Wobblyogi Wednesday – YTT Journal

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It has happened. I’ve taught my first 15 minutes of a real yoga class (outside the comfort zone of my fellow trainees) today. I mumbled, forgot to breathe, relied on notes too much, missed modification cues, was lost for a moment and probably missed other things I don’t even know. And…… it was wonderful! All my mistakes were loud and aggressive in my head but the experienced yogis in the studio graciously overlooked my inner panic. For a moment during a chaturanga, it occurred to me that I was sharing something I so enjoy with others. That moment made it all worth it. I could feel our energy collectively rise as we progressed through the sun salutations.

The conversion from practicing yoga to practicing yoga AND teaching yoga is challenging!

  1. During practice, I focus inward. It seems intrusive to be looking at others when teaching. I feel like a student spying on my fellow yogis.
  2. When to demo and move with the class and when to stop, observe, talk and notice the class? I have yet to find a good rhythm.
  3. The balance between cueing and silence is another skill I need to work on.
  4. Inflection of voice to convey calmness and energy when appropriate is yet another issue.

Despite this self-critique, I’ve grown and learned so much! So thankful that I’m not asking how do you get into a twisted extended side angle [parivttri parsvakonasana]? or what is a sun salutation?, or how do you breathe in a twist? why breathe with movement? Is chaturanga a movement or a pose? What does a neutral spine mean? Only a few weeks ago, I would’ve asked these questions and so many more.

After I deliver food to the table, I eagerly notice the reactions: who jumped to serve themselves, who had seconds, who moved the food around the plate, who picked ingredients out, who got more to drink, who was quiet in her enjoyment, who was adding condiments etc. It is time for me to focus on my fellow yogis to watch and notice as they move and breathe to my cues. Teaching yoga is a new relationship, like any other, full of happy anticipations and nervous anxieties.  I learned today that the beauty of people moving and breathing together is so00000 much better than my crazy inner monolog. I thought through teaching I would help others, turns out they are helping me just as much, if not more. Cue a humble warrior pose……..

Hosting and witnessing the magic of shared breath is the privilege of a yoga teacher.

Thank you, Debra, for sharing your class with me.

Image from: http://www.doyouyoga.com/what-its-really-like-to-teach-a-yoga-class-illustrated-40340/

Mary Oliver’s Leaves and Blossoms Along the Way

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If you have trouble finding “the right place for yourself,” like me,  this poem might help. I seem to crave both city excitement and natural calmness. The two don’t often pair well but like the two flavors of sweet and spicy, when the experiences do work well, its magic…like Central Park in NYC or Lake Shore Drive in Chicago. What would be the geographical equivalent of a red curry with pineapple, or tandoori chicken with raita?

Leaves and Blossoms Along the Way: A Poem

If you're John Muir you want trees to 
live among. If you're Emily, a garden
will do. 
Try to find the right place for yourself. 
If you can't find it, at least dream of it. 

                                             •

When one is alone and lonely, the body
gladly lingers in the wind or the rain, 
or splashes into the cold river, or
pushes through the ice-crusted snow. 

Anything that touches. 

                                             •

God, or the gods, are invisible, quite
understandable. But holiness is visible, 
entirely. 

                                             •

Some words will never leave God's mouth, 
no matter how hard you listen.  

                                             •

In all the works of Beethoven, you will 
not find a single lie.

                                             •

All important ideas must include the trees,
the mountains, and the rivers. 

                                             •

To understand many things you must reach out 
of your own condition. 

                                             •

For how many years did I wander slowly 
through the forest. What wonder and 
glory I would have missed had I ever been
in a hurry!

                                             •

Beauty can both shout and whisper, and still
it explains nothing. 

                                             •

The point is, you're you, and that's for keeps.

from http://www.onbeing.org/blog/leaves-and-blossoms-along-the-way/8042

Quick Chicken Tortilla Soup

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1 onion diced

2 cloves of garlic

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon coriander

salt and pepper

1 store bought roast chicken

2 boxes of chicken broth

1 or 2 cans of black beans

1 can of rotel

1 can of diced tomatoes

A few bunches of tortilla chips smashed into bits

toppings: sour cream, shredded cheese, avocado, cilantro and more tortilla chips

  1. In a large pot saute diced onion. Once soft and translucent add garlic, cumin and coriander powder, salt and pepper.

  2. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer over low heat for 40-minutes.

Wolfredo – Marscapone Cream Sauce

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Last week I suffered a cookbook buying binge.  It was fueled by my recent discovery of  bookbub, a service that alerts one of free or low priced book deals. The good news is that none of the books I bought were over three dollars. The bad news is…. I could get into a book a day habit. So easily. To justify my binge I self-imposed a rule to cook at least one recipe from each book. Last night I tried the Marscapone Cream Sauce from Wolfgang Puck Makes it Easy Cookbook. The hardest part of the recipe was waiting for the pasta to cook. The mascarpone and chicken broth make this creamy alfredo-like sauce unique. Let me see if I can remember the easy process….

  1. Melt two tablespoons of olive oil and butter in a pan. BEFORE the butter completely melts

  2. Add a 2/3 cup of cream and a half a cup of chicken broth. Bring to boil, keep warm.

  3. After the pasta is cooked add to sauce (add pasta water to thin out the sauce as needed).

  4. Add grated parmesan (I added about 3/4 cup worth left in my bag), chopped parsley and red chilli flakes, black pepper. Toss pasta. Done!

See….super easy. There are versions of this recipe online or  you can get the book for yourself. It has quite a few other recipes I’d like to try.

This recipe can be easily adapted to add any vegetables or protein….spinach, shrimp, chicken, peas etc. A great basic sauce recipe.

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Another recipe I tried was from Vibrant Food that features recipes organized by season. In the spring section, there is a recipe for Roast Chicken with Spring Onions and Salsa Verde.  The images are so colorful and vivid, I almost wish I invested in a hard copy.

The roasted onions gave the dish a sweetness while the green salsa imparted a spring green brightness. Another super easy recipe:

  1. Roast chicken legs with salt, pepper, olive oil in a 400-degree oven with onions until roasted [about 45 minutes].

  2. Spoon Salsa Verde (parsley, garlic, olive oil and capers processed together) over and enjoy!

This is another recipe that can be easily adapted to add other flavorings like lemons and chili flakes.

Sorry, I don’t have pictures for the dishes. They were consumed as fast as made.

I wonder what cookbooks are offered on bookbub today…….

Wishing you a vibrant and easy week ahead,

Hungryphil

 

 

 

 

 

A Trifle Saves the (Birth)Day!

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I wanted to bake a cake for the baby of our chopped and blended family who is turning 12 today. Ree Drummond’s big four layer chocolate cake looked perfectly suited for my BIG personality daughter by marriage, Ava. As my reader friends know, I’m not the best at following recipes. I did wait three hours after the cake cooled to try to assemble it. Okay..fine…maybe two. I just want to stress when Ree gently recommends “freezing the cake layers for best results” it should be more of a requirement.

The cake was delicious, moist and SUPER chocolatey….but not good for building a cake tower. The architect in me wanted to add skewer reinforcements. Once I placed the fourth layer, the cake was just started to slide and slowly fall apart. Oh…. the slow motion HORROR!

In the fight between ideality and materiality, materiality won today. Freezing the layers may have controlled it’s angry soft moistness long enough to assemble.

The cake is now supported in a trifle dish. Still delicious. All four layers wouldn’t fit in the dish. We have a separate bonus single layer cake. No one is complaining. My other two daughters have generously offered to take care that cake.

Lessons learned:

  1. Maybe try to follow the recipe better next time by freezing the layers before assembly.
  2. Maybe big personality needs containment, whether by temperature control or structure.  We all need support sometimes. Support doesn’t ruin our inner deliciousness.

Here is Ree Drummond’s recipe.

 

 

Wobblyogi Wednesday Notes

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The Yoga of Eating: Transcending Diets and Dogma to Nourish the Natural Self

1. Eat to nurture yourself not punish yourself.

“The yogic approach to eating and diet is to bring oneself into wholeness, to illuminate and repair the self-division, to stop fighting oneself. Yoga, after all means “union.”

2. You absorb the energy of what you eat and how it came to be.

“When you eat something, you eat everything that happened to make that food come into existence. You are affirming a certain version of the world.”

3. Just eat.

“If you read while you eat, you are eating the words. – If you eat when angry, you are eating the anger. – if you eat absorbed by the scenery, you are eating the scenery. If you talk a lot while you eating, you are eating your conversation.”

4. Chew each bite before taking another bite.

“Shoveling more food into an already full mouth corresponds to taking a new breath before the old one is fully exhaled. Swallowing before food is fully tasted and chewed corresponds to exhaling before inhlation is complete. “

5. Eat what nurtures you.

“The central thesis of the Yoga of Eating is….that each person is the ultimate authority on his or her bodily requirements, and that the body will reveal its requirements given sufficient attention and trust.”

 

Image from: http://www.relaxandrelease.co.uk/cathy-thorne-cartoons-yoga-humour-fun-laughter/

 

Lemony White Beans and Kale

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It is finally spring in Indiana!  Sunshine lights up the freshly cut carpet of green suburban back yard grass and birds chirp alongside the low hum of cars passing through. The potted plants have returned to the outdoors and gently dance to the breeze of the screened-in porch ceiling fan. Our lemon plant survived it’s second Indiana winter indoors. I can feel the relief around me and in myself. Thank you, spring.

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Lunch on such a lovely quiet Monday involved testing a white bean and kale bruschetta recipe. Lemony dressing, creamy soft white beans, and bright assertive greens made for a surprisingly light and filling lunch. I used a slice of spelt bread (my current obsession) instead of a toasted baguette. Here are the bones of the recipe:

  1. 1 can white beans (drained)

  2. And olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, pepper flakes and chopped rosemary ( or any fresh herb you have)

  3. Let the beans soak in the dressing.

  4. Wash, then chop kale. Saute a shallot or onion in olive oil. Add kale. Cook until wilted but still green (this step is the key!).

  5. Add to beans and serve over toasted and sliced baguette or any bread…or not. It would be good as a side salad too.

Here is the full recipe.

Wishing my fellow hungry philosophers sunshine and good food,

Hungryphil

 

Food Poem – Ripe Cherries by Athena Kildegaard

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I read that the men,
on their way to Gettysburg,
stopped along the road
to pick and eat ripe cherries.

That the fruit should not
go to waste.

That they should take
such pleasure before battle.

That the oldest among them
should shake the trees
and the youngest gather
the fallen fruit.
That they should aim rifles
with the taste of cherries
against their teeth.

“Ripe Cherries” by Athena Kildegaard from Bodies of Light. © Red Dragonfly Press, 2011.

from: http://writersalmanac.org/page/3/

Sam Kaplan builds with candy, cookies and gum

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Photographer Sam Kaplan builds majestic architectural monuments out of small edibles. His work shows us the beauty and possibility in a stick of gum. Play with your food and find out what unusual art may be hidden on your plate.

For more images check out these Design Boom articles:

http://www.designboom.com/art/sam-kaplan-pits-pyramids-orgianized-food-art-09-18-2015/

sam kaplan forms sweet architectural arrangements with slices of gum

Wobblyogi Wednesday – YTT Journal Week 9

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I’m starting to lose track of the weeks! 8, 9, 10 I don’t know.  I suppose it is a good thing that the learning process is becoming more routine. Still lots to learn. Working on sequencing, anatomy, voice, teaching 5-minute segments of a class and more. The poses are getting more familiar and breathing more aware. I have noticed I lose my rhythm when I have to adjust my pose, grab a block, shuffle my foot forward, set my knee down or lift it up. Off the mat, I’m noticing when I start feeling annoyed with someone or anxious about something. I can sense when my energy is strained or equilibrium disturbed. I am not yet good at recovering quickly. That ability may take a while to develop. With the basics addressed I can see how our development as teachers now rest on practice, practice, practice. I feel we’ve shifted from training to more emphasis on teaching. As dates for team teaching, partner teaching, and finally teaching “alone” are set, all this teacher training is getting very real! I’m anxious and excited.

I continue to visit as many classes with different yoga teachers as possible. The diversity reminds me how wonderfully personal yoga practice is. I have started to see each teacher’s yoga style like an artist style. So far, I have met teachers who remind me of Seurat, John Singer Sargent, Renoir and Mary Cassatt. I also imagine my own style to mature into a Cezanne painting.

We learned about the chakras. I feel the same panic I feel looking up symptoms on webmd. It seems all my chakras are imbalanced!

Now that we are closer to the end of teacher training than the beginning, I suppose as a reminder our teachers asked us to reflect on our short term and long term goals regarding our yoga practice, about how we hope to evolve as a practitioner and teacher, about our thoughts on “finding your authentic voice.” All good questions. I wonder how you, my fellow yoga teacher in training would answer. Please feel free to share. How would you describe your style, your spirit artist?

Here is how I answered:

Short term Goals:

  1. To cultivate a steady and consistent practice
  2. To keep learning and becoming better acquainted and comfortable with various poses and styles
  3. To learn more about the internal “non” physical practices of yoga

Long term Goals:

  1. To develop a responsive personal practice that can help me get through the day with less anxiety and more ease
  2. To help others do the same

Ideas and thoughts in regards to “finding your authentic voice”

As a teacher, cook, writer, philosopher I strive to be authentic and mindful. I would like to bring that spirit to my yoga practice and teaching by cultivating:

  • a big picture, a thematic, a meditative attitude
  • awareness of how breath and alignment relate to the sense of yoga as connection
  • humor that admits the contradictions and difficulties in yoga on and off the mat

Who you are as a yoga teacher now

Like an elementary school kid: open, curious, aware but not very confident.

How you desire to evolve as a practitioner and teacher

I hope to be someone who can combine mental, physical and spiritual aspects of yoga seamlessly both on and off the mat. I want my teaching style to be like a Cezanne painting very much invested in the physical by honoring different perspectives on poses, breath, intentions and alignment. Be suggestive and tentative yet clear and purposeful. Like the lake painting where we can see him build an image with uneven and layered strokes into an atmosphere of calmness, (neither dreamy like a Monet or photographic like a Vermeer).

 

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