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in one house in another but in the house i remove and wrap myself in the fabric Roy Shabla
The Maitri Fund Sponsored by Health & Harmony Center Maitri - Pronounced my - tree. Sanskrit word meaning unconditional friendship, loving and compassionate kindness, good will NOW Collecting for the People of Haiti For 20 years Health & Harmony Center has collected funds to support a wide variety of groups. Now we are making it official by starting The Maitri Fund. Under this umbrella account, we will be able to support projects dear to our hearts. The first two are Footsteps to the Future and The Salvador Women’s Collective. Footsteps to the Future is the heart child of Judi Woods and creates a support group for girls coming out of the foster care system in Southwest Florida. The Salvador Women’s Collective is in Salvador, Brazil, and, through the dedicated commitments of Donna Roberts, we are now a sponsor. Now the third project is supporting the non-profit organization Global Community Engagement, the heart child of Craig Heller, husband of our dear friend Ingrid Martinez-Rico. The two began a support project for the children of the Dominican Republic 10 years ago. With the creation of the non-profit, they could accomplish so much more. Now to the present. Global Community Engagement is hosting the Jazz Concert this coming Sunday, Jan. 24, 3 - 8pm, at Lee County Alliance of for the Arts. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the gate. Rick DellaRatta and Jazz for Peace is performing. Collections for the Nations Association Charities will be taken Sunday. Bring non-perishable food items, clothing, medical supplies, diapers, etc., and the fee is $10. Monies collected will benefit the Haitian children refugees. We are collecting this week at the Center for this benefit concert. The Center is starting the collection with $250. You may donate material goods or money. Thank you for adding Maitri to your lives through your association with Health & Harmony Center.
Sharing Yoga With The Students Of PACE!
Please join our local krew's efforts to share the benefits of yoga with the women of PACE. During this next month, take your yoga "off the mat" and extend your heart to this underserved group by donating yoga supplies. We will also help connect teachers with staff at PACE to set up classes. For more information please call Debbie at 239-851-9642. YOU CAN HELP! Bring your donations to one of Debbie's classes or call to arrange a drop-off by August 21. Donations of cash or gift cards to Target would be gratefully accepted. Checks should be made payable to Pace Center For Girls.
Seasonal changes offer natural pauses for reflections. So as we move from spring into summer, recognizing that we are half-way through 2009, I will indulge in these personal reflections.
Bahia, Brazil - Check out www.projectzula.com Starting with the spring pilgrimage to Bahia, Brazil. There are many other opportunities to learn details about the past trip in April and future trip in August (gathering Friday, June 5) on the website. What is new here is the word pilgrimage - a journey with intention to deepen and understand personal connection by experiencing the people, places visited, without any desire to change what is. Encountering four of the wise spiritual Afro-Brazilian elders who keep the ancient practices alive was uplifting and inspiring. These women live in awareness and harmony with ... everything. The 105-year-old Mae Filinha, eldest of the Sisterhood spoke in a poetic manner, advising, for one thing, that eating toxic food is very bad. Her nimble and vibrant movements belied her advanced years. Result: how can I walk more gently upon the planet, garnering and sharing its many gifts? E.T. Update Upon my return, my own elder woman, E.T., needed, and continues to need, caretaking for an unstable blood pressure issue, officially labeled Ortho Static Hypotension. She is more stable in her instability. We thank all of you who have visited, called, sent flowers and cards. (Home address: 4289D Island Circle, Ft. Myers, FL 33919.) A challenging lesson in acceptance, she constantly is ready to have her independent life back, while feeling a burden to my sister and me. She continually amazes me in her mental acuity and bravery. Result: how can I serve this woman who birthed me in her needs and not deplete the very source from which the service springs? Yoga Class Schedule Change - This condition certainly affects the Center, as we are canceling E.T.'s Monday morning yoga class until further notice, in order to relieve the stress she feels in asking others to substitute for her and in not being able to fulfill her responsibilities. E.T. sends a big thank you to all who have attended her classes during the last 4 years and misses you all. In lieu of the Gentle Yoga Class, Joann Bishop is shifting her Chair Yoga class to Mondays at 9:30 starting June 15. We hope you will join Joann for this fun and gentle yoga class. Result: how can we meet the needs of the teachers and students while maintaining balance and harmony which is yoga's higher purpose? Rasayana Cove Retreat Center - Check out www.rasayanacove.com My spring continued to unfold with a personal retreat in May for more reflection at Rasayana Cove, the Ayruveda retreat center outside Arcadia to which I have journeyed for 13 years. Four days of nurturing through love-cooked food, daily shirodhara, three oily massages, and silence. Result: no more questions, just a poem that I share here. Each day I walk Fields, flowers, creek Feel new rhythms Mosey I seek. Daily routine Massage, food, rest Self fulfilling Grateful is best. Cohesive now Body, heart, mind Alert awake Melding I find. Calmly feel joy Ego, spirit All belonging Easy I sit. Schedule your Stay-cation this Summer. According to the stars, this summer is one of great hope and fulfillment of dreams. The Center is your sanctuary to manifest health, well-being, fitness, healing, balance, peace, and joy. Be sure to take advantage of our Stay-cation Packages which will help you Renew, Balance, and Change without leaving town. Create your own personal retreat with special combinations and pricing on Yoga, GYROKINESIS®, Massage, Craniosacral Therapy, and Integrated Awareness®. SummerYoga Schedule - Chair Yoga, Kid's Yoga, Yoga Immersion Weekends, Laughter Yoga Leader Training. Our two specialty classes of Chair Yoga on Mondays with Joann and Kid's Yoga on Fridays with Suzanne offer an opportunity for the young at heart and the young to experience the many benefits of yoga. Kandy teaches two weekends of Yoga Immersion, July 18-19 and Aug. 1-2, a wonderful way to explore and expand your yoga practice and knowledge. Meg Scott returns with Laughter Yoga Leader Training, July 25-26. You are all wished times for laughter, times for connection, and times for healing. Many blessings. Namaste - Kandy
Guruji BKS Iyengar was honored with the conferring of a Doctorate Degree by Rajeev Gandhi University of Medical sciences, India. Guruji was very happy .
He said yoga demands Zeal in practice (Tapas), self study (Svaadhyaya).Devotion (Ishwara Pranidhana ) is also very much important in our practice. He demonstrated on a student showing how to adjust, not just the anatomical formation, but also the physiological organs. Iyengar Yoga is not static as other schools; it is a progressive science. The techniques come from the head, and the healing comes from the heart. So yoga helps in tackling the emotions too.
A luncheon was held for 50 people for this conferring. Relatives, officials and selected students were invited for the lunch.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Can doing the downward-facing dog keep your heart from racing out of control? Alicia Jones is hoping so. Jones has a condition called atrial fibrillation that has revved up her heart to 250 pounding beats per minute. So fast that she's gone to the emergency room to have her heart shocked back to normal rhythm. Now Jones is in a first-of-its-kind study at the University of Kansas Hospital to see whether yoga can help calm the overactive hearts of people with atrial fibrillation. "I truly believe these heart episodes are from stress and aren't just physical," Jones, 32, of Olathe, Kan., said after her first yoga class. "If I can carry this peace and calmness I have now through my life, it will help." Yoga, with its meditation, breathing exercises and sometimes-difficult poses, has been practiced for more than 5,000 years. Because it's known for its ability to bring inner peace, yoga often is recommended to heart and cancer patients as a way to relieve stress. Research suggests that yoga can lower blood pressure and slow the heart rate. But there's been little study aimed at using yoga as a medical treatment. Conventional medicine doesn't make much room for alternative practices, said Dhanunjaya Lakkireddy, the University of Kansas cardiologist who is leading the study. And yoga just doesn't have the kind of profit potential that would free up research dollars, Lakkireddy said. "Yoga is cheap; it doesn't have the bling that comes from a drug or a catheter or a stent," he said. "There's nobody who's going to benefit financially from yoga. The yoga studios may benefit, but it's not a lot of money." Lakkireddy, who specializes in rhythm disorders of the heart, was born and raised in India. His grandfather was a yoga instructor. But Lakkireddy gave up yoga when he was a teenager and started practicing again only recently. When a few of his patients told him yoga helped dampen their atrial fibrillation, he decided to take a scientific look. Three of his patients contributed a total of about $10,000 to pay for his study. Study participants wear a portable heart monitor for three months to record episodes of atrial fibrillation.
Bahia - A Feast of Flavors Thus the use of the words: Feast of Flavors. So notably rich, the touches, sights, tastes, smells, sounds, and spiritual connection of this cross-culturally blended country engage the body, mind, heart and soul. Starting with touch of the environment leads to the touch of the people, the ever-ready hand-shake, the constant kiss-both-cheeks greeting, followed by a hug of contact, not perfunctory one. They engage immediately. Then there are the sights: the countryside outside Cachoiera where I was last week for the retreat portion of this trip, with three other women and a gracious host family. Picture lush green hills and valleys with the peaceful river Paraguacu cutting through. In the fields, Brahma bulls, cattle and horses roam, and donkeys laden with huge baskets full of wares walk along the roadsides. In the cities, narrow cobblestone streets, with houses built wall-to-wall, painted bright colors of pinks, turquoise, beige and light greens, and churches built in the 17th and 18th centuries everywhere. The taste buds and nose have been delighted at every meal, established first by the Bahian cook of Casa do Morro, Val and staff. They prepared every delicious meal from fresh, local fruits and vegetables, fish and meats, many I have never tasted before, each with subtle, integrating flavors. The winners for me are the jaca and cashew fruit, manioc and the famous Bahian food moqueca de peixe (cococut milk, dende oil, veggies and shark.) In addition, there has been only great food in any restaurant we have visited, whether the street vendor's African acaraje with dende oil, or the fancier food at Salvador restaurant UaUa overlooking the old part of the city, known as Pelourinho, following a spectacular performance of world renowned Bale Folclorico de Bahia, with voices and drum beats penetrating to the cellular level. Which brings me to two consistent sounds: the natural sounds of nature, especially uninterrupted at the Casa, and music everywhere, most times of the day. The constant serenade of birds at the Casa each morning as we sat outside to meditate, followed by yoga in a spacious, open-aired room overlooking the river, established a deep layer of easy rhythm that contrasted our long journey here and any close-windowed environment. Then what a delight to feel the pulse of the people evidenced in the dance-now rhythms, from the sounds from the village of Sao Felix below us at the Casa, or the beach on the island of Itaparica, or in the myriad marketplaces along the way. The spiritual connection is manifested everywhere in the daily expressions and living of these hospitable people. Part of the core intention of this trip is the immersion into the heart of the matriarchal society of candomble. We found that the African roots of slaves brought here by the Portuguese provide a strong undercurrent to daily living, with simple principles of living in harmony with the planet, caring for each other by serving those in need, and enhancing sense of self worth through education. One 105-year-old wise woman, Mae Filinha, told us not to eat poisoned (pesticide laden) or frozen food; that is partially how she feels she has reached her age! All these awesome experiences have been in a container of what is know as Brazilian time. Things happen within 30 minutes to an hour of when they are "scheduled," and that is accepted, even expected. We easily melded into this more simple rhythm, releasing the urgency, haste we add to daily living "back home." This has created a different internal sense of being. So among us, two Americans and two Canadians, we have experienced a feast of flavors on all levels. The establishing of balance, ease, calmness, and connection (all words that have been used) have been some of the results of this trip, and we anticipate keeping this new awareness as a norm. Along with this writing are photos of this beautiful place - all an enticement to come with us in August for the second immersion. 
Our time in the town of Cachoeira, Bahia, meeting
with elder Afro-Brazilian matriarchs, with 105-year-old
Mae Filinha, Mae de Santo - mother saint - of the House of Yemanja (Goddess
of the Sea), from left/right, Kandy, Donna Roberts, 105-year-old Mae Filinha,
Rosie Emery, and Anne Mason
Save the date!
Our next Connect to Care trip to Brazil will take place in August 2009!
Project Zula - A Brazil Journey/Retreat Information Gatherings: Saturday, Jan. 24 at 2:30pm and/or Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 7:30pm You are invited by Donna Robert and Kandy Love to a multi-media As an extension of her recent academic research, Donna The trip is under the auspices of Project Zula, Donna's entity which is Go to www.ProjectZula.com for more information.
Living Act III with Ease
During a lecture on Essential Oils, they told us how the foot soles "You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour.
Now you must go back and tell the people that this is the Hour.
And there are things to be considered:
Where are you living? What are you doing?
What are your relationships? Are you in right relation?
Where is your water? Know your garden.
It is time to speak your Truth.
Create your community.
Be good to each other.
And do not look outside yourself for the leader.
This could be a good time!
There is a river flowing now very fast.
It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold on to the shore.
They will feel they are being torn apart, and they will suffer greatly.
Know the river has its destination.
The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of
the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above the water.
See who is in there with you and celebrate.
At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally.
Least of all, ourselves.
For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a
halt. The time of the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves!
Banish the word struggle from your attitude and your vocabulary.
All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.
We are the ones we've been waiting for."
--The Elders, Oraibi, Arizona Hopi Nation
18th Annual Open House Health Fair, Saturday, Oct. 4 A grand event! More than 90 people attended our Saturday afternoon Open House, and first ever, Health Fair, even with an afternoon shower. The flow among the rooms and sessions offered by 27 different Center affiliates seemed to bring images of the children who came to classes here so may years ago: simultaneously learning, sharing and laughing throughout the schoolhouse. Gratitude is extended to those who taught the classes and offered hours of touch and education, to those who helped organize, and to those who participated. A paraphrase from one participant: I never realized how much expertise and diversity of knowledge is available at the Center; and another said, “I learned so much.” Here is what happened.
In the Yoga Room: Sondra Mitchell and Susan Carter taught Chair Yoga; Suzanne Blaney taught Children’s Yoga; Elise Kaplovitz led GYROKINESIS®; Faezeh had a Belly Dancing demonstration; Kandy Love led an Integrated Awareness® process; and The Tires (Meredith and Doug Davison) performed Acoustic Music.
In the Massage Area: Karen and Neil Kagan touched many people with Reiki; Ginger Owen“bowled” many with her Crystal Bowls; Marlowe Bogle, Pete Campo and Gene Elverd gave many Chair Massages. In the Massage Rooms: Scott Helm led two sessions, one on Kinesio Taping and the other on Ayurvedic treatments; Becky Avers led four sessions on Craniosacral and Lymphatic Drainage; Barbara Lee Hayes led two sessions, one Kripalu Bodywork and the other on Ayurvedic treatments; Marlowe led one session on Reflexology; and Jan Johnson explained and demonstrated It Works Body Wraps.
In the Harmony Shoppe: Randy and Susy from Mother Earth served healthy snacks of sparkling water and chips, hummus, and cookies; Dave Gorrell of Spark of Life gave away bottles of oils every hour; Maggie Mullins and David Lee spoke of Mindful Meditation; Purvi Patel offered information about our new Ayurveda skin care line, Shankara; Jay Love psyched people about Shop to Earth, an online shopping mall business opportunity.
Outside on the Lawn: Another addition this year was a Silent Auction benefiting HEAL, Inc. (Haven on Earth Animal League), a no-kill, non-profit animal foster organization, making a difference in the pet overpopulation problem in Southwest Florida. They are dedicated to taking homeless animals off the streets and finding permanent homes. Under a tent outside the building Marci ……. Brought a dog and three cats to this event which had been rescued and need homes. Items were dropped off ahead of time and then $400 was generously raised in the auction. HEAL can still use old towels, rugs, blankets and sheets, bleach, canned dog and cat food, feline pine litter, and toys and treats. In another tent, Lyn Morningstar, of Morningstar Dog Training, offered her expertise on basic dog obedience skills and animal nutrition.
Support Staff: As with all events, more than one person is needed. Besides those mentioned above, these people jumped right in the day of the event and volunteered most needed support: Meredith Davison, well, was just everywhere!; Barbara Damiano collected auction money; E.T. Love and Dawn Love were greeters; Maribeth Gentile and Shannon White organized the Silent Auction; Ginger Owen typed the Silent Auction sheets; and Karen Kagan typed the session sign up sheets and room labels.
Silent Auction: Although a small gesture, we thank those 26 individuals who donated to the Silent Auction, which include Center staff, local artists and authors, and products: Beth Ivens (Artist and Yoga Student); Barbara Lee Hayes (LMT#MA); Dave Gorrell (Spark of Life); Becky Avers (LMT#MA38728); Elise Kaplovitz (GYROKINESIS® Teacher); E. T. Love (Yoga Teacher); Gene Elverd (LMT#MA); Gerri Reaves (Author and Yoga Student); Mary Robinson (Heart’s Path to Mindful Living Founder); John Fralich (Photographer and Yoga Student); Karen & Neil Kagan (Reiki Masters) ; Kathy Bledsoe (Integrated Awareness® Teacher; Kandy Love (Owner/Director); Kevin Piotrowicz (Yoga Student); Lisa Mitchell (Yoga Teacher); Maggie Tanzer (Yoga Teacher); Mark Sinibaldi (Artist); MaryLou Lisula (Nail Tech); Meredith Davison (Artist and Office Manager); Marlowe Bogle (LMT#MA33153); Pete Campo (LMT#MA37176); Robert Austin (Sound Healing Teacher; Scott Helm (LMT#MA31642); Shannon White (Artist); Sondra Mitchell (Jewel Maker and Yoga Teachers); Stephanie Sinibaldi (LMT#MA); Susan Carter (Yoga Teacher). Due to the overwhelming success of this Health Fair, we are scheduling another in early 2009. Watch for details!
Laughter Yoga on Fox 4 The Center was featured on Fox 4 with Wild Bill on February 20th. Go to the following link and click on "Laughter Yoga" to see our spot:
Laughter Yoga is a combination of laughing exercises, yoga breath work and playful group activities developed in 1995 by Dr. Madan Kataria, a physician from Mumbai, India. Laughter Yoga’s popularity is quickly spreading around the globe. There are over 5000 Laughter Clubs in 55 countries. For more information visit www.laughteryoga.org Why is Laughter Yoga so popular? *It reduces anxiety and lifts mild depression. *It expands lung capacity and increases oxygen to the blood cells. *It aids detoxification of the body. *It exercises the abdomen and diaphragm. April 2008 Dear Kandy, Thanks so much for your generous spirit and support. Your faith in me was heart warming. I really enjoyed my experience in your lovely center and look forward to holding future workshops in Health & Harmony. Pass along the laughter-HA HA HA HA HA-
Voted 2007 Best Yoga on the Beach sponsored by Fort Myers Beach Chamber of Commerce!
Boy with muscular dystrophy gets first boat ride
by FRANCESCA DONLAN Alex Rodriguez felt the wind and the salty spray of the Gulf on his face for the first time last week.
Greetings to Everyone in the Health & Harmony Center from Dr. Eileen from "Down Under" Bxton, Victoria, Australia
Whoever reads this greeting, please tell Kandy I'm thinking of her with fond regards. I hope that she makes sure that our BEGINNING YOGA flyer goes to all those new Ft. Myers' residents now living around the Center. These folk don't yet know how important yoga is for health of body, spirit and mind - and then there is "without saying" our life enhancing Massage !!!
I had a massage myself just three days ago. And I attend an Iyengar yoga class in the Australian bush each week. I drive carefully (30 MPH) to the yoga center (twenty minutes away from my home...how unusual and fortunate is that?! ) and drive very alert, I tell you, as there are kangaroo and fox darting about, deep pot holes in a dirt/gravel road, plus parrots and wombats crossing my road...to say nothing much about the log trucks, floods, fires, rabbit-shooters and fallen trees that keep me wide-eyed on the trail. Great, unusual country, this is, and it has my heart, I tell ya.
Big love to all...especially Barbara Lee, Susan C. and Barbara D. ...( I'm a poet )...Mary Lou, Scott, Marlowe, Sandra, Pete, Becky and to all newly employed H&H friends....and to all our Yoga students. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers, as I do with you. AND Hold onto your vision and your fondest dreams. Eileen
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Join Us! Location
Reiki L1, Saturday, August 28, 9:00am Celebrate National Yoga Month with FREE Chair Yoga on Sept 2 at 7:30pm and Sept 13 at 9:30am. Children's Yoga starting on Saturdays! Starting September 4th, we will be offering a Children's Yoga class for children 5 & up at 1:15. Free Meditation, Sept 9. 7:30pm Reiki Night, Sept 11, 7:00pm Gyrokinesis is BACK! Mondays at 1:00pm and Wednesdays at 6:00pm Bowls Concert, Sept 17 at 7:00pm More Yoga Inversions Class, Sept 19, 9-2pm Sanskrit Training with Zoe Mai, Sept 24-26th |
