Mirror Mirror...

I was given a card just this week that had the age old quote by Eleanor Roosevelt, "Do one thing every day that scares you." Inside the card was written, "Oh yea you are!!"

As I sit

At the beginning of 2011 I remember thinking... this is going to be a great year for love and life and yes it was, but it was so much more that I am happy to put 2011 in the books and gear up for what 2012 has to offer. To have grown the way I have over the past year channels me to believe that I have been prepared for an amazing 2012. I'm beyond thankful for my family and great friends, new and old who have held me together without even realizing it!and think about this past year and about where I am right now in life, I can't help but think Shit, I've have one hell of a year and I can say that yes the year of 2011 could be defined for me as a year of exploration, of love, of trust, of self awareness, of change, of living in the moment and living for me.... all of which scare the shit out of me but have made me so so so much stronger of an individual.

So what to look forward to in 2012?

Travel, travel travel!!!

Fiji and Belize then who knows but great things are unfolding and I'm looking forward to what this year has in store. Rockin yoga in new places and stepping out of my comfort zone and into adventures of my own!

Fiji Details: March 30-April 1 Weekend Yoga Retreat at Bethams Beach Cottages

Belize Details: June 2-9 Week Retreat of Yoga and Diving at Ak'Bol Yoga Retreat Center in Ambergris Caye, Belize

Keep updated on all these events and more on Facebook and Twitter or on the web at www.k10yoga.com

Cheers to Peace, Love and Light for each of you in 2012

Trash...

Spread the word, thinking the next retreat will include some ocean cleanup :)

From: http://www.zmescience.com/science/oceanography/just-in-case-you-didnt-know-theres-a-garbage-island-twice-as-big-as-france-in-the-pacific-ocean/

I was surprised to talk to a bunch of people today and find out they didn’t know about this, so I figured this is definitely something worth knowing. Here’s the deal.

There’s a whole lot of garbage floating around; a whole lot ! Some are above the surface, some are below. What happens is they get sucked in by oceanic currents, and tangle up with other garbage (mostly plastic). But you shouldn’t think only about bottles and such; most of the times, the plastic particles are hard to see even from a boat, but that doesn’t make them any less dangerous – on the contrary. It’s been proved that albatross and other sea creatures ingest way more plastic this way. The total amount of ‘plastic soup’ is hard to quantify, varying from twice the size of Texas (or France) to twice the size of the USA. It’s also expanding – fast. Stretching from Hawaii to Japan the biggest such patch is estimated to weigh around 100 million tons, according to American oceanographer Charles Moore, who also explains:
“The original idea that people had was that it was an island of plastic garbage that you could almost walk on. It is not quite like that. It is almost like a plastic soup. It is endless for an area that is maybe twice the size as continental United States.”
There’s also a missconception that it has well defined borders, like an island. There’s just a gradient of particle density, with most particles being as big as 1-3 mm. According to wikipedia, 80% is a result of terrestrial pollution, and the 20% left comes from ships. As you probably guessed, any effort towards cleaning the area is not going to happen any time soon, as it would require massive efforts and collaborations, and an estimated (very rough) cost of 10 billion dollars. No nation has made a step forward in taking responsability, and I can’t see anyone doing this in the near future.

“At this point, cleaning it up isn’t an option. It’s just going to get bigger as our reliance on plastics continues. … The long-term solution is to stop producing as much plastic products at home and change our consumption habits.”, said Chris Parry, public education program manager with the California Coastal Commission in San Francisco.

The effects are hard to estimate, varying from extremely harmful to catastrophic. Without even taking into consideration the long term effects and what will happen when it becomes even bigger (which quite frankly, won’t take that long if things continue to move the way they have), the short and medium term effects are devastating. Marine animals and birds ingest plastic which just doesn’t go away from their stomach. Eventually, it starts filling it up, and if it’s not toxic, and kills them, it fills their stomach and basically causes the animals to starve to death – a quite painful and tragic death. It can be harmful even for humans because we too eat the animals which ingest the plastic.

In case you’re wondering, no, I don’t think there’s anything you can do to help clean the patch up (even if you wanted to). But you can limit it’s ever growing size, as well as the size of land garbage. Just do the basic stuff:
- Limit your use of plastic whenever possible. Take your canvas bags to the supermarket or just don’t take plastic bags whenever possible.
- Throw your garbage where it should belong; don’t leave it on the beach or on the street or whatever.
- Tell other people. Make it spread. Many people don’t care about this at all; but many do, and they just need a small push to act. Be that push !

Love your earth

Haiti 2011

From the girls at Off the Mat, Into the World... :)

So this is it, the hour of reckoning: the proverbial “Savasana” of the Global Seva Challenge 2011 is finally upon us, and what a year it has been! Regardless of whether you reached your goal or not, just for taking that first step forward and committing to a Challenge as big as this. And we are so proud of you for having the courage to step into your greatness and explore the possibilities of your own leadership potential.

Now is the time to rest. To let go of attachment to outcome, and allow these final moments to unfurl exactly as they are meant to. To stop the doing and step into the being. To integrate your experience from the past year. To observe where you have grown and what you have learned. To nourish your body and reinvigorate your connection to Spirit. To reconnect with friends and family and loved ones in celebration of this divine gift we call life. And to express gratitude for all of the ways in which we are blessed, and for this opportunity to serve.

This year you have collectively raised more than $300,000 for Haiti (final numbers will be posted on the homepage of the OTM website in the coming weeks). I want you to know that this is no small feat by a team of 60 participants (in past years we have had closer to 120). Suzanne, Seane, Hala, and all of us at OTM are so thankful for all of your efforts, and we value everyone’s participation equally, whether you raised $20 or $20,000. The work you have done in your own communities could have an impact that lasts for generations to come. Maybe your efforts have inspired a change in someone else’s life in a profound and radical way – or maybe, just maybe, your own life has been changed somehow.

You may never know the full extent of the impact you have had, fundraising for Haiti this year with Off the Mat. But we do know exactly what your hard-earned funds will help OTM and our partners in Haiti to do:
provide clean drinking water at an orphanage and school
build a community center
support women’s empowerment through micro-lending
create a mosaic art wall
remove rubble from the streets
build an eco-friendly children’s center

From K10-THANK YOU! Thank each and every one of you for your support whether through monetary funds, opening your space for transformation, or just being an ear to listen or a shoulder to cry on. It has been an amazing journey and I look forward to continuing to raise awareness for our world and hope you will journey with me to make a difference for ourselves and our future generations!

In love and gratitude,

Kristen