I very recently celebrated 25 years of life on this lovely planet! I don't usually give myself presents for my birthday but this year I have decided to give myself the gift of purity! Being a Libra, balance has always been important to me. When I was a know-it-all teenager  I would try achieve balance in ways like waking up with a hang over and thinking "that's okay I'll even out with a venti latte with soy milk." even now a days I find myself trying to combat lack of sleep with caffeine and trying to unwind with a glass of wine. Although my habits now are a little more tame than my younger self, I still find many things throwing my internal balance off. These thoughts have stirred up memories from my Yoga Teacher Training at Yandara about three years ago. For 3o days I was with out  coffee, cigarettes (yes I was still a smoker until I got on the plane to Mexico) refined sugars, or alcohol. At first things were tough but soon I felt this beautiful balance I had never experienced before, not even as a child as I grew up on a diet of pizza, candy,  soda others things that come in plastic bottles or boxes.  I never knew that just being what you are could feel so good. After my return home I gradually slipped back into drinking way too much coffee and occasionally having one too many drinks on girls night out and those things just became normal again. But for this year I will be free. Free of caffeine, alcohol, refined flours and sugars and anything else that may alter my internal balance. It's time to let my True Self shine through! I plan on blogging about this to help keep me focus on my intention of Saucha and I would love any feed back or encouragement you may have to offer, or maybe join me on my 365 day quest for purity!

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In a world with so much separation do we need to be segregated into Iyengar, Anusara, Kundalini? I think not. As yogis it is our responsibility to set an example for how to treat others, no matter who they are or what they do or don't do.  As I continue to branch out in the yoga community of St. Louis, I find more and more the one thing that I thought I never would, separation. In a search for connection I have found just the opposite, disconnection. What are we all afraid of? Are we scared of connecting with other yogis for fear of judgment? Isn't it great that we are all practicing and teaching yoga in the first place despite the style, school or studio? I think so. This may sound cheesy but I think that we should all be friends. When some one comes to my class and they don't find what they are looking for I encourage them to try different teachers and styles that may suit them better because I want them to keep practicing. I believe yoga is good for everyone and that the world would be a better place if everyone practiced yoga! No matter what kind.

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