Winter News + Yoga & Meditation

"Now is no ordinary moment in time. Now is a place of startling individual and collective endings. Now is the space before something else becomes. Now is both a promise and fulfillment of fresh beginnings." 

Octavia Raheem

Life has been full these past few months and one of my new year goals is to SLOW DOWN, REST, and do less. Winter is the season of dormancy, we see it in nature as many plants and animals go to sleep. I wish my schedule allowed a long period of hibernation, but we live in a world that never seems to stop. Some may perceive rest as lazy or giving up, but the reality is that rest is essential for our mental, physical, and emotional health. I recently finished reading "Pause, Rest, Be: Stillness Practices for Courage in Times of Change' by Octavia Raheem. This lovely guidebook is a prescription for rest and resilience in uncertain times. Three simple yoga poses are shared as a way to restore body, mind, and spirit. I've been practicing all of them each week and have felt a spaciousness unfold inside me. Prioritizing stillness, slowness, quietude, and rest takes time, effort, and energy but as the temperatures drop and daylight remains shorter there is a pull to go inside, get cozy, and nourish ourselves with all the comforts of the season. 

A few announcements...

The Milano Senior Center in Melrose, MA will be offering a FREE month of classes this January. I will be at the open house event on January 28, 2:30pm-4pm to promote our yoga classes, chat, and answer any questions. Details about the event, class schedules, and other news can be found in the January newsletter.

Starting in March, my friend and fellow yoga teacher Mimi Izzo will be teaching the Monday morning chair yoga class at the McCarthy Senior Center in Wakefield, MA. 

Our next seasonal yoga series through the Melrose Public Library is TBD as we hope to move into our newly renovated library sometime in 2025. 

Please find my updated teaching schedule and links to FREE yoga and meditation below.

Monday Chair Yoga (11a-12n) in Wakefield, MA at the McCarthy Senior Center.

{There will be NO CLASS on 1/20 or 2/17, Mimi Izzo will take over in March!}

Wednesday Chair Yoga (10a-11a) in Melrose, MA at the Metro North YMCA.

Thursday Mat Yoga (8:45a-9:45a) + Chair Yoga (10a-11a) in Melrose, MA at the Milano Senior Center.

I'll sub at all 4 Metro North YMCA locations as my schedule allows. 

Gentle Yoga in Saugus, MA on Saturday 3/1/25 at 10:15a

+

Yoga Flow in Melrose, MA on Sunday 3/30/25 at 8:30a

FREE yoga videos on YouTube

FREE guided meditation on Insight Timer

Yoga and meditation highlights for this season:

Rest & Restore is a guided exploration of mind and body through the observation of breath and sensation. The intention is to offer support through self holding techniques (reiki) and breath awareness to restore us in these darker days of winter before spring arrives. 

Gentle Chair Yoga is a ~40 minute yoga flow using the support of a chair.

Winter Flow offers ~60 minutes of mat yoga with props. 

Winter offerings: Yoga + Meditation for you 💫

Winter is here and it is a season filled with light, warmth, rest and growth. 

Like the new moon times of the year, winter can be a special time of going within and caring for ourselves. 

Wherever you are, I invite you to turn your attention inward. Notice how you are feeling in mind and body without judgment. Observe yourself in the moment you are in. It may be helpful to place a hand on your heart and a hand on your lower belly. Feel into the softness of your body breathing in and out. Ask yourself what is needed and give yourself a few moments to listen. Perhaps it's a simple act of nourishment with food or water, maybe it's a change in body position or the need to take a break and rest. Offering a quality of gratitude and loving kindness to yourself is a powerful energy shifter.

Here are a few practices to help sustain your self care.

Gentle Chair Yoga is a ~40 minute seated yoga practice to boost energy and presence as we continue to navigate all that is heavy in this world. This video can be practiced anywhere, anytime you need support and renewal.

Rest & Restore is a guided meditation I wrote a few years ago that explores the mind and body through the observation of breath and sensation. This winter meditation offers steadiness and stillness bringing rest to the body, heart and mind. 

Winter Solstice Flow is a zoom practice I recorded in December 2020. This video is an active breath and movement flow intended to stoke our inner fire for the year ahead. 

These classes are recorded from my home in Melrose located on native land of the Massachusetts/Pawtucket tribe. I found these websites helpful in learning the history of the land and how to support the ongoing reparation for those who came before us. 

www.mcnaa.org

www.naicob.org

Thanks for contributing to the collective care of this community by showing up just as you are and continuing to inspire me. 

Wishing you all an easeful close to 2023 and a spark of hope to ignite our New Year.

Warmly,

Michelle

Mandala is a Sanskrit word meaning both "circle" and "center" representing the visible world around us and the invisible world within us. 

For December's nature mandala I placed pinecones, rocks, a sea urchin, quartz, onyx, malachite, labradorite, snowflake obsidian, aventurine and turquoise inside a wreath of cedar evergreens. These mandalas symbolize intention in the ordinary moments of the day and staying connected to the earth as the seasons change. Look around your home, go outside for a walk, get into nature and see what beauty you can gather. Nature mandalas are easy to create, just follow your inner wisdom.