Yoga doesn’t care what the tag on the back of your pants says.

Yoga doesn’t care if you don’t know what yoga means.

Yoga doesn’t care how much money you have, what house you live in, what car you drive.

Yoga doesn’t care if you are flexible.

Yoga doesn’t care if you fall over in Trikonasana.

Yoga doesn’t care if you fart during practice.

Read more:
http://www.elephantjournal.com/2014/11/yoga-doesnt-care-a-disclaimer-that-should-be-posted-in-every-studio/

Laying down on your back allow the weight of your body to sink deep into the earth.

Ask yourself, ‘what type of flower do I want to grow into and feel sprout out into the earth?’

Imagine that you are a seed that has been planted into the earth. Become aware of the soil and how it feels around you. It becomes dark underneath the soil. It begins to rain, and the earth above you is getting wet, which makes the soil around you cool and moist…

The sun begins to shine and the earth begins to dry. You begin to feel the warmth and energy of the sun. You feel an urge to see the sun and experience its light. Time passes and you begin to sprout a tiny bit, so much that it breaks the ground above. While the ground is breaking you are rooting down and feeling the support and nourishment from the earth. You begin to grow and expand up towards the radiance of the sun. Your physical form begins to reveal itself through its earthy tones. You nourish yourself by drinking water in and through your roots while absorbing the sunlight through your petals. This becomes your food and as you sprout more you produce nectar and pollen for your bee friends and other sentient beings that visit your flower. What color is your flower? What does your flower smell like? What aroma do you give out into the environment for others to experience? You continue to grow into a tall beautiful flower that blossoms and shines…

**Pause** (at least 30 seconds)

Begin to come back into your body by becoming aware of your breath. Start to wiggle your fingers and toes. Stretch your arms up and point your toes forward. Hug your knees into your chest and roll over to your right side. Slowly make your way back into your yoga seat. Place your palms at the center of your chest and open them up like a flower. Breathe here with your flower at the center of your chest. Remember that you can always plant this flower into your heart and radiate its essence out. Namaste Namaste Yay!

*afterwards: take some time to root your feet into the earth and feel your own roots.

written by Mary Beth Bender inspired by Yoga Nidra

Are you looking for ideas on how to incorporate gratitude into your daily life? How about an exercise to create with the kids?
Expressing gratitude is the key to happiness. Giving thanks to all the things that give you joy only creates more joy and abundance.

Here’s a fun way to express gratitude with your children involved.
Create a gratitude tree for the house.
1.)Go outside together and find a group of branches.
2.)Plant your branches at home in a large sized jar & your tree however you wish. For example, Ribbons around the jar or colorful pebbles in the jar.
3.)The final part is a daily process of adding leaves to the tree with a written expression of what you are thankful for that day.

Here’s a photo I saw on Pinterest that is a perfect example of a Thankfulness Tree.

Happy planting!

with gratitude,
MB

Tonight I made the best sweet potatoe smoothie. It’s one that I have made before, but this time I added more to the mix. I chose to add coconut oil because it’s a natural antibiotic. With cold and flu season upon us I am protecting myself. Ginger is a good aid to digestion and cinnamon has health benefits such as reducing inflammation, positive antioxidant effects, and fights bacteria.

Sweet Potatoes are a good fall power food that should be eaten year round. They are very beneficial to the immune system. Sweet Potatoes are filled with beta carotene, which helps cells fight infection.

The really enjoyable part was that the Sweet Potatoe was still warm from it being boiled previous to the blending step. This warmth was like a tasty warm soup on a good fall evening.

Sweet Potatoe smoothie ‘Oh my deliciousness’
*boiled Sweet Potatoe
* add a little coconut oil when mixing the potatoes.
*add a little cinnamon
*1 green apple
* an inch to half inch of peeled ginger.
*2-3 cups water (depends on how liquidly you want it)
*Blend the ingredients in a blender

Photo Credit: unknown. But Definitely not mine.

The best thing you could do
is MASTER the chaos in you.
You are not thrown into
the fire, YOU ARE THE FIRE.
-Mama Indigo

Photo Manipulation by MB

If you want something that someone else has, just be happy they have it. Being happy for others brings you happiness in return. -mb