The Shakti Shine - November 5, 2018
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 don't remember exactly when I started practicing gratitude, but it's shaped my life completely.
It started in faith. I remember saying prayers as a little girl, and they always started with 'Thank You.'
Thank you for my family. Thank you for this day. Thank you for my friends. Thank you for my house. Thank you for this food.
As I grew older, I maintained this way of Thank You in my journals. I have a journal from the last few years of high school that are all filled with prayers, basically letters to God, during the time when my dad was most sick and after he died. And even then, they all start with 'Thank You.'
Thank you for the time I have with my dad. Thank you for divine timing. Thank you for the people in my life who support me. Thank you for my mom. Thank you for my sister. Thank you for the way my dad loved me. Thank you that Molly and I get to plan his funeral. Thank you that he is so loved. Thank you thank you thank you.
We were always seeing the silver-lining in our household (thanks, mom!).
We talked about everything and anything candidly, and we always found something to say Thank You for. At Thanksgiving Mom would always ask us what we were grateful for, but the idea of gratitude was consistently present.
At some point in college this transformed into 'I am grateful for.' This specific practice transformed my Thank Yous, which are a beautiful connection of me to thebigger Universe, into something I could share more easily with others. 'What are you grateful for?' is a question that has opened doors of conversation, deepened relationships, and given me a space to make authentic connection every day.
Seriously, I use gratitude every day.
It pulls me out of slumps, makes me smile, and walks me from 'I am not enough' into 'I have everything I need.'
My boyfriend and I have this nightly routine where just before sleep we share gratitude. 3 things we're grateful for today and 1 extra gratitude about the other person. When we're apart we send a text before bed. When we're together it's thelast thing we share before sleep. It's an opportunity to connect every single day, and for us it's expected-- it's part of who we are as a couple.
Gratitude brings me back to center. It connects me to Joy. And it puts me in my body.
When I feel grateful, I feel it all over my skin... tingly... I feel my chest expand, and I feel grounded and spacious. I love that. I love that I can feel gratitude in my body, too. I love that it goes beyond my thoughts and transfers life throughout my body. Wow.
I am so grateful for the practice of gratitude, the peace it cultivates in my life, and the magical way it connects me to others and raises the vibration. (You feel that, too, right?) It's seriously good vibes, y'all.
Here's to the practice of Gratitude,
xx
Ruby
Today I am grateful for:
1- The pleasure of laughter
2- Coming home. Athens is my sweet spot.
3- My loving mom, fiery sister, patient boyfriend, & passionate friends
and (one about myself if you're following along in the journal)
4- The way I feel at home in my body.
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.
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recap:Gulf Shores
Ruby & Maggie spent the weekend on theShakti Gulf Shores Beach Retreat, soaking up nature, rest, & community. It's one of our favorite yearly trips because it really feels like a family vacation. ahhhh...
Avid Bookshop Team Meeting Meditation
Last Tuesday Ruby led Avid's team in a mindful meditation and shared some key ways to maintain self-care through theholiday season. Let us know if your team needs the same!
Halloween on the Boo-levard
We joined Amy from Journey Juice and passed out Poisonous Apple juice samples to all the Boulevard superheroes, ghouls, & animals. Y'all, the Boo-levard is no joke! We had so much fun.
Body image celebration practice
Last weekend we gathered with Emily and the brave women who contributed to Nineteen Voices, a blog series on body image (read part 1 here). We moved and got a little sweaty and mostly basked in a whole lotta Shakti Love.
Coming Up:
Get Comfortable dinner
Did you know that all of our Sunday community power hour donations go to the Creature Comforts Get Comfortablefund? We'll be at their celebration dinner this weekend! Thank you for helping us help our community!
Yoga for gardeners
Join us at Lotta Mae's on this Tuesday morning for stretches specifically for gardeners / 9-10am / 585 Barber St / $10
10% of all merch sales on Tuesday, November 6, will go directly to Creature Comfort's
Get Comfortable Fund
Buy Now
The start of gratitude month has been so GRATEFUL, naturally.
Thank you for showing up in the work with us!
We are committed to the practice of gratitude for the month of November.
Join the challenge for movement, meditation, & inquiry.
* Make sure you follow us on instagram @shaktiyogaathens *
Check out the Challenge and get your journal now!
(you can start on Day 1 at any time)
check it out
Heartfelt: a weekend away
Heartfelt is a weekend away with Kate and Ruby. It is a weekend of sweat, connection, and growth. Each day you can expect to enjoy breakfast with a view, yoga, discussion, nature, meditation, group workout, and delicious, fresh and local nourishment.
Self-love and self-work is a practice that is never-ending, but continually gratifying. This will be a time for you to connect and rejuvenate with like-hearted women. Our goal is to provide you with the tools to come back to this work often and to deepen your understanding of and connection to your most authentic self with love and affection.
November 16-18
Tuesday (Nov 6) is Election Day!
All precincts will be open from 7:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. on election day.
free yoga opps at UGA:
Tuesdays @ 3:30 -
15 minute meditation with Ruby at Correll Hall 315
Wednesdays @ 4 -
Power Hour with Jaclyn at the MLC (North Tower room)
Fridays @ 12:15 -
45 minutes of yoga with Shakti staff (location rotates; check instagram on Friday mornings or reply to this email to get added to thereminder email list)