Yoga Day USA 2009

For anyone interested in a FREE event in the Palm Beach area to explore yoga, mark January 17th, 2009 on your calandars! Last year I helped taking photos and was so impressed with how well this event was run. Click here for more info: Yoga Day USA

This is an opportunity to try different styles and teachers while coming together as a community and it's all free! Be sure to try one of my favorite yoga instructors, Andrea Pepper. She's scheduled to teach at 3:00. (Schedule subject to change) Andrea has done fundraising for a foundation called, "Off The Mat into the World" which helps the needy in Uganda. You can read more on her website: Amala Yoga.

I'll be there with my camera and my yoga mat...hope to see you there too!!

Photography by Monica

I am currently working on a series with horses. Inspired by the life of a friend and great artist, Clementina Brown who is an amazingly magical spirit that I feel so fortunate to have connected with. If you have a moment, please look at her website. We're planning to unveil photos from this series in May 2010. The exhibition will be in Loxahatchee, Florida and it will be an outdoor gala with all of the horses present that I'm photographing. I'll be sure to keep you updated as the event appproaches...
Photo of "Ruby" the Pony

Shapeshifting

Grace

When you truly let go you are able to discover that which already is.

How do you let go?

Recognize that you are holding on. (Don't get caught in your mind here, if you try to pin-point exactly what it is that you're holding onto, you will become stuck in struggle)
Accept whatever is as is.
Breath.
Let go.
Repeat as needed.

If it seems that you can't let go, accept that you can't let go.
Be okay with where you are.
Life unfolds in its own organic way.

Jai Bhagwan.

A Quote

Genius, in truth, means little more than the faculty of perceiving in an un-habitual way.- Willam James

Pumpkin Carving and Potluck

Halloween 2009.

FOCUSED on my Mantra

MY PHILOSOPHY:
When I dream, I dream BIG! As an artist, I don't think I'm alone when I look at the world as a blank canvas in which I supply the colors. Why is that a problem? If you're too busy appreciating the subtle hues instead of painting, eventually the paint dries up before you've finished the masterpiece. Or like most dreamers, before you've even lifted the brush.

Creative thinkers often become distracted which leads to frustration. If you are distracted, you are "leaking" energy. This is why I've developed the mantra of "foodshelterart." Repetition of a mantra allows for stillness of the mind which leads to clarity of the true Self. If I can see myself clearly, then I can express myself completely. Through the techniques acquired under the direct study of artist and Beloved Guru, Yogi Amrit Desai, I have developed my own mantra of how to live artfully. Simple repetition of the mantra, foodshelterart (the basic necessities of my life) has kept me aligned along my creative path.

Artful living requires an observation about whether you are CREATING a block in your energy or expressing the energy moving through you. In my experience as a photographic artist I watch the world through the lens of a camera. But it is not about my passion for photography, it is about what I am doing in the moments that I don't have the camera in hand that allow me to express myself as a photographer fully. Being present allows me to observe how I interact with the world, and then document it when I pick up my camera.

MY MISSION:
I would like make "foodshelterart" the mantra of the modern artist. Relying on the knowledge attained through the teachings of ancient yogic traditions, I will help others learn techniques about how to use their energy most efficiently through conscious, artful living.

Other Side of the Camera

Photos: Daniel Millay

I asked fellow photographer and friend, Daniel Millay to take some photographs of me practicing yoga. As with most photographers, it's rare that I'm in front of the camera, but this was a great experience! Please check out some of Daniel's work when you have a moment.

I'm really enjoying this journey of merging yoga and photography as there are so many ways in which my creativity is effected by yoga, and vice-versa. Possibly because when you are dropping into the "zone" as it is often called in sports, you are connecting with your higher state of being. Your greater Self.
You lose all track of time and therefore let go of self-imposed barriers and filters. You become enlightened from the burden of stress and get lost in the creation of BE-ing.

Let the world know you as you are, not as you think you should be, because sooner or later, if you are posing, you will forget the pose, and then where are you? -Fanny Brice

It's always there.

It's always there for you to discover. What is "it"?

"It" is still amongst chaos.
"It" is still amongst emotions.
"It" is still amongst all sensations.

To discover "it," ask your Self the following questions:
What techniques do I use that move me toward stillness?
What habits move me away from stillness?

I'll give you some time to experiement and I'd love to hear of your discoveries along the Way....

Jai Bhagwan.

Great (short!) Video

Please enjoy this video of my Guru, Yogi Amrit Desai. I can almost perform the posture flow he does but am still working on bringing my feet into lotus while in headstand. Keep practicing!



The first part of the video takes place in Salt Springs (Ocala) Florida where I had the pleasure of attending for my teaching certification. Here is one of my photographs taken while meditating on the beautiful Lake Kerr.


"The Quiet Choice" by Monica Kustra

The Organic Way

Life is an organic process in which we must maintain a commitment to leaving unprocessed by the ego-mind.

KARMA Yoga

Here are a few words of GRACE from Gurudev, Yogi Amrit Desai:

Grace
This non-reactive way of being is living in the "fire." It takes great courage to sit still and surrender. Meditation helps. That quiet approach to constantly alternating positive and negative experiences is the ultimate, invincible defense. Sitting in that fire is the real surrender of ego. When the ego burns, grace showers. You are taken to the unified field of all creativity - Self-sourcing. In this surrendered state, all evolutionary expressions and actions spontaneously and effortlessly emerge. In this grace, your highest desires are fulfilled without having to strive for them. Such desires are founded not in separative consciousness, but in the field of unity and integration. When intelligence is rooted in the field of unity consciousness, you are grounded in Self-sourcing, and can act with maximum creativity and efficiency. The action itself is self-fulfilling rather than the end result. Instead of reaction, there is only Reality.
Yogi Amrit Desai is a world renowned teacher and author on yoga and consciousness. Originally from India, he has based himself in the United States for over 35 years.

From the Trans Quarterly, Spring 1997, Volume 12, No. 1, Page 11-12.

Lions and Tigers and MIND, oh my!

Yoga under palm trees
Gentle breeze
Reminding you to breath
Observing the animals
You're not supposed to feed...


This sign on the way into the park made me laugh as I knew immediately I could mention it in class. What "animal" should we be mindful of? The mind, of course! We have the option to use our attention to feed our thoughts, or we can remove our attention and simply observe the problem-making monster in progress.

NOW

Photos:Rachel Kemper


As I mentioned before, I'm now officially certified as an Amrit Yoga Instructor! I am so happy about this transition in my life that allows me to share with others what I myself have experienced through the teachings of my Yoga Guru, Amrit Desai, also referred to as "Gurudev" which means "Beloved Guru."

As I begin this journey of teaching it's almost overwhelming to think, "where do I start?" I have received so many gifts that reach far beyond knowing the correct position of the asanas on the yoga mat. I say ALMOST overwhelming because one of the most powerful gifts from Amrit Yoga is the skill to observe your thoughts, reactions and habitual patterns as they come up, and then realize that you have a choice to either dismantle that reaction, or to REACT to the reaction. For example, my first reaction would be the thought arising, "where do I start?" As I notice this thought I am then at a point where a habitual pattern might be to attach myself to the feeling of stress that arises with that thought. I could allow my mind to continue with, "how am I ever going to teach people everything I know?" or "will they understand me?" or "what if they don't like me??" This is a great example of what Gurudev says that, "we think we have control over our minds, but really our minds have us!" So how do you let go of the destructive second reaction? As soon as you realize that you are caught in a habit, the simplest thing to do is to connect to your body and the present moment by taking a slow deliberate breath (or a few!). When you are in a destructive thought pattern you are not aligned with what is present in the moment. You are worried about what will happen tomorrow, or reacting to a condition of the past. The TRUTH is, all that you have and all that you could ever need is happening right NOW! How can anything ever be different than how it is right now? Align your Self and ACCEPT that everything is as it should be, right now.

All of the energy we give toward fear and our ego minds is exactly what you'll learn to dismantle with Amrit Yoga! As we practice on the mat, we observe what our mind is doing during the deliberate action, willful surrender, and each transitioning moment in between the poses. The more we learn to observe, the less we react from our mis-alignment to what is happening NOW.

Pregnancy Photo-shoot

Hi again. I wanted to share this photo. I did a fine art maternity session a couple weeks ago and could not have asked for a more beautiful woman to photograph! Unfortunately I can't share most of the pictures because they are nudes, but I wanted to share just these two.

Yoga Certified.

When I think back about starting the certification process at the Amrit Yoga Institute in Salt Springs (Ocala) Florida, I laugh at what my expectations were. Namely, the goal of the next roving target of goals on my life's to-do list. Real estate license, check. Art school, check. Life turned inside out through dismantling my ego's 27 year old identity, major check!! And yet, I wouldn't quite call this an identity crisis, if you learn to see the true nature of yoga, you soon observe the transformation that touches every aspect of your life, starting internally and overflowing outward. This process is more powerful than I ever thought it would be...or should I say, more powerful than my ego mind could ever realize? What I've learned is that thinking instead of FEELING is a trap that our ego mind plays on us over and over again. I look forward to sharing my discoveries with you!

A reminder...

You have everything you could possibly need in this moment, right now!

I am DANCING!

Art is the expression of your inner and outerworlds dancing together timelessly. Won't you dance with me?

Inspiration

Is anyone else as inspired by Weird Al as I am? Creative genius.

Be Awake. Be Aware. Just Bee....HAPPY!

I invite you to create SOMETHING! Take 5 mins and put your energy into something creative...write a poem, sketch a stick figure self-portrait, or if you're really ready for a challenge, just sit and meditate for 5 minutes breathing deeply. Make some space for YOU in your life. I am a strong believer that you need to channel your emotions into art, thus creating a stillness after that energy has moved through you. Don't get stuck in your emotions or attached to your thoughts. Just create, and learn to BEE HAPPY in that space.

Little Decisions...

Sometimes it's the little nothing decisions that change our lives in unbelievable ways...to think that this morning when my alarm went off at 5 am, I almost rolled over and went back to sleep! Just look at what I would've missed:









When I got up and realized that it was raining, I was tempted to again to go back to sleep but still decided to just get in the car and GO! The "just do it" by Nike campaign is seemingly a good mantra today...which leads me to question those little nothing decisions. Are they nothing or something? Where does determination come into play with fate?

Jump In!

Why not? There's no better time than NOW! After much ego-centric debate, I've decided to ignore my inner censor and just write! Although this may not be the best thing for the discipline of the viewer's mind, let me just appologize now and let you know that this practice is for me. Sorry to disappoint from any expectations.

Through my practice my hope is that the clarity of my mind will allow for clarity of shared experiences. I look forward to documenting my free-flow stream of consciousness journey I've embarked on. For years I've been disciplined in my writing of three pages every morning after discovering the wisdom shared by Julia Cameron in The Artist's Way. I'll attempt to expand that discipline to internet form.

Without discipline, all you have is a theory...great advice from Business and Life Coach, Barry Gottlieb.