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Super Full Moon in Taurus – Get Passionate

November 14, 2016 By Kat

For the first time in 68 years the moon is at it’s closest to earth tonight. This is a Super Full Moon and a half it’s our second in a row, the middle child of a trilogy. The final Super Full Moon occurs in December to close the year. Depending where you are in the world the time will vary but for those of us in Western Australia the moon will be at it’s fullest at 9:54pm tonight (Monday 14^th November).

All weekend the vibration has been accumulating since Friday’s 11/11- gateway cast light onto our life purpose and passions. Did you feel the pull to get on task and do more of what you love? If you follow your hearts guidance the magic will start to show up in mind-blowing ways. Last months Super Full Moon I wrote about being in gratitude for taking action on my dreams and pulling them into reality over the past six months. (Need a recap? Click here.)

Tonight’s Super Full Moon carries on pushing us to live our loves. Doing things that bring us joy doesn’t have to be reserved as a special treat or reward. Do things you love every single day! No one wants to look back at their life with regrets wishing that you’d spent more time weaving fun into the everyday. Don’t wait for a catastrophe to land to start living. Every day is precious; you never know what is around the corner. Get out there and freaking enjoy yourself. Put lashings of passion, soul-loving activities on your daily menu.

There is nothing selfish at all about a healthy dose of self-love. The knock on effect of each of us being happy and bright will send magnitudes of love into the universe. This will raise our collective vibration on the planet assisting in transmuting any murky darkness. If we are happy and content this will radiate out to the rest of the world. Where’s the selfishness in that? We are all helping each other.

My words above have been inspired this week by a story I have been following for a few years from an incredibly brave, passionate and determined young women. Kirstie Tancock is a living example of never giving up and getting the most out of life no matter what cards you are dealt. Kirstie is a crazy talented pole fitness instructor living with cystic fibrosis who has gone through two double lung transplants in her 27 years.

When Kirstie’s illness worsened stopping her from doing what she loved the most she kept fighting and focusing on her passions. After both her transplants Kirstie was determined to get back to doing what she loved, dancing, and sharing this with others. Even though she had to learn to walk again first before even thinking about jumping on a pole. The photos on her Instagram are testimony to a lady who leads from her heart and does what she loves every day.

Even now in the closing chapters of the story Kirstie is striving to do as much as she can to create more memories. From what I can perceive Kirstie is going to squeeze as much as she can out of the time she has left. Kirstie’s light has assisted so many others in similar situations by bringing comfort, humor and a raised awareness for organ donation & CF. The perfect reminder for us all to be in gratitude for everything we have especially our health.

Over the past few months we have cleared out our lives on all levels. Simplifying and stripping back what no longer is necessary. I have found this process very liberating letting go of all that accumulated ‘stuff’ that isn’t filling a purpose anymore, physical and metaphysical alike.

The Super Full Moon energy may be transmitting strongly for you. Often the moon energy can effect us is quite a noticeable way. We can feel over sensitive, out of sorts and physically achy. On the flip size the moon can jazz us up, make us restless and disturb our sleep. Even if we are experiencing heightened energy build up remember you are driving this vehicle. Keep your hands on the controls. Staying grounded, drinking loads of fresh water, resting and honouring what your body needs in the moment is very important. If the moon is kicking your ass acknowledge this and do what you can to stay in your power.

Ride the wave of the awesome Super Full Moon energy and work ‘with’ it. Celebrate all you have achieved so far this year. It’s a great night to tap into spirit’s energy for guidance to get clear on the direction you wish to take next. If you are still a little unclear on your direction meditate under the moon and ask for some assistance.

Our psychic senses are always elevated at this time too. Pay close attention to any visions in your minds eye (your Third Eye Chakra) and also your dreams. We’ve already experienced a whole month of vivid dream states. Spirit speaks to us most clearly when our conscious mind sleeps. There are messages we need to hear. Upon waking or completing a meditation take note of anything you can remember.

Crystal Cleansing Night

It’s the perfect night to get your crystal kids out for a charge up. They may not have ever experiences this kind of moon cleansing before so give them a treat by putting them under the night’s sky tonight.

I always love hearing from you all. Feel free to leave me a message in the comments below and let me know how you’ve been getting on over the past few weeks since New Moon.

Till soon, with love,

The Final Chapter of my Eastern Adventure

May 14, 2014 By Kat

After going a bit left field last week & mixing up my posting schedule I feel it’s time to finish my story. The aim for this trilogy was to record a travel diary so in years to come I can look back & relive the happy time I had on this trip.

My final night on the Indian Pacific was lovely. I’m very happy to report the dinner service was spot on. The vegetarian option had changed for the main to a very nice, fresh, hot & tasty tagliatelle. Gluten for punishment I ordered the mushrooms again. I think I got a bad batch the first night second night was vastly improved. Dessert was a very delicious almond chocolate cake. How I over looked that the first night I do not know.

At dinner I experienced hospitality at it’s best. A French couple were shown to the table next to us. They had enough English to get by but they didn’t need to worry as one of the staff conversed fluently in French with them. Such a nice touch. I’ve found in Australia that this is very rare. We are an English speaking population. Everyone is expected to fit in with this & speak English. It did make me smile that the train did have at least one-second language speaking staff member. I’m sure this skill goes to long way to get great gigs.

Arriving in Adelaide at 7:20am Tuesday morning meant an early start. A morning tea style breakfast was being served between 6 & 6:30am. With no phone signal my alarm didn’t go off. My mum tapping on my door woke me. Leaping out of bed thinking of my stomach first of course I was ready in a matter of five minutes. I was super impressed with the food. Muffins, pastries, breads & scrolls a plenty. Towards the end of the service there were still loads left.

The train drew in ten minutes early, the luggage arrive ten minutes afterwards, three minutes later we were in a taxi heading into Adelaide city. We’d booked a city sight seeing tour to fill the morning, as our hotel wouldn’t be ready till 2pm.

It’s been about nine years since as was actually in the city centre & I couldn’t remember any of it. It’s bigger than it seems. Our three-hour tour was going very quickly & it felt like we’d not really seen too much. It was great to just be driven around & take it all in. I was getting very used to being chauffeured.

Adelaide has a lot of churches. I mean a lot, one on nearly every corner. Our first stop was well a cathedral that boasted some very impressive stain glass windows. One window was fairly new & depicted the story of Mary Magdalene. I’m always drawn to visit temples when in Asian countries but I never seem to take advantage of what I have on my doorstep in regards to churches & cathedrals. It made a peaceful change to just sit in the huge, quiet space for a while.

The Magdalene Window, St Peter’s Cathedral Adelaide

The Haighs chocolate factory was of course fantastic. You can only get Haighs in South Australia in their own stores as they do not ship. Haighs are famous for their chocolate frogs as well as their Rocky Road. They make their own marshmallows. Being just after Easter there wasn’t much action in the factory as the staff had been given ten days off after making a quarter of a million Easter eggs this year. The chocolate is rather nice & we bought quite a lot of it. Hello chocolate macadamias!

After the tour is was time to pick up the hire car & head to Glenelg our home for two nights. I’ve stayed in Glenelg before, it’s a cosmopolitan beach side town that is known for it’s jetty & laid back atmosphere. Being a bush rather than beach kid I decided the ocean was calling us to be close by. Perfect choice the sunsets were spectacular.

Glenelg Jetty, SA.

The car we hired was a Toyota Yaris. Hilarious! I’m used to driving a big old sedan so to get in this tiny buzz box was so much fun. It had a real kick to it for a small car. It was a dream to park even so my Dad was super paranoid about me scratching. We couldn’t get the GPS to work properly so we ended up taking a different way around than I expected to after reading the map. It felt strange to be in the driving seat after being transported around.

The next few days were delightful. I really like Adelaide. People bag it out for being boring but it has a great energy about it. I feel this is because it’s not as over populated or such a tourist hot spot like Sydney & Melbourne. Sure there is plenty to do that is touristy! How can anyone be bored here. I’d happily have stayed a while longer if time allowed. Thinking about it I live in Perth & many people ask ‘what’s in Perth, isn’t just really remote with nothing to do?’ Maybe I’m just attracted to the non mainstream.

Here are my Adelaide highlights:

Staying by the beach in Glenelg. Long afternoon walks on the seafront & great sunsets.

Sensational South Australian sunsets!

Having an in person mentoring session with my Soul Mentor Elizabeth Peru. It’s always great to connect in person. Just being around people of higher & pure vibration can be very healing in itself. It makes me feel very supported & not alone in this lifestyle I’ve chosen to live. Elizabeth’s energy is contagious I always leave our sessions with such clarity, confidence & love. Brimming with new ideas & inspiration to bring home to action.

Driving round the hills in the buzz box. Due to a road closure we ended up taking a very long way round to Mount Lofty. GPS was not happy.

Mount Lofty on a clear afternoon. Spectacular views over Adelaide right down to the coast. Also got to catch a bit of the Royals visit on the news when we stopped for lunch. They were just up the road in the SA town of Elizabeth.

The view from Mount Lofty

The German town of Hahndorf. A very quaint & picturesque town in the hills. Loads of unique shops to explore. I found some great hand made organic beeswax products. The architecture was stunning up the main tree lined street.

The charming & quaint German town of Hahndorf.

Meeting new friends. Connecting over yoga & organic food. I was blessed to meet a fellow Bikram teacher & Bright Eyed & Blog Hearted course mate. We took a yoga class together at the Glenelg studio followed by a lovely chat over breakfast afterwards at the Organik Store. It’s awesome when you just ‘click’ with someone. No awkwardness or long silences. Meeting your ‘tribe’ of like minded people is so important. Again no one is ever alone, there will always be others on the same wavelength & they will appear when needed.

Amazing apres Bikram organic breakfast

Crystal shopping! With a few hours to spare before our flight I’d Googled a metaphysical shop near by. Crystal Wave is amazing. Mum & I spend nearly an hour working our way through the shelves. I picked up some great pieces to bring back. Including my first Merlinite. Mum found the most beautiful Baltic Amber pendant. A great pick. The staff were very helpful & friendly. One complimented me on my massive selection & gave me some advice on making grids.

Stunning Baltic Amber pendant.

Saving Mr Banks movie. To round off the trip I got to see a movie I had wanted to watch for ages on the flight back. I’m a huge Mary Poppins fan & thoroughly enjoyed watching Saving Mr Banks. It was so tempting not to sing out aloud with the soundtrack!

I thoroughly enjoyed my time away. I could quite happily have stayed in Adelaide a few more days but my parents had to get back for their flight home. There was a lot I learned from this trip looking back now. A change of space can really freshen you up & bring in new lighter energy. A whole new blog post in the pipeline I feel…

I’d love to hear your experiences of how a travel trips have freshened up your Soul & replenished your mind. Please feel free to share in the comments below.

Till then, love K xxx

When a teacher is put in an awkward position

November 26, 2013 By Kat

In the space of just a few weeks I’ve felt as a yoga teacher a few students have put me in an awkward position & I don’t mean Utkatasana. I teach Bikram Yoga (yes the hot sweaty one) which is a dialogue lead class. That means the teacher guides the class verbally a bit like a GPS. Everything you need to know is in the words. If you listen carefully & allow your body to respond to the words you’ll do just fine. One of the differences in the Bikram sequence, apart from the heat & the dialogue, this style does not encourage props or hands on adjustments from the teacher.

At Teacher Training it is made very clear that teachers should not touch a student in any way or form to conduct a correction. I am 100% comfortable with this rule & the theory behind it.

If I decide to give a helping hand to assist a student in a posture for alignment reasons a number of repercussions could occur.

The student may not have given me consent to touch them & therefore I may well offend them by doing so.

My well-meaning adjustment may actually cause the student injury or pain, as their body might not be ready for that correction.

If I hurt a student they might take action against me & as outlined in my certification that there will be no touching of students I’m in big trouble.

Therefore it’s super awkward when in the middle of class a student grabs my attention and asks for ‘a hand.’ Okay, they are asking & giving me permission to touch them but as I said above if their body is not ready to go further into that posture I still might hurt them. In response I just smile, shake my head & carry on teaching. After class I explain to the student why I will not give them a physical correction.

It’s happening more often of late I’m being asked to assist in this way. Unless it’s one of those wave trends that’s passing through. Students see a teacher doing hands on corrections so they wish to have one too. No one wants to miss out on some special attention! I’d just like to highlight here that I personally would like to adhere to the rules & not give hands on corrections. If my colleagues wish too then that’s their business. I will verbally guide you or I will personally demonstrate the posture for sure but I won’t help you physically. Please do not put me in an awkward position and ask me to do so.

Looking at this from an energy point of view. If I go to a student for a personal hands on correction then that will command my entire attention. It will take the energy away from the other students as I’m focusing close up on just one. If I give a personal ‘verbal’ correction everyone benefits as they share by listening too.

The favourite postures I find that students request some help in is floor bow (Dhanurasana) & half tortoise (Ardha-Kurmasana). It seems no big deal to just help a student’s hand find their foot behind them in bow right? I feel it’s a huge deal. Please don’t get me started on the use of hooking a towel round the feet either ;-). The use of props has their place but not in the yoga I teach.

If a students body is not flexible enough yet to get the grip then that is the way it is. If their hips aren’t touching their heels in half-tortoise I will not push them down there, even when requested too.

The moment I touch a student I have taken their yoga away from them. They did not achieve the foot grab or hips on heels by themselves. I’ve taken away their responsibility to keep trying, to keep struggling & most importantly try the right way. Wouldn’t it be much more of a greater achievement to reach, struggle & sweat for that grip over twelve months (or more/less) all by themselves? Then when they finally grab their foot ‘they’ did it for themselves.

Their body changed, loosened up & became able in the time frame it took because that is the path of yoga. The self-discovery. The greatest achievement one can have by figuring it out for one’s self. It takes determination, faith, patience, self-control & concentration.

Looking at this from the opposite standpoint would be by physically helping a student enables them to feel what the posture should be like. They know what the right way is & have something to aim for. Sure but they will eventually get where they need to go & have a bigger light bulb moment when it happens for the first time through self-discovery.

Studios run private lessons or posture clinics to create a safe, organised place so students can get personal corrections. If you have time ask after class too for assistance if you are seeking it. Keep listening to the instructions and trying the right way you’ll get it.

It’s amazing for me to watch the student’s journey. I get so much out of seeing them do it for themselves. One regular student I’ve taught for two years now has just managed to wrap their elbows in Eagle. The hands aren’t quite together or fingers interlaced but with patience, time & encouragement they are getting there. Slowly but surely.

I hope this has resonated with some of you out there. Just keep trying the right way. I’m there with you holding the door wide open for your journey of self-discovery. You have to step through it though for yourself, when you & your body are ready.

Love K xx

Click on image to enlarge ©Seren Holistic Lifestyles Blog 2013 (please share the love with full credit thanks)

Teachers are just like everyone else

October 31, 2013 By Kat

Today I wish to share with you the post re-blogged above written by a fellow Bikram Yoga teacher. Reading it last week all I could do was nod and say so true. There is so much more to teaching this yoga than standing on the podium & reciting the dialogue. It’s a huge wake up call when you’re fresh out of training as the more seasoned teachers make it look so easy! Looking back now I really should have been more compassionate towards some of my teachers, I just wasn’t ready to recognise this.

Don’t worry this isn’t going to turn into a pity party for yoga teachers. More like recognition to how much I was stuck in my head rather than leading from my heart. Back before I was a teacher doing my practice I’d often notice other students with the wrong grip in standing bow or rabbit, knees flying open wider than 6 inches in floor bow whilst rocking back & fourth on their bellies. Why wasn’t the teacher helping them I’d think? Why aren’t they correcting them? They are doing it wrong, they’ll get hurt, sort them out do your job!

Number one I should have been focusing on my practice, my own eyes in the mirror, the eyes of my best teacher. Number two I should have trusted that my teacher knew best & they were doing they job 100%. They were probably putting out a more serious fire on the opposite side of the room. Even more so they were allowing the students to discover for themselves what the yoga is all about rather than being constantly nagged or have everything handed to them on a plate.

I’m happy to acknowledge these judgements I gave & realise I wasn’t seeing the other side of the reflection back then. It also shows how much I have been healed from my yoga practice & spiritual journey.

About a year ago I taught a class that had four fellow teachers in the room. At one point every single one was on their knees. Before I would have thought ‘they’re not leading a very good example, aren’t they bulletproof yoga gods?’ Now I think ‘good rest up, you’re in the room you are healing.’ Just like any other student in the room how do I know my colleague isn’t going through some immense trauma, having a bad day or recovering from an illness? They’ve probably been in the hot room for three hours already this class makes it four & a half. That’s a lot of sweating & energy. Aren’t they are allowed to be whacked?!

Every teacher is an individual. Yes we teach the same structured class but we all bring our own flare to it. How we hold & create the space in the room is different too. One teacher might be super comfortable constantly walking around the room giving corrections up close. Others may hold the space stronger by calling a name from the front of the room so everyone can hear & be part of that correction. How one teacher conducts their class is unique & special to them. They use their strengths to bring out the best in the students. If I start mimicking another teachers style because a few students have commented how much they like the way that teacher teaches it’s not authentic to me. I’ll give it a go but chances are it may turn into one hot mess. My class is constantly evolving & changing I’m so open to this. These changes need to come from within me first for it to flow, not from feeling pressured from external sources. How boring if every teacher taught the same way?

It does take a lot of energy to teach a class. What ever is going on in my life I have to leave it behind so I can be fully present for my students. I have methods I use to protect myself from getting too drained. However it is hard to switch off. Just like the post below says just because the class has finished doesn’t mean I’m not thinking about it. Especially if a student had a question I didn’t know the answer for, an injury or illness that needs some more research to help me understand fully. We are all students & are constantly learning from each other. I find it hard to just walk away when I lock the studio door.

Students pop into my head at random times. I’m blessed to have an amazing support network of fellow teachers with whom I can check in with when I’m unsure. I look into alternative therapies that will compliment the yoga practice if I feel a challenge needs some extra attention. I love going the extra mile for students I feel it is part of my job as a teacher.

My problem with this is when I get too involved I forget to step back into my own room. I always say yoga is not just a 90-minute exercise class. It is a method of healing. As a healer as well I have great interest in this side of things. However I compromise my own healing if I don’t disconnect. Recently this has been more apparent. The warning signs started to show. Feeling tired, unfocused, starting to think of students during my own practice. That is my time for my self-nurturing. Yes I’m happy to do the extra work but I need to set scheduled times for it. When I step back into my room then it’s my time, I shut the door & be in my space. That way I can best serve all involved. Please don’t get offended if you see me at the studio when I’m not teaching & I scurry away not wanting to chat, I’m just taking a little me time.

I hope this has helped shine a light on the other side of the fence.

Love K xx

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