Welcome February, the shortest and last full month of winter. This year we have an extra day due to leap year as it takes 365.25 days for the Earth to orbit the Sun. The first weekend of February marks the halfway point of winter with each day getting closer to spring and more light.
February is known for being a month dedicated to love and deep wintering. Author Katherine May describes wintering as those moments when life turns cold through crisis or loss and we find ourselves living at a different or slower pace. In the natural world, winter is a time of retreat and hibernation, wintering is where our bodies and souls seek rest and recuperation. With all that is going on in the world, having a month that symbolizes love and care may be just what is needed.
February love can be expressed as small acts of service, showing up by shoveling neighbors sidewalks, steps or driveways, dropping a surprise note in someone's mailbox letting them know you are thinking of them, or baking up mini sweet breads, muffins, or cakes to give away. February is a time to cozy up under blankets, snuggle your pets, read a book, watch a movie, or cook winter foods. February can also be a start towards making room in your schedule for taking care of your body, heart, and mind through yoga, movement, and meditation. This may look like finding a few minutes in your day to connect to your breath, taking a break, listening to a guided meditation, enjoying an energized yoga flow, or a slower paced, restorative rest.
Here are a few practices to help sustain your self care.
A few years ago I wrote Heart Light Meditation and published it to Insight Timer. This short meditation is my valentine gift to you. It is meant to promote a sense of loving awareness within oneself. Spending a few minutes visualizing the expansiveness of the heart space sends messages to our cells and helps stop the patterning of negative or worried thought cycles. Sit back or lie down, relax, and listen.
Back to Your Heart is a gentle yoga flow I recorded two years ago. This video highlights the head, neck, upper back, and shoulders connecting with the heart space.
Low Back Love is a slow flow I recorded during a time when I was struggling with my now chronic low back discomfort. This video shares mindfully paced movement with gentle awareness to the muscles in the body that support and strengthen the low back.
February {open-hearted} Flow is a ~60 minute heart centered flow with breath connection.
Monday morning Chair Yoga (11a-12n) in Wakefield at the McCarthy Senior Center will continue as well as Thursday morning Gentle Yoga (8;45a-9:45a) and Chair Yoga (10a-11a) in Melrose at the Milano Senior Center.
Those who are 60+ in surrounding towns and cities are welcome.
There will be NO class on Monday 2/19/24.
In March, I will be hosting a 4-week online yoga series through the Melrose Public Library. More details to follow as we get closer to the dates.
Here are a few more generous offerings from friends and colleagues.
Please join my friend Linda Sheehan of Kind Kitchen as she hosts a winter workshop for women. Linda has been practicing Ayurveda and living a vegan lifestyle for some time now. I've had the pleasure of enjoying her delicious recipes and attending past workshops where she shares her knowledge as a guide toward seasonal self care. I've had many long walks and talks in the woods with Linda through the seasons, I feel lucky to live so close to her. Linda has inspired me to eat more plant based meals and has helped me get creative with vegan and vegetarian cooking for my kids. Many of my go-to weekly family meals have come from her.
2024 marks twenty years of learning reiki, choosing to bring this practice into my life, and sharing it with those I love. I have had the pleasure of meeting many reiki practitioners as a nurse which makes for a wonderfully healing and holistic working environment. Parris Frediani is one of my nursing colleagues who has mastered the art of work life balance and is now opening a Mindful Living studio in Bedford, NH. Her passion for helping and caring for others is palpable, she has many years of experience working as an emergency room nurse with families in crisis. Her skills and pursuit of living and learning reiki, MBSR techniques, and mindful meditation are inspiring.
Save the date for Moments of Serenity Mindful Living studio open house this February.
