Coming Soon! Our Book!

The Impossible Dream

A Yoga Storytelling Adventure

Kids Yoga Story

Here's a sneak peek at the cover...

Annabel Jones is our amazing illustrator. She is a sweetheart; we couldn't have found a more perfect fit, a fellow librarian who conducts Storytime!

and a sneak peek at the back cover promo...

     Once upon a time...deep in the swamplands, a young man embarks on an extraordinary adventure. Night after night he has the same strange dream until he can no longer ignore it. Find out what he discovers on his daring journey.

     The Impossible Dream encourages kids to express themselves through story and yoga. This book intended for ages 5 to 10 includes a full description of yoga poses. Make the story come alive as you go on a yoga storytelling adventure!

and a sneak peek at what the professionals are saying...

"As a parent in a bilingual family, reading The Impossible Dream with its beautiful message to my children helped reinforce our French language skills. As a library director in a bilingual province, I'll be sure to carry The Impossible Dream on my shelves. As a yoga teacher, I'm very pleased to have this valuable resource available to teachers and parents to encourage children to develop their physical literacy skills while learning about Acadian history."

Jenn Carson, Director of the LP Fisher Public Library

creator of www.yogainthelibrary.com, author of Physical Literacy:Movement-Based Library Programs

"When you flex the mind and the body, everything is possible."

Johnette Downing, Louisiana Roots Music and Books for Children 

"Keeyaw WOW! Nothing is impossible! Educators and former librarians Kathe Hudson and Melanie Moyer awaken the power of storytelling with a Cajun retelling of a classic folktale. Learning becomes effortless play in this lively tale written in rich language. The body comes along too combining story with yoga to inspire us to follow our dreams on a joyous journey of self-discovery. HOORAY for The Impossible Dream!"

Sydney Solis, founder of Storytime Yoga®

"The authors of this delightful story have captured an old tale and wrapped it into a Cajun version that will entertain, for true. They certainly won my Cajun heart."

Cheryl Floyd

Speaker-Storyteller

Heal Your Life® Teacher/Coach

a sneak peek at our intention...

Through the magic of story and the wisdom of yoga it is our sincere hope that children everywhere will remember, "Nothing is Impossible!"

For more information visit us at www.moving-tale.com

Please "like" and "share"!

Mahalo, we serve.

Body Appreciation

We often complain or criticize our bodies when in fact our bodies are amazing creations. Your body produces 25 million new cells each second. Every 13 seconds, you produce more cells than there are people in the United States. If you stretched out the 300,000,000 capillaries in your lungs end to end, the line would extend from Seattle to San Diego or about 1,300 miles. With the 60,000 miles of blood vessels inside the average human body, you could circumnavigate earth two and a half times. Our muscles are actually incredibly more powerful than they appear to be. Human strength is limited to protect our tendons and muscles from harming themselves. This limitation can be removed during an adrenaline rush, during which some people have lifted boulders or even cars off themselves. 

"I am in awe of my body." - Henry David Thoreau

Your relationships with other people through out your lifetime - with your parents, spouses, children, friends, and teachers - will shift as time passes and situations change. As long as you are alive, however your body is always with you. You body is designed to guide you, keep you safe, and bring you full vitality. It has seen you through love and loss, pleasure and pain, challenge and growth. It is the vehicle through which you create and manifest your thoughts and dreams into reality. Your body deserves to be appreciated for every experience it has given you, and every way it has supported you. 

Our story this month is "I appreciate my body." We encourage you to ask, "How do I feel?" rather than "How do I look?" when practicing yoga. 

MM

Give these two Warrior poses a try, they are a gift to your body.

Warrior I: from mountain pose, take a big step back with the left foot; turn the back foot to a 45 degree angle. Square the shoulders and hips to the front of the mat. Inhale and lift the arms overhead, lengthening the spine. Soften the shoulders down. Exhale and bend the right knee. Make sure your knee is directly over your ankle not in front of the ankle; you should be able to see your toes. Come out of the pose by lowering the arms and straightening the front leg. Step back up into mountain and repeat on the opposite side. 

Warrior II: from mountain pose, step back with the left foot. Turn your back foot to a 90 degree angle by picking up the toes and pivoting on the heel. The shoulders and hips are square to the side of the mat. Inhale and lift the arms to shoulder height lengthening the spine, palms facing down reach out through the fingertips, exhale and bend the right knee, knee over the ankle. Gaze out over the fingertips of the right hand. Come out of the pose by lowering the arms and straightening the front leg. Step back up into mountain and repeat on the opposite side. 

Pranayama; Energy of the Breath

Pranayamas are yogic breathing exercises. Ancient yogis observed the power of the breath and its ability to increase one's life force. They developed these breathing techniques to increase life energy and maintain health as well as create a calm, clear state of mind. 

The word "prana" refers to energy and "yama" means regulation or control. Pranayama is often considered breath control. Prana is the breath yet more than the breath. It is the energy or life force that keeps us alive. Practiced correctly, pranayama brings health to body, mind and spirit. Here are a few of the many benefits to the practice of pranayama. 

• Calms and rejuvenates the body and mind
• Improves focus and concentration
• Increases energy
• Boosts the immune system and the nervous system
• Slows down the aging process

As we age we often become shallow breathers. Therefore, we always practice deep breathing with our Sassy Seniors. This month we took deep breaths in and deep breaths out as we blew on bright, sunny pinwheels...our story; Breath is Energy. 

Fifi and Mel

In order to breathe properly you need to breathe deeply into your abdomen, not just your chest. Breathing exercises should be deep, slow, rhythmic and through the nose. In yoga there are many forms of breath control. Here are a few yogic breath techniques to try and you won't even need a pinwheel!

Equal Breathing; this is just what it sounds like...a steady even breath where the inhale is equal to the exhale in duration. The breath is slow and steady. Begin regulating your breaths to three to four seconds in and three to four seconds out. Equal breathing calms the mind and brings a sense of balance to the body. 

Ujjayi; this is a form of breath control that is commonly practiced in yoga. Ujjayi is an audible breath. It is often called "ocean breath." Breathe in and out through the nose as you slightly constrict the throat. Again the breath is slow and steady, three to four seconds in, and three to four seconds out. Ujjayi tones the immune and nervous systems, improving focus and so much more. 

Alternate Nostril Breathing; this form of pranayama looks and feels funny but it has many benefits. Use your right hand to alternate closing off the nostrils. Lightly press the thumb on the outside of the right nostril, the index and middle fingers rest on your third eye, inhale through the left nostril only. Now close off the left nostril with your ring finger, release the thumb and exhale through the right nostril. Repeat the process inhaling through the right and exhaling through the left. This makes one round. Remember...slow and steady. Begin with three rounds and increase as you get comfortable with the practice. Alternate nostril breathing brings balance to the body and the mind; it lowers the heart rate and relieves stress. 

Happy Breathing!

Transformation

The practice of yoga is a deeply transformative experience that can change our life. If we decide to embark on the journey of yoga as a way of life, not simply as an exercise, transformation will materialize. Transformation can sometimes be difficult but the reward is unsurpassed. Yes we can transform our bodies by regular asana practice, but we can transform our entire life when we practice yoga off the mat every day. We can transform any limited belief about ourselves into awareness of our divine potential. By diligent awareness we can stay kind even in unpleasant situations, we can be considerate even when we feel harassed, and we can be truthful even when it hurts. This is living our yoga!

Transformation is not always difficult. Transformation can be a joy and a pleasure as natural as turning flour into mouthwatering bread or cake, raw vegetables in to a flavorful soup or turning dried tea leaves into an aromatic brew. 

Shirley stirs up a cake!

This month our Sassy Seniors transformed flour and sugar into cake. We sang as we stirred, "If I knew you were coming I'd have baked you a cake." I continue to learn a lot from these seniors. Every day is a new day for seniors with memory problems. Every moment is a new moment for them. While most of us struggle to stay "in the now" they quickly let go of the past. While some of us have a hard time forgiving they never seem to hold on to a grudge. While we may sometimes forget to be grateful they often smile and say thank you. - MM

Burning Enthusiasm

Tapas often translates as discipline, however literally it means to burn. It evokes a sense of fiery discipline we can envision as burning enthusiasm. This  niyama refers to the focused and disciplined use of energy to actively pursue the aim of yoga; realization of the inner light of awareness. Tapas creates a flame which sustains and illuminates. With focused and disciplined enthusiasm we burn off physical, mental and emotional impurities that keep our inner light from shining bright. 

Our story; I practice with enthusiasm. 

Tapas is a tool for transformation. Because tapas has such a fiery connotation, it conjures an image of a hot, difficult yoga practice. Yet we don't want to burn out in the process of awakening! Perhaps it's the self-discipline to set aside a time to simply practice regularly. Then again, it could be the focus required to stay with the breath and see what arises in a long held posture. And we all know it takes focus and discipline to refine our negative thoughts, words, and habits both on and off the mat. 

As we move through life, we come to realize that any positive change or transformation we wish to make, requires a certain amount of consistent sustained energy...burning enthusiasm. From a yogic perspective, this is the practice of tapas!

We chose a yin yoga practice as our physical focus this month. In a typical yin class the postures are generally held for 3 to 5 minutes. It takes focus and discipline to stay in a pose for any length of time, as the mind and the body often complain! Yet when we practice with enthusiasm we can overcome outward discomforts and connect with something deeper within. Here are a couple of postures to try, if you are new to yin yoga begin with a 1 minute hold and add time as your enthusiasm for the practice begins to burn. 

Bridge Pose; Begin lying on your back, bend knees and bring feet close to the body hip width apart, arms alongside the body, palms facing the floor, inhale to prepare and exhale as you lift the hips and arch the back keeping the knees parrallel, the weight of the body is on the shoulders and the feet, hold the pose and breathe freely, exhale and release the pose by rolling the spine down slowly as you pull the belly in. 

Sphinx Pose; Begin lying on the belly legs stretched out hip-width apart. Arms are bent, elbows under your shoulders, forearms on the floor and parallel, middle fingers forward. Inhale and press your forearms into the floor lifting the head and chest. Press the pelvis into the floor and engage the legs, lengthening the spine. Gently pull the shoulders back, lifting the heart. Let your face and eyes soften, drawn the chin in. Hold for several breaths. To release, exhale as you lower to the floor, bring the arms alongside the body and turn your head to the side and rest. 

Mahalo, we serve. 

Divine Devotion

We like to add an element of playfulness to our practice with our Sassy Seniors. This month we used doggie finger puppets as parts of our centering, as we sang along to "How much is that doggie in the window?" These seniors with memory issue often remember songs from back in the day!

Dogs can be remarkably devoted to those who care for them, which led us to consider Ishvara Pranidhana, divine devotion. Our story; I am devoted. 

Devoting yourself to something larger than your self can transform your yoga practice and your life. A major component of yoga is study of the self, however if we are only internalizing we run the risk of becoming egocentric. Ishvara pranidhana is an ideal counterpount; we study the divine within ourselves, the divine within all beings, and the Divine source within all things.

Devotion implies trust,  being open to the divine plan, how and where life takes you. Such devotion gives rise to grace. Devotion is an attitude that you carry with you, that you live your life with. Seeing the divine in all, being open, and gracious. 

Ishvara Pranidhana is one of 5 niyamas in the Yoga Sutras and is considered the zenith of the niyamas. It encourages us to live with wholehearted devotion to all of Divine creation, to see the light in every person, animal and inanimate object. Some may choose to practice Ishvara Pranidhana through daily prayer or meditation. By stilling the body and the mind we can connect with the Divine and open to grace. One can also practice by simply pausing to feel grateful. By sprinkling life with devotion, each and every moment can be transformed.  

It has been said that we live in an age in which all humanity has fallen away from grace. Ishvara Pranidhana initiates a shift of perspective that helps us receive grace, the grace of being alive. Because it connects us to the divine source it shifts our perspective from our narrow individual concerns. Awakening a devotion to the Divine source of life opens us to the divine in every moment, no matter what happens. 

Mahalo, we serve. 

Contentment

According to the yoga sutras, when contentment and gratitude are present, unexcelled happiness pervades our being.  This feeling of contentment is not the same as what we feel when we have everything we ever wanted in life in terms of possessions, a partner, and an ideal job.  Those things can all change.  True contentment comes from the understanding that who we really are at our core is that light of awareness that all being share. 

Gratefulness is a feeling of great joy with who we are and what we have. Ponder all that you have to be grateful for such as health, friends, community, and life. Think of the millions of people around the world who have so much less in comparison, yet are happy nevertheless.  {Nicolai Bachman}

We have learned a lot from our Sassy Seniors.  Even though they are dealing with severe memory issues, they still radiate contentment.  They are grateful for each meal served and savor the mealtime experience.  They appreciate the simple act of holding hands.   They are ever so grateful to receive a smile or a hug.  Those that can still walk do so with exuberance.  One man who no longer communicates plays beautiful music on the piano.  Another sings along with every song on our Yoga for Memory Care playlist.

Our Story; I am content. This month we found contentment as we sang along with Que sera, sera. 

"Que sera, sera

Whatever will be, will be

The future's not ours to see

Que sera, sera

What will be, will be"

Virginia and Ena find contentment.

We can all learn a few tips from these elders whose minds no longer serve them in the traditional sense but instead seem to have overcome the part of the mind most of us battle with; the ego mind of judgment, and discontentment. 

In South India there is a heartfelt way of expressing one's appreciation. Instead of saying "thank you," they say "Santosha (I am content.)"

MM