Hello There

"The task of all tasks is to transform what is insignificant into greatness, what is inconspicuous into radiance; to present a speck of dust in a way that shows it to be part of the whole so that one cannot see it without also instantly seeing all of the stars and the heavens’ deep coherence to which it intimately belongs."      - Rilke

Ahhhh. I'm slowly breaking into blogging regularly again. Feels nice. Hard to believe I've been living in Sweden for over a year and a half now. Will be two years in mid-November. Although, much of that time I've traveled outside Sweden. In many regards it feels natural being here. I mean, Swedes are quite normal down to earth people.  Culturally, it hasn't been all that challenging to flow with life here. It's a progressive country. Stockholm is clean and livable, with a big, little city feel.  The winters haven't scared me off too significantly. I've made quite a few friends who are living here as foreigners and we often joke that the ones who complain the most about the weather are the Swedes themselves! Funny how the amnesia sets in, because winter feels like a distant memory. Summers in Sweden are stunning. I feel no need to be anywhere else this time of year. 


What's been keeping me busy is the start of a new Mysore program. I've done this before knowing it takes an abundance of time and energy in the beginning. With that, I've been battling fatigue. Kinda started since India. I brought home parasites. Had to do a cleanse to take care of that. Think it addressed some issues with my diet. So, I've been tweaking in that area. Looks like I'm low on iron, hence the fatigue. It's been low grade in that I've been able to still practice, teach and work. However, it just made it more challenging. 


Added a few things to the diet which have seemed to really help. Sometimes you can be so deficient it takes a while to simply get back up to equal footing. I've come to a point where I don't want to be defined by diet or labeled as being something that pertains to what I eat, such as vegan, or vegetarian. Does that mean I eat mostly vegetarian? Well, yes. Often vegan. However, I never want to restrict myself into a box. Whole, organic foods are where it's at. Knowing where your food comes from is extremely important. Connecting with farmers who use best practices in their methods is another necessary element. With that being said, I've added a daily supplementation of krill oil (non-vegetarian, obviously), and it's been amazing. Great for muscle recovery. Gonna give this ago for a while, since, like I said before, been deficient in a few areas. I'm very thankful for the krill. Hard to believe those little guys are food for most whales - our biggest mammals on earth. If so inclined, google krill oil and see what you find. There's loads of good information. 


Also been experimenting with taking coconut oil. Working my way up to 3 heaping tablespoons daily, maybe 4. Wow. It's amazing stuff. I've always known about the wonders of coconut oil, but never committed to making it a mainstay to my diet. I can really tell the difference, and looking forward to observing the long term effects. What I didn't know beforehand was that ingesting it helps to prevent and  kill parasites. Something I will have to remember during my next trip to India. Coconuts are in abundance in Mysore. Duh. I was always slathering the oil all over my body, drinking coconut water, but never consuming the oil. The missing link! 


Besides yoga, learning about nutrition and longevity are hobbies of mine. I can't seem to help it. Been tuning into some ground breaking information in regards to this. I like to experiment and see how things affect me (within reason). For one, there is so much misinformation out there. Going mainstream is definitely a no, no. To many agendas. Most importantly, I've continued to have an open mind in regards to it all, while releasing belief systems and labels. In doing that, I've felt tons better. It's all about balance. It's all about listening, too. Most people are so disengaged from their own bodies, anxious, or even trying to mold themselves into something they are not, that they don't even give themselves the opportunity to listen to their own intuitive guidance. Like one Ayurvedic doctor told me, "if you make eating an issue, it will be an issue. It's not a problem. Listen to what your body needs, and most importantly chew your food thoroughly!" Hahaha. I like that last part. Eating low on the food chain as much as possible is another no brainer.

It's amazing how the world is viewed in brighter color when feeling more energized. Whoo-hoo! Also, my boyfriend has made the point that acclimating to a new environment/culture/life can also attribute to the wind being taken out of my sails from time to time. I can see his point. Even positive stress, is still stress. Takes awhile to adjust. My little brain cells are being rewired constantly especially with the language. It's amusing how when I hear English it seems to come into my awareness at full volume. When I hear Swedish it pulls back into the background. Not really the best habit I've adopted. The language thing is moving at a snail's pace. I'm definitely the turtle, not the hare, in this little scenario. Hahaha. 


I've got some good things to look forward too. Like, my sister coming to visit with her family in a little over a week. Selfishly, I can't wait to tickle my little niece. She's the cutest. Should be fun. Stockholm is a great city to show off. During that time Yogayama, the studio that hosts the Mysore program, will be taking a two week break. I wasn't too privy to this idea, but it's the European way! Taking time off. My American mind is wired so differently. But it's great, Swedes see the importance in the quality of life. When students tell me they'll be going on vacation, I'm be like, great, I'll see you in a week or two. No, no, no, it's more like 5 weeks. It's the most natural thing in the world. 

"To love and to be love is to feel the Sun on both sides." -David Viscott