I have to say that this summer of beach yoga has been filled with some pretty magical and funny moments so far, and I’ve got some pretty great stories to tell and weave into my yoga class themes. So far a few surprises include finding this beautiful heart of flowers right in the middle of my beach yoga studio one morning, getting mooned by a Firefly Beach camper, and practicing yoga with gale force-like wind and waves at Linwood Beach during my first full moon beach yoga class. I’ll take whatever Mother Nature brings and even though the storms and cooler temps have been plentiful, the peaceful sound of the rain, birds chirping, and view from the Firefly Beach pavilion has been quite blissful for the dedicated yogis who always show up on their mats.

Here are a few more magical moments I’d like to share.

The Shore Thing

I woke up one morning in a bit of a rush to get dressed and off to teach beach yoga. As I opened my closet, a t-shirt I had not worn all summer just kind of jumped out at me, and I put it on. It’s emblazoned with Shore Thing, the name of a business located on Main Street Beach in Vermilion that rents beach chairs, sells snacks, and provides awesome tourist information to visitors. I hadn’t seen Jennie McClendon, one of the owners of this business all summer, but I wanted to wear the shirt that morning so I could give Shore Thing a shout-out during my class that morning.

I walked up to greet the class – and who is there to meet me but Jennie! Believe me when I tell you that this meeting was not an accident. We are all connected and send out our energy with our thoughts and actions, and Jennie and I had one awesome karmic connection going on that morning.

I loved getting this reminder to send good thoughts out into the universe because what you put out there is what you attract. Those negative thoughts will surely reach the recipient – so make sure you are sending out good energy!

Jennie also brought her incredible crystal singing bowl, and we had some pretty yogalicious Oms in class that morning as a result. Thank you, Jennie, for carrying that heavy bowl to the beach and for being an awesome brand ambassador for the City of Vermilion.

Be Here Now

It always bums me out when people start saying summer is over right after the 4^th of July, and guess who turned into one of those people last week? When I started fretting about the fact that half of my summer beach yoga schedule was nearly over, I quickly gave myself a quick kick in the assana and remembered to find peace and joy in this moment and stop worrying about the future. I plopped down on my meditation cushion and started meditating with the mantra “Be Here Now,” and it turned out to be really powerful. Try it out next time you meditate. Breathe in and say, “Be here,” and on the exhale say, “Now.” As you say the word “now,” let the peaceful feeling that comes when you savor the present moment soak into your heart. I hope it has the same effect on you as it did for me and brings you a feeling of complete joy.

I’m not trying to glorify being busy, but I will say that the summer is one of my busiest times of the year. The “Be Here Now” mantra has become one of my best coping mechanisms and reminds me to take it one day at a time, to practice being present, and to savor each and every moment of summer.

Ommmmm

I’ve had some pretty special experiences when chanting om, but there is something about an outdoors om that can’t be beat. This summer I’ve gotten to enjoy oms that rolled along with the sound of the wind, surfed along the top of the waves, and even a few that harmonized with the sound of the trains that are constantly rolling through Vermilion.

Last week on a cloudy day right as I closed out the Main Street beach yoga class with a shared om, as if on cue, the sun started to peek out and shined its light on us, and birds started to chirp along. I was filled with an overwhelming sense of peace in my heart. One word: omalicious!

Super Full Moon

What’s better than beach yoga? Doing yoga on the beach while the sun is setting and the moon is rising with a huge group of fellow yogis! The super full moon on July 12 was a very special night on Main Street Beach in Vermilion, and I want to send out a huge hug to all the yogis who showed up. I’ll do it again on August 10 and September 9 – so come on out and do a little yoga mat dancing in the moonlight with me this summer! The next two full moon yoga classes will be held at Linwood Beach.

SUPYoga

I love first times, and this summer I got to teach my very first stand-up paddleboard yoga class (SUP Yoga) to an awesome group of yogis. The weather was calling for rain, but it ended up being a perfect day with nice calm Lake Erie water. You better believe there were some victorious woo-hoos when we all got into downward dog on the boards and did our first sun salutations SUP style!

Big thanks to Jim Lawhead of Lake Erie Paddler for bringing the boards. We had so much fun that we will be doing it again soon and I will post the dates as soon as they are finalized.

If you have not made it up to Vermilion yet, plan a little road trip to head up for a beach yoga class take some time to explore this small city on a great lake with all its shops and restaurants. There’s still a lot more summer left, and I can’t wait to see what else this summer and the universe has to bring. The Kelleys Island Yoga and Wellness Retreat is scheduled for September 11-14, and I may even extend some of my beach yoga classes beyond that into September and October.

Woo Hoo – I feel so blessed to get to do what I do! Thank you universe!

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