Santosha Soul Yoga and More

07/12/2026

It was so fun to do something new and different today, teaching yoga for ARL at Second Chance Ranch. Thank you to all the other volunteers, staff and participants who came out to give support to the animals. So many beautiful horses and Scout the cat!

07/01/2026

07/01/2026

July 12th - Yoga in the Barn Fundraiser for ARL! I visited the barn earlier this week and it has a thumbs up! The animals will be in their pens except for maybe a cat. There may be a horse in the pen closest to the yoga space, and when the doors are open the breeze is wonderful; even with these 100-degree temps! I will be bringing extra padding (2 mats and or a towel) for knees as the floor is concrete. After the practice there will be beverages and opportunities to visit with the animals. The horses are beautiful and a peacock and a llama were there on Monday! An orange cat greeted us at the entrance. There were spaces still available on Monday! Come join us! The money raised goes to the Second Chance Ranch which is doing a wonderful job to save barn animals in need of help and loving homes.

Join us for a one-of-a-kind workout experience inside the ARL Kruidenier Second Chance Ranch! Enjoy an energizing yoga class led by a professional instructor, followed by a cool down while you mingle with the horses, chickens, and other rescue barn animals in our care. Sip on a complimentary golden....

10/27/2024

Satyagraha

Now is the time to hold to what is true. Gandhi in his famed march against oppression and tyranny coined the term satyagraha, a vow to stand firm in the service of truth. As the election here in the U.S. approaches amidst much distortion, lies and misinformation, we are called to hold to truth, personally, and collectively. But what really is true? Today it is easy to get tripped up on what is true with many versions being downright hallucinogenic.

Now you might say truth depends on individual belief informed by your zip code, your family of origin, or your friends. You might say it depends on what network you listen to and who you trust for your news. But wait, no, truth is not divisable by party lines. To live true is to live by care and empathy not hatred and aggression. Personal and collective integrity requires a kind of restraint, known in yoga as yama—the vows of non-harming, honesty, and generosity of spirit. It is the courage to stand up against forces that demean and oppress. It requires standing up against male domination, racism and social injustice. It is to stand for the truth that all lives matter-- Black, White, Brown, and Immigrant. It is the freedom to choose to love who you wish to love but not to hate who you wish to hate. It is the vow to not create further trauma in the world. It is the freedom to express one’s belief, but not to use cutting, inflammatory speech. It is the freedom to believe what you like but not impose beliefs upon others.

Satyagraha is a kind of yoga practice unto itself, yoking to what is just and fair. It requires going back to the first chakra, to be disciplined and firm in the taproot of your being. Most of all, holding to truth requires that we live with a benevolent heart and discriminating mind.

10/11/2024

Louder!

03/10/2024

10/06/2023

"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of the birds, the ebb and flow of the tides, the folded bud ready for the spring. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature … the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter."
Rachel Carson

Alla Tsank - Queen of Birds.

09/03/2023

You Don't Have To Prove Yourself

It is funny how we spend a lifetime trying to prove ourselves. We go for the grade, strive to be successful, do all we can to be liked. We all want to appear good in the eyes of others. When you look back, it is astonishing how much time you have invested over the years, struggling to prove you are worthy.

What does it really mean to "prove yourself"? The reality is that it is an impossible task, for there is no solid self to prove. The self is a collection of impressions, traits, habits, influences, and ideas. We make ourselves crazy, running around in circles, trying to prove something that has never in fact existed. This makes for all kinds of trouble. It leads to confusion, distortion and bad digestion. Yet we spend a lifetime trying to gain the approval of others. If only we could realize that we have nothing to prove, that we need not convince anyone of our worth and that we are entire just as we are.

When you stop looking outward for validation, you come home to the peace of who are and can walk freely through the world.