Present:  I’m busy living life. Which means I’m random about how often I commit to presenting my writing in this forum.  I try to commit to living as fully and in the present as much as possible.  When I added “yoga” to the title of this blog, I was thinking  of yoga as a way of life rather than a place I go to get my exercise.  Yoga is about picking up the trash when I walk my dog, letting someone in front of me in line, not taking office supplies, making my bed first thing in the morning, forgiving myself and others…it’s also philosophy, asana, meditation, and laughing with my whole body. 

Me (past, present, and future): I began journaling in junior high (well before the term “middle school” existed) when my English instructor highly suggested that I journal because I talked too much. I never stopped (talking too much or writing). I can often be found toting around a tattered little book to capture thoughts, dreams, frustrations, and haiku. I love to dance even though I have little to no rhythm, enjoy cycling around town on a cruiser bike, and generally moving my body in healthy ways.  I have been practicing yoga for over 20 years, and despite my lack of social grace or physical athleticism, asana practice feels good to me. I like to think that my yoga practice has made me a more kind and compassionate person, but more than anything, it has allowed me to find more of an ease with who I’ve been all along. I have a day job at a non-profit hospice agency where I try to integrate my belief that all beings are complete and perfect exactly the way they are with my love of sitting with people who feel broken and who eventually recognize (ideally) that they aren’t.  I live with my cynical, witty, and down to earth partner and our little rescue dog in a wee home in Seattle where our yard is slowly being destroyed by four rescue chickens. I aspire to one day find enlightenment, but only if it allows for a sense of humor, an occasional snarky comment, and a flexible menu.