We're hiring

Hello dear community,

All Heart Yoga is looking to add more teachers + classes!

All Heart Yoga is looking for experienced yoga teachers who love to create an inclusive and positive environment, providing modifications and personalizations for all experience levels. We are especially looking to expand our morning in-person schedule. 

All Heart Yoga is a locally- and woman-owned boutique yoga studio in NW Portland. We believe in the transformative power of yoga and stillness, and are committed to fostering a space of belonging for students of all ages, abilities, and experience levels. 

This is an independent contractor position. Email Laela@allheartyogastudio.com with a note of introduction/intention and yoga resume if you have one. Looking forward to connecting!

If you know someone who might be interested, please share this and let them know to get in touch :)

The sun came out today!

We decided to welcome Spring energy into our yin yoga class today.

Look at this beautiful light in our warm and sunny studio.

Practicing yin poses to support the liver and gallbladder meridian pair: legs up the wall then dragonfly with legs up the wall, figure 4, happy baby, twists, frog pose, sphinx pose, supported bridge, sleeping swan.

Inviting in energy of renewal, growth, the element of wood to support our transition toward Spring, balancing strength with flexibility to change, grow, expand, flow with. Imagining a strong tree moving with the wind. Flexibility as strength.

Cultivating healthy liver qi, spiritual growth, creativity and courage. Calling in solar plexus chakra, manipura, supporting our sense of identity, growth and courage.

Finding the archetype the peaceful warrior as one who is empowered, one who knows themself, one who is resilient, one who has stamina to meet physical and emotional challenges.

Basking in warm light, opening up to new channels of growth and expansion, cultivating Spring.

Readings

The Journey by Mary Oliver

One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice --

though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

"Mend my life!"

each voice cried.

But you didn't stop.

You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations,

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late

enough, and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voice behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do --

determined to save

the only life that you could save.

Lost by David Wagoner

Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside you

Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here,

And you must treat it as a powerful stranger,

Must ask permission to know it and be known.

The forest breathes. Listen. It answers,

I have made this place around you.

If you leave it, you may come back again, saying Here.

No two trees are the same to Raven.

No two branches are the same to Wren.

If what a tree or a bush does is lost on you,

You are surely lost. Stand still. The forest knows

Where you are. You must let it find you.

For Courage by John O’Donohue

When the light around you lessens

And your thoughts darken until

Your body feels fear turn

Cold as a stone inside,

When you find yourself bereft

Of any belief in yourself

And all you unknowingly

Leaned on has fallen,

When one voice commands

Your whole heart,

And it is raven dark,

Steady yourself and see

That it is your own thinking

That darkens your world.

Search and you will find

A diamond-thought of light,

Know that you are not alone,

And that this darkness has purpose;

Gradually it will school your eyes,

To find the one gift your life requires

Hidden within this night-corner.

Invoke the learning

Of every suffering

Now is the time (Excerpt) by Hafiz

Now is the time to know

That all that you do is sacred.

Now, why not consider

A lasting truce with yourself and God.

Now is the time to understand

That all your ideas of right and wrong

Were just a child's training wheels

To be laid aside

When you finally live

With veracity

And love.

Now is the time for the world to know

That every thought and action is sacred.

This is the time

For you to compute the impossibility

That there is anything

But Grace.

Now is the season to know

That everything you doIs sacred.

You have suffered.

Close your eyes.

Gather all the kindling

About your heart

To create one spark

That is all you need

To nourish the flame

That will cleanse the dark

Of its weight of festered fear.

A new confidence will come alive

To urge you towards higher ground

Where your imagination

will learn to engage difficulty

As its most rewarding threshold!

Trusting Prana by Danna Faulds

Trust the energy that courses through you. Trust.

Then take surrender even deeper. Be the energy.

Don’t push anything away. Follow each sensation back to its source in vastness and pure presence.

Emerge so new, so fresh, that you don’t know who you are.

Welcome in this season of monsoons.

Be the bridge across the flooded river and the surging torrent underneath.

Be unafraid of consummate wonder.

Be the energy and blaze a trail across the clear night sky like lightning.

Dare to be your own illumination

My Heart Soars By Chief Dan George

The beauty of the trees,

the softness of the air,

the fragrance of the grass,

speaks to me.

The summit of the mountain,

the thunder of the sky,

the rhythm of the sea,

speaks to me.

The faintness of the stars,

the freshness of the morning,

the dew drop on the flower,

speaks to me.

The strength of fire,

the taste of salmon,

the trail of the sun,

and the life that never goes away,

They speak to me.

And my heart soars.

⭐ Recent Reviews of our Classes ⭐

Hello friends,

we wanted to share something new with you!

Our studio software has made it very easy for clients to write reviews of the classes they have attended. There is now a dedicated space on our website where you can check out our many ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ reviews.

Here are some recent notes from our clients!

Supporting Portland Teachers

25% for PPS Teachers

We’d like to offer our thanks and supports to Portland public school teachers during their strike. For the month of November, PPS teachers can purchase a class pass, or a pack of 5 for 25% off.

Portland teachers, use discount code PPSTeachers25
once in our booking app, Momence.

Mary Oliver Gathering – the Poems

On Saturday, September 9th we gathered to honor the poetry of one of our most treasured poets, Mary Oliver. We walked from the yoga studio up into Macleay Park and found a lovely spot to share snacks and share some of our cherished Mary Oliver poems. I will include the poems shared so that you may come to cherish them too.

Franz Marc's Blue Horses – read by Nancy

I step into the painting of the four blue horses.
I am not even surprised that I can do this.
One of the horses walks towards me.
His blue nose noses me lightly. I put my arm
over his blue mane, not holding on, just commingling.
He allows me my pleasure.
Franz Marc died a young man, shrapnel in his brain.
I would rather die than try to explain to the blue horses
what war is.
They would either faint in horror, or simply find it impossible to believe.
I do not know how to thanks you, Franz Marc.
Maybe our world will grow kinder eventually.
Maybe the desire to make something beautiful
is the piece of God that is inside each of us.
Now all four horses have come closer,
are bending their faces toward me
as if they have secrets to tell.
I don't expect them to speak, and they don't
If being so beautiful isn't enough, what
could they possible say?

First Yoga Lesson – read by Nancy

“Be a lotus in the pond,” she said, “opening

slowly, no single energy tugging

against another but peacefully,

all together.”
I couldn’t even touch my toes.

“Feel your quadriceps stretching?” she asked.

Well, something was certainly stretching.
Standing impressively upright, she

raised one leg and placed it against

the other, then lifted her arms and

shook her hands like leaves. “Be a tree,” she said.
I lay on the floor, exhausted.

But to be a lotus in the pond

opening slowly, and very slowly rising–

that I could do.

Good Morning – read by Judy

1.
"Hello, wren" is the first thing I say. "Where did you come from appearing so sudden and cheerful in the privet? Which, by the way, has decided to decorate itself in so many white blossoms."

2.
Paulus is coming to visit! Paulus the dancer, the potter. Who is just beginning his eightieth decade, who walks without shoes in the woods because his feet, he says, ask to be in touch with the earth. Paulus who when he says my poems sometimes changes them a little, according to the occasion or his own feelings. Okay, I say.

3.
Stay young, always, in the theater of your
 mind.

4.
Bless the notebook that I always carry in my pocket. And the pen. Bless the words with which I try to say what I see, think, or feel. With gratitude for the grace of the earth. The expected and the exception, both. For all the hours I have been given to be in this world.

5.
The multiplicity of forms! The hummingbird, the fox, the raven, the sparrow hawk, the otter, the dragonfly, the water lily! And on and on. It must be a great disappointment to God if we are not dazzled at least ten times a day.

6.
Slowly the morning climbs toward the day. As for the poem, not this poem but any poem, do you feel its sting? Do you feel its hope, its entrance to a community? Do you feel its hand in your hand?

7.
But perhaps you're still sleeping. I could wake you with a touch or a kiss. But so could I shake the petals from the wild rose which blossoms so silently and perfectly, and I do not.

Just As The Calendar Began To Say Summer –
read by Molly

I went out of the schoolhouse fast
and through the gardens and to the woods,
and spent all summer forgetting what I'd been taught—
two times two, and diligence, and so forth,
how to be modest and useful, and how to succed and so forth,
machines and oil and plastic and money and so forth.
By fall I had healed somewhat, but was summoned back
to the chalky rooms and the desks, to sit and remember
the way the river kept rolling its pebbles,
the way the wild wrens sang though they hadn't a penny in the bank,
the way the flowers were dressed in nothing but light.

Song for Autumn – read by Veronica

Don’t you imagine the leaves dream now
how comfortable it will be to touch
the earth instead of the
nothingness of the air and the endless
freshets of wind? And don’t you think
the trees, especially those with
mossy hollows, are beginning to look for
the birds that will come—six, a dozen—to sleep
inside their bodies? And don’t you hear
the goldenrod whispering goodbye,
the everlasting being crowned with the first
tuffets of snow? The pond
stiffens and the white field over which
the fox runs so quickly brings out
its long blue shadows. The wind wags
its many tails. And in the evening
the piled firewood shifts a little,
longing to be on its way.

The Humpbacks – read by Katherine

There is, all around us,
this country
of original fire.
You know what I mean.
The sky, after all, stops at nothing, so something
has to be holding
our bodies
in its rich and timeless stables or else
we would fly away.

Off Stellwagen
off the Cape,
the humpbacks rise. Carrying their tonnage
of barnacles and joy
they leap through the water, they nuzzle back under it
like children
at play.

They sing, too.
And not for any reason
you can’t imagine.

Three of them
rise to the surface near the bow of the boat,
then dive
deeply, their huge scarred flukes
tipped to the air.
We wait, not knowing
just where it will happen; suddenly
they smash through the surface, someone begins
shouting for joy and you realize
it is yourself as they surge
upward and you see for the first time
how huge they are, as they breach,
and dive, and breach again
through the shining blue flowers
of the split water and you see them
for some unbelievable
part of a moment against the sky–
like nothing you’ve ever imagined–
like the myth of the fifth morning galloping
out of darkness, pouring
heavenward, spinning; then

they crash back under those black silks
and we all fall back
together into that wet fire, you
know what I mean.

I know a captain who has seen them
playing with seaweed, swimming
through the green islands, tossing
the slippery branches into the air.
I know a whale that will come to the boat wheneve
she can, and nudge it gently along the bow
with her long flipper.
I know several lives worth living.

Listen, whatever it is you try
to do with your life, nothing will ever dazzle you
like the dreams of your body,
its spirit
longing to fly while the dead-weight bones
toss their dark mane and hurry
back into the fields of glittering fire
where everything,
even the great whale,
throbs with song.

The Fish – read by Eugene

The first fish
I ever caught
would not lie down
quiet in the pail
but flailed and sucked
at the burning
amazement of the air
and died
in the slow pouring off
of rainbows. Later
I opened his body and separated
the flesh from the bones
and ate him. Now the sea
is in me: I am the fish, the fish
glitters in me; we are
risen, tangled together, certain to fall
back to the sea. Out of pain,
and pain, and more pain
we feed this feverish plot, we are nourished
by the mystery.

Why I Wake Early – read by Karen


Hello, sun in my face.
Hello, you who make the morning
and spread it over the fields
and into the faces of the tulips
and the nodding morning glories,
and into the windows of, even, the
miserable and crotchety–
best preacher that ever was,
dear star, that just happens
to be where you are in the universe
to keep us from ever-darkness,
to ease us with warm touching,
to hold us in the great hands of light–
good morning, good morning, good morning.
Watch, now, how I start the day
in happiness, in kindness.

The Summer Day – read by Katherine

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean —
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down —
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

Picking Blueberries, Austerlitz, New York, 1957
read by Laela

Once, in summer
in the blueberries,
I fell asleep, and woke
when a deer stumbled against me.

I guess
she was so busy with her own happiness
she had grown careless
and was just wandering along

listening
to the wind as she leaned down
to lip up the sweetness.
So, there we were

with nothing between us
but a few leaves, and wind’s
glossy voice
shouting instructions.

The deer
backed away finally
and flung up her white tail
and went floating off toward the trees -

but the moment she did that
was so wide and so deep
it has lasted to this day;
I have only to think of her -

the flower of her amazement
and the stalled breath of her curiosity,
and even the damp touch of her solicitude
before she took flight -

to be absent again from this world
and alive, again, in another
for thirty years
sleepy and amazed,

rising out of the rough weeds
listening and looking.
Beautiful girl, where are you?


Spring – read by Laela

Somewhere
a black bear
has just risen from sleep
and is staring

down the mountain.
All night
in the brisk and shallow restlessness
of early spring

I think of her,
her four black fists
flicking the gravel,
her tongue

like a red fire
touching the grass,
the cold water.
There is only one question:

how to love this world.
I think of her
rising
like a black and leafy ledge

to sharpen her claws against
the silence
of the trees.
Whatever else

my life is
with its poems
and its music
and its glass cities,

it is also this dazzling darkness
coming
down the mountain,
breathing and tasting;

all day I think of her -—
her white teeth,
her wordlessness,
her perfect love.

Happy Summer!

I hope the blue sky and shining sun in of early Summer is bringing you a sense of ease and joy. Summer is often an active time of year, with the seasonal energy of yang, movement, growth, action, fun. You may be enjoying more time outdoors and enjoying the feeling of warmth. It’s a wonderful time to bring some intentional joy into your life and heart. Ānandā (आनन्दा) is a Sanskrit word that could be lightly defined as joy, bliss, the energy of bliss, a joy that is fully felt with the senses, happiness.

You might enjoy playing with one of these mantras from one of my most beloved books, The Radiance Sutras by Lorin Roche:

“I am nourished and filled with the bliss of my soul.” (Sva ananda bharitam)

“I am suffused with the nectar-essence of life.” (Sva amritam)

Lorin Roche defines amṛtā (अमृता) as immortal, imperishable, beautiful, beloved, the nectar of immortality. He suggests, “you could begin meditating with the amrita that permeates your body – sva amrita – and as you shift levels, you accept that the entire universe is filled with your joy and your essence. Or you could meditate on the cosmos and your body simultaneously as being filled with your ananda and amrita.”

May your days be nourished by your heart-felt practices, whatever they may be. We love to practice with you and hope to see you in the studio soon.

with ❤️,

Laela

Eugene's Saturday morning class themes for May–June

Join Eugene anytime during the next 6 weeks to dive a bit more deeply into class.

Eugene will be offering a six week, join at any time, series on Yoga Terms - making the inspirational words we hear in class more tangible, and incorporating them in our yoga practice and daily life.

“We will use anatomical details, imagery, poetry, yogic philosophy and daily wisdom to play with these concepts in our regular flow class.”

May 20 - Grounding / Nurturing

May 27 - Lengthening / Evolving

June 3rd - Releasing / Forgiveness

June 10th - Awareness / Compassion

June 17th - Courage / Opening

June 24th - Transformation / Healing

Class Schedule Changes in April

Hello dear community, we wanted to let you know about some upcoming class changes and cancellations.

Wednesday evening yin with Anna has been cancelled. Anna will continue teaching yin both Monday and Friday mornings at 7 am. It’s a lovely way to start the day. We hope you’ll join her.

Starting in May Wednesday morning flow with McKenna will transform to Wednesday morning Sunrise Yoga with Amber from 6:30-7:30 am. Big thanks to McKenna for holding beautiful meditative flow classes on Wednesdays. McKenna looks forward to connecting with our community with workshops and specialty classes from time to time.

We also are cancelling the noon classes on Mondays and Wednesdays with Amelia. We will get to practice with Amelia through the end of April, so please book a class with her while you can. We do hope to stay in touch and hope to see her in the studio and in the neighborhood.

Thank you to our wonderful teachers – it has been an absolute treasure learning with and from you!!

Poems to welcome Spring

These are only a few poems that remind us of Spring. Please feel free to add your own. Happy Spring everyone!

Near Spring Equinox by Jeanetta Calhoun Mish –

A ruby crocus near the porch sends up

hope—winter of sorrow is waning

the dire moon of almost-spring rises

full with promise of renewal,

shaming twinkling city lights in its splendor. 

I search for my faith, wonder where

I lost it, find it in deep cinnamon

mud smushing up between my toes.

Across a spent field, a lake in shadow

serenades curvature of earth.

As if on cue, a comet streaks

across somber roiling river of sky.

+

Spring by Mary Oliver –

Somewhere
a black bear
has just risen from sleep
and is staring

down the mountain.
All night
in the brisk and shallow restlessness
of early spring

I think of her,
her four black fists
flicking the gravel,
her tongue

like a red fire
touching the grass,
the cold water.
There is only one question:

how to love this world.
I think of her
rising
like a black and leafy ledge

to sharpen her claws against
the silence
of the trees.
Whatever else

my life is
with its poems
and its music
and its glass cities,

it is also this dazzling darkness
coming
down the mountain,
breathing and tasting;

all day I think of her -—
her white teeth,
her wordlessness,
her perfect love.

Welcome by Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg –

You come through the gate,

and your life on earth begins:

green wavering into the hue

of early spring, the growing

heat pouring leaf into form

just as you did, are doing,

will do with lack, rain, rivers,

kisses, wind, and horizons

that come each turning.

You stand up in your dream,

lean on the fence, look wide

toward the lights spilled

across the black expanse

that carries the world.

The next destination pours

toward you as you walk.

A thunderhead powers upward,

spends itself over the past,

behind you to your left.

You turn and look one direction,

then another until you’re back

where you started: welcome

as rain in the tall reach of the weather

of your body, of this life

that breathes in time, breathes out light.

+

Revery by Fenton Johnson –

1. 

I was the starlight 

I was the moonlight 

I was the sunset, 

Before the dawning 

          Of my life; 

I was the river

Forever winding 

To purple dreaming, 

I was the glowing 

Of youthful Springtime, 

I was the singing 

Of golden songbirds,—

        I was love.

            2. 

I was the sunlight,

I was the twilight,  

I was the humming

Of winged creatures

    Ere my birth; 

I was the blushing 

Of lily maiden, 

I was the vision 

Of youthful striving, 

I was the summer, 

I was the autumn, 

I was the All-time—

      I was love



Words of inspiration... in no particular order

You who want knowledge, see the Oneness within.

There you will find the clear mirror already waiting. – Hadewijch II

We sit together, the mountain and me, until only the mountain remains. – Li Po

The time has come. Your time. To live. To Celebrate. And to see the goodness that you are. – Bapuji, Swami Sri Kripalvananda

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more.” – John O’Donohue

Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens. – Carl Yung

I breathe in All That Is – Awareness expanding to take everything in, as if my heart beats the world into being. – Danna Faulds

May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven around the heart of wonder. – John O’Donohue

"When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be." – Lao Tzu

You are the Soul of the Soul of the Universe. And your name is Love

Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self. – Bhavaghad Gita

Love doesn’t sit there like a stone, it has to be made, like bread: remade all the time, made new. – Og Mandino

I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars. – Og Mandino

“To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle, every cubic inch of space is a miracle.” – Walt Whitman

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” – Albert Einstein

“A candle is a small thing. But one candle can light another. And see how its own light increases, as a candle gives its flame to the other. You are such a light.” – Moshe Davis

“May we all be blessed with miracles wherever we need them.” – Micaela Ezra

“Look at how a single candle can both defy and define the darkness.” – Anne Frank

“In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love.” – Mother Teresa

The most precious gift we can offer anyone is our attention. When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers. – Thich Nhat Hanh

“Yoga is not about self-improvement, it’s about self-acceptance.” – Gurmukh kaur khalsa

“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” – Maya Angelou

Treat yourself kindly. And with love 

“When the breath wanders the mind also is unsteady. But when the breath is calmed the mind too will be still,
and the yogi achieves long life.“ – Hatha Yoga Pradipika

“Yoga is a light, which once lit, will never dim. The better your practice, the brighter the flame.” – B.K.S. Iyengar

“Don’t try to get out of the World, get into it.” – Bhagavan Das

“To find out what is truth there must be great
love and a deep awareness of one’s
relationship to all things.”
 – J. Krishnamurti

What if love was the centre of our being?” – Ganga Whit

“Radical Acceptance is the willingness to experience ourselves and our lives as it is.” – Tara Brach

"May I love and accept myself just as I am.”

“On this sacred path of Radical Acceptance, rather than striving for perfection, we discover how to love ourselves into wholeness.” – Tara Brach

“Yoga does not just change the way we see things, it transforms the person who sees.” – B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Life

“It is through the alignment of the body that I discovered the alignment of my mind, self, and intelligence.” – B.K.S. Iyengar

“True compassion… comes from realizing our kinship with all beings.” – Pema Chodron

“True yoga is not about the shape of your body, but the shape of your life. Yoga is not to be performed; yoga is to be lived. Yoga doesn’t care about what you have been; yoga cares about the person you are becoming. Yoga is designed for a vast and profound purpose, and for it to be truly called yoga, its essence must be embodied.” – Aadil Palkhivala

”The body benefits from movement, and the mind benefits from stillness.” – Sakyong Mipham

”It is through your body that you realize you are a spark of divinity.” –  B.K.S. Iyengar

“I have been a seeker and I still am, but I stopped asking the books and the stars. I started listening to the teaching of my Soul.” – Rumi

“Yoga is a light which once lit will never dim, the better your practice the brighter your flame.” – B.K.S. Iyengar

“Yoga is the settling of the mind into silence.” – Patanjali

“You are the sky, everything else is just the weather.” – Pema Chodron

Early morning class changes in Dec-January

Hello early birds,

we want to let you know about some TEMPORARY class shifts that are happening late December and January.

The early morning classes will be canceled from Dec. 22-29th

From January 2nd - 23rd the schedule will be:

Mondays + Fridays Sunrise Yin Yoga with Anna, 7-8 am

Tuesdays and Thursdays Sunrise Yoga with Amber, 6:30-7:30 am and Wednesdays 7-8 am

McKenna will be back late January and the schedule will return to normal.

Let us know if you have any questions!

Summer Heat

Hey, friends,

we just wanted to let you know that our studio has air conditioning!

Your practice will be well supported in our cool and tranquil studio. We have filtered water and hope to remind you to stay well hydrated on these hot Summer days!

Here is a bit of forest to inspire coolness :)

Friday Night Recovery Yoga is back at the park for Summer!

Join Amy Asch on Friday evenings from 7-8:15 pm

Recovery Yoga is an all-level yoga class that is open to anyone in any type of addiction recovery and anywhere on their recovery journey! In a sweet and welcoming space we dial into the energy of breath and tune into the transformational power of yoga! We will practice a Hatha style flow then settle into a more yin style with longer held postures. Lastly, we’ll have a meditation with a reading or theme in a circle and share our experiences of strength and hope. This is a donations-based class, please pay what you can.

Once you sign up for class you will see the details on where to meet.

No props provided, so please bring your own mat or towel to practice on outdoors.

products for your Home + Body altar

Hello dear friends,

I wanted to share with you that we have expanded our bookshelves to include some products for your altar and the altar of your body. I am only interested in sharing a very select few products with you that I personally use and love, that I feel are made honorably.

Crystals of amethyst, citrine, quartz, and honey calcite bring grounding, expansive pure energy to your home or altar.

Pure products made from Ula Botanic on Orcas, Island. I have brought these select products to our yoga home because I personally, wholeheartedly recommend them. I use the ritual mists daily. I even keep one in my car. I spray it on or near my face and take a deep breath in. Instantly I feel grounded and transformed. It’s a beautiful way to pause in a transition. The rose oil I use on my face and I feel uplifted. It actually brings me joy! Also, my skin loves it. The Dream oil is new to me. I have just given one to my daughter. I will let you know what she thinks :)

Soon we will also have Everyday Oil in stock. Wait til you smell this. You’ll want to wear it on your skin, in your hair, massage into your feet and share with friends. (I also keep one of these in my bag!)

I will order more books sometime soon. If you have anything you personally recommend or are looking for, please let me know.

I hope you enjoy our expanding selection of items to bring more harmony into your day.

With love,

Laela

The Yoga of Sound and Mantra with Amber and Chris

The Yoga of Sound and Mantra with Amber Knight and Chris Miller
Sunday evening, March 20th 6-7pm at Yoga NW

This class introduces students to the yogic science of Sound and Mantra. Class will begin with pranayama breathing practices and seated meditation, followed by a brief instruction on the attributes and meaning of the seed syllable OM.

There will be demonstration of mantra and music. Chris will lead with with the support of the harmonium, singing mantras learned while studying in Nepal. Those who are interested in sharing their voice are welcome to participate, while others are welcome to listen in silence.

Class will close with a group meditation.

All are welcome, no prior experience necessary. This class will not include asana (postures) and will be experienced seated or lying down.

Visit our class schedule to sign up or click on the button below.

Welcome new teachers, Rach and Liz!

We are thrilled to welcome our two newest community members, Rach Junard and Liz McCausland.

RACH JUNARD (she/they)

Rach’s bio – I found yoga when I was a teenager growing up in Nashville, TN. I spent the next few years trying as many different styles and bouncing around studios before landing at the studio I did my first 200 RYT in 2017. I was trained in Power Vinyasa and eventually started to explore the vast definition of yoga philosophy and how to incorporate it into my life. As a yoga instructor and guide, I value inclusive communication and trauma-informed language to create brave spaces for students to explore their own style and feel empowered doing so. You can learn more about me and my practices from my website, rachdoesyoga.com.

Rach is teaching Flow Yoga on Mondays 5:30-6:30 pm at Yoga NW.

LIZ McCAUSLAND (she/her)

Liz’s Bio – The gift of yoga in my life is the experience of being present, aware, and embodied in the moment. It is easy to be distracted by the hustle of modern life and yoga is the North Star that brings me back to center. Though my journey with yoga started almost 30 years ago, it was when I met my teacher in 2016 that I began my deep dive into yoga philosophy. Like dry kindling to a flame, I completed Ananda Temple’s course “Art and Science of Raja Yoga” in 2017 and knew that I wanted to share the benefits of yoga to my community. I enrolled in my 200hr teaching certificate in 2018 and completed an additional 300hr training in 2019, both at Yoga Bhoga in Portland, OR. My classes are Hatha yoga based, where we will move with intention and develop our own personal alignment in each pose. Through the movement of our bodies, my hope is that we can find deep, personal transformation through form and establish a calm nervous system in an ever-changing world. May our practice together establish a peaceful center for you to radiate your true self. Come as you are, beginners and long-term practitioners alike!

Liz is teaching Hatha Yoga on Saturdays 11-12:15 at Yoga NW.

Feeling thank-full

I feel very fortunate that I live in this beautiful part of the world, and so near my family where I grew up. I have many blessings to count.

I acknowledge that the land we occupy in Portland rests on the traditional village sites of the Multnomah, Wasco, Cowlitz, Kathlamet, Clackamas, bands of the Chinook, Tualatin Kalapuya, Molalla and many other Tribes that have created permanent and seasonal encampments. The land that we occupy as residents is unceded Indigenous land. Due to the strategic and systemic efforts to annihilate Indigenous peoples from these lands and history, there are many other tribes and Nations who traditionally lived, hunted and fished in what is now Multnomah County and Oregon that are not collectively remembered. I thank the descendants of these many Tribes for being the original stewards and protectors of these lands since time immemorial.

The Thanksgiving holiday is wrought with turmoil, grief and hardship for the people who first lived in this land and have been treated so harshly ever since. Knowing this terrible history, is there a place for us to continue to celebrate Thanksgiving? Perhaps by treading lightly on this Earth and by giving-thanks and giving back?

Giving-thanks is core to how I experience yoga. Giving-thanks is honoring. Giving-thanks is paying attention. It is reverence. It is care. It is awareness. It is gratitude. It is reverence. I center on this practice for the season of giving-thanks. Aware of the many ways that I am privileged, I not only see how I have benefited from my ancestry and also benefit from the family I hold close to me today.

Some ways that I stay connected with gratitude are by keeping a gratitude journal or taking a pause each day to reflect on something I feel grateful for. I am grateful for all that I love and I try to be grateful for the rest of it too ;) I am grateful for the beautiful Earth and I strive to become a better steward. I am grateful for every yoga class I participate in or lead, for it brings me closer to you, my community, and because it brings me closer to the spirit that we all share.

I was inspired to take the helm of Yoga NW because I have a desire for community and to help cultivate connection. I truly hope that our studio can be a haven for you and a place for you to commune. Let it be a place for you to get comfortable being you, and let it be a place for you to meet your neighbors and build community. I want you to know that I care about you. If you need a pal, please reach out.

If you have taken a class with me this month, you have likely heard me read from my favorite November book, Earth Prayers: 365 Prayers, Poems, and Invocations from Around the World. I LOVE this book and can tell you that we might still have a couple of copies for sale. I will share with you a couple of favorites.

The Delight Song of Tsoai-talee by N. Scott Momaday

I am a feather on the bright sky
I am the blue horse that runs in the plain
I am the fish that rolls, shining, in the water
I am the shadow that follows a child
I am the evening light, the lustre of meadows
I am an eagle playing with the wind
I am a cluster of bright beads
I am the farthest star
I am the cold of dawn
I am the roaring of the rain
I am the glitter on the crust of the snow
I am the long track of the moon in a lake
I am a flame of four colors
I am a deer standing away in the dusk
I am a field of sumac and the pomme blanche
I am an angle of geese in the winter sky
I am the hunger of a young wolf
I am the whole dream of these things
You see, I am alive, I am alive
I stand in good relation to the earth
I stand in good relation to the gods
I stand in good relation to all that is beautiful
I stand in good relation to the daughter of Tsen-tainte
You see, I am alive, I am alive

•

Awakening

in a moment of peace

I give thanks to the source of all peace

as I set forth

into the day

the birds sing

with new voice
s
and I listen

with new ears and give thanks

nearby

the flower called Angel's Trumpet

blows in the breeze

and I give thanks

my feet touch the grass

still wet with dew

and I give thank
s
both to my mother earth

for sustaining my steps

and to the seas

cycling once again

to bring forth new life

the dewdrops

become jeweled

with the morning's sun-fire

and I give thanks

you can see forever

when the vision is clear

in this moment

each moment

I give thanks

by Harriet Kofalk

•

and another favorite…

REMEMBER by Joy Harjo

Remember the sky that you were born under,
 know each of the star's stories.

Remember the moon, know who she is.

Remember the sun's birth at dawn, that is the
strongest point of time.
Remember sundown 
and the giving away to night.

Remember your birth, how your mother struggled
 to give you form and breath.
You are evidence of 
her life, and her mother's, and hers.

Remember your father. He is your life, also.

Remember the earth whose skin you are:

red earth, black earth, yellow earth, white earth
, brown earth,
we are earth.

Remember the plants, trees, animal life who all have their
 tribes, their families, their histories, too.
Talk to them,
 listen to them. They are alive poems.

Remember the wind. Remember her voice. She knows the
 origin of this universe.

Remember you are all people
and all people 
are you.

Remember you are this universe
and this 
universe is you.

Remember all is in motion, is growing, is you.

Remember language comes from this.

Remember the dance language is, that life is.

Remember.

•

This month Yoga NW will be making donations to a few local nonprofits: NAYA – "Naya Family Center offers a holistic set of wraparound services designed to create stability in the lives of our youth and families. We provide educational services, cultural arts programming, and direct support to reduce poverty to the Portland Metropolitan Area Native American community". Growing Gardens – "Growing Gardens uses the experience of growing food in schools, backyards and correctional facilities to cultivate healthy, equitable communities". Village Gardens – "Village Gardens makes it possible for people living in Oregon's largest affordable housing neighborhoods to grow their own food, gain employment through locally created food projects and have access to a community-run grocery store".


Yours in gratitude and with love,

Laela

Honoring our dear friend and teacher, Schandua

Update on yesterday’s gathering for Schandua Reneé, September 27th, 2021.

We had a beautiful gathering in Tryon Creek yesterday, honoring our beloved friend, Schandua Reneé. Expecting rain, we instead found a beautiful day with light filtering through the abundant forest that Schandua cherished. We met at the Jackson Shelter and set up a table adorned with photographs of Schandua and (battery-powered) candles, a book for people to write messages to Schandua and her family, and other sacred tokens such as feathers and offerings of chocolates, as well as photos of Schandua for her friends to take home.

We gathered, a loose collection of people who were all touched by Schandua, long-time friends and new friends, yoga students and spiritual friends, people of all ages and from all facets of Schandua’s life in Portland. Around 40 of us stood in a circle and were invited to share a memory of her, an inspiration, to read a poem, or to bring forward whatever moved them. I opened our ceremony and we created our circle. A dear friend read a poem as the wind gently caressed the trees and Schandua’s essence was evoked as the crisp sunlight blinked through the foliage of our surroundings. We took our time, allowing space for anyone to step forward to share. And so many people shared their love for her, told stories about how much Schandua supported them, about how funny she was, what a calm and gentle way she had. One wondered if she was a dancer, and it was confirmed. Another friend mentioned what a pure singing voice she had, with an expansive and effortless range. This same friend and her partner played a beautiful song of voice and recorder set to the Mary Elizabeth Frye poem, “Do Not Stand by My Grave and Weep.” Friends shared, what a “gentle listener” she was and how much she supported them during the pandemic through her online yoga classes and before. We stood in a circle and took deep breaths and chanted OM three times. We stood in a circle, imagined sending her love radiating from our hearts to hers. We stood in a circle and put our arms on each others shoulders and backs and imagined that we were in a loving, healing circle surrounding Schandua, wishing her peace, sending her our support. Many reflected that they continue to feel her presence in their lives and felt her presence yesterday. More people stepped forward to share their touching sentiments, to read a letter written to Schandua, and other poems were shared including Mary Oliver’s White Owl Flies Into and Out of the Field and John O’Donnohue’s generous words (see sidebar).

Hugs and tears were shared, as were smiles as we remembered Schandua’s beautiful and radiant smile. Some made lovely, jewel-like mandalas of flowers in our shelter and left them there in the sunlight for all to enjoy. One brought a Tarot card, the card of Healing, meant for Schandua. At the end of our gathering, everyone was invited to take a flower, walk along one of the many paths in the forest, and leave it as an offering to Schandua. It was a beautiful and peaceful way to move from our shaded circle to under the cathedral of trees that Schandua loved to walk under. She is very loved and held in love by many.

After the gathering was dispersed and folks took to the forest paths on their own or ventured home, Anne and I talked and decided to take the remaining flowers and make a mandala. 2.5 hours after we began at 11 am, a car stopped next to us, rolled down the window and asked about the gathering for Schandua. Three people inside who wanted to join the gathering long after it ended. I offered them some flowers but the gathering was over. They parked their car and we walked up to them, and offered them to join us in making a mandala in the woods for Shandua and they gladly came with us. They felt that the unlikeliness of our meeting was guided by Schandua, it was such an improbable meeting in a large forest and park that we happened upon each other. A dear friend and his parents, just arrived from Los Angeles. The five of us placed our flowers and talked about Schandua, another healing circle under the trees made of love and memories. Each of us were so happy to have had this precious time together to share and commune and be present.

Words from a favorite author of Schandua, from Paulo Coelho, “Love always triumphs over what we call death. That’s why there’s no need to grieve for our loved ones, because they continue to be loved and remain by our side.”

Deep thanks and gratitude for everyone who joined us yesterday and special thanks to Anne who was with me all the way. I didn’t take very many photos, so just have these to share. Thank you to Sunray for sharing some of these beauties. If you have photos to add to this page, email me. A good friend took several videos and we will find a way to share them with you soon.

There was so much love yesterday, and it is exponentially expanding ever outward. Thank you, Schandua for your immense grace.

With love and gratitude,
Laela

Though we need to weep your loss,
You dwell in that safe place in our hearts
Where no storm on night or pain can reach you.

Your love was like the dawn
Brightening over our lives,
Awakening beneath the dark
A further adventure of color.

The sound of your voice
Found for us
A new music
That brightened everything.

Whatever you enfolded in your gaze
Quickened in the joy of its being;
You placed smiles like flowers
On the alter of the heart,
Your mind always sparkled
With the wonder at things.

Though your days here were brief,
Your spirit was alive, awake, complete.

We look toward each other no longer
From the old distance of our names;
Now you dwell inside the rhythm of breath,
As close to us as we are to ourselves.

Though we cannot see you with outward eyes,
We know our souls gaze is upon your face,
Smiling back at us from within everything
To which we bring our best refinement.

Let us not look for you only in memory,
Where we would grow lonely without you.
You would want us to find you in presence,
Besides us when beauty brightens,
When kindness glows
And music echoes eternal tones.

When orchids brighten the earth,
Darkest winter has turned to spring;
May this dark grief flower with hope
In every heart that loves you.

May you continue to inspire us:
To enter each day with a generous heart.
To serve the call of courage and love
Until we see your beautiful face again
In that land where there is no more separation,
Where all tears will be wiped from our mind,
And where we will never lose you again.

– John O’Donnohue

New Teachers and New Classes are coming to the studio!

We are so happy to introduce you to Emily Wright and Jacob Friedman.

EMILY WRIGHT (she/her) Emily's greatest guides are creativity, honesty and heart, and she strives to bring each to every space she holds for healing. Her classes have a soothing tone that inspires softness and self-compassion, balanced with activation of the physical and energetic bodies to empower a connection to wholeness. The practices she offers are the same ones that have guided her to finding steadfast peace in the most trying moments, and her guidance is rooted in trusting the wisdom of life's unfolding.

Emily will be teaching Practice Flow on Tuesdays at 5:45 pm at the studio.

Practicing Flow Anchored in intentional breath technique, each session combines a mix of breath-to-movement flow, held postures and therapeutic movement that builds physical strength and flexibility, creates spaces to release energetic blockages and balance vital life force. This blending of dynamic movement and Pranayama is active with modifications, appropriate for all levels and abilities.

•

JACOB FRIEDMAN (he/him) As a yoga teacher, Jacob guides you to cultivate a curiosity that may be panoramic or precise, but is always oriented towards the present. Knowing that the potency of your practice depends upon the quality of your inquiring attention, each class is designed as a formal play structure within which you might extract a morsel of insight from the inner workings of your experience. Using tangible forms of asana and pranayama, we investigate the more ephemeral narratives internal to the form. We play with a plethora of tools, techniques, and maps to orient and organize the mind, body, and breath with integrity. Landing fully alive in the here and now, we set up the conditions to have a joyful experience, and to radiate that joy to others. We practice for personal and communal well-being.

Jacob will be teaching Hatha Yoga (Katonah-inspired) Mondays at 9:00 am at the studio.

Hatha Yoga (Katonah-inspired) In this Katonah Yoga inspired class, traditional Hatha yoga is infused with Taoist principles, geometry, metaphor and maps to orient and organize the practitioner in time and space. Working with the trinity of mind, body and breath, we set up the forms (asana) in order to fit for proper function, and navigate the mind and breath through the body to define and refine personal space. Fitting yourself well first, you can then go out and fit well with others. We practice for personal and communal well-being and joy.

•