Author Archives: Hannah Siegle

Today an article on beauty that I wrote was published on the elephant journal.  Please hop on over to read it and perhaps reconsider your definition of beauty!

How do you experience beauty?

In other news we had some help today cutting mats for the YWCA programming that starts tomorrow!

Pug on a roll!

Sushi anyone?

Love,

Hannah

Think back to when you were a child.  School was out for the summer and nothing but endless hours of play stood ahead.  The constraints of time were absent  and fear was a foreign concept.  Frequently you were found perched atop the highest tree in the neighborhood or balancing on logs spanning across a creek.  The worries of adulthood and intrusions of responsibility had yet to shatter your world.  You were able to play.

Another word for play is frolic.  To me this word evokes images of a deer bounding through a field full of high grasses and embodies the full meaning of what it feels like inside to play.  Or perhaps as was pointed out to me the image of a small black pug rolling on his back in the grass after jumping into a frog filled pond.

The above is a description of a picturesque childhood, however many children are not afforded such luxuries.  They grow up in households full of turmoil, worries, fighting, and are never given the time to be a child, to live in freedom, to play.  Even among children who are able to play, childhood seems to becoming increasingly shorter and the intrusions of adult life come too soon.

yogaServe aims to bring yoga to the under-served and this includes children and teens.  They need to be afforded that time to truly be a child, to escape into the freedom of their own bodies, and to set aside worries for a period of time. More and more yoga is being found in schools both during the day and as a part of after-school programs.

One such program is being run by the Institute for Extraordinary Living, is headed by Stephen Cope at Kripalu.  This study has only been going on for a short period of time but found that even after one semester the levels of stress, anxiety, negative moods, and the ability to cope had improved dramatically.  Watch here for a video about this!

Namaste!

Hannah

I am liking these definitions as of late…

Gratitude, as defined by Merriam-Webster

: the state of being grateful: thankfulness

and thus

Grateful

: appreciative of benefits received

How often do you offer out gratitude?  Do you offer it just for the big things or perhaps for the simple routine parts of life?  The person at the checkout line at the grocery store, the car letting you in, or the sun peeking through the clouds?  If you choose to look the possibilities to offer gratitude are everywhere.

Each time I come to my mat, sit in silent meditation, or practice becoming present in my breath, I offer out gratitude.  I offer out my energy and movement sometimes for a specific person or situation, or sometimes for myself and all that surrounds me.  Over time and with the strength of my intention  this offering of gratitude comes back tenfold and I find myself further down a path of life that is true to my authentic self.

This morning I came across an interesting web page that shows brain scans of people in different life situations and also brain scans pre and post gratitude.  Very telling!

These pictures are evidence of the immense power of positive thought and what the human brain is capable of.  This makes the mission of yogaServe all the more relevant to those who we will be offering our classes too:;women affected by domestic violence and trauma, those affected by mental illness and substance abuse, and children and teens in difficult life situations, as well as those seeking to empower themselves.

This Tuesday, June 21st is the summer solstice and as is often practiced a group will be coming together to practice 108 sun salutations.  We will be meeting near the central building at Goodale Park at 5:30 PM and moving to a grassy area to practice.  I am inviting all who are in the central Ohio area to come join us for this offering of gratitude and convergence of positive energy.  This will be a self-led practice, however if you need a quick refresher I will be more than happy to help.  108 sun salutations is a lot and even if you don’t think you can complete it please join!  Bring your own mat and water!  It is supposed to be a hot one!

Why 108?  108 is a divine number and it has many meanings.  Read here for several of them.

I hope to see you all Tuesday!!!

Love and light,

Hannah

Flexibility, as defined by Merriam-Webster

: characterized by a ready capability to adapt to new, different, or changing requirements 

This is something I think about a lot, be it in terms of mental flexibility, social flexibility, or physical flexibility.  We live in a society that encourages planning, schedules, living with every moment so full that there isn’t room for any give.  The slightest deviation in what is “supposed” to happen often sends people into a tirade manifesting so often as road rage, shouting matches, and angry words that while sounding harsh rarely have little meaning behind what is heard on the surface.  This inflexibility is equally manifest in the body showing up in the back, neck, and hamstrings as tight and bound muscles, or even more severely appearing as disease and sickness.

I used to characterize myself as a inflexible person, in all areas of life.  I did what I was supposed to do, college, work, grad school, more work, and as I have pointed out many times, I failed during those times to live my life and allow for the unexpected shifts in what is “supposed” to be.  This manifest greatly in my body both mentally and physically and aside from my two balls of fur I wasn’t a happy or fulfilled person.

Then I found yoga.

Yoga saved me.  I disproved my belief that I was inflexible, mentally and physically.  So many people often come to yoga telling me that they aren’t flexible, and rarely believe it when I tell them I wasn’t either when I began this journey.  I opened myself to allowing that space to develop and with slow and consistent effort it did.

Sunday marked the first time I got into the full splits, Hanumanasana.

To me this represents again, both mentally and physically, a certain opening within.

Yoga has brought so much to my life; deepening my patience and understanding of all that surrounds me.  yogaServe is the embodiment of a desire from myself, Jamie, and Julia to bring what we have found within to others.

We are still in the planning stages, developing relationships with other programs, so that we can begin reaching out with love.  My heartfelt thanks goes out to everyone who is supporting us, with your kind words and donations.  We are so excited by what potential lies ahead and the many people who stand to benefit and find their flexibility within.

Much Love,

Hannah