The Shakti Shine - December 2nd, 2019

Shakti Love Notes 

We are always growing. I love that! And the more I grow, the more I recognize how important it is for us all to share what we're going through-- even (and especially) me.

So these Love Notes are a space for me to share with you each week-- about the studio, my life, how our community is growing.

I went almost two weeks without being on my mat in the studio, and I almost didn't go back.

At least that's how it felt-- like I'd never go back. Because after two weeks without a sweaty class, it almost felt too difficult to show up again. I felt sticky, heavy, and also okay (not great but okay at least, and that felt like good enough).

It's easy to get into a non-routine like that.

It's easier to hide that way.

This time of year, especially, it's easy for me to hide. I hide behind busyness. I hide behind the perfect party outfit. I hide behind niceties. I hide behind my okayness.

I hide- Trying to look like I've got it all together.

Thankfully I got on my mat yesterday, even though I almost didn't. Thankfully, because (of course) it was exactly what I needed. ~Thanks, Mags!~

Somewhere in the middle of a 10 breath half-moon (!!) she said something like,
"Instead of taking yourself out right now, what if you showed up?
What if you let yourself be messy?"

What if I let myself be messy?

What if I showed up without the right thing to say? What if I showed up late? What if I showed up without the most photogenic sweater? What if I showed up without a dessert? What if I showed up extra early? What if I showed up without an agenda?

What if I could let it be enough to just show up?

Well for starters I'd have to slow down. There are a lot of layers of hiding behind 'having it all together' that are inaccessible when I'm moving at a breakneck speed, but when I slow down I can see.

I'd also have to be honest. I'd have to be honest with myself, honest with the people I trust, honest about what's real. Being honest often feels scary, but in the end always feels like clear space.

And I'd have to listen. If I let myself be messy, I would be able to hear what I need, hear what others are saying, and hear the bigger truth in the moment.

If I could let it be enough to just show up, I could be more than okay. I could be myself. I could be present. I could be ready.

I could be real.

That's what I'm looking for. So I'll get on my mat again tomorrow, whether I feel like I've got it all together or not.

I'll come out of hiding and show up.

xx
Ruby

Thank you for sharing your Gratitude with us.
Thank you for supporting us as a small business.

Since shifting into our Ethical Pricing model, we no longer offer 'deals.' This time of year can feel like a deal frenzy, and we all have the tendency to fall into the feeling of lack when we are inundated with messages saying we are 'not enough' unless we 'buy this... & for 30% off!' AND I know that for me when I was in college I could only afford yoga if it was the main gift I asked for at the holidays, and 'deals' helped with that. So this feels like a happy medium- a great way to ask for yoga as a gift or to offer yoga as a gift to a loved one.

This is small token of gratitude for the way you make Shakti such a special place.

give the gift of yoga

*All gift certificates are of a custom amount and when redeemed can be used to purchase single classes, class packs, or can be applied to an account as a way to pay toward a monthly membership

Beyond the mat...

We love Athens.
And we love you.
So let's have more of that-- together.

Here's where you can see what we're up to outside of the studio.

Have ideas about where we should be / what we should check out / how we can show up?
Reply to this email to let us know.

Put us in your GCal!
Come by on Dec 5 to hang and meet our building! Stop by Shakti for a free power hour, Journey Juice samples, cupcakes, & an opportunity to get some local holiday gifts from Absynia jewelry, Flourish Fibers macrame, Maggie Scruggs art, Lori Demosthenes pottery, and more!

save your spot in the free class

~ WORKSHOPS with Leadership Team ~

sign up & support LT

rsvp for the fam!

“ALL SEASONS LEADERS”
FALL 2019 LEADERSHIP TEAM
BY: EMILY UNWIN

"Leading, while still being human, means not being afraid to change our minds, to show up anyway, to stand up for what we believe in. It means not quitting, even when our foundation crumbles."

Read More

~ Inquiry Corner ~

Emily's bringing back yoga philosophy for a
6-part series on the koshas!

Koshas are the energetic layers of being that surround our soul. When we align (or clearly see) all the layers of our being, our truest self is able to shine out.

Manomaya Kosha: Our minds can sometimes feel (and be) out of control, anxiety, too slow, too fast, tangled, sharp, etc.

Yoga and breath work can help access a calmer, more focused mind.

> Check it out on instagram <

Meet the Shakti Team!

Shelley Downs
Why do you teach at Shakti?

To be up to something bigger. To connect. To challenge myself to show up anyway. To stay in the work. To heal.
How do you honor the roots of a yoga practice in your every day life?

Breath by breath by breath by breath. Meditation
What kind of teacher do you strive to be?
I want to be a teacher who helps you to see that it’s ALL yoga. That the way your legs burn in Warrior II, the way you feel like you can’t stay in wheel even one more second, that you must wipe the sweat dripping in your eyes, how pissed you get when you can’t keep your balance in Eagle, etc. are ways to practice how to relax with what IS in your life.

It’s all yoga.

SHAKTI YOGA UNIVERSITY

LEAD WITH LOVE -200 HR RYT Spring Program with Ruby

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