Hi! I'm joining the challenge from Barcelona, so won't be able to join the live sessions, but I'm really excited to take on this challenge. The asana class today kicked my butt and was exactly what I'd hoped for.
My mantra for the day is I AM stable.
I resonated with the reading and activity for today because while I was home for the holidays I cleaned out all of my clothes that I've left at my parents house, from high school, college, and in between moves. I was able to donate 3 large bags of clothes to the Salvation Army and when I returned to Spain, I left my packed bags hidden under my bed for 3 days. So today after reading, I finally unpacked, decluttered my space and felt much more zen and accomplished.
For this first day, I embraced the anchor theme with the message to myself that I am grounded. Throughout the day I was conscious of and grateful for the knowledge that the ground is beneath my feet to keep me steady and safe even when things feel anything but that. This mantra was extra useful during the yoga practice when the mic dropped out towards the end of the final round while I was facing away from my screen. I could see and I could barely hear, but I focused on being present and grounded to get through to the final tadasana. Thank you Dani for the inspiration and the beautiful flow and meditation. I’m looking forward to these 8 days 🙏
anchor was such a welcomed theme for today! i woke up feeling unwell and had a busy day ahead--reminding myself to ground in and focus on presence was how i got through my morning, and it was so beautiful to find this reading and theme later in the day when i logged on for the challenge. i spent a lot of time this afternoon getting grounded for my week ahead by tidying the house and meal prepping.
my mantra for the day was I AM AT PEACE--no stress can touch me.
I've been struggling with anxiety at work and today's practice was a needed reminder that I have all the tools necessary to overcome challenging/uncomfortable situations by coming home to by body and breath.
I worked on decluttering a closet and basement and found some items to incorporate into my yoga space/altar to remind me of why I practice and what my purpose is.
This year I want to strengthen my practice of letting go of fear and anxiety surrounding the future/the unknown. This is something I have always struggled with, but recently it has been showing up in my life more than ever before. Today presented me with a few situations that led to feelings of stress and anxiety, but focusing on being present and taking steps to ground myself helped me feel safe and at peace.
I loved this passage from the Daily Practice and turned it into a powerful "I statement" for my daily mantra: "With the wisdom of experience at hand, I know I could not have gotten where I am without every movement I have ever made." Thank you, Dani, you are a gift!
I wish I had started this yesterday as planned but life happens and I got behind. The message of anchor hit home for me because I have been feeling rushed and like I am constantly playing catch up instead of being anchored in the present a lot lately. I choose to practice slowing down and focusing on each moment. Unknowingly I did accomplish the assignments for yesterday as I spent the afternoon decluttering from the holidays and prepping food and laundry for the upcoming week. I felt accomplished and ready for a fresh start when these tasks were complete. I am looking forward to continuing this practice, on the right days! Thanks Dani!
Day Two: Daily Practice. The quote in today’s reading moved me: “The feeling of desire is the soul’s longing to move forward”. It reminded me of a passage from a book I’m currently reading based on the poem “The Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer: “There is no preparation for the fierceness of the ache of longing. It is the voice of the parts of myself I have left behind in the deals I have tried to make with life, trying to trade dreams for safety.” If you haven’t read it, this poem is one of my absolute favorites http://www.oriahmountaindreamer.com/
My mantra today is that I will let me senses guide me and trust my inner voice.
Day Two: Daily practice: My mantra today is to strive for balance. I have gotten out of balance lately and that has led to feelings of guilt. Specifically mom guilt; for running errands and not spending enough time with my daughter, work guilt; from spending more time with my daughter and less focus and time on work and self gulit; for missing workouts or ignoring my body when it comes to eating. A lot about my schedule has changed in this last year and I think I have resisted and fought it instead of allowing myself to lean into it and find balance in a new way. I think I will be a better version of myself for my husband, daughter and me if I can allow myself to be more flexible and not carry so much guilt or anger when something falls out of place in the structure that I am used to. Thinking about what I need versus what I want is a starting point for my efforts to re-balance that I will be working on this week and this entire year.
Day Two: My mantra for today (it feels like a bit of a cop out, but... ) I am Allowed. I set a lot of goals for this week, first week of the new year, last week before I start a brand new job, a week of firsts and lasts. I had big plans to fully focus on getting back on track with my diet (I told myself no wine, no dairy, no bread) and exercise (yoga everyday, get back into a running routine), but I had a last minute opportunity to go skiing for the week and I'm allowing myself to enjoy it and cherish it (with wine, cheese and bread) and enjoy the present moment while I can, because I don't know when I'll have the next opportunity to take a week off to ski. It's not what I originally intended in terms of diet and exercise, but I enjoy the sport, I'm enjoying the movement and fresh air, enjoying my company and time out of the office and I fully intend to continue with my commitment to this yoga challenge (brought my mat to the mountain and woke up at 6am to complete the asana before we got in the car). So even when things do not go as planned, I can allow myself to go with the flow, accept, enjoy and adapt my plans without guilt.
listening to my body and to my inner-most desires. noticing how they come to rise in the physical, and then doing further inquiry to WHY these sensations might be happening. i feel like i tend to skip the WHY and just acknowledge the feelings and move on.
after claiming this mantra this morning, i ended up listening to a podcast and the speaker said "the quality of your day isn't what you THINK about the day, but about how you FEEL about the day" and i loved that! really taking the time to think about how certain things may seem like good in thought or at face value, but aren't making me feel good in my body and heart.
It is so fitting that the first line in today’s reading spoke of feeling pleasure, joy, and guilt, because I have been feeling all of those things all day. Today I was fortunate enough to get the COVID vaccine and while I am full of joy for so many reasons, I also feel guilt that I was able to get it while others who “deserve it” more than me have not gotten it yet. Those feelings informed my mantra for today which is “I am grateful.” I am so grateful to have gotten my first dose of the vaccine and for the possibility that it holds for me, the people I love, and for the world. I am grateful to have come home and moved my body through today’s flow and to have worked on quieting my mind for meditation (I know you’re talking to me Dani when you say “you might want to get up and walk away” 😉. I’m grateful for the practice of yoga and the time and space to tune into my body and my mind.
The reading today resonated with me, especially the part that discussed acknowledging feelings that come up but then sitting with them and being present without needing to change them. I often get caught up in the moment and tend to immediately react to my feelings - either by finding a way to "fix" them if they are something I perceive as negative, or hyper-focusing on them if they are positive in an attempt to make that feeling lasting longer. Instead of judging my feelings and reacting, I can sit with the temporary uncomfortableness that may come up and let myself just be. The line "you are not what you feel" was very freeing and is something I will remind myself of often.
I really resonated with the quote "this is a being practice, not a doing practice." I think I often tell myself that if I am productive enough or achieve enough I will feel at peace and at home with myself. I want to continue to work on "building safety and a home within myself" rather than trying to muscle to changing things that are out of my control to achieve a sense of calm.
Day Three - Today's practice was so powerful! While it was a physically challenging series, what was more difficult for me was pushing myself just to my edge and no further. Paying close attention to the wisdom of the daily reading that sometimes action can be inaction is one of my greatest challenges. I realize I do not always have to push myself to the extreme, to muscle through it, or to exhaust myself in the "doing". My mantra: today I am a peace.
I shouldn’t be surprised that today’s reading was so relevant to my day, because I’ve learned from Dani to be open to the signs that are all around us. My calendar is completely open today (aside from yoga and meditation) so the message about being productive without worrying about productivity is spot on for me. Today I am challenging myself to be open and to embrace the openness of an unscheduled day. I also challenged myself to be more present during meditation which is still a work in progress! My mantra for today is I am open.
Day 3: My mantra today is I am calm. I focused on letting go of the tightness in my body during the meditation, it takes a lot of work for me to relax my face and my shoulders. It was fitting that I did todays readings and meditation directly following finally turning in my application for PPP Forgiveness. My anxiety over the forgiveness application and making sure I had calculated everything properly and wasn’t missing anything has been at an all time high and I avoided it for so long and kept skipping my plans to sit down and complete it. As soon as I hit complete I felt a sense of relief from this year and a sense of calm that I want to hold onto.
The quote from the readings “Life offers us the greatest gift of continuous evolution” really hit me today as an amazing concept and one that I need to remember as I move into this new year. I want to make a conscious effort to evolve and to do things that my fear of failure has kept me from exploring.
Day 3: My manta for today is I am independent! I have the power to make my own choices and take action to be the best version of myself. I always tend towards people pleasing and often turn to others to help me make tough choices. For me to continue to move forward and to grow I really want to focus in on my inner power and trust myself more with important decisions and actions.
first of all, that danielle doby poem is one of my absolute faves! ugh i cannot tell you how much i love it, how much it ALWAYS speaks to me. i know it by heart, so it was cool to remind myself of it and our mantra to activate throughout the day.
my mantra for today is I AM INACTIVE, because inaction is action too! I ended up having a few cancellations in my schedule, and used the time to putz around the house, put things back together post christmas, and feel at home in my space. so productive through being relaxed and not busy...it was so nourishing.
Today I was struck by the question "who or what are we giving our power away to?" and contemplated what it would look like if I owned and internalized my power rather than giving it to things that no longer serve me. I am choosing to "reclaim and chose my power" and internalize that "my level of enoughness is measure by me" and not external factors.
Hi! I'm joining the challenge from Barcelona, so won't be able to join the live sessions, but I'm really excited to take on this challenge. The asana class today kicked my butt and was exactly what I'd hoped for.
My mantra for the day is I AM stable.
I resonated with the reading and activity for today because while I was home for the holidays I cleaned out all of my clothes that I've left at my parents house, from high school, college, and in between moves. I was able to donate 3 large bags of clothes to the Salvation Army and when I returned to Spain, I left my packed bags hidden under my bed for 3 days. So today after reading, I finally unpacked, decluttered my space and felt much more zen and accomplished.
For this first day, I embraced the anchor theme with the message to myself that I am grounded. Throughout the day I was conscious of and grateful for the knowledge that the ground is beneath my feet to keep me steady and safe even when things feel anything but that. This mantra was extra useful during the yoga practice when the mic dropped out towards the end of the final round while I was facing away from my screen. I could see and I could barely hear, but I focused on being present and grounded to get through to the final tadasana. Thank you Dani for the inspiration and the beautiful flow and meditation. I’m looking forward to these 8 days 🙏
anchor was such a welcomed theme for today! i woke up feeling unwell and had a busy day ahead--reminding myself to ground in and focus on presence was how i got through my morning, and it was so beautiful to find this reading and theme later in the day when i logged on for the challenge. i spent a lot of time this afternoon getting grounded for my week ahead by tidying the house and meal prepping.
my mantra for the day was I AM AT PEACE--no stress can touch me.
My mantra for the day is I am enough.
I've been struggling with anxiety at work and today's practice was a needed reminder that I have all the tools necessary to overcome challenging/uncomfortable situations by coming home to by body and breath.
I worked on decluttering a closet and basement and found some items to incorporate into my yoga space/altar to remind me of why I practice and what my purpose is.
My mantra for today was I am present.
This year I want to strengthen my practice of letting go of fear and anxiety surrounding the future/the unknown. This is something I have always struggled with, but recently it has been showing up in my life more than ever before. Today presented me with a few situations that led to feelings of stress and anxiety, but focusing on being present and taking steps to ground myself helped me feel safe and at peace.
I loved this passage from the Daily Practice and turned it into a powerful "I statement" for my daily mantra: "With the wisdom of experience at hand, I know I could not have gotten where I am without every movement I have ever made." Thank you, Dani, you are a gift!
I wish I had started this yesterday as planned but life happens and I got behind. The message of anchor hit home for me because I have been feeling rushed and like I am constantly playing catch up instead of being anchored in the present a lot lately. I choose to practice slowing down and focusing on each moment. Unknowingly I did accomplish the assignments for yesterday as I spent the afternoon decluttering from the holidays and prepping food and laundry for the upcoming week. I felt accomplished and ready for a fresh start when these tasks were complete. I am looking forward to continuing this practice, on the right days! Thanks Dani!
Day Two: Daily Practice. The quote in today’s reading moved me: “The feeling of desire is the soul’s longing to move forward”. It reminded me of a passage from a book I’m currently reading based on the poem “The Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer: “There is no preparation for the fierceness of the ache of longing. It is the voice of the parts of myself I have left behind in the deals I have tried to make with life, trying to trade dreams for safety.” If you haven’t read it, this poem is one of my absolute favorites http://www.oriahmountaindreamer.com/
My mantra today is that I will let me senses guide me and trust my inner voice.
Day Two: Daily practice: My mantra today is to strive for balance. I have gotten out of balance lately and that has led to feelings of guilt. Specifically mom guilt; for running errands and not spending enough time with my daughter, work guilt; from spending more time with my daughter and less focus and time on work and self gulit; for missing workouts or ignoring my body when it comes to eating. A lot about my schedule has changed in this last year and I think I have resisted and fought it instead of allowing myself to lean into it and find balance in a new way. I think I will be a better version of myself for my husband, daughter and me if I can allow myself to be more flexible and not carry so much guilt or anger when something falls out of place in the structure that I am used to. Thinking about what I need versus what I want is a starting point for my efforts to re-balance that I will be working on this week and this entire year.
Day Two: My mantra for today (it feels like a bit of a cop out, but... ) I am Allowed. I set a lot of goals for this week, first week of the new year, last week before I start a brand new job, a week of firsts and lasts. I had big plans to fully focus on getting back on track with my diet (I told myself no wine, no dairy, no bread) and exercise (yoga everyday, get back into a running routine), but I had a last minute opportunity to go skiing for the week and I'm allowing myself to enjoy it and cherish it (with wine, cheese and bread) and enjoy the present moment while I can, because I don't know when I'll have the next opportunity to take a week off to ski. It's not what I originally intended in terms of diet and exercise, but I enjoy the sport, I'm enjoying the movement and fresh air, enjoying my company and time out of the office and I fully intend to continue with my commitment to this yoga challenge (brought my mat to the mountain and woke up at 6am to complete the asana before we got in the car). So even when things do not go as planned, I can allow myself to go with the flow, accept, enjoy and adapt my plans without guilt.
day two:
my mantra is i am listening.
listening to my body and to my inner-most desires. noticing how they come to rise in the physical, and then doing further inquiry to WHY these sensations might be happening. i feel like i tend to skip the WHY and just acknowledge the feelings and move on.
after claiming this mantra this morning, i ended up listening to a podcast and the speaker said "the quality of your day isn't what you THINK about the day, but about how you FEEL about the day" and i loved that! really taking the time to think about how certain things may seem like good in thought or at face value, but aren't making me feel good in my body and heart.
It is so fitting that the first line in today’s reading spoke of feeling pleasure, joy, and guilt, because I have been feeling all of those things all day. Today I was fortunate enough to get the COVID vaccine and while I am full of joy for so many reasons, I also feel guilt that I was able to get it while others who “deserve it” more than me have not gotten it yet. Those feelings informed my mantra for today which is “I am grateful.” I am so grateful to have gotten my first dose of the vaccine and for the possibility that it holds for me, the people I love, and for the world. I am grateful to have come home and moved my body through today’s flow and to have worked on quieting my mind for meditation (I know you’re talking to me Dani when you say “you might want to get up and walk away” 😉. I’m grateful for the practice of yoga and the time and space to tune into my body and my mind.
My mantra today was I am in control.
The reading today resonated with me, especially the part that discussed acknowledging feelings that come up but then sitting with them and being present without needing to change them. I often get caught up in the moment and tend to immediately react to my feelings - either by finding a way to "fix" them if they are something I perceive as negative, or hyper-focusing on them if they are positive in an attempt to make that feeling lasting longer. Instead of judging my feelings and reacting, I can sit with the temporary uncomfortableness that may come up and let myself just be. The line "you are not what you feel" was very freeing and is something I will remind myself of often.
Day 2
My mantra today is I am home.
I really resonated with the quote "this is a being practice, not a doing practice." I think I often tell myself that if I am productive enough or achieve enough I will feel at peace and at home with myself. I want to continue to work on "building safety and a home within myself" rather than trying to muscle to changing things that are out of my control to achieve a sense of calm.
Day Three - Today's practice was so powerful! While it was a physically challenging series, what was more difficult for me was pushing myself just to my edge and no further. Paying close attention to the wisdom of the daily reading that sometimes action can be inaction is one of my greatest challenges. I realize I do not always have to push myself to the extreme, to muscle through it, or to exhaust myself in the "doing". My mantra: today I am a peace.
I shouldn’t be surprised that today’s reading was so relevant to my day, because I’ve learned from Dani to be open to the signs that are all around us. My calendar is completely open today (aside from yoga and meditation) so the message about being productive without worrying about productivity is spot on for me. Today I am challenging myself to be open and to embrace the openness of an unscheduled day. I also challenged myself to be more present during meditation which is still a work in progress! My mantra for today is I am open.
Day 3: My mantra today is I am calm. I focused on letting go of the tightness in my body during the meditation, it takes a lot of work for me to relax my face and my shoulders. It was fitting that I did todays readings and meditation directly following finally turning in my application for PPP Forgiveness. My anxiety over the forgiveness application and making sure I had calculated everything properly and wasn’t missing anything has been at an all time high and I avoided it for so long and kept skipping my plans to sit down and complete it. As soon as I hit complete I felt a sense of relief from this year and a sense of calm that I want to hold onto.
The quote from the readings “Life offers us the greatest gift of continuous evolution” really hit me today as an amazing concept and one that I need to remember as I move into this new year. I want to make a conscious effort to evolve and to do things that my fear of failure has kept me from exploring.
Day 3: My manta for today is I am independent! I have the power to make my own choices and take action to be the best version of myself. I always tend towards people pleasing and often turn to others to help me make tough choices. For me to continue to move forward and to grow I really want to focus in on my inner power and trust myself more with important decisions and actions.
first of all, that danielle doby poem is one of my absolute faves! ugh i cannot tell you how much i love it, how much it ALWAYS speaks to me. i know it by heart, so it was cool to remind myself of it and our mantra to activate throughout the day.
my mantra for today is I AM INACTIVE, because inaction is action too! I ended up having a few cancellations in my schedule, and used the time to putz around the house, put things back together post christmas, and feel at home in my space. so productive through being relaxed and not busy...it was so nourishing.
Day 3: My Mantra for today is I am powerful.
Today I was struck by the question "who or what are we giving our power away to?" and contemplated what it would look like if I owned and internalized my power rather than giving it to things that no longer serve me. I am choosing to "reclaim and chose my power" and internalize that "my level of enoughness is measure by me" and not external factors.