Thoughts with Love, A Series

It just takes the leap of faith of lifting your feet off the ground is all.

Leaning into faith in yourself.

Trusting the rest of the body will adjust to support.

We visited Warrior I this week in the WLE Pose breakdown series.

A recurring theme here is “rooting to rise”.

We hear that a lot in yoga classes: “Now root to rise!” and the teacher reaches up to the ceiling empathetically.

But what does that mean?

In yoga we are playing with the in-between. The sweet spot between strong and easy.

Rooting to rise tries to verbalize that complementary contradiction.

We push energetically and physically, down into the earth to support the limbs reaching upward and outward.

Just as in nature, a tree can only grow as much as its root system is supporting it.

What unseen work is going on to allow that person you admire so much, to shine like they do?

I read something on a feed this week, someone had commented: “Your self care is showing” and the creator highlighted the comment and gave thanks.

The work she was putting in to support expansion was being recognized.

Back to the upside down now, I had a conversation with my mother-in-law this past week that stuck with me after we left the lake. We discussed how much stronger we both were this year, and how the hike up the ~ 100 or so stairsteps from the dock up to the cabin was easier for us.

I shared a quote with her that I had read somewhere, “What a shame it would be, if you never knew how strong you could be.”

Isn’t that so true?

We only have one shot at this game, why not see how good we can get?

How loving can we be?

How much kindness can we share?

How strong can we become?

The ripple effect will only compound from there.

You inspire your colleague to get strong.

You remind your friend they are creative, and they begin to create for creations sake again.

You give back to the community in quiet and unsung ways.

All from working on yourself.

Gosh, maybe Gandhi had it right along.

Be the change you wish to see in the world.

Can’t end a blog post with a better quote than that.

Thank you for reading along, friends.

Wishing you an incredible, sunny weekend.

With Love,

Esta

Thoughts with Love, a series

I used to be so afraid to be by myself. I mean in a literal and spiritual sense. I would put the TV on, play music, call someone, scroll through a feed, flip on a YouTube video – all while doing another task so I could be fully distracted.

When was the last time you mindfully did a task, or did nothing, in silence?

I don’t think I am alone in this. This never-ending distraction seeking. We are being designed this way by the world.

I was dividing my own attention, even in the in between moments, to avoid the stillness of being with myself.

Now I find myself pulling weeds in sunny silence, listening to the wind and the birds in the trees.

Yes, I still seek out music, but I am more mindful about the distractions I am engaging in. Just acknowledging to myself that I am going to sit and scroll through Threads for a five-minute break, is helpful. Instead of slipping into autopilot and doom-scrolling for an hour, I am in discussion with myself as to my time and attention.

Engaging in meditation and yoga has prompted me to be with myself.

And it’s interesting, getting to know myself.

To pay attention to how I speak to myself.

As I became more aware, as I tuned in to my own inner monologues, I found I was able to tune my tone a little better.

We are our own worst critic, they say.

And we should be.

We know every unspoken insult, unuttered anger, mistake that never came to light, quiet shames that we would never admit to aloud.

Of course we would judge ourselves the hardest.

My self-awareness has allowed me to soften though.

To treat myself as I would a friend.

To get curious and learn what it is that I want. What I like. What I prefer.

I have removed the filters of what others want from me, of what others might think of me, and can see clearly that little girl in me. The one full of love and hope and faith.

I soften and cherish her. Raise her up and speak to her nicely.

And this love overflows.

Overflows to how I speak to the children in my life. Overflows in the way I speak to my husband.

The love and kindness flow easily and is not self conscious.

This is why I am so passionate about bringing the tools of meditation and yoga to more people. When we heal ourselves, we really do heal the world. I think that healing begins with a simple friendship with the self.

A team can’t win a championship if they are at war within themselves. It’s only when the team is working together, raising up their strengths and aware of and compensating for their weaknesses, that they are champions.

All this to say. I am happy to befriend the self. I wish the same for you.

Wishing you a beautiful weekend,

With love,

Esta

Thoughts with Love, A Series

There is a sweet balance that we seek in yoga, and in meditation too, I suppose.

The balance of holding on and letting go.

Holding space for the bitter moments, and the sweet.

When I left my dayjob recently, I looked out my kitchen window the morning of my last day, and held space.

For the sadness over the end of a chapter, the joy at the new beginning, the bittersweet relief of chasing my dreams. I shed a few tears, held myself in a dear love and let the emotion do what it does best: move.

This too shall pass.

I find a certain comfort in a stoic way of thinking. FitMind has a great article I pulled from for the below quote, and you can find a wealth of knowledge on The Daily Stoic.

You can simultaneously erase a lot of worries by letting go of what you can’t control, like reputation and wealth.

Everything is impermanent, in constant flux, and so trying to grasp onto something as a lasting source of happiness just creates suffering.

In some sense, Stoicism is a mindset based on a set of observations about how the mind (and world) works. The Stoics argued that: Your thoughts and beliefs create the world you inhabit, not external circumstances, so you ought to take responsibility for your mind.

FitMind on Stoicism

Meditation to me, isn’t about emptying the mind. Or complete silence and stillness in the brain.

To me it’s more like:

• simply being for a small moment in time.
• holding awareness of myself. giving myself time and attention like I would a loved one.
• witnessing my own emotion. letting it flow and move on and out. understanding myself better for it.
• checking in to my body, how am I treating it and how is it responding?

What is meditation to you? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!

Wishing you an incredible weekend.

With Love,

Esta

Meditation Monday 07.03.2023

Read along with the below guided meditation, or scroll to the bottom for links to simply listen along.

Let’s find a comfortable seat: in a chair, on the ground, on your bed, on a bench… Wherever you are. Let your feet find the ground, your hips relax into the surface supporting them, and allow the limbs to grow heavy. Let the shoulders ease down and away from the ears, as the spine lengthens away from the tailbone.

Stretch like a sunflower with your face releasing all worries from the day and tilting upwards to take in the light.

We will visit all five senses today, to really connect with this human vessel you inhabit.

Take a moment to breathe. Exhale deeply and loudly if you’re comfortable. A big, deep, sigh.

Feel the feet, legs and hips grow heavy. Like you’re holding a medicine ball, or a weighted blanket on your lap. Let all tension, and holding, release. Like a balloon in the wind, let go of controlling the muscles in the lower half of your body.

When you’re comfortable here, let the heaviness creep up the torso. Hugging the chest, shoulders, and arms with a warm, heavy, safety.

Safe in the awareness of yourself: the one person you can be your most yourself with.

Go easy. Love what comes up.

Breathing at your own pace, pause and listen to the sounds around you.

Like a microphone in an open field, let the sounds come to you. Birds, traffic, family stirring in the house, neighbours in their yard. Leaves rustling in the trees…

I’ll let you absorb this sense for a few moments in silence, in your own space.

Shifting awareness now, to taste.

Can you relax the jaw and let the tongue have its own space in the mouth. Is there a taste you can perceive? A favourite beverage left on the palette…Toothpaste, gum, the last meal?

What tastes are present – if any?

As this sense explores, are there any smells you can pick up on right now?

Is there a fresh breeze? A meal cooking? A warm beverage? A favourite hand lotion?

Sense into the smells available to you in the moment.

Breathing deeply now.

Blink the eyes open if they were closed. Taking in the ground in front of you.

Your own knees. Gosh what lovely knees we have. What does the floor look like in front of you? What texture is it? Is the room lit by sunlight or a lamp?

What else is in front of you? Take in your space.

Check in to the body. Is there a lightness here? A heaviness today? There is no judgement, just a loving awareness. How do you feel now that we have tapped into all of the senses?

Give yourself permission to feel all that needs to be felt right now. Held in the body, with a loving awareness of the self. How are you today?

Take another deep breath, and if you’re feeling it, give yourself a smile. You’ve take a moment to regulate yourself today – and that is a worthy accomplishment!

Thank you so much for practicing with me.

With Love,

Esta

Listen to the meditation on Spotify or YouTube instead:

Thoughts with Love, A Series

My personal yoga practice has been an ongoing love story, surpassing a decade.

The calmness that I bring to my brand is one that has been cultivated for years.

Do not be fooled, for the peace I tap into now, was found past the fog of depression, anxiety and panic attacks.

I learned I could only recover, with love.

Hating myself into improvement, speaking words to myself I would never utter to another soul … wasn’t going to bring about healing.

– With Love, Esta was born.

My relationship with yoga began with meditation. I was given homework from my first therapy session: relax. The guide? A burnt CD I listened to in the warm August sun that very day. Desperate for a solution to panic attacks that began to disrupt my life, I melted into a guided relaxation meditation and found peace.

Everyone has their story, struggle, personal cross to bear. I found that meditation and yoga brought me into a state of awareness that kept me ahead of the backwards drag of depression. It soothed my anxious mind, and when my mind was racing in a meditation I learned that this too, could be loved.

Morning watering in the garden is a favourite activity of mine. As I removed dead daisy heads, allowing the plant to refocus energy to other endeavours, I pondered on my own energy pruning. What a difference it makes, to have my energy flow into passing tools on to others in this way. I feel lit up from within.

And as I show up to my practice, I can see more clearly what I need, what could help others in this pose, what information I need to share. Like weeds. Knowing what a weed looks like comes from hours of pulling the same dang one. Have patience and consistency and you will confidently pluck a weed as a pinky sized sprout!

So as I bring more of myself online, I am balancing this out with deep dives in the garden, on the yoga mat, in meditation. Exploring chanting. Turning my whole being into a singing bowl – feeling the vibration of my own voice echo in the cave that is me.

We were on set this week, and I am so excited to bring better and better yoga and meditation content your way! You’re going to love it, meditating can bring you that peace too, I am sure of it.

More coming your way, thank you for your support in the form of likes, comments and subscribes. I would love to hear your feedback, leave me a comment or DM me with your questions and comments!

Wishing you an incredible long weekend.

With Love,

Esta