Like the Flowing River by Paulo Coelho - my favorite author with a new book of short stories. I came across this writing; passing it along...

The Story of the Pencil
A boy was watching his grandmother write a letter. At one point he asked:
'Are you writing a story about what we've done? Is it a story about me?'
His grandmother stopped writing her letter and said to her grandson:
'I am writing about you, actually, but more important than the words is the pencil I'm using. I hope you will be like this pencil when you grow up.'
Intrigued, the boy looked at the pencil. It didn't seem very special.
'But it's just like any other pencil I've ever seen!'
'That depends on how you look at things. It has five qualities which, if you manage to hang on to them, will make you a person who is always at peace with the world.
'First quality: you are capable of great things, but you must never forget that there is a hand guiding your steps. We call that hand God, and He always guides us according to His will.
'Second quality: now and then, I have to stop writing and use a sharpener. That makes the pencil suffer a little, but afterwards, he's much sharper. So you, too, must learn to bear certain pains and sorrows, because they will make you a better person.
'Third quality: the pencil always allows us to use an eraser to rub out any mistakes. This means that correcting something we did is not necessarily a bad thing; it helps to keep us on the road to justice.
'Fourth quality: what really matters in a pencil is not its wooden exterior, but the graphite inside. So always pay attention to what is happening inside you.
'Finally, the pencil's fifth quality: it always leaves a mark. In just the same way, you should know that everything you do in life will leave a mark, so try to be conscious of that in your every action.'

yoga & gratitude

The pictures were taken in Portugal one summer. Photos of a little acro-yoga while spending a month in Spain studying yoga.

I have found that no matter where I go or what I do - I can always take yoga with me.

I love to help others connect the mind and body.  As I sit getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving in Europe - I am grateful for the opportunity to be a yoga teacher.  I hold the job very dear to my heart and express gratitude to all the students and fellow yoga friends that are in my life. I find the more gratitude I express - the more the world offers... I am grateful for the little things as well as the big things. Taking time to sit and reflect on the good I have in my life creates peace and space for more blessings... may you take the time to do the same and express gratitude for the things in your life...
Shanti Shanti Shanti - Namaste

international yoga teacher

Here is a little bit of my life... traveling, teaching yoga workshops, my bio... This is what I love.  I am honored that I have the privilege to do this work at this point in my life.   

 

108 Sun Salutations
This workshop focuses on the vinyasa style of yoga with the emphasis on sun salutations.  Students can expect a combination of balancing poses and sun salutations.  Come and enjoy the invigorating workshop strengthening the mind and body through the upbeat flow of asanas.  
Detox Yoga Flow
This workshop focuses on the vinyasa style of yoga.  Students can expect a combination of power yoga mixed with a variety of sun salutations.  Come enjoy the music, the sweat, the mind/body connection.  
Katie Mae Bond, RYT

Katie is registered through the Yoga Alliance as a 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher.  Her trainings are in Vinyasa Flow and Hatha Interdisciplinary.  Katie is also certified through the Aerobic and Fitness Association of America as a Personal Trainer and In-door Cycling Instructor.  

After graduating with her Master's Degree from college, Katie began her yoga journey.  She has been studying yoga for over 10 years.  As a student of many forms of yoga, Katie is dedicated to promoting peace and the yoga lifestyle.  Wonderful yoga mentors have surrounded her and excellent trainings have helped her become the yoga teacher she is today.  Currently Ms. Bond is teaching yoga internationally and hosting a variety of yoga workshops around the globe.  Katie enjoys helping others to connect the body and mind while receiving the benefits of the yoga asanas.  

When Katie is not traveling, she resides in Laguna Beach, California.  Katie loves the beach and the outdoors.  You can find her teaching a variety of fitness classes in the Orange County area.  In her spare time, she is an avid supporter of fair trade and international human rights efforts.  Through the practice of karma yoga, Katie believes in helping those who are less fortunate. Katie loves to encourage others and share her excitement for life.  Her mantra is, “Peace, Happiness, Prosperity, and Love.”

the butterfly chrysalis

"When a caterpillar begins life in an egg, it looks nothing like what will hatch; and the butterfly seems a far cry from the larva that precedes it.  Do caterpillars recognize butterflies as their future selves?  Do butterflies identify caterpillars as past relations?  The most mysterious phase of this shape-shifting creature's process is that of the chrysalis:  the jade-green cocoon in which the crawling, leaf-eating caterpillar transforms into a floating, nectar-drinking butterfly.
In our human lives, we sometimes find ourselves in the chrysalis state.  Those times when we do not have a lot to offer the outside world, it is because, whether we realize it or not, much of our energy is consumed with an inner transition.  We might feel sluggish or uninterested in what surrounds us.  We might feel impatient with ourselves, wondering why we do not have the energy we used to for our usual routines.  But if we remember the chrysalis - the dark inner sanctum that provides the environment for a remarkable conversion - we can relax and let ourselves be, finding ways to support our process rather than coaxing ourselves away from it. 
If you see a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis, the temptation may be to help it break out.  The physical challenge of this part of the process is necessary, though, for the butterfly to build its strength so that it can survive outside.  The same is true of us: Sometimes we have to labor on our own to discover the force we need to be our new selves in the world.  Similarly, when seeing friends or family members struggling, it is easy to become impatient and want to help with their emergence, but we have to learn to let others make their own way.
Taking on the challenge of liberating ourselves enables us to thrive in our new freedom.  Sometimes the greatest support we can offer others and ourselves is patience and quiet confidence in the process unfolding, along with faith that the result will be extraordinary." - Daily OM 

I came to Europe a mere caterpillar.  I am leaving a butterfly. 

how much can happen in a week

I am back from a week in California.
I allowed myself to sleep today - no alarm.
18 hours later I awoke!
It feels good to be back in Europe.
I'm finding that I love both places equally. 

Cali was fun.  It's home to me.  I arrived and went straight to maid of honor duties.  The wedding was nice.  At the reception I was so tired I drank coffee while everyone else had alcohol, and I tried not to fall asleep in my food... jetlag had hit!
The week consisted of teaching yoga and spin classes, ending a dating relationship, starting a new one (yeah, who knew - but when it happens it just happens), spending time with friends, and eating tons of guacamole.  My skin is starting to turn a slight shade of green from all the guac I enhaled.  I think I might even look like a walking avocado.
My love for my family, friends, the beach, my clients, yoga classes, amazing spin classes, and a new found hope in love has been confirmed.  As I travel the globe, I am happy.
California will always be home to me.
Here's to another good nights sleep.

Family Dinner

Community is important to me.
Living life - really living life with people - that's what it's all about.
There is this thing I like to do called Family Dinner.
Something special happens when cooking and sitting down to share a meal.
Once a week - friends, neighbors, etc.
We get together. 
We cook.
We eat.
We laugh.
We have no agenda.
We sit and talk about life.  
We are creating community.
No matter where I go or what country I may live - from the beaches of California, to European cities, to the bushes of Kenya, to the countryside in Ohio.  Family Dinner will always be a part of my life.
I was just back in CA and was able to have dinner with my good friends.  Now I've landed back in Europe and hope to get the crew together this week and cook, laugh, share life stories...
Community is important to me...