Beginner Yoga Series

8 weeks from 1/16/13-3/6/13

This series is a great continuation of Yoga for Newbies! RSVP on Facebook.

Each week we will explore a different breathing exercise, philosophical and subtle concept, and anatomical focus in the postures. By the end of the eight week series, participants should be ready to explore all levels flow or alignment-based classes. All abilities welcome. It is encouraged to commit to attend the entire series. This class is an appropriate next step after the "Yoga for Newbies" workshop on Jan 13.

Suggested Donation for the entire series $60, but everyone is welcome to pay what you can per class.

Yoga for Newbies

This is a great way to start yoga in the New Year! RSVP on Facebook.

INVITE YOUR FRIENDS!

Always wanted a good explanation of what yoga is?

Want to get into yoga, but don't know where to begin?

Looking for a way to de-stress or be healthier in the New Year?

Just need a refresher course? 

Then this is the workshop for you! Amanda and Kula teacher trainees lead 3 hours of basic poses and breathing and a Q&A format discussion on what yoga is. Movement will be interspersed with meditation and discussion, making the workshop appropriate for all levels of fitness. All poses will be modifiable for those with limitations. Bring some water and wear comfy clothes. 

Continue your basic yoga education at the 8 week Beginner Yoga Series 1/16-3/6! 

Suggested donation $25.

KulaYogaCommunity.org

Resolve to Evolve: New Year's Workshop

Please RSVP for this workshop on Facebook so that we can be sure to provide enough supplies.

Honor the closing of 2012 and the beginning of a New Year in this yoga workshop led by Julie Wilkins.

Learn how to set intentions for the New Year with conscious clarity, magnetism, and skillful design. 

Participants will be guided through breathing techniques, asana, and guided meditation to refresh and restore the body systems in order to make space for new goals and dreams.

Learn specific strategies for setting clear intentions while recognizing and removing obstacles holding you back from achieving your highest potential. Class will include journal exercises, vision board work, and a 90 minute all levels yoga practice.

Upon completion of this workshop, students will gain a deeper understanding of:

1. How to DESIGN goals, visions, and dreams for each life area that are clear, honest, and reflect the highest level of personal integrity.

2. How to create a spacious and receptive body-mind system through YOGA asana, breathing, meditation, and home practice.

3. How to recognize and find HUMOR in our excuses, patterns, and false beliefs that keep us from attaining our dreams.

4. How to take ACTION through daily practices to make intentions a reality.

Please bring a journal or paper and pen, glue, and old magazines. $25.00 suggested donation.

* Julie Wilkins, OTR/L has been a licensed Occupational Therapist for 13 years and yoga instructor for 4 years. This work combines both her professional and personal studies in integrating body-mind practices with behavioral strategies. This workshop is heavily inspired by her own work with the Handel Group, The Yoga Of Shifting with Elena Brower and Christina Sell, and Developing Intuition with Dr Mona Lisa Schulz. *

Be the Change

I have a tattoo of Gandhi on my right shoulder blade. Most people that notice it either compliment it or quietly admire it; it is truly a beautiful work of art, and I am proud to be the canvas that carries it. The occasional ignorant person asks if it's my grandfather, or simply asks who it is. A particularly drunk person once asked if it is Barak Obama. Rarely does anyone ask why I chose to permanently adorn my otherwise pristine, fair skin with an old Indian man's wrinkled face and bald head--until this week.

And despite the occasional so-honest-it-hurts blog entry, I'm not that comfortable putting my thoughts and feelings into words. I have the ideas in my head, but I tend to stumble over my words and invalidate myself. I'm not comfortable sharing human emotions with others; I shed my tears in the privacy of my own bed with the lights out while my husband's asleep. Being vulnerable, as my teacher trainees will tell you, is one of my biggest challenges. 

But time and time again in a matter of a few days, I've been asked to express something that is very central to my beliefs. I did not choose my tattoo at random. I have always joked with my husband that I should just memorize the wikipedia entry on Gandhi to regurgitate when asked, but I never have, and that would be cheating and not very true to the spirit of the decision and the artwork. 

There is a lot that's not right in this world, and we are either part of the problem or part of the solution. Gandhi was one man, but he was one man whose actions resulted in freedom for innumerable people. He lead a whole nation to fight against the British Imperialism that ruled them and to begin breaking down barriers between castes, classes, and religions within the country. His insistence on nonviolence influenced Martin Luther King Jr and increased the effectiveness of the Civil Rights movement in the US. He was one man with radical beliefs who spoke up, and his audacity to think that he could make a difference changed the course of history for the better. He was one man. 

I've always believed in the incredibly positive potential of humankind. I grew up believing everyone could be saved by ascribing to one faith. I still believe that, but my horizons have broadened. I no longer believe you must become a Christian to be saved, but the idea of salvation is still very real to me. Salvation and redemption come through love, through choosing to love everyone because you recognize that you are made up of the same stuff and come from the same place and are all part of the same Divine Being. We could all be saved if we stopped seeing "us" and "them"--if we were only able to see the Good that connects us all. As one person, I can be love and be a reflection of love that can change the whole world. I may never be as recognized or influential as Mohandas Gandhi or Martin Luther King Jr., but I can change one person's day for the better. I can inspire one person. I can "be the change."

Freak out moments and other little things about pregnancy that they didn’t tell you

My mom and I relaxing in Maryland this October

Freak out moments and other little things about pregnancy that they didn’t tell you…that would be the name of my pregnancy memoir, if I were to write one, that is.  I am now in my seventh month (30 weeks, whoop!), and don’t get me wrong—I have thus far been really lucky throughout the last seven months (knock on wood).  I haven’t had morning sickness—or any nausea to speak of, really.  I’ve stayed active; walking almost every day and continuing to teach and practice yoga (yay!, so thankful). So, it’s not as if the physical aspects of this have been hard on me.  On the flip side, and these are the things I wasn’t exactly prepared for, there are so many other feelings and thoughts to deal with!  My husband and I are so very excited, this is our first child and it’s a little boy.  I can’t tell you how happy we are, it’s beyond words.  Of course, those other thoughts and feelings wake me up in the middle of the night.  Of course there are the usual worries of health and number of fingers and toes, and the financial worries, and the daycare worries.  But beyond that, I wonder if I am ready for this: to bring a new, beautiful person into the world.  Am I ready to care for him forever—do I have that capability for love?  That’s a lot of responsibility, unconditional love, I mean.  Is my heart big enough and is my mind open enough to teach this child, to nurture this child, to be there no matter what?  The good news is that I always come back to the same answer.  Of course it is.  Perhaps it’s my yoga practice, perhaps it’s the love I see from my own mother towards my two sisters and me, but I realize that the human heart is capable of indescribable love.  This goes beyond pregnancy and children.  I see this love exemplified in so many.  We are all capable.  Love is surprising and awe-inspiring.  It can truly make one do great things.  I think I am about to embark on one of those great things, and I realize that I really am ready.  And capable.  I have all the tools I need.

Intro to the Chakras

Intro to the Chakras
12/1/12
1-5pm
at Rosie Bluum
Suggested Donation $40

If you missed this event in September, you have another chance! Amanda is bringing this comprehensive subtle body workshop to Rosie Bluum in Fairhope Dec 1st!

Through a combination of asana, pranayama, meditation, and discussion you will learn the basics of the energetic subtle body. Topics include the seven main chakras, characteristics of the chakras, symptoms of imbalance, and procedure for balance. Appropriate for seasoned beginner and beyond.

SPACE IS LIMITED! RESERVE YOUR SPOT BY PAYING BELOW!

Kula Yoga Community Internship

Description of Marketing/Small Business Internship Position for Kula Yoga Community

Check out our website for an overview of the business.
KulaYogaCommunity.org

First of all, I am definitely flexible according to whatever a catalogue/school might require for a student to get credit hours for this internship if that is possible.

10-20 hours/week, time and location flexible (We do not have our own space yet.)

Tasks include...

• Helping to design print materials
• Develop a system to distribute print materials door-to-door to local businesses and measure effectiveness
• Develop and implement a social media marketing calendar and measure effectiveness
• Research our target audience and the most effective way to reach them, and help choose how to advertise based on research
• Deposits, data collection and entry, and other administrative tasks
• Work side-by-side with the director to explore opportunities for the business to expand

This internship will provide firsthand experience in what it takes to start and market a service-providing business from the ground up. Kula Yoga Community has been in business for two years providing donation-based yoga classes in shared spaces; but we aiming for a huge expansion in 2013 which may include rebranding, exploring larger avenues of advertising, and acquiring our own building.

No yoga experience necessary--only enthusiasm and an open mind.

This is an unpaid internship, but the intern will be able to attend all regularly scheduled classes for free.


Fill out an application here.