Recently I sent an email to all our clients in regards to our Nation's Independence Day. So often I wonder if anyone ever reads the emails that I pour my heart and soul into writing each week. Today I received an email from one of our massage clients, who served in Viet Nam, worked and retired from the police force and now suffers from chronic pain from injuries sustained over the years while in service of his fellow man. 

My original 4th of July email:

Steve's Touching Response:

  Kitty

It is not very often anymore than anyone really talks about, much less understands, what the real significance of the 4th of July is anymore.

As you mentioned, it is true that Hot Dogs, hamburgers, corn on the cob, and watermelon are “historical” fixtures representing this day.

The majority of Americans nowadays, limit their ideas about what that day meant then and now to what you have described as indicated above.

I applaud you for going the next step further and mentioning the real reason why we celebrate this solemn day. For over 200 years now, our forefathers and later generations of Americans have continued to celebrate what were once  simple ideas which founded our great nation.

“Like a small child whose mind is full of wonder and imagination

Who carelessly tosses a stone into nearby water

 Ripples 

Go in all directions

Like the simple ideas of freedom truth individuality and democracy

That were the basis of the formation of our country

And these ripples continue as simple truths we hold self evident

Traveling across our world

Awakening those in tyranny and giving them hope

So that they too come to understand and realize

That they too are included in this unbelievable idea

Of what we are and believe in

As Americans in the greatest nation of all time

The United States of America”

Nowadays, our world is undergoing great turmoil. Our basic beliefs are under attack in every corner of the world.

Nothing has changed since our humble beginnings

When the citizen-soldier looked down the barrel of his flintlock rifle 

At Bunker Hill, Lexington, Concord and many other places

And saw a sea of red-coated soldiers of the greatest army in the world then.

Many gave their lives then fighting for the right to be a nation based on those simple ideas

Each and every  generation of American patriots also had to fight to preserve and protect those ideas which founded our great nation

In many places far and wide in this world

I spent my 18th 19th and 20th birthday 8,000 miles away from home doing the same thing in a place called Viet Nam

I was a “child” , without any legal right of adulthood. As a “boy” patriot  Army infantry Sergeant, I daily lead other young boys and even younger men into situations our dear Lord, NEVER intended his greatest creation, human beings, to EVER have to experience in this lifetime or any future ones.

• 63,864 of my brothers and sisters made the ultimate sacrifice for those simple ideas then.
• Nothing has changed
• We are again at war protecting our country based on those ideas. Now, there are forces in this world in GREAT numbers that are trying to destroy everything we stand for and hold as dear and sacred to us as Americans.
• Another generation of patriots are following in the predecessors footsteps. Many are losing their lives now daily.

Let us never forget any of our generations sacrifices for those ideas.

Thank you again for telling people what the 4th of July really means. 

Warm Regards

Steve

For fast-acting relief, try slowing down. 

 ~Lily Tomlin

In our world today we are all busy, too busy. Just the simple tasks of trying to balance work, mindful eating, healthy exercise, family, friends, fun and that doesn’t even count one of the most important - sleep.

Personally, I find myself struggling to get it all done. And even though I try my best to get 8 hours of sleep, sometimes that just doesn’t happen and sometimes even if it does I am still tired. Stress takes a toll on us; hard work and exercise causes us to need rest and some days or weeks we require  more of it.

Last week, I rolled out my mat for a much needed home practice since I missed a yoga class that is normally on my schedule due to the demands of my work. I was excited to practice and I’d looked forward to it all day. About 2 poses into the practice after seated meditation I found myself wanting to go back to the meditation – to just be in stillness and at peace for few moments more (until I felt like being done) -it sure feels great to slow down for a change. But, then afterwards I realized I was tired, really tired. It was then that I realized I’d felt this way all day, but I pushed through it.  

Sitting in silence and at peace will do wonders for us, we see and learn things about ourselves that we normally are too busy to see and hear. In meditation, things are revealed to us. They just come… though it’s difficult to explain it’s the silence that does it.

Many people drink coffee and energy drinks to boost their energy – not me – I just feel the tired feeling. My philosophy is that if I do take caffeine and other supplements to boost my energy, when I am actually able to sleep I won’t be tired. Ingesting things to give your energy just puts your body in a state of negative balance. You borrow energy that you don’t have, rather than honoring your body.

So I decided to take a nap even though by that time I only had about 30 minutes to do so before I had to head off to teach a yoga class. But, I figured 30 minutes was better than nothing, even if it turned into a mini – Yoga Nidra/long Savasana it was some sort of rest. I set my alarm to wake me up and laid down. I immediately fell asleep. The alarm went off and I got up and boy did I feel good. Oh so good;  I had energy, I had my brain back in one place – not scattered all over and drained down. Simply put,  I felt better.  

Remembering this whenever I am tired, drained and need a moment, I either meditate (just sitting for as long as I like) and if after that I find I am tired then no matter how much time I have, I rest.

How do you rest, really rest? And no watching television (being entertained doesn’t count)!

Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.  ~Ovid

We recently had the pleasure of meeting a new student named Audrey. Audrey was unique to us; as a resident of Canada, she came to us while visiting Florida for an extended trip. Her sweet demeanor and soft French accent made the encounter a memorable one. Audrey was a faithful participant in our Nia classes - sometimes she was the only student, but always appeared with a smile and a soft hello. For the few months that she attended classes at Serenity Stream, I always looked forward to talking to her - maybe it was her delicate accent that drew me in, or perhaps her quiet way of coming into a room and bringing an aura of genuine love with her. 

Recently Audrey returned to Canada, leaving behind the heat and the sunshine and more importantly to her, a very dedicated relationship. With a heavy heart Audry said her goodbyes and got on her 'big jet plane', leaving friends, loved ones and memories behind. I received an email from her a few days ago:

Hi! It`s Audrey Chaput.
I just wanted to take some time to express my gratitude to you and the team at Serenity.
I am so glad and grateful that I have found that place, it was there for me at the right moment. And it was perfect for me, it fulfilled what I was looking for. I am so thankful for the amazing classes you guys offer and for the beautiful energy that is present. 
Thank you,
Audrey
 
 
P.S. 
I wish I didnt have to leave, if you know somebody that wants a full-time nanny, I would love to do that.  

As cliche as it sounds, Thanks for the Memories Audrey! We miss you and wish you all the best!

 Light streams through the trees and throws dappled shadows over the ground. The shadows morph and shift with the light as limbs and leaves respond to the breeze. Light has a way of looking and feeling different throughout its daily life cycle, and morning light is my favorite. 

The shadows and light, just two dancing partners on Nature's vast stage, begin to creep through the window of the yoga studio and climb up the wall. The effect is that of a thousand butterflies alighting momentarily and then taking flight, over and over again. I stare up at the wall, admiring this performance, and begin to feel warmth on my face as the sun sends itself through the window panes. I close my eyes and I can still see the massive swarm of butterflies through what seem like semi-transparent lids.

I open my eyes and fill my lungs with air. I breathe out and extend my right arm, my hand slipping into a patch of sun on the floor. Most of my arm is still cloaked in shadow, but my upturned palm is awash in pinkish gold, catching the hundreds of tiny particles that sun rays reveal. This is why they're all here this morning; they are all reaching for the light. Emerging from the darkness, longing for the luminous, they're embarking on an epic journey out of night.

At least for a little while.

In my five years teaching yoga I've worked with cancer patients, cancer survivors, a blind woman, an Iraq War amputee, a school shooting survivor, and someone who barely escaped the collapse of the first tower on 9/11. Sufferers of multiple sclerosis, peripheral neuropathy, degenerative disc disease, osteoporosis, scoliosis, rheumatoid arthritis, trigeminal neuralgia, epilepsy, bulimia, depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder. Parents mourning the loss of their children to tragic accidents, children mourning the loss of their parents to age and disease. I've seen people in unspeakable amounts of physical and emotional pain, tears slipping silently down their cheeks in class. I've taught doctors, lawyers, soldiers, community leaders, teachers, musicians, farmers, artists, children, athletes, a professional skydiver and a NATO pilot.

I get to hug these people, offer them my tissues and my ears, and remind them to breathe. They start out seeming like "everyday" folks, but sometimes after class they feel compelled to share their stories and I realize they're quite remarkable folks. The class is a safe haven for them, a neutral space. I'm not offering medications or judgments or specific advice, but rather an opportunity for them to just feel what they feel and know that it's okay. Despite what some of them have been through, despite all the darkness and palpable pain in their eyes and their movements, they are so full of light and hope. Their thanks are always so sincere and unaffected and they tell me I teach them so much, but I feel I'm the one who's always learning.  In a gracious symbiosis, I help them see their worlds with a new awareness and they help me see new worlds through their eyes. A job of service is one of constant re-orientation and perspective, and that's worth so much more than any monetary gain that comes from it.  Each time I go to work I am humbled, inspired, and reminded of something greater than myself.

The shadow butterflies grow larger as the morning grows older, and the frenetic dance begins to slow. The room has been given new life with the warmth of bodies and soft whispers of breath. These folks have opened some windows of their own, and they rest in the comfort of knowing that they don't know.  They are reassured, even if only just for now, that the journey isn't about the origin or the destination; that these shadows and light...they need each other.  They're able to lie back and watch the play, the morph and shift of their lives, and appreciate the beauty of the dance.

At least for a little while.