Love is a Circle

This summer - from Montreal, Quebec to Nelson, B.C. - an epic journey. 

I am so full ...

... of mountain peaks, totem poles, sunshine, sand, Lakeshore Boulevards and rocky glacier-fed streams ...

Woodbury Resort, B.C.

Reflexions Studio, Penticton, B.C.

  

... campfire cloves and fine wine, Rocket Stove popcorn, tent windstorms, the new scent of polyvinyl air mattresses baking in afternoon heat ...

Camping in Woodbury, B.C. 

... sweet sun-kissed skin, goose-bump rousing watery baptisms in nature's aqueous hot springs, caves, baths, basins and tributaries ...

Soaking at Ainsworth Hot Springs, B.C.

... millions of smooth and mineral-rich rocks to collect, scintillating sparkly fractals of light and loveliness, holy unscheduled time, laughter and silence ...

At the Beach.

Nelson: Spontaneous Fire-Escape Yoga

... Oso Negro fresh-roasted coffee, Vegetarian Hippy Poutine topped with Mushroom Gravy, Nutritional Yeast and Hemp seeds, emergency roadside ice cream pull-overs, Wild Sockeye Salmon and Kombucha kicks into high gear, writing in wired cafes ...

Kaslo, B.C. cafe, riding an elephant chair.

Ice Cream: Anytime, Anywhere.

... slow strolls, simple talk, meaningful connections, old and new friends, bare feet, grit in my hair, make-up breaks, forgetting Self in Spirit, remembering how to tell time again like a kid (a freckle past a hair!) ...

My friend, Neely, and Alison Rubin at
Harmony Yoga in Spokane, Washington.

Playing with my food.

... blessed beauty, growth, experience, with the one I love - Ash - and flowing with Grace, on the mat and off, with the other One I love to infinity - yoga.

After my morning Americano at Fruit of the Moon,
a roadside cafe outside Woodbury Resort, B.C.

... on the beach, in the grass, upon solid rock, cork floor, bridge, fire escape, water, air ...

Shanti Yoga in Nelson, B.C.

Bridge yoga in Nelson.

Ash getting his Zen on.

Dancer: Fire Escape Yoga Sessions.

Bridge on Bridge.

Om Om Om. Nom Nom Nom.

xo


Check out info on my fall retreat here:
http://www.facebook.com/events/267072033410506/

http://www.jenniferparks.ca/Retreats.html

Get Inverted

This week’s playlist is inspired by the theme “Upside-Down!”

It’s summertime - the perfect time to take a holiday and get inverted! We will turn our mats into the grassy fields and backyards of our youth while invoking the spirits of play and curiosity, in a safe and sanely structured class.

Tonight at Yoga Within's Summer Hatha Yoga Series (5:45-7 p.m.) you will be guided through a flow sequence of asanas that root you to the earth and challenge your core so that you may free the body, mind and heart to shift perspective and soar! 

We will commune with the animal kingdom through postures like Bird-Dog, Down Dog, Dolphin, Camel, Cobra, Crow, Rabbit and Locust, working our way into Chair Twist, Triangle, Bridge and/or Full Wheel, variations of Shoulder Stand, Plow, Headstand and/or Handstand.

Learn to listen and trust your self. Break free of fear-based patterns which clamp the spirit and limit expression of your innermost joy and freedom. This class is suitable for beginners and regular practitioners. Modifications will be offered and, as always, I encourage you to show up and challenge yourself with discernment, while observing the body’s response and navigating the voices of Ego and Inner Child, both of which have so much to teach us.

See you in the yoga playground! xo Jenn


Check out my regular and sub schedule this week here.

Power Animals ~ David & Steve Gordon
Hey You ~ Pink Floyd 

I’m Yours ~ Jason Mraz
Cant Keep It In ~ Cat Stevens

The Lime Tree ~ Trevor Hall

Birmingham ~ Amanda Marshall

All Summer Long ~ Kid Rock

Banana Pancakes ~ Jack Johnson

Margaritaville ~ Jimmy Buffett

Hanuman Baba (Dub Farm Re-mix) ~ Krishna Das

Summertime ~ Eva Cassidy

Tonight's Playlist

Many of you ask about songs in my playlists and so I've decided to start posting them in my blog. 

So here's tonight's playlist for Fun Flow to Music, 7:15 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. at Yoga Within. Some of these songs will be played in my earlier Hatha class, 5:45 p.m. - 7 p.m. at Yoga Within. 

Hope to see you! Jenn ॐ

Yellow ~ Vitamin String Quartet

Orinoco Flow (Sail Away) (String Quartet Tribute to Enya) ~ Vitamin String Quartet

Calling Ganesha (Invocation) ~ Sean Johnson & The Wild Lotus Band

Take Me Higher  ~ Fertile Ground

Better People (Album Version) [Album Version] ~ Xavier Rudd

Sober ~ Vitamin String Quartet

Hyperballad ~ Bjork

Om Shakti ~ Sean Johnson & The Wild Lotus Band

Blessed to Be a Witness ~ Ben Harper

One Day ~ Matisyahu

Chakra Beatbox ~ MC Yogi

Love Is My Religion ~ Ziggy Marley

Lake of Fire (Live) ~ Nirvana

Ram Sita Ram (Union) ~ Sean Johnson & The Wild Lotus Band

Disposition ~ Tool

Can't Keep It In ~ Cat Stevens

El Camino ~ Amos Lee

Summertime ~ David Ralicke

Nirvana ~ Soul Food

Om ~ Soul Food

Breath Music

During a workshop with Yogi Vishvketu this weekend at Prana, a student asked about whether teachers should play music during yoga class. He laughed, and said, "I think, it is a western thing. The breath is your music."


I love that. We all have a built-in soundtrack. And when we "tune in" and listen, or crank up the volume and vibrations, you can bet your internal composer's mixing timeless classic beats!


Without the breath we die and decompose and turn back into our elemental parts. So I'd say, wherever the breath comes from, and wherever it goes, it's a gift of the present that we're pretty blessed to receive. 

So this week's theme in my classes will be Making Music with Mindful Breathing. During my hatha class at Yoga Within Monday night the studio space was a veritable soundscape of symphonic beauty. Who knew a simple breath had the power to serenade your soul?


Without the breath, it's not yoga, we say. That said, I still love getting down dog to my latest playlist of sweet vibes and groovy soul beats.


Here are a few songs that I'm loving right now, that you're sure to hear in my classes these days:


Better People ~ Xavier Rudd
Blessed to be a Witness ~ Ben Harper 
Yellow ~ Vitamin String Quartet. Album: Strung out (Coldplay)
Disposition ~ Tool
Love is My Religion ~ Ziggy Marley

Come join me Wednesday afternoon (4:30-5:30 p.m) for Hatha at Salus Center, 10118 79 St, Friday morning (9-10:30 a.m) at Holy Trinity, 10037 84 Ave. - or next Monday for Hatha (5:45-7) or Fun Flow to Music (7:15-8:30 p.m.) at Yoga Within, 9014 75 St.


Peace.