We all have a limited, contracted, outer hard surface. Yoga teaches us to dig deep into our center to know our true, authentic selves. Yoga Teacher Barbie was gifted to me on my birthday and I have chosen to Ground her and help her to expand her consciousness. All of my students are gifts; yet this is my first one who was born in Indonesia and had a non-existent childhood,. No wonder she has restricted knowledge.
Perhaps Barbie’s obvious patterns of limitations can teach us how to observe our own stuff. Barbie has offered her correspondence to her beloved, Ken for you all to witness her progress. I welcome advice on how to help her ground her feet!
Gratefully, I wake up every morning, breathing, heart beating and mind wide open. As I breathe into my heart I pray, “God, thank you for this day, thank you for this breath and thank you for this life.” I am passionate about living life through peace and love rather than through fear and hate. My…
The Skin Horse had lived longer in the nursery than any of the others. He was so old that his brown coat was bald in patches and showed the seams underneath, and most of the hairs in his tail had been pulled out to string bead necklaces. He was wise, for he had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive to boast and swagger, and by-and-by break their mainsprings and pass away, and he knew that they were only toys, and would never turn into anything else. For nursery magic is very strange and wonderful, and only those playthings that are old and wise and experienced like the Skin Horse understand all about it.
“What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. “Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?”
“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.”
“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit.
“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.”
“Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?”
“It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”
“I suppose you are real?” said the Rabbit. And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive.
Through our programs, we endeavor to “ground” kids, teens, and adults via yoga, laughter, and elevation. But what exactly does it mean to be grounded? By formal definition courtesy of the Merriam-Webster on-line dictionary….
grounded [ˈgraʊndɪd]
adj
sensible and down-to-earth; having one’s feet on the ground: mentally and emotionally stable : admirably sensible, realistic, and unpretentious <remains grounded despite all the praise and attention>
(Inspired by Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra Chapter II, v. 42 samtosad anuttamah sukhalabhah)
From contentment, Highest happiness is obtained Snow White’s Seven Dwarfs Are invited to explain….
Consider us each a chakra An energy gate of sorts That we open, clean and balance For optimal support.
Work on passing through The seven chakras {or gates} In order to visit the underworld And ascend to blissful states.
Let’s begin in MOUNTAIN with SLEEPY, Awaken abundant roots. Stand with both feet straight Ground heavy in your boots.
Each time you inhale, Think, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE HERE. Each time you exhale, Root your feet a little deeper.
Reach up high with outstretched hands FORWARD FOLD and touch the ground. Prepare to balance GRUMPY Who needs some healthy bounds.
Whenever you breathe in, Think, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO FEEL. Each time you breathe out, Circle your hips like a water wheel.
Step your right foot back Into a STRAIGHT LEG LUNGE Here we balance DOPEY Soak up power, like a sponge.
Each time you take breath in, Think, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO ACT. Each time you release breath out, Stretch your belly with great tact.
Step your left foot back Press hips up into DOWNWARD DOG Open up to HAPPY Melt your heart free from smog.
Receive your in breath and Think, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO LOVE. Give your breath out Feel Unworthiness? Get RID of!
Shift forward into PLANK So BASHFUL can get clear. Soften your throat back And open up your ears.
Each time you breathe in Think, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO SPEAK WORDS. Each time you breathe out Say, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE HEARD.
Lower knees, chest and chin GRATITUDE for SNEEZY’s insight and vision. Draw back of eyes toward back of head To focus on decisions.
Each breath in Think, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO SEE. Each breath out Cross your eyes to a degree.
Stretch your crown forward and up To balance DOC in SNAKE Straighten legs behind you, Connect to what’s awake.
Each time you breathe in Think, I HAVE THE RIGHT TO KNOW Each time you breathe out Stretch from head to toe.
Lower back down Prepare to pose in reverse Remember your rights Remember to immerse.
SNAKE back to GRATITUDE Breathe into your poses Up PLANK to DOWN DOG Your rights are like roses.
STRAIGHT LEG LUNGE to FORWARD FOLD And back up to MOUNTAIN Keep moving and grooving Till your rights flow like fountains.
When we know our rights, And pass through chakra gates~ We develop a sense of contentment And more deeply relate.
Happiness is indeed obtainable. When we follow the path of contentment Accept the ups and the downs of our very own presentment.
May we be content with GRUMPY work Or no work at all~ DOPEY or HAPPY states BASHFUL or baseball.
May we be content when SLEEPY Or wide awake~ SNEEZY or Doc It’s our right~For Goodness Sake!
Grounded Kids Yoga 115 Milton Park Court, Alpharetta, GA 30022
Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Grounded Kids Yoga provides in-person and online training, professional development workshops, and ongoing support for educators, parents, and clinicians. We specialize in kids yoga, mindfulness, social-emotional learning (SEL), trauma and pain management, emotional regulation, and impulse control for preschool through high school students. Each year, we serve thousands of children and teens through school programs, after-school enrichment yoga clubs, summer camps, Girl Scouts, 4-H conferences, and yoga studios across Atlanta, the Southeast, and nationwide.
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