The Yoga Forest Guatemala

My dear friend Sara and I have spent the last 7 months travelling, teaching, practicing and performing together throughout the United States, Mexico and Central America.  Today marks the first day of us being apart since we began our travels together. This post is a reflection on my recent time, teaching yoga at The Yoga Forest in San Marcos, Lago Atitlan, Guatemala.

Here is a section of The Yoga Forest's newsletter, from the recent month of my residency there. Wonderfully written by my amazing soul sister, Sara Angelus.

INTENSITY & THE YOGA FOREST

This lunar cycle at the Forest was FULL ON! Astrologically its been a powerful month. The alignment of the Cardinal Cross in the sky brought energy and emotions to full charge, and the power of the Lunar eclipse and all its beauty, left us in appreciation and awe of planetary wonders and mysteries. The weather has been slowly changing, greening up the land with evening showers, leading us into deep sleep with their lullaby. We greeted new interns this month with big smiles and open hearts, and bid farewells to those finishing their cycle with gratitude for new friendships formed. Our interns brought with them fresh ideas and new skills, inspiring new projects. Furniture is being built using materials from around the forest, a catalogue of plants on the grounds is in the works, and bliss balls may soon be added to our list of healthy and delicious homemade products.

The Theme for April was INTENSITY. It was a month of transformation, powerful emotions, dynamic shifts, and all the ups and downs of life hitting us at full force. Although it was intense, we stuck together and supported one another. We held a fire ceremony to let go of the things that no longer served us, and set new intentions. At the end of it all each and every member of our community came out on top, feeling loved, empowered, ready to take on the world, and to doing it with a smile!

As we move into May our focus is on integration. Taking what we learned from the intensity of last month and incorporating it in through strategic design, organization, and a readiness to move forward. We're leaving the past where it belongs and stepping into each new day with a fresh perspective, and an open heart.

Meet Sally- April's Resident Yoga Teacher

For the past month our daily yoga classes have been led with intelligence, wisdom and grace, by Australian born Sally Meredith. The entire community has felt incredible breakthroughs in their practice on and off the mat. Our dedication to practice has allowed for our outlook on daily life to be cleansed of clouded judgments and limitations. Sally's classes have energized and inspired us. They have connected us to our center, while also teaching us to hold our heads high, to be strong, and to shine bright all the way from our roots to our crown. Though we've all felt personal challenges this month, yoga has grounded us in our truth and allowed us to be open to the lessons that have come up. We have worked with pranayama techniques, exploring and awakening our bandas... and all the juicy goodness of melting and letting go in a way that restores our muscles, our energy levels, and helps to quiet our busy minds. A quote from Osho that Sally shared with us really hit the mark this month...

"Don't call it uncertainty, call it wonder. Don't call it insecurity, call it freedom."
 

Sally's experience in her own words:

"My time teaching at The Yoga Forest has been intense and transformational. This place; the volcanoes, lake, mountains, forest, culture and history; holds a majestic and humbling power which has had me flying high at times and hitting the lows at other times. I appreciate so much my experience teaching here, riding these waves alongside the students; I’ve felt my teaching evolve to a point where the line between teacher and student has blurred for me. This has opened up more depth in how I connect with the class, being in the trenches together with the students as we face our inner battles with courage and honesty. I cannot deny that, like the people around me, I have felt the intensity of this month. At the same time, the forest nurtures me. It has been a soft landing place for me to reflect and process where I am at personally on my journey as a yoga teacher, and as me. I am so grateful for the people that I’ve connected to up here, guests, interns, yoga students, traveling visitors, friends, and family. Thank you for accepting and embracing me! I’m stepping into this next cycle with new eyes, full of awe and wonder for what is to come."

To see the newsletter in full go to this link: INTENSITY & THE YOGA FOREST