"The power of imagination makes us infinite." - John Muir

   Take a moment to remember the last time you had fun. Remember the details of the moment or day, any people who were with you, what you were doing, where you were. Feel the temperature, hear the sounds, smell the aromas surrounding you or passing by; bring into your conscious awareness the textures and qualities of the fun you had.

  Now notice that the more details you fill in, the more real that fun is to you in this moment. Even though it is not happening right now in your present physical experience, it is happening now in your emotional and visceral experience.  

   Using your imagination, the power of your own mind, creativity and emotions, you can bring your self anywhere.

   What if instead you:

  Your power of imagination makes you infinite - you can go anywhere in your imagination.

   Many Olympians use their imagination to win medals. There are top-level coaches who teach imagination as a technique. Scientists have found that when a sprinter, for example, imagines running the 50-yard dash in her mind, all the same muscles fire as if she were actually running.

   You prepare yourself to win through the power of your mind and imagination - through harnessing and engaging the feeling, the experience.

   You prepare yourself to heal, experience great relationships, have fun - or not - through how you use your imagination and feeling.

   To help you reign in the power of your mind and settle you into an easy contentment, practice meditation. If you'd like some support and guidance, I'm offering a meditation course in September, and would love to have you join us! Email me to get on the list for this fabulous course!

   Does your mind ever grip you in vicious circles? How much time do you think you really spend worrying, for example, and are you always fully aware of when you are worrying?

   For some people, your awareness of worry comes in the form of feeling compelled to distract your mind, feeling vaguely off, or constant movement - tapping or clicking your pen, biting your nails, bouncing your knee, popping up and down but never sitting still long. And a discomfort with being in silence.

   Ask yourself, what drives these behaviors, what prevents you from being comfortable with long silence? Or, even if you are comfortable in silence and stillness, does your mind become quiet, or does it rage on? And what percentage of your thoughts are positive, loving, uplifting, fun? Compared to what percentage of your thoughts are self-deprecating, replaying negative interpretations of experience, worrying, playing the "what if [x (undesirable thing)] happens" game?

   I have found that meditation is one of the most effective tools for becoming more aware of your thoughts and learning how to quiet your mind as well as be comfortable in the company of your own mind.

   Your mind is a powerful and wonderful tool - can you learn to use it to work for you instead of against you, can you cultivate easy focus, easy calming?
 

  If you would like some support in re-training your mind, give me a call! This has been my life's work - ever since I was a young child and not fully aware of what I was doing - and I am passionate about it because of all the healing and transformation work I have done, working with my mind has changed my life the most. How would your life feel different if you struggled less, experienced more ease, more savoring, more lightness?

Layers: 
  Isn't it remarkable that within this one sunflower, there are thousands of flowers, which then become seeds, all surrounded by hundreds of ray flowers and disc flowers, all visible (except for the yellow disc flowers) in this one flower pictured below?

  Click on the photo for a surprise (it's of Sunflower Farm, but it's not what you'd expect, and I think I may watch it every day)!

   Can you guess the name of this velvety native wildflower?

                                                        Releasing Neck Pain  
In Tuesday night's yoga class we did a fun experiment with spinal release and Chin Lock (a position which allows you to measure range of motion in your neck). Every student in the class doubled their range of motion in their neck, after only 3 poses! One student who had a lot of neck pain experienced a huge decrease in pain.

  What was so interesting is that we didn't do any poses directly for their necks. We did poses to release muscle tension in their lower spines.

                            How do your tailbone and sacrum relate to neck pain? 

  Issues at the top of your spine (your neck and shoulders) relate down to the base of your spine (your tailbone and sacrum). Tight muscles  surrounding your spine and extending through your pelvis and hips pull on your spine. These muscles are holding on like there is no tomorrow. 

   It's as if you did a chin-up, and never came out. After a while, your arms would get really tired, wouldn't they? They'd probably hurt too. And then eventually, you wouldn't be able to feel your arms - they'd go numb. This happens with your spinal muscles too.

            Imagine an eternal chin-up - this is essentially what your lower spine is doing.

  The muscles in your low back are holding on constantly, especially for people who suffer from neck pain, back pain, vertebral issues or knee misalignments. Even many digestive problems and constipation stem from spinal tension and misalignment.

  These spinal muscles have been holding on so tight for so long, that you can't actually feel most of them, or purposely release them. As you may be able to imagine, this steals a lot of your energy, because these muscles are always working and using energy that you would otherwise have available to you.

    Experiment: Without touching your back, can you move your tailbone (coccyx)? Can you even feel your tailbone? If you said no to either, you have some tight, numb spinal muscles.

  They pull your tailbone so that it tucks under (like a dog tucking her tail), and that pulls the rest of your spine out of alignment - it's similar to a domino effect.

  This pull on your spine causes the vertebrae in your spine to compress and jam closer together. For some people, this leads to herniated discs - the substantial compression in your spine puts pressure on your vertebrae, and in the case of a herniated disc, that pressure begins to 'squish' the disc. Happily, because of the way the Core Release yoga I offer unravels spinal compression, it easily and reliably heals herniated discs (check out the story at the end of this article).

  The domino effect happens in reverse through the 'spinal release' poses we do in my classes and 1-on-1 sessions: when you release the muscle tension in your lower spine, your tailbone un-tucks, your spine de-compresses and gets longer so there is more space between your vertebrae, and your spine and body settle into a more healthy alignment. Your neck gets improved range of motion and pain relief!

  Incidentally, decompressing your spine also improves your posture; you will automatically stand straighter and sit more upright, without even trying.

  Want to try it yourself? Contact me to see if a Core Release yoga class is right for you.

Herniated Disc Story
    "I have suffered for years from a cervical herniated disc...basically bone on bone. I had diminished movement abilities and debilitating pain...I did physical therapy, chiropractic care, two rounds of cervical steroid injections, ate 800 mgs of ibuprofen + advil pm every night just to sleep (not to mention various muscle relaxers, etc. the doctor put me on). Nothing really helped.

    "...Last spring I discovered Core Release yoga...I had previously done Iyengar, Body Flow, etc. but none of the other styles really did much for me. I liked Core Release yoga initially because it was easy and I loved the Shavasana! But after about 8 weeks of only going once a week (and no home practice) I realized that I was no longer hurting all the time. My mind was calm and I felt much less stressed. I eliminated my chiropractor and was able to eliminate all the meds I was taking. People were asking me 'What are you doing? You look so fresh and calm!'

    "At 52, I knew I had found something that was truly do-able and affordable for all of us baby boomers!" - Kerry P.

  BodyTalk Access is the self-care portion of the BodyTalk system. I have found, personally and through observing the results my clients get, that these techniques are powerful tools for increasing general health and well-being.

  The Cortices balancing in particular, one of the 5 BodyTalk Access techniques which you can learn through this video or in a 1-on-1 session with me, is a powerful brain balancing tool. It can be helpful for relaxation, focus, helping your body cope with an emergency (like bee stings, cuts, shock, falling...), headaches, and more.

  BodyTalk Access is revolutionizing healthcare in areas of the world where people do not have access to healthcare. It enables families to take care of their own health maintenance, as well as many healthcare needs.

  I would like to share BodyTalk Access around the world, as many BodyTalk Access teachers are already doing - it has now been taught in 47 countries! One such teacher, Britt Jorgensen, recently wrote about her experience teaching Access in Rwanda. It's a beautiful article, which you can read here.

In the last couple Inspire Notes, I've shared with you two of my nature meditations - the Nature and Earth Meditations. Have you had a chance to explore these yet? I'd love to hear what you've been observing in your practice.

What I have found is that when I connect with the expansiveness of the natural world, I connect more deeply with my own inner expansiveness. Nature can be a vehicle to become more grounded, more connected to Life, and more present.

Yoga philosophy teaches that we each have within us the expansiveness of the Universe. Within you is that infinite diversity and depth. And the more you consciously and actively connect with this awareness, the more you can live in it, in your full empowerment as a conscious being in this life. You become lit up from within.

I have found many tools that help me find this connection, and they each have their own unique qualities.

• Meditation on Consciousness, or the internal expanse, is one of my favorites for a deep and restful vacation from tension - going into the deep, soft spaciousness that is rejuvenating and uplifting.
• Core Release yoga poses bring you into this connection through your body, and the power of awareness. Using angles and movement, they create a flow of essential life energy and bring you into a deep harmony - inside (mental/emotional and more) and outside (physical healing).
• Belief shifting work removes the inner blocks and limiting thought patterns which separate you from this connection with your inner joy and peace.

And being in nature, for me, is an honoring of and relationship with Life - my own life, the life all around me, and the creation of life - that spark that precedes the light. As I connect more with that pulse of life I feel in nature, I connect more deeply with life pulsing through me, and also the heartbeat of Life - which moves through everything everywhere. People call this pulse of Life, this indescribable quality of aliveness, many names - Consciousness, Universal energy, Source, God, Shiva/Shakti, and more.

When you are connected with this pulse of Life, you move within vitality; you heal, you have more energy, and you develop a special radiance. People are more drawn to you. Every practice and therapy I offer is for the purpose of helping you reach this multi-dimensional vibrancy. Healing occurs as a result of removing the obstacles to this natural connection within you. This is an expanded life.

I love this program! This 5 minute video is sure to bring a smile to your heart.

To find out more about Tower Gardens, visit my website: www.rabbitsdance.towergarden.com. Some day, I'd like to bring Tower Gardens to schools and give more kids the opportunity to experience growing food as part of their education. If you're interested in cultivating a Tower Garden program near you, let me know!

Last year I discovered a whole new sustainable (and unique) way to grow vegetables, which I highly recommend to you!

Sustainable how? Let me count the ways:

• no aching - easy on your back and shoulders
• no weeding
• automatic watering (refill the reservoir every 2-4 weeks)
• no digging or soil prep
• freedom - you can go away for a weekend or a week with no worries!
• space efficient
• water efficient - uses 10% of the water of plants grown in the ground
• year-round - bring your garden inside in the winter and keep growing!

Additionally, veggies grown in Tower Gardens are nutrient dense - this means they have a very high level of nutrients, higher than most produce you can grow or buy.

Did you know?:

• There has been an average 63% nutrient decline in American foods between 1941 and 2000.
• Nutrient Dense Foods provide excellent nutrition and have exceptional flavor.

Make your gardening experience easier and more fun!
✰Contact me to purchase your own Tower Garden.

                Learn how Tower Gardens are used at The Greenhouse in Orlando.

   Standing "outside your story and hustling for your worthiness" results from an internal disconnect, a separation from your true self. This separation is part of the human experience, and happens to us all. It certainly doesn't feel good, and creates unnecessary struggle.

  When you can lean into your wholeness, your life experience becomes easier, you feel more content, and healing happens. I use many tools to help my clients live into their radiance. This particular practice I've developed, the Earth Meditation, helps you connect deeply to yourself through an awareness of life and the expansiveness of it, so you can 'walk inside your own story' and own your worthiness.

Earth Meditation
 Preparation:
Go outside in nature and begin by tuning into your senses. Notice the living world around you, the sounds, smells, feelings and the beautiful visual details, colors and lighting. Allow that to bring you into a fuller awareness and presence.

 The Practice:
Sit or lie down on a rock or the earth, continuing to actively perceive the natural world around you. Feel the solidity of the earth underneath you. Imagine the vastness of the earth, the breadth and the depth of it. Remember that old myth that if you dig deep enough, you'll get to the other side of the world? In between there are layers of rock, metal and the fiery core of the Earth. There is movement. The earth is more than the surface we walk on. Tune into the fullness of the earth and be with it, rather than just on it.

Feel yourself resting into and sinking into the earth. Notice the response of the ground and the Earth under you. Become aware of the aliveness of the soil and the planet. That aliveness is pulsing up, meeting you. You may be able to feel it energizing you. Feel your own aliveness.

Awareness:
The Earth is constantly moving, in 'galactic relationship'. It interacts with the Sun, the Moon and other planets. Bodies of water, as well as the growth of plants, are influenced by the gravitational pull of the Moon. And you, too, are in relationship with the Earth, in both obvious and subtle, deeper ways. Feel into this energetic exchange.

Sit in this awareness, and continue reaching into a deeper awareness. Let your feeling of connectedness with the earth fill you. Notice the effects it has on you.

As you slowly get up and move into your next activity, bring this depth and connectedness with you. You may even feel the energy of the earth coming up through your feet as they touch the ground. This is one way to bring yoga into your life.

I'd love to hear what you experience, and invite you to share your story with me. Happy exploring!

When I was farming, I was outside every day, all day. I experienced a beautiful and intimate relationship with nature and the earth. Over the last few years, I have spent much less time outside and am now experiencing an accumulation of missing that connection. Recently I have begun spending time outside in nature almost every day. I'm finding it to be powerful and life-giving practice and today I'd like to share it with you.

You can use this wellbeing practice to help you to come into a state of peace internally, rather than being at war with yourself, or in that internal noise, endless list, or the self-criticism that may keep tabs in the background of your mind. It helps you to connect with the quiet and loving space which is deep inside you, so you can experience life with more softness and joy. Wouldn't that be nice?

And by the way, when you are in that state of peace and presence, your energy frees up, giving you more stamina and clarity.

Without further ado, here it is -

Nature Meditation Practice:
Go outside, preferably in nature, and walk or sit.

Look - Open your eyes to the intricate details of the plants, rocks, bugs, soil or whatever you see.

Listen - Hear the air moving softly through the tree branches, the birds calling or chatting, the grand silence, and whatever else you hear around you. It is the pulse of life.

Feel - Feel how the air touches your skin, how the sun shines into you, feel the moisture in the air.

As you observe and become acutely and softly aware of what is around you, your senses will awaken. Allow your senses to bring you into your body, into a more present state.

You may notice your mind quiets or slows down, as you devote your entire attention to your observations, your awareness.

Perhaps the pressure inside your head, which you may have been unaware of before, expands and falls away, and you feel more spaciousness in your head.

You may notice, when you go back inside, that you are moving more slowly and deliberately, that you feel more alive and clear. You may even have more energy through the rest of your day.

When you live your life running from one thing to the other, always anticipating the next (which, in this fast-paced culture we live in, is the norm), you may never be present in the moment. This is an exhausting way to live.

By spending even a few moments Being, as in this practice, you re-energize and create more space for your wellbeing and rejuvenation. You experience your life, rather than unconsciously moving through it.

This is a wonderful and powerful practice for wellbeing. I invite you to give it a try this week - every day. Notice what changes, even just subtly, in the moment, in your daily experience, in your life.

Because not all change is a grand sweeping thing. Most changes begin with small, subtle shifts, and when you observe and note these shifts, you allow for and create bigger changes.

I'd love to hear from you - please write in and share your experience.