First Friday Night Special #40: An Invitation to Shine (a brief post practice post with links) February 3, 2024

Many blessings,” to those who are observing Candlemas! Peace, ease, and gratitude to all during this “Season of Non-violence” and all other seasons!

My apologies for not posting this before tonight’s “First Friday Night Special.” You can request an audio recording of tonight’s Somatic & Restorative Yoga practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email me at myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible.

“It’s always Feb 2^nd — there’s nothing I can do about it.”

— Bill Murray as “Phil Connors” in the movie Groundhog Day

Have you ever had one of those moments, like Phil Connors had in the movie Groundhog Day, where you woke up and every day seemed (or actually was) the same? Or, maybe, like Raven Wilkinson (who was born today in 1935), you see things in the world that you want to be different… even though it seems like those things have been the same for so long that they are unchangeable.

I think it is very easy to look at the world and see things we would like changed. I also think we have all had days where nothing we do seems to make a difference. Yet, the reality is that everything we do changes something.

Being alive is like a dance between our body, our mind, our spirit, and the world. Everything is shifting, changing. Everything is balance and counterbalance, inhale and exhale, enter and leaving, rising and falling. Sometimes we lead. Sometimes we follow. Sometimes we are watching from the side, resting, or waiting for our turn to lead or follow. Start to notice that dance and your start to notice change and how you engage it. You also start to notice when you are stuck… and the choices you make when you are stuck.

Do you get frustrated and stay stuck?
Do you “accept the things [you] cannot change”… and stay stuck?
Or, do you “change the things [you] can”… with gratitude?

Click here for more about changing perspectives and Groundhog Day.

Click here to learn how Raven Wilkinson was one of the people who changed the world of dance. 

Whether we realize it or not, everything we do changes something about us. It changes our perspective. Maybe the change is a reinforcement of what we already believe. Sometimes, however, we see ourselves and the world in a new way, a special way. That new insight can lead us to interact with people in a different way — and that can change their perspectives. The first part happened to Phil Connors in the movie. Both parts happened to Raven Wilkinson and, therefore, to ballet dancers and ballet fans.

That’s the way life goes. We just have to rise and shine.

“Okay, campers, rise and shine, and don’t forget your booties cause it’s cooooold out there today.”

— Richard Henzel as “DJ #1” in the movie Groundhog Day

The February First Friday Night Special features a Somatic Yoga Experience (SYE) with some movement and some stillness (Restorative Yoga) plus pranayama. It is accessible and open to all. (The chair options are highly recommended if you are having a lot of hip issues.)

Friday’s (2024) playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.

Prop wise, this is a kitchen sink practice. You can practice without props or you  can use “studio” and/or “householder” props. Example of “Studio” props: 1 – 2 blankets, 2 – 3 blocks, a bolster, a strap, and an eye pillow. Example of “Householder” props: 1 – 2 blankets or bath towels, 2 – 3 books (similar in size), 2 standard pillows (or 1 body pillow), a belt/tie/sash, and a face towel.

You may want extra layers (as your body may cool down during this practice).

“During that same meeting, I also told Mr. Denham that I didn’t want to put the company in danger, but I also never wanted to deny what I was. If someone questioned me directly, I couldn’t say, ‘No, I’m not black.’ Some of the other dancers suggested that I say I was Spanish. But that’s like telling the world there’s something wrong with what you are.”

— Raven Wilkinson quoted from the Pointe Magazine interview ” Raven Wilkinson’s Extraordinary Life: An Exclusive Interview” by Margaret Fuhrer (dated June 1, 2014)

### THANK YOU! ###