Saturday, September 12, 2020

Learning How to be Still (Gentle sequence incl)

Why is it, for so many of us, it is nearly impossible to still our bodies and even more difficult to still our minds. Our day begins with movement and ends the same. Jump out of bed, a quick breakfast, and off to work (whether it is in an actual brick n mortar, or at the desk in our home office). By the end of the day the thought of even thinking is tiring. We make a quick supper, maybe work a bit more and then off to bed; only to start over again the next day. As a former high school teacher I do so remember so many days when I would come home after teaching for eight hours and not want to talk to my husband. I was “talked out and thought out.” I found that I had no real time to be still; to sit and be in silence. Now, that I am retired from teaching my day is a lot different. I can choose, to a point (I now teach yoga classes online and three private classes) to bring in stillness into my day. And yet, I along with the entire world are finding that events outside of our control are adding to the challenge of stillness. 

Take yourself back to life before Covid and all its effects, to life before the election and its mind numbing political divisiveness, to life before the fires ranging out west and the loss of so many livelihoods, and on and on. We are constantly being bombarded by events that are causing our lives to feel as though we are on a rollercoaster that has no end. The ups and downs, the twists and turns, the sudden stops and reverses bringing a constant sense of dread as to what is around the next bend. We need to get off of the rollercoaster and get on the mat. I firmly believe that my yoga practice, and all that it entails, has truly helped me through this most difficult time. In order for me (and you) to be able to take on the quandary that our world is in it is vital that we learn how to still the mind and the body. To Just Be Still. 

Martha Beck, author and life coach, wrote about a conversation she had with a dear friend. Within the conversation her friend shared that she was overwhelmed by life. As I read the conversation I was seeing myself and, I think, others in her. Eliza, (not her real name) ended her plight with her plea that she, “just wanted to be still.” I so resonated with those words. And, I think many of you would too. The path to stillness is not an easy one. If we want to make a change in our lives and embrace stillness Beck would say that, “In order to move forward, we must learn to be still. It’s in the silence, the not-doing, the unknowing, that human minds can experience huge expansion.”  

This has become my mantra: Just Be Still. I have designed a yoga sequence that I hope for you will be stillness to your mind, to your body, and to your being. As you take yourself through the asanas say to yourself and let it become your mantra, “Just Be Still.”


Pause in a pose and feel yourself in the stillness. Let your mind be still; let the thoughts that do not serve you float on by like the clouds in the sky. With each breath release the tensions that you may find and allow the prana that flows within to be freed. 


If you could have for props: Mat, Blanket, Blocks (or two equal sized books), a Strap of some sort, and a Firm Pillow by your mat before practice, that would be wonderful.

Gentle Practice: Know How to be Still 



For those that do not attend a CORE & BALANCE Yoga class the cost is $10.00. Payments can be made to:


As you lie in on your back in the opening breathe in the stillness. Feel yourself sinking into stillness. With each exhale release the tensions that you may have in your body. As you do this the flow of Prana (life force within us) will become liberated. Let go of the distractions... Let go of that which is not serving you. You have the ability to “sort.” Our bodies and minds know what we need and what we can let go of. So let go. 

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