love renewing things around the home and office to freshen up my world, and yes it invites new energies too. during mercury retrograde throwing and giving away what hasn't been used or does not work and cannot be repaired was done with success. now with a big move to a brand new environment, stu and i decided to start making a new home with what there was already plus a few extra pieces. we ripped out the old crusted paint off the deck chairs and table, sanded it to a baby's bottom smoothness and re-painted it a driftwood colour that has brought out the grains in the teak. just gorgeous! and it has lit up our terrace and therefore our view.

the benches stu got made for the wedding, we converted those into a library, we have so many books and pictures to put up, we sanded, dusted, wiped and put on a hardy coat of polyurethane....and now we have a beautiful library in our upcoming study. doing projects together and having zone out time TOGETHER tightens our relationship. its the yoga during daily life, the breathwork on the mat that can be brought to your loved ones that makes yoga a lifestyle. the mantras one learns in yoga school or the one that your guru gives, that's not the only way to enlightenment, it's the love that you generate by just saying 'i love myself' has the same effect. stu does not do yoga but he said this yesterday 'this chair needed some love and painting it is giving it attention'. this too is yoga.

connection for life

getting married and embracing the committment to grow together is a sacred vow. we make that vow with our closest friends and it is a default committment with our family members. we shared our vows at sunrise on Casuarina beach in Darwin Australia on 28th july a few days before the full moon. waking up at 4.30 am was no big deal because one does anything for the person they adore and the view was breathtaking. here is my vow to Stu: you are the person i have been waiting for; you are my best friend; you are my teacher in love and loving; you are my example for integrity; it's time to begin our journey together; i am thrilled to grow together with you; i am surrendering to the flow of love between us and ready to live the path we create together; i love you honey

my new home

my first week in Darwin has been pretty full. putting aside the undertaking of leaving Turkey, a place i called home for 10 and a half years, saying goodbye was not easy. to be detached is not an easy feat for anybody...but when there is support and belief that change is ultimately a good thing, the process has more flow. i have been doing my 'youth turns' as i call it, the tibetan ritual of youth. joined a yoga class with Sanjit Das at a scout warehouse in Darwin and did a hour and a half of pranayama. learned something that i thought was reviving- he had us do kapalbhatti facing south doing one exhalation per direction, left right up and down. he had us do it for around 2 minutes starting with the intention of honoring our breath in all directions. it was good fun and i felt great. Stu and i went to deckchair cinema to watch 'Yogawoman' an inspiring documentary about how women have shaped the yoga industry in the past 40 years. deckchair is an outdoor cinema where people can have vegetarian food and listen to the trees rustle while watching a movie on a massive screen. Stu at one point turned to me and said 'Don't panic, there's a possum' and wo and behold there he was big and furry with a long thin tail shuffling about through the deckchairs looking for a nibble. over the weekend Darwin had a Beer Regata where people collect their beer cans throughout the year and make a functional boat. pretty awesome! some make it some sink but it's a fun festival by the beach and folks come from all over. i loved watching the thong throwing contest, basically people throw their flip flops real hard and the one that goes the farthest wins a hefty prize of 250 aussie dollars! i am enjoying the atmosphere of taking it easy here, such a turnaround after istanbul! going to go for a quick swim to get the blood flowing.

After years of knowing that I needed to begin working out and becoming healthier, I finally decided to attend a free yoga class at my school. I had some knowledge about yoga from other classes that were also started for teachers, but no one prepared me for the likes of lovely Irem. I can honestly say that I realized for the very first class that I had finally found the way to get me moving in the right direction. Irem’s kind and forgiving attitude coupled with her vast knowledge of both yoga and the human body make a great combination. She explains every move before we actually do it. Frequently asking questions like “Do you have trouble with your ........? Well then you should try it this way” have made me feel secure in the class. I am not afraid of getting hurt and am actually motivated to try new and more difficult positions, learning to push my limits in a safe environment. After each class, the relaxed and content feeling I have is hard to describe. I am now much more physically active these days and I know that Irem’s class was catalyst that I needed. What better testimony can I give than to say that I have never missed a class? mws

kundalini yoga in new york

i went to kundalini yoga classes while i was in new york. in a fabulous tall building in Manhattan. everyone was in white, the guru was in town for teacher training so classes were full.

i started doing kundalini yoga last year in Istanbul. the reason why i love it so much is because the whole session concentrates on kriyas, cleansing through the fire breath. and with specific and repititious movements coupled with the fire breath one awakens the kundalini and divine awareness. the awareness is equivalent to what one feels after an entire day in a yoga workshop except the session does not go over 90 minutes. it is an intense spiritual and physical workout that is not comparable to any treadmill or pilates workout.

and after kundalini yoga class everything feels lighter and takes on an invisible glow.

darwin, oz

after istanbul darwin is a relief. the temperatures never change, the only season there is is the dry and wet season. this time around the wet season with its' thunderstorms, sheet lightning and lightning that "crawls" was absolutely hypnotic. and then twin rainbows...just magical.

bali

i missed india so much in bali. the offerings in front of every shop and home, the scooters weaving through traffic, the rains flooding the streets, the breeze that follows the rain...and the sunsets in the tropics never disappoint me.