May 2020 Newsletter

Here we are, nearly halfway through the year and all of us having a year we never could have dreamed of. I know that this time has been hard and many have suffered but can we bring our attention to the good things this time has afforded us. I know for myself it has been a time of clearing, cleaning, rediscovering and reusing. I have literally been opening old boxes that have been closed for a decade. Finding my old treasures and finding a new use for them. Having an idea of how to reorganise my spaces both at home and in the studio, and materialising these ideas, seeing them through and having the joy to see them finished.

All this extra time at home has allowed me the opportunity to get those things I have put off for years done or almost finished and I feel that now my home space is clearer, my mind is clearer, my vision is more focused and I can apply myself fully into rebuilding CYS and creating the broader vision I had when I took on the studio 18 months ago. I feel like this time has allowed me to clear my physical space and also my mental space. In not running around and doing less I have found myself achieving more. Have you found this too?

For those of you who have been struggling at this time my heart goes out to you. I hope you are receiving the support you need and hope that if there was anything CYS could do to help you please reach out to me.

Has the garden of your mind had a makeover? Has this time of online classes helped you establish a home practice you can stick with? How has this time opened you up to new possibilities and ways of doing things?  Has this time helped to cultivate and enhance your internal compass and your ability to do things for yourself, without the need to look to someone else for your happiness and reassurance? If not, then why not?

Yoga teaches us all this and more. Yoga teaches us to look within and find that we have all we need, that less is more and that our body is a place of infinite joy, wonder and possibility if we would only take the time to listen. Yoga teaches us that beneath the surface we are all the same, epically magical, wonderous and vulnerable. That within each and every one of us there is a universe so complex and infinite, yet we are so tiny and insignificant in the grandness of the all that is.

This time of Covid-19 has brought up so much for us all, we have all been affected, challenged and changed in so many ways. But what I have overwhelming heard and experienced myself has been positive, innovative and inspiring. Let the world be changed for the better. Let your thoughts and actions cultivate this belief. We each have the power and ability to make this fact, history and our reality.

What’s happening at CYS?
Even in the midst of all this craziness, great things are happening at CYS. 

I am very happy to announce that our new website is taking shape and I hope to have it launched by the end of the month. I have been working with a couple of wonderful people to create a site that is easy to use, informative and beautiful. I have decided to keep the online classes even after we go back to face to face and have almost finished setting up the On-Demand classes for you to access anywhere, any time. I still need to learn how to edit the videos, but I will get that happening and hope to have some classes up by the end of next week. I have some ebooks on the go and I am inspired to create some online courses and workshops. There will even be free meditation downloads from our Friday night practices. The possibilities are endless.

We will hopefully be able to go back to face to face classes in the next few weeks, all be it to limited numbers. Some classes will likely remain online only for a while longer while others will be a combination of both. Details will be sent out as they unfold, so please read my emails when they arrive in your inbox.

I would like to thank those students who have stayed practising with us online and supporting the studio and teachers. You have kept us going, inspired us to teach and kept our community together. Whilst the rebuilding may be slow, your support has been invaluable, thank you.

Our wonderful team of teachers have also been amazing, they have all jumped in and are doing an amazing job with online teaching and supporting their students and the studio. Many have donated their time and energy to teaching in support of our space and I am so grateful to all of them all for their hard work and dedication.

I am overwhelmed by the love and support that has been shown by our community. I feel I have been guided and helped every step of the way and am so grateful for all I have learnt, witnessed and received. Sometimes I feel the pressure of my responsibilities, sometimes I feel I do not do enough to live up to those responsibilities and serve them well and sometimes I feel I meet them head-on and successfully.

What I do know is that all we can do is our best in any given moment and what will be will be.

Be well, stay safe