Happy New Year, everyone! One of the things I remember about my corporate life is receiving annual reviews. I was always most interested in something called my stretch goals - things out of my comfort zone to reach for. This year, there are many things out of my comfort zone that I am reaching for. First, I am moving forward with working with cancer support by starting a weekly program at Breathe in Los Gatos. There is always an unknown element to this work because there really is no one approach that works for all; it's individual, just as the disease and the treatment side effects are individual. Each time I think I've got a formula, a new challenge presents itself. This is exciting and important to me, and will grow my skills tremendously. What is the real stretch goal in this program is to promote it. I need to speak with oncology staff, present the information in an intelligent, experiential way, so that they will recommend the work to their patients. I have so much respect for these people and I want to be sure to honor their work and explain how yoga can help them. That is definitely a challenge for me! Another stretch goal for me has to do with pricing my private sessions. If you go to the
private yoga page, you'll notice a big range in pricing. The higher range has to do with overhead and paying the location. Since I have operated by donations or out of my house, this jump in cost is less comfortable for me, but better for my practice of valuing my own work. Those of you who have your own business know how this feels; it's a practice to strike that balance between asking for what you simply need to get by and asking for what your service is worth, especially in these tough economic times! I will trust, as I hope you do, that it will meet everyone's needs somehow. And that is what this coming year is all about. I wish for you to find your stretch goals as well, to do what is important but risky, and to learn the value of what you do.
Schedule updates and special events; please click description for more details...
- New class! Beginning Monday, Jan 3, Lorien will teach an ongoing 7:15-8:45pm restorative yoga class at Downtown Yoga Shala in San Jose.
- New class! Beginning Tuesday, Jan 4, Lorien will teach an ongoing yoga for cancer support class at Breathe in Los Gatos; this class is donation-based.
- New class! Beginning Sunday, Jan 9, Lorien will teach an ongoing gentle yoga class at Breathe in Los Gatos.
- Special class: Friday, Jan 14 9:00-10:30am Tapas Yoga at Breathe Los Gatos; a (mildly) heated class that includes breath-focused held postures to align and cleanse.
- Special class: Saturday, Jan 15 9:30-11:00am Yoga Basics at GGBC in Campbell; come take this donation-based class and dive into the foundations of yoga with breath, alignment and relaxation.
- Saturday, Feb 5: Yoga as Cancer Support workshop 1:00-4:00pm at Breathe in Los Gatos; this workshop is donation-based and is for patients, caregivers and professionals working with cancer.
- Date TBD: Yoga for Cancer Support at Home workshop at Stanford hospital in Palo Alto; this workshop teaches patients and caregivers how to practice yoga at home, using household props and addressing common obstacles. This workshop is offered free of charge through the Stanford Cancer Support Program.
