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Embrace the Slow, and go with the Flow…

 
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SUMMER 2021

Embrace the Slow

hOMe practices

because home is not just a place, it's a state of being

snail
What happened to those “Lazy days of summer”? I feel like we went from 0-100 after our cities and towns lifted most COVID restrictions. I get it. After the Great Pause of 2020, we are chomping at the bit to be DOING again: getting back to traveling, eating in restaurants, seeing and being with friends, listening to live music and gathering in crowds. We’re simply mirroring what nature is doing: expanding to meet the sun, yawning and stretching into the Light. There’s hope and joy in the air. After all the planting and tending of Spring, the purpose behind Summer is to rest and celebrate.
 
May I humbly invite you, while we are in celebration mode, that you take it SLOW and relish the bounty of summer. Can we still take time to live with intention, be selective with what social events we say yes to, prune if needed so we can actually experience the SPACIOUSNESS summer can provide? In the slow we are able to the listen, and in the listening we are guided to choose what truly feeds our soul, rather than gorge on external courses that leave us feeling full but unsatisfied.
 
Here’s to your summer, may it be ABUNDANT in time and space.

Below I’m sharing:
  • A downloadable Visualizing Space Meditation for healing, and for a spacious mind.
  • Rockin’ the partner poses with Double Child’s Pose and Lawn Chair Pose.
  • Summer Family Circle: Setting intentions for your best summer ever.

image: healthyhomegardening.com (snail)


April's Musings
Let this be your to do list...(but skip the back injury)


calm canoeFrom the end of May through the beginning weeks of June I was out of commission due to an acute back injury. There were many things I learned about myself along the way. For someone who is by profession: a mover and as a mother: a doer, there was much mental anguish around wanting to do but not being able to do. Many of my plans and big projects had to be put on hold. After an intellectually stimulating and busy spring season-- a three-month period of non-stop work and striving, multiple back-to-back trainings to help expand my skills and develop my business, a full teaching schedule, increased social activity -- my body took hold of the reigns and did what my over-productive mind wouldn’t do: brought everything to a complete halt.

My healing was less about a physical remedy and much more about a spiritual healing and return to self. A remembering that all the external things I kept relying on to fulfill my big plans are secondary to the well-spring of internal wisdom already inherent and within my grasp.
 
cushionThe suggestion was to REST. Just focus on HEALING. I couldn’t sit for more than a few minutes and lying down was also painful. I just couldn’t find comfort in any position. Being in a constant state of bracing for pain kept my muscles, and mind, very tight. The only relief came from sitting in virasana (with knees bent under me while perched on a cushion) – I could manage 10-15 minutes at a time. And so, I meditated. Sat still. Listened. The word SURRENDER arose.

After experiencing the roller coaster of emotions: anger, hope, frustration, desperation, sadness, doubt, confusion, questioning my own existence--I had to learn the hard way what I teach my students. Rest is where the growth happens, where the true learning occurs. 
 
I leaned into the limitations of my condition; taking every movement at a snail’s pace (getting dressed became a 10-minute ordeal), letting myself feel everything. I practiced patience and forgiveness towards myself. I allowed others in and asked for help, letting my vulnerability be visible to my closest circles. I am so blessed and grateful to have the support system that I have. “It takes a village” could never be truer.

My body is training me to work in shorter bursts – no longer doing until it’s done. The work will never be done. Taking regular breaks – even dance breaks. Indulging in “fluff” (things that satisfy my true desires): read a book, watch an episode, do research on a passion, it’s all part of the journey. I try to remember to keep things slow – pruning social activity, only saying yes to things that enhance my life not drain it: more time with my boys, being present for my husband. I follow the Flow of where energy takes me.
 
Prioritize rest.
Listen deeply.
Trust whole-heartedly.
Surrender completely.
Go slow. Embrace it.
Go with the flow. Embody it.

Let this be your to-do list.
This is our greatest lesson to learn.
It will be what preserves our life on this planet.
Tread lightly: in heart, mind, and body.
 
spaciousdeckVISUALIZING SPACE
(5-min audio meditation)
Listen to this for peace of mind, for healing body and spirit.
This script composed itself through my meditation one morning, and I found this helpful for managing pain. Hope this comes in handy for you in times of need. Please download and share with others.
 
Transcript:
Find a comfortable seat. Feel the earth underneath you, encouraging the spine to grow tall. Shrug the shoulders up and down slowly, then relax them away from the ears. Let the head settle with ease above the shoulders. Breathe gently in and out. Letting the inhale and the exhale clear the space for your meditation.
 
There is a spaciousness. Yes. Space. Seek the space. Between. Between breath. Between thoughts. Between the cell walls. We are composed of more Space than matter within. Take away all the boundaries, the skin, the cell walls, all the barriers that divide one object from another and all that exists is space. In that space we are One. I become We. All that is.
 
It might take you a moment in your meditation to find that Space. Maybe some lingering tension or tightness is trying to distract you. Or the to-do list is scrolling. The many projects and ideas that are wanting your attention and asking: Will you act on them? How will you go about it? When? And then…you breathe.
 
Breath enters the body. Space. The idea of it enters your mind. Like an old record player or distant teaching unlocked from memory long ago: Seek the Space.
 
And then the to-do list dissipates. Evaporates.There is space between the items on the list. The space broadens and then telescopically (or is it microscopically) you are drawn into that space, beyond the words and the images. Zooming into the gap between. Between thoughts. Between breaths.
 
You are suspended in the great Between. You breathe space into the tight fibers of your muscles and nerves of any tension or injury. Breathe space between your fears and doubts. Breathe space between the stirrings and ambitions and simply BE.
Suspended between the seconds that pass even.
Suspended in the space that I AM.
And that is all there is.
THAT is enough.
Abide in this space for as long as you need or are able.
And when it’s time to return to your day, let the breath, the inhale and exhale and the suspensions between, be your access to the Space that exists within you always.
 
Space and peace to you.

Photo: April Cantor


Pose of the Month: Double Scoop

DOuble ScoopEver feel like taking a break, or tucking yourself into your shell? This gentle stretch of the back, knees and hips helps ground energy and soothe nerves.
Curl up and rest in child’s pose. Let your little one stack their own child’s pose on top of yours. Imagine you are a stack of rocks, or a double scoop of ice cream. Breathe together until you’ve had your fill.
photo: Whitney Kidder
Play-with-Me Poses: Lawn Chair Pose
lawn chairFor those stargazing nights, or a way to connect and get calm with a loved one at the end of the day, lawn-chair pose is a grounding partner pose that stretches legs and back while providing a restorative heart opener for your partner.
 
Sit back-to-back on the floor, hips touching, legs stretched long. Feel your partner’s back and notice what body parts are connecting and where there’s space. Breathe a few breaths together, and then on the exhale partner A hinges forward while partner B reclines on A’s back. Breathe five deep breaths together. Partner A focuses on lengthening heart forward while folded over legs. Partner B keeps hips grounded on floor tucking shoulderblades back to open the chest. Switch by letting Partner A lever Partner B back up to vertical on the inhale. Be sure to thank your partner when you’re done.
photo: Barry Blumenfeld

Family Mindfulness Practice: Setting an Intentional Summer
meditation sunSummer can be the perfect time to explore passions and deepen connections that you don’t normally get the time to nurture during the rest of the year.
One way to make the most out of your summer is to set an intention of how you’d like to spend it. Gather your family together to brainstorm how you’d like to fill your summer days. The purpose of this circle is to share what summer means to each of you, get clear of the things that light you up (make you feel alive, or excited), and decide what activities reflect those passions.
 
Have some paper and pen available for each person to write their thoughts since you will tend to individual needs as well as find where ideas overlap to share activities as a family.
  1. What does summer mean to you? Answer this question with a free-flow of words; the first thoughts and images that come to mind when you envision your ideal summer, or what you imagine when you think of the season of summer.
  2. What lights you up (makes you feel alive)? Make a list of 10-15 things you love to do. What excites you, things you enjoy? What things do you yearn to do or new skills you’d like to learn? You can think BIG here, even though you might not achieve it in one summer you can still take little steps towards it. Think in terms of what feeds your body, mind, heart, and others (service-oriented).
  3. Share with each other what you wrote for 1 and 2.
  4. Brainstorm activities that can help you achieve things from your Light-Up List. You might find places where passions overlap and those could be activities the family can share together.
For example, our family discovered that we all enjoy time in nature and biking, so we made plans to bike a nearby nature-trail. Also, one son wanted to learn how to cook and was interested in other cultures so we planned for “World Wednesdays” where we pick a part of the world we’d like to learn more about and make a meal based on recipes from that country.

The great thing about this process is that you can get an idea of what each person’s passions and interests are and support each other in nurturing those passions in little (or big) ways over the summer. Everyone will have a list or at least a framework on how to fill their summer days, while as a family you can devise an adventure or activity around a shared interest.
 

image: downspiralintothevortex.com (sun meditation)
 
SoulShine Spotlight
Special people doing special things worth checking out

janey changJaney Chang 
Ancestral Skills Educator/Fish Skin Tanning

Talk about making space for your passions and deep listening, Janey Chang walks the talk. She left an unsatisfying corporate job to live her truth: to spend more time in nature and learn from the land. Based in Vancouver, Canada she teaches ancestral skills and land-based learning curriculum to communities and schools, and offers virtual classes in fish-skin tanning, leather craft tooling, land connected living and more. I was drawn to her soulful connection to the environment and her gentle way of bringing ancient traditions back to modern-day awareness. Her lessons in conservation, sensorial awakening through working with nature and honoring of ancestral wisdoms had a healing effect on me personally while nursing my back to health.
 See the skins I tanned on IG @whataprilmakes 
Photos: www.janeychang.ca, april cantor (fish skins)
Where's April and SoulShine Life this Summer?

sun streetClasses and events
-Resting, visiting with family, soaking in the sun.
-Making time to make and create: tapestry weavings, crochet creations, illustrations
-Germinating a new project weaving craft and yoga together Keep your eye out for future updates!
 
Need a kids yoga break now? Check out my YouTube Channel for kids yoga with stories and creative movement.
 
IG: @whataprilmakes – take a gander at what I’ve been making.
 
If interested in continuing or starting kids’ yoga from the convenience of your home via Zoom please reach out to me about private lessons – for you, or a gather a group of friends together. Contact April at april@soulshinelife.com to set up a time.

We're proud to announce that SoulShine Life is bringing Kids Yoga Adventures to the following schools this year:

Brooklyn Preschool of Science
New Playground
Ladybug Daycares & Preschool
West Village Nursery School
Rainbow Palace Daycare*

* - Recently added programs! Welcome to the SoulShine Life community.

If you’d like to see your child’s school on this list please contact me about getting a yoga program started there.


photo: Paul Cantor

Thanks for taking the time to read this newsletter. 

SoulShine Life hopes to help kids and parents connect to themselves, each other and the nature around them. I believe the spiritual evolution of this nation & our world depends on us raising healthy, happy and whole families that have found that right balance between work and play—no one else is going to do it for us.

You know that saying: “We teach what we most need to learn?” I certainly don’t pretend to know all the answers or even that I’ve mastered all the things I suggest. This is an invitation to take this learning journey with me. I thank you for staying connected not just with me, and not just with your family, but most importantly to yourselves.
Namaste - The Light in Me Sees the Light in You!


April Cantor, RYT has 20+ years of experience teaching yoga and exclusively to children for the past ten. Her company, SoulShine Life, not only provides Kids Yoga Adventures to local preschools and daycares but also helps families & parents reconnect to themselves, each other and nature through Family Yoga Hikes and Partner Yoga Workshops.  
Please visit: www.soulshinelife.com to learn more.
 
seasoncircle

Where's April and SoulShine Life?

Classes and events
-Resting, visiting with family, soaking in the sun.
-Making time to make and create: tapestry weavings, crochet creations, illustrations
-Germinating a new project weaving craft and yoga together – Keep your eye out for future updates!
 
Need a kids yoga break now? Check out my YouTube Channel for kids yoga with stories and creative movement.
 
If interested in continuing or starting kids’ yoga from the convenience of your home via Zoom please reach out to me about private lessons – for you, or a gather a group of friends together. Contact april@soulshinelife.com to set up a time.

image: almanac.com (season circle)


Interested in bringing
Kids Yoga Adventures
to your school or camp?
Contact me at 

info@soulshinelife.com


Abundance of space and time to you this summer. Happy slow-going.


More info at:
www.soulshinelife.com

Please help spread the word and feel free to pass this on to friends, families, schools.
Thanks for taking the time in your busy lives to read this.
Peace,

April signature
 

SoulShine Storytime
Special selections for your reading pleasure

joy diet coverThe Joy Diet
by Martha Beck


Simple practices and tips for examining what you truly desire and how to bring more of it into your life.
A good friend gifted this book to me, and I am so grateful for Beck’s encouraging words.



 
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