Blog Posts

A Bubble of Light (and Love)

4/12/2020

Some children breeze through life accepting whatever comes their way, like physical distancing, distant schooling and the freedom to explore their authentic selves without the rigours of a scheduled and manicured life. Others thrive on routine and even create it for themselves if it is not imposed upon them While still others step into fear and discontent when they are faced with the unknown. Some children are naturally more anxious, and/or are more sensitive to the energies around them, easily picking up on worry, anger, sadness, negativity in any form. Yet everyone needs to feel loved, safe and secure. An adult can do this for a child but even very young children can do this themselves.

1. Draw a picture in your mind's eye. Imagine a really beautiful, huge bubble in your very favourite colour.
2. When you see or feel or sense or just imagine that bubble, you can either step into it or have it grow all around you until it is completely surrounding you. If it helps, you can imagine the bubble starting in your heart. Breathe out love to make a big love bubble all around you. Another idea is to have the bubble start in your solar plexus (your sun centre where your personal power lives) and expand brilliant sunlight all around you. Whatever works for you stretch it out all around you so you have lots of room inside your bright, happy, safe place.
3. The bubble can look or feel however you wish, a cozy cocoon (warm, soft and spacious), a shimmery Easter Egg (and you're the prize inside), a knight's shining armor (but lighter!), a big 'see through' bubble like you blow with a bubble wand. This is your bubble so it can look exactly how you want it to.
4. Tell your bubble it is your safety bubble. Nothing can get into your bubble unless you let it in. Only things you absolutely love are allowed in your bubble. You could put in some unicorns, rainbows, stars, cupcakes and butterflies. But absolutely no sadness or fear or worry.
5. Put your bubble on every morning when you brush your teeth or eat your breakfast or whenever it is a good time for you....everyday.
6. All you need to do is imagine your bubble with you inside and intend or tell it that it is there to protect you, to keep you safe. It is your LOVE BUBBLE. Put it on and wear it like knight's armor everyday.
7. Your can say: "I am safe. I am loved."

HEAVY PROTECTION!

LIGHT FUN PROTECTION

One Good Thing

4/4/2020

Each night before you go to bed, stop to reflect on ONE GOOD THING that happened that day

Consider the best thing that happened to you, the best thing you did or something you're grateful for

Some days when anger, fear or sadness seem to crowd out the positive, it may be hard to see even one good thing but keep it simple – birds singing, a cup of hot chocolate, a smile, flowers blooming, the ability to run and play

Take time to notice or perhaps search something out, especially when it seems most difficult to do so

In Buddha’s Brain, (R. Hanson, PH.D; R Mendius MD), it states that it takes 5 positive experiences to counteract one negative. The brain holds on to the negative like Velcro and let’s go of the positive like Teflon.

Especially in times of stress, it is important to find the "good" for mental, emotional and physical health. This is not the time to allow fear to repress our immune systems, to cloud our sense of joy, to hijack our innate need to be kind. It s a time to reach out (from a distance) to others, to practice positive self-talk and to be grateful.

Sending Best Wishes to the World (and yourself)

4/3/2020

Loving-Kindness (Metta) has been scientifically proven to boost emotional wellbeing, compassion, positive thoughts, better sleep, a sense of peace and calm among many other benefits. Traditionally there is a set of suggestions in which Loving-Kindness or kind wishes are sent to 1. yourself 2. a benefactor 3. an acquaintance 4. a difficult person 5. all beings, each of whom is sent kindness for several days before moving onto the next. There are also particular thoughts of safety, health, happiness and ease of care generated toward them.

For children there are no hard and fast rules except to use phrases that are meaningful to them to be sent to themselves and others, some of whom they may know but also to everyone in general. Beginning with the traditional "May I (or you or name)", an example of Loving-Kindness Meditation may look like the following:

Sitting comfortably, drawing a picture in your mind's eye, imagine sending kind wishes to yourself or others. Feel the kindness being sent and received. Any loving thought may be sent, not just or only the ones suggested. But always send the wishes to yourself first.

May I be safe
May I be healthy
May I be happy
May I be (brave, kind, helpful, caring, or anything that feels right to you)
May I be peaceful and calm

You may want to include thoughts like
May I ace my test. May I be a good friend. I wish my mom and dad would get along. May I do my best.
Choose 2 or 3 or more thoughts to send to yourself and others. After yourself, you might want to say
1. May my family be safe; may my family be healthy, etc.
2. May my friends be safe, etc.
3. May the bus driver (or the crossing guard or anyone you've seen but don't know well.)
This is a nice gesture but you may not feel you are ready to send to these people. That's OK.
4. May (name a person who you find really difficult) be safe, etc.
This is a really, really, really tough thing to do. You might not be ready to send kindness to someone who has been really mean to you. But let's think about this. As long as we send mean thoughts to the people who have hurt us in some way, we are surrounding them with even more negative energy. I don't know that this will work in our favour. It might even give that person more power. So maybe, if it's possible, we could find one thing that is good about that person or maybe we could find one thought we feel that we can honestly send someone. We know that bullies are people who are insecure. They do not feel good about themselves even when they are bragging that they are the best. We know that people who hurt are people who are hurting. So knowing they need to take our light, our goodness to help them feel more powerful, we could maybe could really wish:
May (name) find happiness. May (name) be kind. May (name) find peace
5. May all beings be safe, etc.
You might also like to send to your pets, anyone, any place. Always send to yourself first but once you are ready, that day, the next day or the next week, whenever you're ready, you can add someone else.
If sending to so many different people sounds too challenging, send to yourself and bit by bit add someone else or not! But do try it. This can have a wonderfully calming effect.
FOR ADULTS
A traditional example
May I be safe from inner and outer harm (May I be safe)
May I be healthy in body, mind and spirit (May I be healthy)
May I be happy in mind and spirit (May I be happy)
May I take care of myself easily (May be peaceful and calm)
Then add over time
1. Benefactor (loved one) 2 neutral person 3. difficult person 4. all beings

Be the Pose

4/2/2020

I am strong. I am confident. I ROCK!

I feel grounded. I am important.

I am Brave

I am Bold

My Own Power I Can Hold

I am cozy, cuddly and content.

I am loyal. I am a good friend.

Many years ago Sages, who are very wise people, looked around their environment and began imitating what they saw by moving their body into similar positions. Yoga helped them connect to their surroundings, to nature, to each other and to themselves.

This practice helps stretch and relax the body, the mind and the heart (spirit), offering many benefits to people of all ages.

Children PLAY yoga by imagining they ARE aspects of nature. They are encouraged to bark like dogs, hiss like snakes and roar like lions. They are encouraged to imagine what it would be like to be animals, stars, waves on the ocean or the qualities or characteristics of most anything and everything. They are encouraged to be mindful of where the pose is working in their body and how it feels. They are encouraged to BE THE POSE. They can take on the strength of a mountain, the balance and importance of a tree, the freedom of a cloud. They can set the quality in their mind by affirming the feeling. I am confident. I am kind. I do my best. Draw or write about it.

I AM TREE. I AM FREE. I AM ME. I JUST BE.

Mindful Moments

3/31/2020

I am so impressed with how this family responded to an email I sent asking if I could offer any assistance during these difficult times navigating the Coronavirus. My young friend, shown above, and his younger brother have attended my summer yoga camps for 3 years and have learned more than I could have imagined. This is not the first time they have taken those hours of summer camp fun and turned them into valuable lessons for so many of us to learn, including me! This is how they have integrated some meaningful activities into their daily routine. I am so touched and honoured.

Their mom set a chime alarm to sound twice a day, once mid morning, once mid afternoon
They call this the "Yoga Barb Chime", understanding it is to remind them that I am thinking of them (I AM!)
As they remember that I am connecting with them through the chime, they are also reminded to connect with each other.
1. They CONNECT
2. They choose a BREATH PLAY
3.. They repeat AN AFFIRMATION and/or
4. They do a YOGA POSE (of their choice)
5. They RELAX and/or
6. They RESET their MINDS and HEARTS
7. They TALK about FEELINGS - perhaps how they relate to the pose they chose, thinking of characteristics of the pose they could apply to themselves or perhaps how they felt before their connecting time and/or after this calming time together. This is an opportunity to talk about how this new lifestyle is playing on their mind and in their hearts or anything else that might be sitting with them.

This is a perfect yoga class in a nut shell. Done twice (even once) a day it is as good as any 30, 45 or 60 minute class done once a day or once a week. It is enough. It is perfect.
The children are my greatest teachers.

Namaste Dear Ones: The Love in Me Sees the Love in You

SHARKFIN (A Mindfulness Exercise)

3/30/2020

Sharkfin is a cool and fun way to practice mindfulness It was created by a group of 5th Graders in a school in California. They wrote a whole book called Master of Mindfulness How to Be Your Own Superhero in Times of Stress. You don't have to be in Gr. 5 to do the great mindfulness ideas in this book. Anyone, any age can do them to R E L A X, help
F O C U S and to become more M I N D F U L
This is how to practice SHARKFIN
1. Begin with the 5 S's:
Sit or stand or lie STRAIGHT, (sit) STILL, (sit) SILENTLY, breathe SLOWLY, eyes SHUT
2. Take the side of your hand, put your thumb against your forehead with your fingers lined up beside your thumb
3. As you breathe in try to relax your body; as you breathe out with a long slow SHHH, draw your hand down from your forehead, your nose, throat. stopping at your heart centre
4. You can just leave your one hand at your heart centre or bring your other hand to meet in prayer or Namaste position at your heart or maybe you'd like to put your hand(s) flat on your heart centre. Do what feels comfortable and right to you.
5. Stay in this position and just breathe, still practising the 5 S's for as long as you feel comfortable or for a predetermined amount of time. Even just a few breaths is OK to start. You can try to practice for longer each day if you can. You can draw pictures in your mind of feeling safe, loved and loving while you do this exercise to be mindful.
6. If you are alone a programmed soft chime (on a phone or other device is OK) would be a nice way to come out of this quiet place. If someone is there with you, they could quietly sound a chime or singing bowl or just say it's time to bring yourself slowly back into the room. Wiggle your fingers, wiggle your toes, move your shoulders, arms and legs, open your eyes and finally come fully back into the room when you are ready. Know there is no need to rush. Take as much time as you need to come back slowly and smoothly.
7. Take a minute to see if you are feeling more relaxed.
8. Do this as a formal practice or on the spot for just a breath or two if you need to calm or feel more focused.
9. BE YOUR OWN SUPERHERO IN TIMES OF STRESS

ACTIVITIES:
Draw how you feel.
Think about sharks. What do you admire about them? What makes you fear them?
What in your life makes you think it is like a shark - good or not so good?
Do you feel like you're sinking or swimming?

BALLOON BREATHING

3/30/2020

Sit tall, stand tall Or lie down on your back
Imagine your belly is like a balloon
Put your hand or a toy on your balloon belly
Breathe IN - feel your balloon belly grow bigger (rise up or move out)
Breathe OUT - feel your balloon belly deflate (Just like a balloon losing air)
Breathe slowly and deeply - feel the air go right down lower in your lungs which in turn pushes your lower belly out
This breath play helps calm your body and your mind
When you feel worried, scared, sad, angry, frustrated or any other big emotion, use this breath to calm:
Breathe IN a SHORTER time (4 counts) than you breathe OUT (6 counts) to CALM
This breath can also help you feel more energetic
When you feel tired, bored or lethargic, use this breath to energize:
Breathe IN LONGER (6 counts) than you breathe OUT (4 counts or squeeze air out saying HA!)
The in and out breath in each case should be comfortable to you, not necessarily the numbers above
Practice this breath play when you don't need to control and big emotions so that it is easy to do when you do need to feel calmer and in control

Polar Bear Pose

1/17/2016

Child's Pose or POLAR BEAR:
Imagine you are a Polar Bear. Imagine you are surrounded by a vast amount of snow. You blend into the scenery. Your large white bear body lumbers on the frozen white north until your intuition (your inner knowing) tells you to lie down in the snow, breathing deeply, slowly and silently. Slow your breath and bring a quiet, relaxed stillness to your body.

BENEFITS: Child's Pose, Polar Bear, Egg, Seed, Curled Leaf, Rock brings a sense of peace and relaxation to the whole body. This pose helps you feel grounded, secure and safe. It massages the frontal organs and soothes the central nervous system as it gently lengthens and stretches the muscles along the spine and the hips. It is natural for children to go into this pose to relax, calm and to bring stillness to both the body and the mind.

Affirmation: I AM LIKE A POLAR BEAR, QUIET, STILL and RELAXED.

THE POSE:
Sit on your heels with spine long and tall, head floating upward. Make a "V" with your knees. Take a deep breath in and imagine you are a big, strong, white polar bear. As you breathe out, cover your black eye and nose and round your spine, folding forward so that your forehead touches the (snow). Your body will fold in between your legs when your knees are "V-ed" or will lie across your knees and thighs if your are legs are together. Continue to breathe very slowly and very deeply. You look like a large snowbank. Your breath is so deep and so slow, you don't appear to be moving at all. You are quiet, still and safe. The Inuit and other indigenous people have hunted polar bears for survival. There is a mutual respect between the bears and these people. But other people are not as well informed and some still hunt polar bears for sport which could bring the polar bear to possible extinction. Remember when you are doing this pose to be as still and quiet as possible. Feel brave, safe and relaxed.

Child's Pose (also seed, rock, curled leaf or by bringing hands over nose and making a v with your legs - POLAR BEAR)

BREATH PLAY: Breathe in deeply through your nose. Take your breath way down to your belly. Feel your belly expand slowly on the in breath. As you slowly breathe out, feel your belly begin to relax and become smaller. Imagine you are a polar bear in the snow. You feel warm with a big blanket of snow all around you. Breathe so slowly and deeply that you know anyone passing by will think you are just a great white snowbank. You feel quiet and still. You feel safe. This can be done either in Polar Bear Pose or just resting comfortably on your back.

RELAXATION VISUALIZATION: In your mind's eye, see a garden gate. It can look however you wish it to as it is your garden gate. Pass through the gate and once on the other side, see that you are in a winter wonderland of crisp blue sky and solid white land. You see a sliver of silvery blue in the white and realize it is the ocean. As you get nearer, you see there is a large ship on the water. You climb aboard the ship and set sail. You maneuver the boat between icebergs and ice flows. You see whales coming up out of the ocean for a big breath. They swim gracefully beside your ship. The spray from their blow holes makes a waterfall of mystery. There are seals and walruses easing their blubbery bodies up onto ice flows to sun themselves. You know you are in for a fine adventure. As you watch the scene unfolding all around you, you see a polar bear climbing out of the water onto the icy white land. You imagine you are that polar bear. You pick up your enormous paws and make huge foot prints in the snow. Then the cold arctic winds fill the prints in as fast as you can make them. You are in a blizzard in the Great White North, but your fur and your enormous body keep you so warm, so warm that you have an urge to lie down and rest. You cover your black eyes and nose with your big white paws and you put your head down into the snow while curling your knees up close to your chest underneath you. You feel your over sized body beginning to sink into the snow. You breathe deeply and slowly and feel your body relaxing and settling into the winter world of white. You stay ever so quiet, so still. You feel so relaxed. You feel safe. Everything is right in the world. You stay in your warm, soft, cozy winter bed for as long as you wish. Only begin to stretch and wiggle your bear toes and nose when you know you are ready to get back on your ship and sail back home.

ACTIVITY: draw a curved rainbow shape on a white piece of paper. Cut it out rounding the front and back bottom corners and making a little dip in the middle at the bottom of the paper. you could draw some paws on if you wish and even put a little cotton ball (stretched out) tail on if you want. Draw a polar bear head, separately on the white paper. Make black eyes and nose. With a brass fastener (a brad) with prongs that spread apart, attach the head to the body at about the middle of the front edge. Now the polar bear can look up or do polar bear pose, if you gently rotate his head under his paws.

BOOKS:

A week of yoga play

1/3/2016

MOUNTAIN:
Picture a mountain in your mind's eye.
When you imagine or see a mountain, consider its characteristics. When you stand or sit in mountain, don't just put your body into the pose, put the qualities of the mountain into your body, your mind and your heart, too. You could even imagine you are a mountain when you are lying down. Try mountain pose whenever you need to feel strong and confident, solid, magnificent or majestic.
Benefits:
Mountain is a pose of alignment and strength. It strengthens muscles throughout the body (and mind) and creates good posture. This helps build confidence, self-esteem, focus and concentration.
Affirmation:
I am like a mountain. I am solid, majestic, magnificent and confident.
To Do:
You could research mountains. Find pictures or draw pictures. You could discuss the qualities of a mountain and consider how you could embody those qualities.

POSE AT A GLANCE:
1. Place both feet solidly on the floor. Keep your arms at your side or place hands in Namaste (Prayer position) at your heart centre.
2. For Mountain with Peak, keep your feet solidly on the floor and take your arms above your head, hands parallel or together in Namaste.

Mountain

Mountain with Peak

IT'S IN THE DETAILS:
1. Stand with your feet placed side by side, solidly on the ground. Your arms may be at your side or your hands may be in Namaste (Prayer position) at your heart centre.
2. Breathe in, allowing your head to float towards the sky. Feel your spine lengthen. Breathe out and feel solid and stable. Soften your knees (don't bend, just loosen them).
3. Your spine, the bumpy part on your back, is made up of vertebrae. Each vertebra is like a building block. Breathe in and imagine you are placing each of your vertebra (building blocks) one on top of the other. Breathe out and feel them stacked carefully in a tall, strong line. Be careful not to zig zag your vertebrae blocks. To build the strongest tower, it is important to stack carefully.
4. Breathe in and raise your arms above your head, stretch up tall with your hands parallel or in Namaste to make Mountain with Peak. Breathe out and relax your shoulders down from your ears.
5. Feel tall, strong, confident and magnificent. Feel like a mountain.

BREATH PLAY:
Think of your nostrils (nose) as a mountain. Breathe in taking your breath to the top of the mountain. Imagine there is a castle there and you pause to visit. Breathe out and imagine your breath is coming down the mountain. There's a lake at the bottom of your mountain. Pause to watch the ducks swim. Then repeat. Breathe in, taking your breath up, up, up. Pause at the castle. Breathe out, bringing your breath down, down, down. Pause at the lake again before you start up again. Be very mindful (aware) of your breath as it causes your belly to move UP (as you breathe in) and DOWN (as you breathe out).

BOOKS:
A Boy and A Bear (Lori Lite)
Walk on the Wild Side (Nicholas Oldland)

SONG:
Teach your child the Bear Goes Over the Mountain song and have fun all day long!
The bear goes over the mountain,
The bear goes over the mountain,
The bear goes over the mountain
To see what he could see....
To see what he could see, to see what he could see,
The bear goes over the mountain, the bear goes over the mountain, the bear goes over the mountain, to see what he could see.

A RELAXING JOURNEY INTO THE IMAGINATION: (speak slowly and softly, pausing to evoke calm)
Help your body get comfortable by lying down on your back with your arms and legs loose beside you. (If lying on your side or your tummy is better for you, then do that.) Close your eyes and pay attention to your breath. Feel it coming in and going out, in and out through your nose. Just relax. Let go of anything that might be bothering you, any thoughts, any tightness. Now in your mind's eye (your imagination) see a garden gate in front of you. This is your gate so it can look any way you wish it to. When you are ready, open the gate and walk into your imagination. There is a path before you and you begin to walk along it. There is a stream to one side and a meadow on the other. Your path is in between. Soon you are in a forest. Smell the scent of the pine trees. Listen to the sound of the water tripping over pebbles in the nearby stream. Leaves and sticks crunch under your feet. Woodland animals are scurrying about. Your body begins to feel warmer as a splash of sunlight shimmers along the path between the trees. Suddenly you realize you are walking up, up, up. The path is taking you higher. You are on a trail leading to the top of a mountain. There are no longer trees around you. Just clear, clean blue sky. The air is fresh and crisp. You feel it on your skin. You feel it going in an out of your nose. You hear a wind chime in the distance. You are so relaxed. When you come to a place that looks just right in your imagination, sit or lie down and feel the warmth of the sun on your body. Breathe in. Breathe out. R E L A X. Feel your breath going in and out. See your breath as a colour or anything that seems right to you. Listen to the sounds of the mountain. What do you hear, a waterfall, a wind chime, birds, whispering leaves? SILENCE. Feel the energy of the earth and the sky, the warmth of the sun, the rippling breeze, the soft grass or smooth rocks beneath you. R E L A X. Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out......Now it is time to continue your journey in your imagination. Slowly begin to walk down the path through the scented forest, down the path beside the bubbling brook, all the way back to the garden gate. When you are ready to leave this place of peace and relaxation you may open the gate, knowing when you do so you will be back in this room. But you can bring the feeling of peace and contentment with you. The mountain with its peace and contentment, strength and confidence live inside of you. You can go there anytime you want. Now slowly begin to wiggle your fingers and wiggle your toes. Wiggle your shoulders and wiggle your nose. Stretch and roll over to one side and rest there for another moment until you are ready to sit up tall feeling so calm, so peaceful, so relaxed.

MINDFUL MOMENTS:
Take a moment to listen to the sounds around you. List them, write them down or just bring them to each others attention. Make a practice of being aware of the sounds around you. Set a clock or your phone or other device to chime at random times or every hour or whatever you are able to do. When you and your child hear the sound, stop what you are doing and just breathe. Take 2 or 3 deep breaths through your nose and then resume your activity.

In 2020, it is almost 20 years since, the Children's Garden began bringing yoga to children and their families. Jennifer and Barb (Yoga Barb) Westgate, were the first 2 in Ontario and the 4th and 5th in Canada to be certified children's yoga facilitators, through YogaKids. Since that time they have both studied under many other renown experts in the field of children's yoga, health and well-being. Jennifer, a speech and language pathologist, a certified reflexology and Reiki practitioner and a student of Sonia Sumar (Yoga for the Special Child), brings a well rounded experience to all children, but especially to those with different abilities. Yoga Barb offers Metamorphosis, Reiki and Emotional Support through her private yoga programmes and during group classes upon request. Her background in behavioural sciences, mother, child care provider, certified parent educator, and now "Gran" to 4, have enhanced her natural ability to provide a nurturing environment to all who seek her guidance.

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