A call for gentle, spacious discourse among all human beings.Verbal violence begets physical violence.Democracy depends on open, respectful exchange of ideas.Both democracy and peace begin with you—how you speak with your friends and family,how you hold space for disagreement.Are you curious about the other?Can you recognize that someone who disagrees with you is a human being, not a label?Can you see that no label, ever, can fully describe a person?Anger is not the answer; direct your energies towards spending love, curiosity, and humility.Democracy depends on the open, respectful exchange of ideas.

There is a lot of fear around AI, and as with anything else, it can be misused and harmful. But as I just found out, it can also be helpful.As a small business owner and teacher, I just don't have time to generate new content as frequently as I would like for my Podcast channel and blogs. AI to the rescue!I just wrapped up teaching my 8-month Yoga and Mindfulness Journey. To my surprise, one of my students told me that he put some of his notes into AI, and it generated a very enjoyable podcast.I was blown away! Apart from the total butchering of Sanskrit pronunciation, it did an amazing job highlighting some of the lessons and, most importantly, distilling the essence of the teaching. Listen to this 20 minutes and learn the true essence of yoga and mindfulness.This is also a useful listen if you are thinking of taking Dora's 200HR Yoga and Mindfulness Journey and are curious to learn why it is so very different from the other compressed short yoga trainings, then give this a listen. (and yes, it is so different that even if you already have a 200-hour certificate, you will not regret doing it again) 

Spend 20 min with Dr. Larry Silber, a Chiropractor, and Functional Medicine doctor, as well as a Crossfit and Yoga enthusiast. Learn why Yoga is essential for folks who love endurance and power sports, and yes, it is beneficial for everybody. Yoga is still mostly considered a “sport for the ladies,” it is time to change this mainstream perception. Yoga is very beneficial for men, and no, you do not need to be able to touch your toes. Dr. Silber graduated from Life Chiropractic College in Marietta, Georgia with academic honors. He practiced for many years in both the Atlanta and the Seattle areas before continuing his education and focusing on Functional Medicine. Dr. Silber’s decision to add in a focus on nutritional healing as well as chiropractic care, came out of his desire to help his family. He has seen first-hand the damaging effects of stress, poor diet and lack of physical activity on several family members. In addition, he currently gets to see the impact of sleep, food and stress management on both his own athletic performance and the many athletes with whom he works. Dr. Silber believes that physical health is the platform for achieving one’s goals and spiritual and emotional expansion. Working with people living with all types of health concerns, including weight gain, fatigue, depression, female hormone and gut problems, Dr. Silber shows people how to build a strong foundation of well-being and re-claim their birthright of physical health. You can find Dr. Silber teaching yoga Monday nights at Spira. If you wish to get in touch with him, send us an email; info@spirapoweryoga.com

Conversation with Kristen, a Licenced Mental Health counselor about difficulties that youth face during Covid-19. We chat about how yoga can be a helpful tool for young adults. If you are interested she has a workshop coming up at Spira: https://www.spirapoweryoga.com/events-1/young-adult-yoga-workshop-2 Of course, we don't think yoga is the solution in all situations. If anxiety and depression symptoms are severe Seek Professional help: Start with a pediatrician, school counselor/social worker, teacher then a therapist. Help lines: Seattle Children’s crisis line text HOME to 741741. https://www.hca.wa.gov/health-care-services-supports/behavioral-health-recovery/mental-health-crisis-lines 1-800-273-8255 National Suicide Help Line

Yoga requires us to let go of perfection and enjoy the flow. The Japanese have an expression for finding beauty in imperfection, or imbalance; Wabi-Sabi. Well, this is a fun Spira Power Yoga flow class where nothing went as planned. Dora taught a perfect morning class on the breath, which went so well that she decided to repeat the class in the afternoon and record it… Well, Wabi-Sabi, the class ended being very different, with emphasis on letting go of perfection. Did we tell you? You can never repeat the past; everything is flow, everything changes. Enjoy wabi-sabi!

Live recording of Dora's class from December 2017. Always spontaneous, always new. Enjoy

Learn to pronounce the Bija Mantras correctly. Listen to Carina recite the Bija Mantras. This is a perfect companion to meditation.

Expand your knowledge of yoga! Listen to Carina explain what Bija Mantras.

A powerful basic flow good for beginners and advanced alike - long holds with easy choreography.

Pranayama flow to release stress and tension.

This guided meditation led by Carina Terra talks about the space between thoughts and the pause (or space) between breaths.

Excerpt: As the adrenaline wore off I replayed the accident in my mind and realized how lucky I was to have walked away. I also realize that according to the rules of the road I had the right of way and yet the other driver was seething and acted as if it was my fault! Even then I’m still not mad at her. Why? I should be mad as hell! But I know that everyone has a story and she clearly was going through a lot. I could make all sorts of judgments about her but I believe in karma and that there is a lesson in instances like this - perhaps she’s a single mom who never gets a break, maybe she is on her way to her first day at a new job or maybe she’s going to lose her job if she’s late, maybe she doesn’t have insurance or a license and yet she chose to take the risk because she still has to put food on the table. Maybe she’s going through a divorce. OR maybe it’s none of those things and she just had a rough morning. OR perhaps it’s not about her at all and it’s about ME. Maybe I need to slow down, be more mindful and aware of my surroundings. We live in a world of constant distractions and with the recent election it seems people are straight up hostile, sad, depressed, have anxiety and are more distracted than ever. I was given a choice on how to handle this situation and I chose to have perspective.

Super Power Yoga flow with stories about my godchildren.

Excerpt: Free speech only works when it is responsible, and people in public eye, television stations and news organizations need to recognize their power and take responsibility. I know this is a sticky wicket since it sounds like controlling free speech. I will stay away from that very complex legal argument that has tremendous merit. For now, I would like to discuss this responsibility that we all have in life when we speak to our family, our neighbor, the grocery store clerk...

The post-presidential debate class on the importance of harmony and kind words.

I understand that Spira Power Yoga and Spira Teachers or Affiliates are not responsible for my participation in an exercise program and it is my responsibility to consult with a physician prior to and regarding my participation in any exercise program.

A power flow class inspired by love and creating a peaceful world.

Shoulder and chest opening flow. For further instruction on a couple of the chest and shoulder openers visit our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/SpiraPowerYoga.

Excerpt: There is a fog like quality to mourning a loved one and unlike sadness from another cause this one we wish to hold onto and linger in the fog. Yes, the Egyptians were absolutely right. Just the sheer idea of not remembering, not being this heavy with thoughts can make one feel even worse. It’s like we are desperately trying to hold onto what is left of the person and sadness makes us feel that we are closer to our memories, so we cling, we cling onto the sadness. Of course eventually, life literally shakes us up. One must go on, there are things that need to get done. Thank goodness life has a very much relentless quality that demands our attention.