by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 27, 2013 | Health, Hip Surgery, Wisdom, Yoga practices
People keep asking me whether I can do everything I used to be able to do before I had my double hip replacement. What a hard question!
Here’s a shot of me in 1990 doing a backbend, pre-hip arthritis.
And, here I am 22 years later teaching my bionic hips how to extend.
Those of you out there with your perfecto-meters will note that as a 68-year old, my shoulders are stiffish, but, hey, I used to be overly flexible.
It’s a funny thing. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 26, 2013 | Nature, Pleasure, Wisdom, Yoga practices
I’m getting far too good at stopping and smelling the roses. That’s the price I pay to be semi-retired, living in the country. What does semi mean anyway?
I took a small detour on my way to yoga practice this morning to admire and photograph the heavy mists hanging all around our property.
And then, I found myself attracted to the tibouchina that was just bloomin’ its heart out.
Of course, the brugmansia stopped me in my tracks, too.
Finally, just when I thought I was going to get into the Yoga Shed, the butcher bird caught my attention. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 25, 2013 | Travel, XToolKit
In a few days I’ll be heading north to Byron Bay for the Bluesfest – five days of listening to the likes of Joan Armatrading, Ben Harper, Taj Mahal, Santana, Rufus Wainwright… and more… […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 23, 2013 | Community, XCommunity, Yoga teaching
Source: confessionsofapropjunkie.com via Lauren on Pinterest
Sometimes I hear about a person in my circle of friends and acquaintances who is doing it hard and doing it quietly and uncomplainingly. It crosses my mind that these people are really everyday heroes, in their own sphere.
We don’t often recognise these stalwarts for their contributions because we think of heroes as being those who lead forces in battle, tie themselves to trees in old-growth forests, or save lives. I’ll never forget the faces pictured on the front page of the Sydney Morning Herald after the Port Arthur massacre. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 22, 2013 | Dharana, Health, Mindfulness Meditation, Pranayama, Wisdom, Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
Source: flickr.com via Jessica on Pinterest
Yesterday I wrote about how difficult I find it, at times, to pay attention. I’m finding the practice of mindfulness meditation gradually helping me improve my concentration.
Another aid for focussing the mind is the practice of pranayama – attention to the breath. Today I wanted to link back to Patanjali and his Sutra regarding pranayama. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 21, 2013 | Mindfulness Meditation
Source: fibromodem.com via FibroModem on Pinterest
Do you have any preferred ways that you use to escape from work or problems in your life?
One simple device I use is to take frequent breaks to have cups of tea or coffee or snacks. I try to eat and drink in wholesome way so I don’t really abuse the above strategy. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 20, 2013 | Anatomy, Being a writer, Healing, Health, Hip Surgery, XAnatomy, XHip, Yoga teaching , Yoga Therapy
Is there an epidemic of hip replacements going on? I know of three yoginis who will have the surgery done within a month time frame – mid-March to mid-April. To be fair, I also know women who haven’t done yoga who, for various reasons, had to have replacements.
If you’ve been following this blog, you know my story of bi-lateral surgery, performed more than 3 years ago. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 19, 2013 | Health, Nature, Yoga teaching
I had some time this morning – quite a lot of it, actually – to wander around Bondi Junction, my old stomping grounds. Here’s a photo of the entrance to the Australian School of Yoga on Oxford Street.
I was mentally winding back the clock to 1979 when I had my first experience of Iyengar Yoga taught by this man:
It’s fair to say that Martyn Jackson, Iyengar Yoga and the time I spent at the Australian School of Yoga changed the course of my life. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 18, 2013 | Healing, Hip Surgery, Mindfulness Meditation
Oh my! My head is spinning!
I left paradisiac Mitchells Island at 9 am to drive south as I was scheduled for root canal therapy in Sydney in the early afternoon. The dental specialist that performed the procedure, an endondontist, did the 75 minute treatment while I was looking up at the ceiling watching Mr. Bean videos, hearing easy- listening tracks on the stereo, and, at the same time, trying to do mindfulness meditation. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 17, 2013 | Philosophy, Pleasure, Wisdom, Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Yoga teaching
Source: palmstone.com via Jennifer on Pinterest
Do you shut down in yoga class when your teacher uses Sanskrit words and concepts? Or, are you the opposite? You relish the opportunity to extend your learning about yoga, even to the point of assimilating an unfamiliar language.
Probably you stand in the middle; you don’t mind a smattering of the Sanskrit but not so much it keeps you in your head. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 15, 2013 | Mindfulness Meditation, Wisdom
Source: hautefavesdeux.tumblr.com via sally ann on Pinterest
Do you get into internal dialogues where one part of you catches another aspect of yourself being foolish, judgmental, absent-minded, mean-spirited…. You get the idea. Insert any negative adjective you might think of into the description.
Round and round you go, trying to fight your way out of disempowering self-talk, but all you end up doing is digging in yourself into deeper hole.
Then, with any luck, some distraction comes along and the interruption is enough to wake you up to the moment. […]
by Eve Grzybowski | Mar 14, 2013 | Nature
Source: manningvalley.info via Eve on Pinterest
Our American friends who come to visit us cannot believe that Australian beaches can be so beautiful and so empty of crowds. […]