“Life is Amazing. And then it’s awful. And then it’s amazing again. And in between the amazing and the awful its ordinary and mundane and routine. Breathe in the amazing, hold on through the awful, and relax and exhale during the ordinary. That’s just living, soul-healing, amazing, awful, ordinary life. And it’s breathtakingly beautiful.”

Life is a gift. But that doesn’t mean it always easy. There are ups and downs and in-betweens. Sometimes life feels amazing..its flowing the way we want it to, everything seems to be working out. And that’s Amazing. Then at some point it shifts. Maybe things are not going the way we would like or had envisioned. Maybe we are suffering from a loss. Perhaps we aren’t feeling healthy. And it can seem awful. There are so many circumstances that change throughout life. So when things are great..enjoy it, breathe it all in. It will change. That’s the nature of life. When things get rough, know that will shift too. Can we accept that it’s ALL part of this experience we call life, and embrace it and let it flow?  Life can feel Fantastic, bizarre, fun, joyful, sad, heartbreaking, Magical, scary, Awesome, eh, Amazing, Awful and the list goes on. And…it ALL contributes to making life Breathtakingly Beautiful.

“Control your inputs. Not just what you eat and drink (though this will have a profound impact). control what you read, what you watch, what you listen to, what notifications you allow on your phone, where you spend your time, Who you spend it with. Guard your gates with care.”
-Nick Crocker

Many of you in Yoga class were saying how much this quote resonated and were asking for me to share it, so here it is.   I too thought it was a powerful one.

Everything is energy. And what surrounds us affects our energy. Lets be mindful of what we allow into our space, our energy field, into our minds and our bodies.
What do you do when you wake up in the morning? Do you listen to disturbing things on the news, or do you wake up and fill yourself with positive vibes for the day? We are all unique so different things inspire and uplift each of us… Personally, I have found meditating, prayer, counting my Blessings, and/or reading something inspirational helps me A lot to begin the day in a more centered, balanced way. Same thing before you goto bed. How do you end your day? What choices do you make throughout the day? Do the things you do and people you are around uplift you? Spark your energy in a nourishing way? How do you take care of yourself? Are you having fun, do you feel fulfilled? Or do you feel drained a lot of the time? 

Everything is energy and everything has an effect on our energy. It’s not to judge ourselves or others, and I’m not saying to never be informed by the news or to never eat the cookies, to never go on Facebook… etc… But it’s to do our best to stay Balanced and Healthy in a multitude of ways. It’s about being mindful of the choices we make moment to moment.  Because it makes a difference in the way we live and think and feel. And you are Precious… so remember to guard your gates with care.

Thank you for reading.
,
Tara

And every day, the world will drag you by the hand, yelling “This is important! And this is important! And this is important! You need to worry about this! And this! And this!” And each day, it’s up to you, to yank your hand back, put it on your heart and say “No. This is what’s important.
~ Iain Thomas

There is sooo much going on in our lives. A long to do list that feels like it never gets done…between work, social obligations, taking care of other people, cooking, cleaning and the list goes on. And we get caught up in the stuff. All kinds of “stuff”. Then we forget what is truly important, what really matters. We ignore what truly sparks us on the inside. We push aside our dreams. We don’t tend to our own needs. We are not as present in our lives as we can be.
And then we slowly lose a little more and more of our inner sparkle.

What fulfills you? What lights you up? What do you love to do? What gets you excited to be alive? Who do you love to be with? What are your dreams? Where would you love to visit? What pushes you to grow? What inspires you to Love deeper?

Look, I understand we have responsibilities we need need to tend to, I do.
But with that being said…
Come back to your center. Come back to your self.
Put your hand on your heart and begin to take slow deep breathes. Breathing in for 5 counts into your lower belly, and out for 5 counts. And continue with that for a few rounds.

What does your heart say?
Life is precious and You deserve to live a life you love.
Whatever that means for You.
This is what’s important.
 
Thank you for reading.
Namaste.
,
Tara

inhale: self-acceptance
exhale: anything that isn’t

inhale: forgiveness
exhale: anything that isn’t

inhale:trust
exhale: anything that isn’t

inhale: peace
exhale: anything that isn’t

inhale: freedom
exhale: anything that isn’t

inhale: presence
exhale: anything that isn’t

inhale: love
exhale: anything that isn’t

…everyday pranayama…
-Tanya Markul

Breathe in and breathe out… nice- long- deep- full breath’s.
Welcome in- the New, the Positive, the Bright, the Love.
Let go of- the Old, the Toxic, the Negativity, the Fears.
Allow your breath to calm you, ground you and bring you back to your center.
May each breath remind us of the gift of life, empower us and renew us.

Let’s create more space to welcome an abundance of Beautiful Blessings for the New Year within ourselves and our Lives!

Thank you for reading. Happy Holidays! I wish you Peace.
Namaste.

Love,
Tara

-photo has no filter. Sunrise. Nags Head, NC. 2018

“You either get bitter or you get better.  It’s that simple.  You either take what has been dealt to you and allow it to make you a better person, or you allow it to tear you down.  The choice does not belong to fate, it belongs to you.“
-Josh Shipp

We all face challenges in life. The ups and downs will continue as long as we are breathing because that is part of the nature of life. And it is up to us to use those experiences as stepping stones to lift us to our higher potential or to become bitter and allow it to stagnate us and pull us down.
I think life presents us with these moments to help us grow and become more of who we are meant to be…If we are willing. It’s ok to be angry, its ok to be bitter but for how long do we carry it? It’s healthy to feel our feelings but it comes to a point where we can choose to feel sorry for ourselves or instead say how can I use this to make me better? How can I find more compassion for others through this? Do you allow the challenges that you have been though in your life make you bitter? Or do you learn and grow from it and allow it to make you shine brighter to become more of who you are meant to be? “The choice does not belong to fate, it belongs to you.”

Namaste.
,
Tara

My to-do list for today: (and everyday)
– Count my Blessings
– Practice Kindness
– Let go of what I cannot control
– Listen to my Heart
– Be productive yet calm
– Just Breathe

The beautiful thing about this to-do list is that it can be done while we are accomplishing our “regular” to-do list.
We can incorporate these into all that we do.

Namaste.
Love,
Tara

“If there is to be peace in the world, there must be peace in the nations.

If there is to be peace in the nations, there must be peace in the cities.

If there is to be peace in the cities, there must be peace between neighbors.

If there is to be peace between neighbors, there must be peace in the home.

If there is to be peace in the home, there must be peace in the heart.”
– Lao Tzu

One of the Beautiful benefits of yoga, is that it helps us to tap into the peace that shines in our heart. Even if it is just one more moment of peace then we had before…and for that I am thankful!

I wish you peace.

Love,
Tara

“For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the courage to start all over again.”
-F. Scott Fitzgerald

One of the beautiful things about Life is that every moment is a new moment. Every breath is a new breath. If we don’t like the choices we have made in the past, we have the ability to make a different choice Now. So in each precious moment we can start again. That can be exciting. And Sometimes it takes a lot of courage.

I find this quote so powerful every time I read it.
I think the rest of it speaks for itself.
I truly hope you are living a life that you Love.

Namaste.
Blessings,
Tara

“I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather. I possess tremendous power to make life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration, I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis is escalated or de-escalated, and a person is humanized or de-humanized. If we treat people as they are, we make them worse. If we treat people as they ought to be, we help them become what they are capable of becoming.”
-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Wow.

Let’s recognize how powerful we are. Let’s be aware of our ability to affect or inspire the life of another. Let’s remember that each one of us has the capability to choose our attitude toward all situations that show up in our life. 

I wish you a forecast of many sunny days… And just enough rain and storms to guide you deeper to your highest potential.

And once again, please never underestimate your ability to make a positive difference.

Thank you for reading.
Namaste.
Love,
Tara

“Do your little bit of good where you are; It is those little bits of good put all together that overwhelm the world.”
-Desmond Tutu

Sooo… it’s been a quite a while since I have posted. It’s been a while since I have sat down to write, aside from planning my yoga classes and choosing the quotes and themes.  When I was thinking about what quote to post about, first I started to get overwhelmed. In my head it goes something like this: “Theres been so many  quotes and themes we have done in class, what do I choose first, what if I can’t think of something to write, what if it doesn’t flow, I don’t even remember all the quotes we’ve done because it’s been so long since I’ve posted” and on and on and blah blah blah.

Then I thought: It doesn’t matter. Just sit down, post the quote and write. That is all.
So here I am.

I decided to share this quote for a bunch of reasons. One of them is that it helped me to see that if I can uplift even one person by writing and sharing this, even if it’s not perfect, then I have done one little bit of good.
And that makes me happy.

There are so many little bits of good we can contribute.
We don’t have to move mountains.
We can do small things. We can begin with being kind. A little bit of kindness goes a long way. Smile at someone. Hold the door for someone. Donate. Even $1 makes a difference. Do a random act of kindness. Send a positive thought, a prayer. Etc…
Do whatever you are moved to do.
And don’t ever underestimate your power to make a difference.

I think that’s all for now.
Thank you so much for reading.
Namaste.

Love,
Tara