November Hope Playlist

So, my word for this month has continually been "hope."  I've decided it's very fitting for this month.  Lots of change happening in the world.  It can be a little anxiety-ridden to honor change, but mostly just inspiring and exciting!  Today we experience the Scorpio Full Moon in Taurus, which honors our ability to celebrate what is possible in each of us.  We have to dare to believe and risk trusting in what we know we can do, change, feel, and give.  There is always room to transform.  One of my favorite fashion designers, Zac Posen, recently said in an interview, "Always create.  Never doubt."  That seems to sit with me this week, as I began to feel certain doubts creep into my mind.  We're always creating.  Whether it be new thoughts and ideas, or something tangible like music or art.  And how often do we doubt those thoughts?  Probably too much.  

I invite those of you in the Somerville and Boston communities to join me for change through yoga!  Find me in Cambridge at Karma Yoga Studio most days of the week.  And most recently, I am excited to bring restorative vinyasa and gentle yoga to my neighborhood of Union Sq. in Somerville.  The picture I've posted above is the beautiful aikido studio located at 34 Allen St. (near the Target) where you'll come to honor what you create with me.  Find out more about Shobu Aikido and the classes I'm teaching there on their community website.  I'm there Mondays at 6pm, and Fridays at 4:30 and 6:00pm.  :)

Finally, my new November Hope Playlist has been fitting in perfect this week.  Using music in yoga gets a bad wrap at times.  Some yogis think that it's a cop out.  For me, personally, it enhances the experience that much more.  I usually start class in silence as we set our intentions and get grounded, but the music I choose plays such an impact on the emotions we can invoke/release and move through during specific asanas I choose for the sequence.  There is so much that goes into the practice I choose to teach for the day.  The overall outlook of the day, the cycle of the moon, the time of year, personal inspirations, and my intuition of what the students need.  So, take it as you'd like, but music will continue to guide and inspire me in my teachings and my practice...hopefully for you too.  

1. Four Tet:  My Angels Rocks Back and Forth

2. Four Tet:  Glue of the World

3. John Legend:  If You're Out There (been calling this the "Obama for hope" song)

4. The Album Leaf:  We Need Help

5. Ray LaMontagne:  Let it Be Me

6. Marc Broussard:  Gavin's Song

7. Ray LaMontagne:  I Still Care for You

8. Amos Lee:  The Wind

9. Ray LaMontagne:  Gossip in the Grain

10. Broken Social Scene:  Pitter Patter Goes my Heart

11. Feist:  Tout Doucement

12. The Low Anthem:  Charlie Darwin

13. Gorleys Zygotic Mynch:  Hush the Warmth

14. Kirsty Hawkshaw:  Whisper

15. Arms & Sleepers:  Seems (If Ever)

16. Arms & Sleepers:  Lausanne

17. Deva Premal:  Gayatri Mantra

18. Four Tet:  Harmony One

"Sometimes when the winds of change are storming around you, the best way to stay grounded is to focus on the prayerful predictability of breathing in and out."  --April Elliot Kent