Love That!

I promised to post the collage that I made at the Hip Tranquil Chick yoga retreat and alas, here it is; full of words and images that I think are beautiful. Collage making has proven to be a way for me to get clear on my aspirations so that I can manifest them. Collages serve as a visual prayer or meditation—they are one of my favorite creative keys to success. It’s amazing what you can do with a little glue, some old magazines, scissors, and your creative vision.

What is one of your creative keys to success & why?


Click here to see past collages:

• creative vision 1
• creative vision 2

Yoga Kitty

Meet Nina Bean. She's one of the coolest kittys on the planet and she's obsessed with yoga mats. This photo was taken as I tried to remove her from my mat this evening.

© Lesley Williams, 2009

What's Going On

Over the weekend I joined the delightful Kimberly Wilson and a dozen like-minded women at the Hip Tranquil Chick retreat in Ancramdale, New York. We spent our time together creative visioning, journal writing, meditating, and practicing yoga. This was my second year attending and I was able to observe my growth, as a yogi and a creative, from one year to the next. Several “ah ha” moments surfaced during my stay. Here are a few:

• being perfect is boring
• micro-movements are better than no movement at all
• recognize my talents and delegate the rest
• vinyasa yoga to Marvin Gaye is so amazing

floral wallpaper in bedroom

my bed and the magazine that i love

yoga prep

wandering around the retreat center

more signs of spring

"uniquely me" during silent breakfast

kimberly wilson

cute quilt

development of new collage (I'll post soon)

©Lesley Williams, 2009

It's All About Joy

I love my kichy little neighborhood yoga studio. Yesterday was the beginning of a 6-week series called, Grounding Joy in Stressful Times. The class incorporates meditation and a delightful mix of Kundalini, Hatha and Naam Yoga. As all yogis know, the real practice happens off the mat. So, I am sharing the 28-day “homework assignment” given by my instructor with you.

Daily:

1. List 3 things you are grateful for.
2. Take a few minutes to reflect on your answers to the following questions and write it down:“What one thing could I do today, no matter how small, that would increase my joy?
3. Once a week, do the following 15-minute visioning exercise: Move into a good feeling place and write at the top of your paper: “The is my ideal, joy-filled life.”
   

Pretend a miracle occurred and your ideal, joy-filled life manifested right now before your eyes. Write down every glorious detail of what this life looks like at the highest level, concentrating on the feeling. You have only 15 minutes, so keep your vision big. How is your health? Your relationships? Your home? Your career? List ideas as they stream through your mind. Let your deepest hopes and desires come forth and dream BIG! Act as if this is really happening now, and feel the joy and excitement inside you as write.

-From, “The Joy Study” by Jackie Kelm

I plan to post my responses daily to question number 1; follow me on Twitter to see what brings me joy!