"THE BREATH- The Ultimate Exercise" with guest blogger Meg Yandell

       This chapter has just been sitting here waiting for me to have some intelligent twist on how important it is, and all I can come up with is, "I don't know when I started holding my breath".  I don't breathe deeply, and everytime I am on the floor I realize that, in real life, I don't breathe any deeper than just below my shoulders and sometimes, if I am being honest, no deeper than my throat.  When did I start holding my breath?
       Imagine when we are born, and of course no one can remember, but can you imagine the first rush of air through your lungs as you are thrust into this world and you breathe that very first breath. Breathing so that air was pushed all the way down into your toes, breathing so that every cell in your body was filled with life and waking up, and breathing yourself into becoming a part of this world or this existence.  Breathing yourself into humanity.  Breathing yourself into being.  Can you imagine the rush of all that is, filling your lungs with air to the deepest part and then screaming it back out over and over until all of you is as alive as you will ever be.  The first triumphant announcement that you  make to the universe that you have arrived.  A new soul  has been manifested in human form.  A new star is in the heavens.  New potential on the horizon.  God is here.
       I have said many times when witnessing a child screaming at the top of its lungs in a store or restaurant in public, that it wants something, that I wish that I could do that.  Just kick and scream and demand that I want... but at some point we are either punished for the action, or shamed out of it and the deep screaming that comes with, "I am here!" and, "I want!", is slowed down to, "Would it be alright if I did this?", or, "Would I be bothering you if I voiced this?".  Breathing shallowly could only be an indication that at some point you were trying to be quiet, trying to hide, trying not to be bothered or to be a bother, trying not to be heard.  In essence trying to hide your light.  Very far cry from, "I AM HERE, I AM ALIVE,  and I WANT."
       All that said, and still the chapter seems an insurmountable task to write about, but it is the most important part of being alive, breathing in your life, breathing in joy, breathing in the wonder of it all. Breathing in health and acceptance, breathing in memories, breathing in and past heartbreak, breathing in loss, breathing in all that life has to offer, without holding the breath back.  Screaming that I have a purpose.  Small things like that.
       There have been times with me that the most important thing was getting on the floor and remembering to breathe the breath of  being alive, the down to your toes breath, the fill up  your cells breath.  Even if the world takes your breath away everyday, you can come to that quiet place and get your breath back.  Take a while to remember being empowered to your toes and "catch your breath".
       It all seemed to start with the breath, just to quiet down.  Deep breath.  Laying on the floor feeling my body, once again, deep breath.  Doing a scan of where everything lays on the floor, deep breath.  Then all is quiet and just breathe.  I like to remember that when the breath stops so do I.  If I have tried to be small in my life my breathing has been small.  If I have been big I have been screaming big breath.
       I was on the floor this morning and began just watching the breath going in and out of my body.  I noted where it stopped.  You know, the normal breath.  I then took it further.  This is where once again intention and imagination will come in.  Let yourself take your breath in and out of your lungs.  Fill your lungs to full capacity.  Breathe in your chest.  Breathe in your stomach.  Allow the oxygen in your breath to breathe into your blood stream, be with the oxygen as it carries this breath to your toes, to your legs, to all your extremities.  Experiment with the breath running in all directions of your body.  Hear the rush of your breath and hear the familiar sound of the ocean and waves running up and down your spine.  In my ears the breath sounds just like being in the ocean.  I try to find that wave of breath that goes all the way from the top of my head, down my spine, vertebrae by vertebrae, and then out my coccyx bone to the world and then bring the breath back up from my coccyx, vertebrae by vertebrae, back to my head.  Watching the breath as it goes up and down.  Losing yourself in this ocean that is you.
       Being with the breath is being with your first relationship with this planet.  You came here and you breathed in, when you leave you will leave with the breathing out.  There will be many breaths in your life, the universe willing.  You will hold it, catch it, lose it, and let people take it, but the most exciting thing you will do is look at it.  It is there and it is life and when it stops, so will you.  Christian tradition says that God breathed and life started.  So it is with us, we breathe.  Take your time to look at this wonder.  I believe it is life itself.
       - Meg Yandell
How deeply are you breathing in life?

This excerpt from the upcoming book "Lavender Snow", written by Meg Yandell, explains the art of slowing down to "just be" and the quiet within yourself it takes to do so.  Meg is a Reiki Master and a bass guitarist, but mostly she's just a woman enjoying the experience of life and all it has to give.

"The Art Of Intuition" with guest blogger Stephanie "Pixi" Morris

       Have you experienced a time when you absolutely knew what you needed to do and your whole body was vibrating with anticipation, knowing that things would turn out right?  Or, perhaps, have you longed for a way to listen more deeply to that inner-knowing in times when you are confused, anxious, not sure what your next step is?  If you answered yes to either question, then you are ready to dive into connecting with your intuition.
       Up until the 17th century, intuition was defined as “mentally looking at, examining, inspecting.”   After the 17th century, scholastic philosophers stated it meant, “spiritual perception or immediate knowledge.”  Nowadays we define intuition as “immediate apprehension or knowing without intervention of any reasoning.”  We suddenly have a deep knowing, even if it doesn’t always make sense.  The word originated from the Latin “intueri” which means “to consider,” then changed to "intuito" and finally made it’s way to English and other languages as “intuition.”
       A very interesting approach and definition, given by Esoteric Astrology is “…the ability to arrive at knowledge through the activity of some innate sense, apart from reasoning or logical processes.  It comes into activity when the resources of the lower mind have been used, explored, and exhausted.  Then, and only then, the true intuition begins to function.  It is the sense of synthesis, the ability to think in wholes, and to touch the world of causes.”
       I like to see it as a muscle we must keep using and practicing with in order to really feel, hear, or understand when we are being told “yes, this!!”  So, how does one warm up this muscle of intuition?
       Here are a few easy ways to start using your intuition in fun ways so you can start using it in your every day life.

Yoga and Meditation

       When I first started taking yoga and meditation, I had no idea of the profound impact it would have on my electromagnetic field/aura.  Yes, it does help the neural pathways in your brain realign and network better, but it also helps the physical body cleanse and detoxify physically and metaphysically.  As the body continues to find balance, so does the energy system.  I was able to use yoga to heal myself of seizures (read more about that here). While sitting in meditation, like I said you balance out the neural pathways and both hemispheres of the brain so you are more aware of thoughts, emotions, feelings, but it also allows you to find the space you need to truly feel into what you want.  And you never know what might come up during a really good yoga or meditation session.  The moments when you allow your higher self to speak through you are rare and when they happen, especially during yoga and meditation, you’ll know.  Try my meditation to enhance your intuition for free here.

 Get to Know Your Tarot

       A great way to connect with your seat of all knowing self is to take a tarot course or play with any oracle deck you like.  You could give yourself a daily reading or try to give your friends a reading.  To start, pick one to three cards.  Without looking in the book, really look at the cards.  Notice symbolism, notice what’s happening on the card, but without thinking about it too much, what is your gut telling you that the card represents for you or another person.  Its fun to keep a journal of all of the cards you pulled, your answer, and the answer that is in the book.  As you practice more, you will notice you become more and more on point.

Any Self-Healing Modality

       If you have ever heard of reiki, theta healing, crystal healing, or balancing the chakras, your intuition may be guiding you to explore these areas a bit more.  Even if you haven’t, diving into any of these healing modalities (and many others) requires us to tap into our deepest selves and highest self to listen to what we feel is happening.  For example, in reiki, you use the energy of all that is through a laying of the hands on certain energy centers of the body to bring healing to yourself and others.  When we do reiki, we must listen to our inner knowing that says, "ok this area is complete," or we may even be given more information about what is going on if we are open.  The more one practices, the better he/she gets at listening to the information you are intuitively receiving.  Research theta healing, crystal healing, balancing your chakras and more to find out how you can start to open up to listening to your highest truth.

       Wanting to dive even deeper?  Read more here about diving into your intuition and cultivating a spiritual practice.  If you are wanting to complete your reiki certification, priestess certification, would like a theta healing consultation, or more, please see this page and email me at pixi.morris.yoga@gmail.com

       -Stephanie "Pixi" Morris
What's your intuition telling you?

Photo by Stephanie Stein

"The desire to help others heal themselves led Stephanie “Pixi” Morris down a path of learning many different healing modalities. After being a teacher herself at private schools in Memphis, TN and Charleston, SC for 8 years, she is passionate about educating + helping others. She has her masters in Education and has been a Kundalini Yoga Instructor for nearly a decade.  She is also a Reiki Master Teacher, Angel Card Reader, High Priestess, and is completing her aromatherapy & herbal certification.  Her teachers and training instructors include Ana Bret & Ravi Singh, Reema Datta, Shiva Rea, Moses Love & Zeina, Gabrielle Bernstein, Lisa Michaels, Olivia Lomax, and many others. She leads an online Alchemically Awakening Avalon Priestess Training and sells jewelry, magickal sprays, teas, and other healing items on her business page, Apothecary of Avalon.
Pixi currently lives with her husband, two step-sons, and two crazy pups in Charleston, SC.  She enjoys writing, exploring the beach, and decorating her new home via Pinterest in her free time.  To find out more about her click here."
- Stephanie "Pixi" Morris