St. Theresa's Prayer


It is a gray, rainy Monday and I was feeling low.  There was an e-mail from my cousin this afternoon.  I've received it many times over the years and it is one of my favourites.  Hope it inspires.

May there be peace within you. 

May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be. 

May you not forget the infinite possibilities

that are born of faith. 

May you use those gifts that you have received, 

and pass on the love that has been given to you. 

May you be content you are a child of God. 

Let this knowledge settle into your bones, 

and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.

Sweet Potato Cake

From Taste of Home - 2006 Best Holiday Recipes

Cake
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 ½ cups finely shredded sweet potato (about 1 medium)
1/4 cup hot water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ½ cups self-raising flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup sliced almonds

Frosting
½ cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup evaporated milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 ½ cups flaked coconut, toasted
1 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cake - In mixing bowl beat oil and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time.  Add sweet potato, water and vanilla.  Combine flour and cinnamon and add to potato mixture.  Stir in almonds.  Pour into greased 13"x9" pan.  Bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Frosting - Melt butter in saucepan.  Whisk in sugar, milk and egg yolks.  Bring to a boil and gently cook for about 2 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Stir in coconut, almonds and vanilla.  Spread over warm cake.  Let cool.

Self Raising Flour note per cup - To substitute, place 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder and  1/4 teaspoon salt in a 1 cup measure.  Add regular flour to complete the 1 cup measure.

Yoga and Injuries

I was reading Namaste from Duluth this morning.  There is a post on using yoga as therapy for physical injuries.  I understand that very well.  Many of us in my class have joint issues and injuries where certain yoga poses are most helpful.  She does have a funny comment at the end of the post; using yoga therapy for a yoga injury (Yay!)

I have experienced and injury from yoga too.  Many of us who practice yoga probably have. Some of my non-yoga friends get quite excited about an injury from yoga as though it were something unusual.  Guess no one has heard of running injuries, weights injuries, Pilates injuries, etc.  I've had one injury from yoga but two from Zumba.  Doesn't stop me from practicing either.

My yoga injury was simple; a pulled hamstring.  I let my ego get involved on a forward bend pose.  I was so close to my toes so I pushed it instead of accepting where I was that day.  The next day I was mighty sore and the pain did not go away completely for several months.  I continued with my practice and adjusted to my situation.  In time it healed.

So, I now take my time with my poses and accept my limitations.   I can now touch my toes and the floor.  That being accomplished, I now work gently on my other limitations.  One at a time they will improve.  I'm not in a race and my yoga teacher does not give out gold stars for completing a classic pose.

New Blogger Fears

Well, I’ve been blogging for a month now.  I go through stages of “What was I thinking?!?!” to “This is fun!”.  I’ve been spending time this past week reading some of the other yoga blogs out there to see what other people’s views on yoga are.  I am amazed!

Many blogs are done by teachers.  There is great advice, upcoming seminars, personal views on yoga controversies, humour.

Others are like mine; ramblings from a yoga enthusiast.  People share their daily routines, poetry, great photos, their sorrows and joys.  It both intimidates and encourages me.

I’ve been getting some good ideas.  Pictures are always nice.  Recipes are always a good read.  I just need to keep plugging away and building up what I have started.  Thanks to those of you who read my blog regularly and irregularly.  If you have any requests, let me know.

(Food for Thought)

London, UK

Today is the last day of four days of celebration honouring the Diamond Jubilee (that’s 60 years!) of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain.  I’ve been watching some of the celebrations on TV and started thinking of some favourite things about London.

A boat cruise down the River Thames

The Thames River Walk

Marks and Spencer, Fortnum and Mason, Harrods

Pubs and pub grub

Walking the Mall from Admiralty Arch to Buckingham Palace

Regent Street, Oxford Street, Bond Street

Little Venice

Hyde Park, Battersea Park

Albert Bridge, Tower Bridge

Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden

Millennium Bridge  

Cathedrals, castles, museums and galleries

Does Size Matter?

The vast majority of yoga imagery shows slender people doing seemingly impossible pretzel poses.  I know many people see these images and say to themselves “I could never do yoga.  I’m not flexible enough. I’m too heavy.”  This could not be further from the truth.  

I am a large, heavy woman.  Yes, poses became easier when I started to lose my excess weight but I was able to start a yoga practice pretty much at the same level as any other beginner.  Yoga poses are meant to condition the body; to make it stronger and more flexible.  The support from the props used in Iyengar Yoga made the process easier for me.  I have found, through the four years of studying yoga, there are people who do decide to try more challenging poses and classes and there are those content to stay at a level they are comfortable with and work at poses that are familiar.  Some people will never do inversions and some people will attack them with relish.  All of this is OK.  

You can be you.  Do not worry about what your size and ability is.  It is simply important to do the work.  Sometimes the biggest challenge you will face is to walk into the door of your first class.

Zumba!

My body conditioning had improved greatly after two years of Iynegar Yoga so it was time for me to investigate other exercise options.  I bought a ticket for a Zumba fundraiser one Saturday morning.  It was a Latin/Salsa inspired dance class led By Sharon Delbridge who I recognized as one of the Reh-Fit Centre's fitness instructors.  It was a great deal of fun and I was able to keep up with the group for the full 60 minutes.  Thus inspired, I started the Zumba Gold class with Sharon.  Sharon also teaches a really great Vinyasa Yoga flow class at Reh-Fit.  She uses yoga poses and breathing as a way to quiet the body after a cardio workout and let in the healing feelings for mind, body,  and spirit. 

Amazon has a great selection of Zumba DVDs, game systems, weights and clothing.

Scroll down on my blog and check out my Zumba Squidoo lens in the right hand column.  I've recently updated it with a new content including a YouTube video of our Zumba Tone class.  You get to see me in action!