StorytimeYoga for Kids

Once upon a time, not so very long ago, there was a quiet little mouse of a librarian. She loved children and was passionate about promoting literacy. One day out of the blue, she was asked to conduct the weekly story time at the public library where she worked. She had never done this sort of thing before though and she was a little bit anxious but she gave it a bit of thought, did a bit of research and imagined the possibilities, then jumped right in. What fun she had with these precious preschoolers! Reading books, doing finger plays and singing songs, she didn’t think it could get any better than this.

Right about this same time she began a practice of yoga and several sweet years went by. Before long she longed to do more than read stories to children, she wanted to TELL stories to children. She wanted to be a STORYTELLER but she didn’t want to be just any old storyteller, she wanted to be a yoga storyteller. She wanted to share her love of yoga and story with children. Now where in the world could she find training for such a thing?

Where does a reference librarian go when she needs information? The internet of course! And what did I find, Storytime Yoga for Kids at www.storytimeyogaforkids.com. Sydney Solis has developed a storytelling and yoga teaching method that is simple, yet thorough; comprehensive and compelling. These training materials are incredible. They have helped me to grow both personally and professionally.

Sydney’s course begins with “Awakening the Storyteller” which is absolutely apropos. The storyteller, who thinks, speaks and acts, as well as the storyteller within will be awakened. The adventure begins as she takes you through your dreams, learning the importance of story, symbolism and imagination. You will then be captivated by the healing power of story. Sydney’s creative techniques lead you to explore the art of storytelling and discover the many benefits of storytelling.

I have taken Sydney’s methods and modified them to fit a public library program. They would also work well in a school setting. I introduce children to yoga through storytelling. My hope is to inspire children to express themselves through story and yoga. Feedback from parents and children is remarkable. Here are a few testimonials;

mom; “My son enjoyed this so much, even more than my daughter!”

child;  “When can we do this again? It was so much fun.”

parent; “Thank you for giving my daughter this opportunity. It was fantastic.”

child; “Are we doing yoga today?”

Headstart teacher; “Thank you, the kids loved it. They are going to go home and talk about it. This was perfect; we are working on story sequencing at school.”

mom; “That was phenomenal! He is usually very shy and he participated and loved it.”

child; “I had a great time!”

dad; “This program is Beautiful!”

Story is a tool of yoga and both story and yoga awaken us to our true selves. As I work with story and yoga I am transformed.

Sat Nam

Kathe Hudson; Master Certified Storytime Yoga Teacher

The Lion and The Mouse

A tale of kindness

Roaring Lions

Once upon a time in a deep, dark forest there lived a ferocious lion. All of the forest creatures cowered in fear whenever he came near. His might was renown throughout the land… The Lion and the Mouse, an Aesop fable from the 5^th century BC with many a moral lesson.

Moral guidelines help us to live well in the world. The yamas are yoga philosophy’s moral guidelines. The yamas are restraints, they teach us self-control. They are the first step on the yogic path and we develop self-control through self-awareness. Providing children with an early start on healthy mind body practices can develop habits that contribute to learning, health, and well-being, which progresses to self-awareness. And how do we do introduce children to mind body practices? Through story and yoga of course.  

Storytelling is an art we all respond to. It offers a means of communicating thoughts, images, and emotions recognized throughout the world.  We hear the words, see the images in our mind’s eye and feel them within our hearts. The powers of these timeless tales lend themselves to effective yoga instruction. The characters and actions speak to the lives of children today. Children are able to learn valuable lessons within the safe environment of a story. One of the first things we must learn if we are to get along well with others is non-harming (ahimsa).  So what does non-harming mean?  It simply means to be kind. 

Our story opens with a mighty, ferocious lion. Ferocious is defined as being fierce, cruel or violent; no wonder poor lion doesn’t have any friends.  He needs to learn how to get along with others. He needs to learn to be kind.  Thus we began our yoga storytelling adventure with roaring lion pose. This pose offers numerous physical, psychological, and emotional benefits; these are merely a few,

• stimulates the muscles of the eyes, face and throat
• removes tension from the body
• supports the thyroid gland
• strengthens the voice and will power

With my personal all-time favorite being laughter, I laugh every time I practice! The kids had a blast with this one naturally. Roaring lions became laughing lions.  It tames the ferocious lion transforming tension into happiness. Happiness is our essential nature. Through the practice of yoga we awaken to the realization that we choose to be happy.

Each day we have countless opportunities to choose. We make choices in how, what, and where to focus our attention. So what kinds of choices make us happy?  Personal pleasures do increase our happiness but only for a short while. Choices that really make us happy are those that allow us to express our creativity or encourage the happiness of another, in other words being kind. Kindness is the first step on the path to happiness, and its effect is long lasting. Kindness opens our hearts. Giving our attention, affection, acceptance, and appreciation to others is one of the most powerful ways to awaken happiness in our lives.

To give our attention to someone we must listen. We come into the present moment and focus on understanding the other person’s perspective. We give our appreciation to someone when we let them know that we value them and are thankful they are in our life. We express our affection through our thoughts, words, and deeds, letting them know that we care for them. Acceptance is one of the deepest human needs, we accept someone even with all of their imperfections. We all want to be accepted.

Throughout our story various circumstances lead lion to choose kindness. In doing so he opens his heart and gives the gifts of attention, affection, acceptance, and appreciation.  And in the end we find the mighty lion bounding away taking pleasure in the day, thankful for small things.

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”
---Aesop

Moving Tale: Kathe and Melanie, tandem yoga storytellers

Anarosa the Mariposa; a tale of true love

We thought this story would be a sweet one for the month of February and presented it as a puppet show, since love was in the air and all. Giving this tale a yogic twist we encourage you to look on your relationships and frame them with self love. In reflecting on your relationship with yourself you will learn to love yourself and in kind learn to love others more fully. 

future storyteller

Puppetry is an oral art form similar to storytelling, a valuable means to build oral language skills. It is an entertaining way to introduce children to literature, bringing folktales to life. Both children and adults enjoy a live performance and the puppeteers have a good time too! Children learn the elements of a story, the beginning, middle and the end, preparing them for both reading and writing. 

A puppet craft completes our presentation inspiring children to explore their new found skills as storytellers and puppeteers. 

future puppeteer

Anarosa the Mariposa is our adaptation of Martina the Beautiful Cockroach, a Cuban folktale retold by Carmen Agra Deedy. It explores family relationship and culture as well as romantic relationship. Anarosa has been raised by a loving family and is ready for marriage. She must choose between several suitors while being courted under the watchful eyes of her family. She is reluctant to follow the shocking advice given from her grandmother but out of love and respect does so anyway. Which leads us to the story's sweet surprise of an ending. 

Probably the biggest struggle in life is the struggle to know and accept ourselves. Unlike Anarosa, many of us were raised by parents who were not taught to see their own worth. Therefore they were unable to teach us that we too are worthy. Family face all sorts of challenges and these stresses wear on us making our closest relationships difficult. So what can we do?

We can become more mindful of our thoughts, words, and deeds. Those stories we tell ourselves. We can change our stories. We can change how we think about ourselves. We can learn to accept ourselves. In order to truly unite with others we must first unite with ourselves. This is our yoga, this is our practice. And as we open our hearts to ourselves we become more open and compassionate with our loved ones as well as others.

Ahhh peace and love, what a sweet combination. 

Kathe and Melanie; puppeteers

The Monkey and the Croc

A tale of honesty...a tale of dharma

Emma Jean, our butterfly, helps us with our imaginations

We're all familiar with the age ole tale of the monkey and the crocodile. The cunning croc tricks the unsuspecting monkey. You can really dive deep into this story but since we presented to children in the library we just swam on the surface. Though we did splash and thrash and have a bit of fun in the process!

The Jataka tales from India are dated from 300 BC to 400 AD. They were a major source of instruction for developing the character of people and widely used by monks. These tales offer timeless truths. By listening to these stories, children and adults can improve their knowledge and learn how to face the difficult experiences of modern life. 

Infinite possibilities are available to take this story across the curriculum. Besides the obvious language arts, we can look to social studies. The history of the Jataka tales might be one aspect. The study of India's geography, its jungles and rivers another. Science topics and the natural world offer unlimited prospects. Monkeys and crocodiles and their food sources as well as the plant life found there are samplings to consider. All sorts of math concepts from the simple to the complex exist. Art enhances our creative curriculum, giving us freedom and fun. And last but certainly not least health and wellness, our yoga. 

crocodiles swimming

  

Left brain and right brain connect strengthening neural pathways as we listen and move our bodies into yoga postures. This whole brain activity, thinking and doing simultaneously, promotes deep learning. Our yoga storytelling adventure began with a forward bend as we became the monkey swinging our arms from side to side. We took cobra pose for crocodile and with plank pose and a reverse pushup we dove deep underwater. Monkey quickly gathers his wits with a deep breath in easy pose. Something we can do anywhere and anytime. Slow deep breaths calm us and help us to focus so we too can gather our wits. A seated twist along with a seated forward fold took the monkey and croc back to the riverbank, where monkey hopped off with a low squat. The kids had a lot of fun with this one, monkey sounds and bouncing chimps. The croc swam back and forth with a variation of locust pose watching the monkey, good for coordination. Realizing the monkey's resourcefulness the croc approached humbly admitting his mistake. We closed with tree pose, for that is where we find monkeys today, happy and carefree. 

bouncing chimps

Time to contemplate the stories we tell. The story we tell ourselves and the story we tell to others. The what, where, when, why, and how of things. What am I hungry for and what will I do to see that my needs are met? How am I like the croc? How am I like the monkey? How might I use my wits to deal with a difficult dilemma? Honesty, conceit, cunning, and resourcefulness are characteristics to consider. 

So the croc tricks the monkey and what do we do? We judge the croc as the bad guy. We forget that it's just the nature of a croc to eat monkeys. That's his dharma, his purpose in life, to swim in a slow moving river and to eat the food provided for him. There is nothing inherently wrong with crocs eating monkeys. Without crocodiles we'd have an imbalance in the environment, too many monkeys!

The problem in our story begins when the croc thinks he is smarter than the monkey. His ego goes to work and all he thinks about is catching and eating a monkey. Our thoughts can consume us. The more we think about something the more it can take hold. Thoughts become things!

Things come about for a reason. Seldom do we see the big picture. Life is relationships. All of our experiences are lessons on love. Learning to see from a different perspective opens us the wonderful world of grace. When we are thankful for what we have, be it a little or a lot, and trust that all our needs will be taken care of, transformation happens. And that is how we can live happy and carefree.

Moving Tale; Kathe and Melanie, tandem yoga storytellers

Sunrise Sourdough Bread

The sun, the sun, I salute the sun, I open my heart to everyone. The sun rises and the sun sets, the whole world in my heart rests.

A fire in the wood stove, a sweet sun salutation and “cranberry orange nut sunrise sourdough bread”, it doesn’t get much better than this on a cold morning.

                           
Sourdough bread, one of my many passions. Several years ago I was given the gift of a starter. It was one of those friendship breads we so often get. We make a loaf and give loaves away then usually forget all about it. Well this time I decided to keep the “mother” alive. I tweaked the recipe a bit and spent months baking a basic boule’, without any sophisticated equipment, not even a baking stone. It was pretty good but I knew it could be better.

Time passed then one day, a friend told me about baking in a cast iron dutch oven. And as they say, the rest is history. I fell in love. Wow, crisp chewy crust, moist tender crumb! Fresh out of the oven it delights all your senses. A sight to behold, oven spring rises the dough perfectly and the crust splits and cracks beautifully. It smells lovely and sings to you as it cools. And come to find out sourdough is actually good for you, the wild yeast predigests the grains reducing the glycemic index. It is healthy for the intestinal tract, full of beneficial bacteria. After years of baking a basic bread and biscuits, I decided it was time for a little adventure. Time to step out into the world of creative add ins.

A breakfast bread was what I had in mind. I make a no knead sourdough so I stirred up my starter, added dried cranberries and orange peel, along with the salt, water, and flour. I set it to rise overnight. Turning it out onto my cutting board in the morning I gently folded in some pecans and gave it a quick shape. The loaf rested while the pot heated in the oven for an hour. Very little hands on work is involved in sourdough baking. The no knead recipe takes only 5 total minutes effort divided in 1 minute increments here and there. Time and love is all it needs.

Yummmm, bread baking feeds me, body and soul. 

KH

The Snowy Day and the Lucky Duck

The Snowy Day, a puppet show

We rarely see snow in south Louisiana but that doesn't stop us from dreaming of the fluffy white stuff. We imagine ice crystals dancing in the air and sparkly snow blanketing the earth, so that's how we set our stage for this seasonal story. In this tale Elf is excited about the snow and is determined to get his friend Reindeer to come out and play. Elf is the kind of person who intends to live on purpose with passion, and I want to be like Elf when I grow up! 

Reindeer, cozy in his bed, stubbornly refuses. But best friends don't give up so easily and with a bit of persuasion finally Reindeer relents. Reindeer finds fault with one thing or another before eventually agreeing to a sled ride down the hill, but only if Elf is right there with him. They climb aboard the sled and head down the hill. Unbeknownst to Reindeer, Elf falls off. Reindeer is having a grand ole time til he realizes Elf isn't with him. Upset he starts to trudge home. Elf eagerly joins him and Reindeer soon settles down admitting he did actually enjoy himself. Over warm cups of cocoa they share the adventures of the day. 

  

Creative crafters and their Elf puppets

We always end our puppet shows with a puppet craft and this cute Elf was perfect. With brads attaching his arms and legs he was movable, ready to tell a Moving Tale. As storytellers and librarians our passion is promoting literacy, inspiring children to express themselves through story. Puppets are fun tools to encourage a child's imagination. 

Moving Tale; Kathe and Melanie, tandem yoga storytellers

The Lucky Duck

If you have a friend who can coax you out of your comfort zones you are one lucky duck. They get us to try new things. I am a lucky duck in more ways than one. I work with my sister who is also my friend. We encourage one another with a playful shove now and again. Months ago Mel and I registered for Mahabhuta II, a three day yoga festival held in Pensacola each November. Mel wanted to try Aerial Yoga. It looked fun but...I must say I was initially reluctant. Kinda like Reindeer, comfortable in my cozy yoga routine. But I figured what the heck, and we signed up. I trusted it would be an adventure and believed it would be entertaining even if I decided to sit back and just watch. So I let my concerns go. 

In Aerial Yoga slings are attached to tree limbs and you must trust the sling to hold and support you. Much the same way we must trust life. Trust comes from a deep knowing that we are here for a purpose. Do we believe we are supported? Do we believe there is a source bigger than ourselves that upholds us? Without belief we cannot do anything. Everything starts with believing, believing in ourselves, believing in our abilities. 

Once in the sling you have to rely on yourself to move into the yoga pose. Then comes letting go, letting go of expectations. After you flip over you expect you’ll slip right out of the sling and fall on your head. Sorta scary, it can happen but fortunately for us it didn't. Not a solemn class that’s for sure yet yoga none the same. The sling allows you to take inversions and splits with effortless ease. Much like we hope to move through life. When we trust life, believe in ourselves, and let go of expectation life unfolds in just this way, with effortless ease. 

Om Shanti

Swamp Cat Slays a Dragon

Hot dry heat beat down on the bottomland woods. The summer sun has burned up Swamp Cat’s stored energy. She is long and lean. Bedraggled she rambles the rugged route beside the brown bayou, its surface warm like café au lait. The cool shade of the cypress calls to her, come…be at ease.  She rests under the boughs; rusty leaves fall as a new season approaches.

High Lunge hands in prayer

Swamp Cat has remained in the deep of the bottomland woods all season, fending off intruders. Cunningly they approached, lurking about and hiding in the stumps and hollows. Swamp Cat suspected dragons. She felt their fiery breath but had not seen their faces. Elusive they did not show themselves. Tracks in the dry earth, and a frightening roar sounding in the dark of the night told her of their presence.  

High Lunge with a twist

Swamp Cat determined to slay the dragons, one at a time. Weary of their menacing ways, she prepared. She sharpened her claws and climbed the tall pine. Here her vision has always been clear. She spotted one. It was behind the wide old oak, its gnarly roots disguising a knotted tail. She balanced on the edge of the limb. It moved but remained sturdy. She had to trust her vision. She had to trust her power.

Crescent lunge

She leapt. Pouncing upon him, they toppled in a heap. He was scaly and rough. They twisted and turned. Swamp Cat landed on her feet. They looked upon each other, eye to eye. She saw him for what he truly was.  He hung his head. Through unspoken words he knew he must flee. This is her home and she wants to live free. 

Melting Heart

Running from dragons does more harm than good. It may be a short term fix but feelings have a way of catching up with us. They hide and lurk, breathing fire. However, when you are courageous and confront your dragons you’ll often find the strength you need to deal with them.  Recognizing our dragons allows them to be transformed.  Be they doubt, discouragement or simply the dreary wearies, once we see them and feel them they release their hold on us, at least temporarily. They may return but the quicker we recognize them and come to know our power the quicker we can respond, sending them on their way. 

This is where true freedom lives.  

Om Tat Sat