When Things Are Fragile

If I could have anything in the world I wanted (aside from a sane, compassionate country to live in), I’d whisk us all to a beautiful, wooded, green piece of land where everyone would get their own cabin or house or whatever they needed to feel comfortable. Where we’d have a giant table under the trees to share meals if we wanted to, or not, because some of us are introverts and need alone time - and that would be fine on this piece of land, no excuses needed. Obviously we’d have to have plenty of time to write. Anytime we felt like it we could gather together and share stories and laughter, listen to music or make our own, paint, walk our dogs or watch them run free, stick our toes in the grass, stare up at the stars - and feel safe.

Since I don’t have this magical piece of land for us to share, I’ve been trying to come up with things I can offer. Things that might help you feel less alone in your despair if that’s a thing you’ve been grappling with, opportunities to calm your nervous system and develop (or practice) tools that really help when the world feels like its hanging off its axis, chances to connect in real time with other people who want the world to be a lot kinder than this. So I have a plan, and maybe you want to join me.

Rufus after yoga.

What is the plan? We’re going to gather together from wherever we are thanks to the powers of Zoom, and create inter-webs of hope and inspiration. We’re going to fill our own tanks with that goodness, so that when we are in our little dens of creativity, we have an abundance to draw from. There will be some movement, and a lot of breathing. There will be guided meditation. There will be journaling prompts. There will be conversation. I can almost guarantee laughter and tears.

What if you’ve never done yoga? No problem, I’ve got you covered. What if you think you hate yoga or it isn’t for you or it’s the work of Satan (just kidding on that last one, if you think yoga is the work of Satan, you are probably a Christo-fascist and sorry, but you are not my demographic lol. I’m doing us both a favor by saying that up front). I would say, you never know unless you try, and maybe you ought to just do this with me. I’ve been at it a while (34 years) and I’ve “turned” a lot of people. Whatever, be afraid, don’t be afraid, I’m just telling you the truth. If I had a nickel for every woman’s boyfriend who came to class begrudgingly and then got hooked, I wouldn’t have to worry about college tuition.

Here’s what I have in mind:

Saturdays 9-10:30am PST we’re going to have an old-school yoga class. What do I mean by “old school”? I mean we’re going to focus on breathing and staying curious about sensation in the body. We’re not going to force anything, we’re going to breathe our way in and see how things feel, and if the body says, no thank you, that doesn’t feel right, we’re going to listen and back off. We’re going to move mindfully and joyfully, and then once we’ve taken our bones for a spin, we’re going to rest deeply. Then we’ll talk for a few minutes, like we would if you took my class in person. Sometimes we sit on the studio floor after class and talk for more than a few minutes. There’s a quality of relaxation after a yoga class that is special, and hard to replicate anywhere else.

Every Saturday class will introduce the theme for the week ahead. I’ll send you the zoom link as soon as it’s ready (all classes are yours to download and keep, and that way if you can’t join live, you’re not missing out). When I send you the link, I’ll also send you 2 journaling prompts, one for Saturday, one for Sunday.

Sunday evening at 5pm PST we’ll meet for a 15-minute meditation. For those of you new to meditation, the first Sunday will include a conversation about how to approach the practice, how to deal with a wandering mind, and why I love meditation so very much. (You can assume the Sunday sessions will be 30 minutes: 15-minute intro, 15-minute meditation). You can use Sunday’s meditation all week long, it will also be based on our theme. If anyone is having a difficult time and/or has questions about meditation heading into week 2, I’ll address those before the second meditation (and so on each week. My hope is by the end of the month you have a daily 15-minute meditation practice). When I send you the meditation link, I’ll send you Monday’s journaling prompt. Who knows, maybe some of you will turn these prompts into essays.

Mondays at 5pm PST we will meet and I will share a little yogic philosophy for the western mind (the topic will be around our theme for the week). Then we’ll open it up and talk for a bit, but there’s no pressure for anyone to share, so if you’re someone who would rather listen, that is completely fine. Monday’s talk will last an hour. At the end of the talk we will all have one tangible act of kindness to complete for the week. It’s going to be fun and it’s going to feel great. When you get the link for the talk, you’ll get Tuesday’s journaling prompt.

Wednesday we’ll meet at 9am PST for a 30-minute “get things moving” practice. As you can imagine, this will be a yoga class designed to get your energy flowing and open things up. Things like your shoulders and hips, but also your heart and your mind. With Wednesday’s link, you’ll get Thursday’s and Friday’s journaling prompts.

Fridays at 4pm PST we’re going to do a 45-minute super chill class to calm the nervous system and open the hips, hamstrings and shoulders. It will be the perfect kind of class for the end of the day, end of the week, or anytime you’re feeling overwhelmed.

Saturday begins the next week and the next theme.

Questions I’m going to guess you might have:

When is the first Saturday? Saturday, July 26th. Why are we starting at the end of a month? Because I wanted to. What will I need? A yoga mat would be good. Maybe a couple of yoga blocks. What if I can’t make certain sessions live? It’s fine, that’s why they’re all recorded. What if I have limited mobility, but want to do this? Email me, there may be classes on my yoga site that will work for you, and I can make you a coupon code for the month if so. How much is this going to cost?

Ah, okay. So here’s what I’m thinking, and I’ve given this a lot of thought. If I were going to come up with a number that felt right, I’d say $250. That’s what I was going to charge, because I always want to make these things approachable, and I always try to give a lot of value for the money. But then I started thinking that times are really tough for a lot of people and I don’t want money to be the reason someone can’t do this if they want to. So, I’m going to make it pay what you can, and I mean that.

If you’re doing all right at the moment and $250 is affordable for you, terrific. If you just got laid off and don’t know how you’re eating this month, but really want to do this - sign up, it’s okay. If you’re somewhere in the middle, just figure out a number that is manageable for you. This is how I want to roll. We need each other right now.

Here’s the $250 option

Here’s the pay what you can option

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I can’t swear this is going to make you feel better, but I feel pretty certain it will.

Talking to people who feel as scared, heartbroken, outraged and stunned as you do is always comforting, because you don’t feel alone anymore. You aren’t alone, believe me. Taking positive action (doing something for someone else, even if it’s a small thing) helps because you don’t feel powerless, you realize you can be the safety net. If you’re a writer or an artist of any kind, I suspect this whole experience will get your juices flowing. If you’ve been struggling with depression, I know it will help to connect to other kind-hearted people in real time.

Please let me know if you have any questions. If you do sign up, please be sure to email me (ally@yogisanonymous.com) with the email address you want me to use for the zoom classes. That part is essential.

Sending you a lot of love. Looking forward to connecting with any of you who feel called to join me. Please note, this is the only email blast I’m going to send about this course. If you could sign up no later than Wednesday 7/23 so I have time to get your email added to the zoom sessions that would make my Type A default setting very happy.