Greetings! Here is a link to Tara Brach’s resources for retreat at home; many wonderful options. May this find each of you finding your Way with this challenging time.
https://www.tarabrach.com/create-home-retreat/
Photo by Magicbowls on Pexels.com
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Greetings to each, and may you be finding nourishment so needed in this collective time of challenge. I feel a deep sadness in the absence of our gathering together to reflect and practice in person, and hope that those who wish for practice are discovering inner discipline and resources online, or on their book shelves, for inspiration.
At the end of this post I will pass along a poem, which many of you may now have seen; but it has been very good medicine for me, and even if only one or two folks who had not seen it get to revel in the poem’s holding of the multiple strands of this time, I will be glad I posted it!
Meanwhile, of course we have no idea at this point when we shall all connect once again in person. I am sharing a few resources I shared with another group this morning, hoping they might be helpful to some of you as well! Also at some point soon I may record a Yoga Nidra meditation for those who wish to use it. I am including once again here a link from Richard Miller the founder of irest.
Here are the resources I want to share for the moment. I am thinking of you with the joy of your presence in my heart, even when we can’t be together in person!
This is a link to Yoyo Ma’s Songs of Comfort initiative; he is a wonderful presence to all of us, as a profoundly gifted and compassionate cellist who has made this offering for the moment in history, in which we all share. You can find the link online, or paste this into your browser: https://www.pbs.org/video/songs-of-comfort-1584567629/ Please paste into your browser! It is more than worthwhile.
In case you are not aware, it is possible to sign up for updates as to the number of cases of the virus here in our county, which for me means less traveling on the web to find out on my own! For me it is helpful, because I am checking news etc too often anyway. Time for more discipline! Sigh…
See the top of the page for the link to sign up:
I have been studying and practicing a meditation form that is extremely accessible, guided, and can be done reclined. It is the work of Richard Miller. This page includes the free irest meditaions I mention above, if anyone wishes to try!
No yoga equipment needed!
Here is the poem:
Lockdown by Brother Richard:
Yes there is fear.
Yes there is isolation.
Yes there is panic buying.
Yes there is sickness.
Yes there is even death.
But,
They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise
You can hear the birds again.
They say that after just a few weeks of quiet
The sky is no longer thick with fumes
But blue and grey and clear.
They say that in the streets of Assisi
People are singing to each other
across the empty squares,
keeping their windows open
so that those who are alone
may hear the sounds of family around them.
They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland
Is offering free meals and delivery to the housebound.
Today a young woman I know
is busy spreading fliers with her number
through the neighbourhood
So that the elders may have someone to call on.
Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples
are preparing to welcome
and shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary
All over the world people are slowing down and reflecting
All over the world people are looking at their neighbours in a new way
All over the world people are waking up to a new reality
To how big we really are.
To how little control we really have.
To what really matters.
To Love.
So we pray and we remember that
Yes there is fear.
But there does not have to be hate.
Yes there is isolation.
But there does not have to be loneliness.
Yes there is panic buying.
But there does not have to be meanness.
Yes there is sickness.
But there does not have to be disease of the soul
Yes there is even death.
But there can always be a rebirth of love.
Wake to the choices you make as to how to live now.
Today, breathe.
Listen, behind the factory noises of your panic
The birds are singing again
The sky is clearing,
Spring is coming,
And we are always encompassed by Love.
Open the windows of your soul
And though you may not be able
to touch across the empty square,
Sing
And image from a visitor to the river at Turtle Haven!
Monday morning has arrived, and it is now clear to me that despite my desire to find a safe way to offer class for this time, out of a sense of community obligation I need to cancel all remaining yoga classes for this quarter. These last two weeks of the quarter, which were originally make up classes for Winter Quarter will not be held, as we all discover the best practices for alleviating as much suffering as possible, caused by the presence of this virus. Containment strategies seem to be part of the answer.
While I am saddened as I shift away from our community gatherings for practice, I trust that each person understands the need for us all of us to protect ourselves, and all those most vulnerable. We will already be experiencing much fallout on many levels from this pandemic, and I am called to be on the side of deep vigilance, as the situation unfolds. May each find the way to practice independently, to utilize what has been gathered as we have met together in class, and to perhaps at last practice with the books which may already be on our shelves, and to use readily available online resources. For me there is no substitute for being preciously together in physical space; but the time and the virus are calling us to another path at present, which paradoxically invites more solitude, and at the same time more awareness of our profoundly and inextricably intertwined lives!
I will post regularly with updates as to when we might once again gather together, in renewed appreciation for the learning, the holding and the nurturance of practice in embodied community.
The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another. ~ Thomas Merton
The photograph captures the Patañjali shrine sculpture created by Tim Lucy, and an offering left by an unknown person!
Greetings! I am sending out this blog entry, hoping you will offer a response VIA EMAIL: elizabethkerwinyoga@gmail.com
I held classes last week, and may well hold them this week, depending upon input; many expressed gratitude for the option to attend. My very first priority which I know we all share, is maintenance of good health, and responsibility towards the community at large, especially those most vulnerable.
Please inform me as to whether you would likely attend class this week, where I will be asking you to join me in utilizing the following safety measures. In addition to this abbreviated list, I will be adding to my blog an email letter Jillian and I are sending out to all clients who will be coming to Turtle Haven in coming days with further details.
1. All students will bring their own mats, and sanitize hands before entering the studio. Classes will be taught with no hands on adjutments, and minimal props. Please bring your own belt, and a blanket, and blocks as well.
2. Clearly social distancing (6 feet is the suggested distance) is to be practiced in greeting one another.
3. Bathroom and studio are equipped with sanitizing wipes, soap and water, and hand sanitizer. We will as a community be sanitizing door handles, toilet seat, sink area etc several times a day. We can all participate rigorously in these practices. Details will be included in the next post.
4. Maybe needless to say, but erring on the conservative side, please if you have any illness at all, practice at home!
I am so grateful for your presence in the Turtle Haven community, and hope that you are cultivating and strengthening a refuge of peace and well being within, as we discover the ways to help ourselves and one another in a challenging time; and as we discover the deeper layers of meaning in this particular teaching which is certainly asking for deep inquiry and conscious attention to how we individually and collectively live in our precious communities, and in relation to our sacred earth.
I highly recommend working with the irest Yoga Nidra practices, for calm and for enhancing immunity; here is a link for free practices to do at home! https://www.irest.org/try-irest-now
I am wanting to be responsive to the potential health challenges of the virus so present in the news, conversation and therefore our psyches! While I don’t have a sense of fearfulness, common sense dictates that we can be wisely more cautious at this time by taking precautions.
- If you are sick, please refrain from coming to class.
- Wash your hands frequently, cover sneezes and coughs with a tissue, and avoid touching your face.
- We will wipe surfaces such as doorknobs, light switches, faucet and toilet handles, etc. with disinfectant wipes during the day.
- Please bring your own mat to class. You are welcome to bring your own props as well, of course.
- Please wash your hands before entering the studio, or bring hand sanitizer to use just before entering, and of course repeat after class. There are good recipes on the internet for making your own hand sanitizer!
- If you are using a TH mat, please wipe it down afterwards using the provided cloths and disinfectant spray.
- Please bring your own water bottle. You can fill it up at the sink in the back of the studio, which has filtered water.
Just because I am a great lover of classical music, and so deeply enjoyed another concert by this group Whatcom Chorale, I am posting this flyer. 
There are two weeks of make up classes this quarter, so the classes will be held through March 25th. Please feel free to do make up classes. If you are coming to a class the very last week, Restoratives, in the class that is not your usual day, please check with me so there are enough props for everyone. Thanks!
Here is a flyer for a March 14th offering at Stillpoint. If you have questions, please do use the information on the flyer to make inquiries or register!
I look forward to sharing this special time of retreat and reflection with Ravi Ravindra at Turtle Haven in April, with all who will gather for this unique opportunity. Please do let me know if you have any questions, or simply send in your registration if you know you would like to join this circle.
Stillness in Dark and Light: Spring Equinox
Sabbath Residential Retreat at Turtle Haven Sanctuary
Friday, March 20, 7pm to Sunday, March 22, noon
In the gateway time of the Spring Equinox, join with a small group of seekers as you guide your own journey in silence, rest, and reflection. Held by the natural world and collective stillness, we have a precious opportunity to deeply and clearly center ourselves while listening to embodied wisdom and to our inner True North Star. Honoring seasonal Sabbath time at Turtle Haven is an evolving dream in the making. All structured elements during the weekend are optional, as you choose what is supportive of your intentions, your time of rest and renewal. The studio will be open at all times for individual and collective practices throughout the weekend. The land and the labyrinth will welcome your presence.
OPTIONS: On Friday, we will gather for an opening orientation, an intention sharing Council and a simple guided ceremony honoring the dark and the light within and on our planet, with a candlelit altar for offerings. On Saturday, options include designated silent sitting meditation times, and Yoga Nidra and contemplative Authentic Movement practice, guided by Elizabeth and Jillian. On Sunday, there will be a scheduled silent meditation and a culminating Council. Laura Smith will offer several times for individual Ayurvedic healing bodywork sessions on Saturday and Sunday. Please contact her blissbody204@yahoo.com to schedule and arrange payment.
LOGISTICS: Lodging will be arranged at the Turtle Haven Forest Hermitage and next door at River Root Farm. More details will be sent upon registration. To register for the Retreat and arrange lodging, please email info@turtlehavensanctuary.com or call 360.319.8704. Sliding fee for the retreat, including lodging: $175 to $225. can be paid at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme2/turtlehavensanctuary Space is limited.
