Louise’s Blog
Happy Springtime
My emotions can shift abruptly. This morning, I was enjoying a sweet springtime view from my bathroom window for about a minute before I had to break up a sudden kitty battle for window supremacy. Several minutes later, I found myself thinking about the classic scene in Titanic after Rose passes, when we see her walking up the ship’s grand staircase, surrounded by the passengers who didn’t survive the sinking. At the top of the stairs, Rose is greeted by her long-lost lover Jack, bringing her life’s story to its close.
For me, the scene is simultaneously sad and lovely, and it probably slid into my quirky, too-busy brain because I’d woken up this morning relieved that the world as we know it was still here. The fictional character of Rose had a life as long and grand as the ship’s ornate staircase, and we last see her surrounded by love in another plane of existence . . . or perhaps in Rose’s vision of what heaven would look like. I’m not sure who’ll greet me at the top of the grand staircase at the end of life, but I like to think that all the kitties I’ve fed, cared for, and loved will be lined up on the steps. Preferably not growling at each other.
This time of year offers a bit of heaven on earth. Spiritual celebrations from three major religions converge against a background of blooming beauty and color, complete with a birdsong soundtrack. Many of us will visit family this week, sharing memories and making new ones. (I know three yogis who are celebrating the holidays this year with a new grand baby. WooHoo!) But others will grieve the loss of loved ones or suffer from hardships and war. I’m grateful to be one of the lucky ones.
Wishing you a joyful and peaceful springtime holiday. Namaste, Louise
Chag Pesach sameach, Happy Easter, and Ramadan Kareem to all who are celebrating this April
Sunday, April 17th, 2022
Happy Springtime
My emotions can shift abruptly. This morning, I was enjoying a sweet springtime view from my bathroom window for about a minute before I had to break up a sudden kitty battle for window supremacy. Several minutes later, I found myself thinking about the classic scene in Titanic after Rose passes, when we see her […]
Sunday, April 17th, 2022
How to Break Out of Pandemic Prison
Find redemption on your yoga mat When the coronavirus arrived in New York early this year, we, like Andy Dufresne in the 1994 film The Shawshank Redemption, began a painstaking, maddening, life-changing trek, breaking through concrete-wall obstacles stained with tears. It would be over soon, some said; it was just another flu, said others. […]
Thursday, August 13th, 2020
Alive on Arrival
Your yoga practice is much more than the 75 minutes or so spent with your teacher. Next time you go to yoga, remain mindful even before class begins: stay alive on arrival, and notice and savor your pre-class routines and rituals.
Monday, August 20th, 2018
Sunshower Power!
Was it raindrops that I felt against my skin? This morning, walking to my car after teaching my seniors yoga class at Sinai Free Synagogue in Mt. Vernon, I felt a few wet drops tap my arm. With the sunshine burning bright overhead, my first thought (typical New Yorker) was that I had been christened […]
Tuesday, September 19th, 2017
Rainy Days and Glorious Grays
Rainy days can be dreary and make us feel weary, but I often find solace in the muted gray calm and the rhythmic sound of raindrops tap dancing on windows. A lazy rolling rumble of thunder in the distance only adds another tune to nature’s soundtrack of serenity. For the earth and its habitants, […]
Tuesday, May 30th, 2017
Ironing: a Pathway to Mindfulness?
You want ironin’? Ask Norma Rae. I’m terrible at it, even though I learned from an ironing guru, my grandmother Sophie Pottok. With hands made strong by years in the millinery trade, she would power-iron my father’s shirts, slamming the iron down like a boss while keeping the fabric stretched taught with her free hand.
Sunday, February 7th, 2016
Breathe, Then Breathe Again
Never underestimate the healing power of your breath In a late July issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, Dr. Elizabeth Levin shared a transformative journey, both personal and professional, that speaks directly to the heart of the yogi. In her fourth year of medical school, in a subinternship at Cook County Hospital in […]
Saturday, August 8th, 2015
Fly, Robin, Fly!
Over the past month, our human family has watched a family of robins grow, beginning mid-May with a mated pair building a nest on a support beam beneath our deck. From stolen peaks at the birds’ precious blue eggs (Mike peered down between the floor boards to see them) to the first appearance of a […]
Monday, June 15th, 2015
There’s One More Yogi in Heaven
Saying goodbye to a special lady Yesterday, we said goodbye to Mollie Vogel: yogi, friend, wife, mother, teacher, role model. Nicknamed “the mayor of Mount Vernon,” by the many people whose lives she gently touched, Mollie passed away on Tuesday, a little more than one month after the celebration of her 95th birthday. I was […]
Friday, April 17th, 2015
Sleep Fat, Walk Thin
Cats do it, so can we Cats are born yogis. Acrobatic and agile, they can gracefully and gleefully eclipse the dazzling moves of a seasoned vinyasa practitioner. Restorative yoga? Cats invented it. Savasana? Cats live it. To me, what is more impressive than the cat’s innate physical yogic talent is her curly-clawed grasp of […]
Sunday, January 18th, 2015
Sunflower Photo: Wendy Peragine