Sunday, April 12:  It’s been exactly thirty-one days since Rick and I have been sheltering at home. It’s been forty-one days since my family in Italy have been in imposed quarantine. Italy is ten days ahead of Seattle in terms of everything happening with COVID-19.

Feels like someone has pushed the pause-button on our lives.  I know it’s hard to acknowledge the positive at this present time, but I’m seeing silver linings in this world pandemic and time of global crisis. For example, we all get to take a step back and observe our lives from a new perspective. I find myself thinking of others in a different way.  We are making do with staying home as a measure to protect ourselves from others and to protect others from ourselves. We are willing to do our part to flatten the curve of the pandemic.

And with the potential of getting the virus, I think we all start to cherish our lives all the more. As my friend Kathryn said, “I have never felt more in the moment and more grateful for life than I do now.”  I agree with her. I feel a surge of love for life and for all who are on this life’s journey with me. Yes, this COVID-19 makes me love more deeply when I didn’t think that was possible.

I have wanted to teach yoga online for some time now.  My friends have encouraged me to teach online, but I didn’t do it until my places of employment were required to close their doors. I think the biggest perceived obstacle stopping me from online teaching was that I thought I’d feel alone, talking and teaching to a screen. However, I discovered that is not the case at all! In fact, as I teach online, I can feel the yoga community with me. It’s incredible. I do not feel alone.  The yoga teachings are timeless and, apparently, they move through cyberspace.  Love does, too.  Love knows no confines, no limitations.  Love transcends and touches hearts across the screen.

I came upon a great quote by Sadguru in which he explains one aspect of what potentially happens during the yoga practice:

Things you never thought existed become a living reality for you, simply because a dimension beyond the physical has become alive.

The pandemic has caused people to be more appreciative of various sectors of society. Every day, as I teach online, I offer a dedication.  It’s quite moving to dedicate a class to a special cause or a certain group of people.  In another blog post, I will include the various dedications I have made so far.

Please note: the photos in this blog are very special. The artistic creation/visual art piece was created by Barbara Wollner, who has given me permission to post her gorgeous and inspirational work. The others were sent to me by various yogis taking my online classes.  They are of the yogis’ yoga practice spaces at home. I find these photos heartwarming! I will post them anonymously (and also have been given permission to post).  Enjoy!

Pug Love:  Gus, looking like a loaf of bread. Note that he has his own yoga mat (but I am told that he has a fondness for the blue mat). We call this the naan-asana (maybe it should be puri-asana because puri is puffed bread!)

My friend and fellow yogi Kathy Mier sent me this wonderful writing. It is a great reminder of how we can all be more appreciative.

Praise Song for the Pandemic  -by Christine Valters Paintner, Abbey of the Arts

Praise be the nurses and doctors, every medical staff bent over flesh to offer care, for lives saved and lives lost, for showing up either way,

Praise for the farmers, tilling soil, planting seeds so food can grow, an act of hope if ever there was,

Praise be the janitors and garbage collectors, the grocery store clerks, and the truck drivers barreling through long quiet nights,

Give thanks for bus drivers, delivery persons, postal workers, and all those keeping an eye on water, gas, and electricity,

Blessings on our leaders, making hard choices for the common good, offering words of assurance,

Celebrate the scientists, working away to understand the thing that plagues us, to find an antidote, all the medicine makers, praise be the journalists keeping us informed,

Praise be the teachers, finding new ways to educate children from afar, and blessings on parents holding it together for them,

Blessed are the elderly and those with weakened immune systems, all those who worry for their health, praise for those who stay at home to protect them,

Blessed are the domestic violence victims, on lock down with abusers, the homeless and refugees,

Praise for the poets and artists, the singers and storytellers, all those who nourish with words and sound and color,

Blessed are the ministers and therapists of every kind, bringing words of comfort,

Blessed are the ones whose jobs are lost, who have no savings, who feel fear of the unknown gnawing,

Blessed are those in grief, especially who mourn alone, blessed are those who have passed into the Great Night,

Praise for police and firefighters, paramedics, and all who work to keep us safe, praise for all the workers and caregivers of every kind,

Praise for the sound of notifications, messages from friends reaching across the distance, give thanks for laughter and kindness,

Praise be our four-footed companions, with no forethought or anxiety, responding only in love,

Praise for the seas and rivers, forests and stones who teach us to endure,

Give thanks for your ancestors, for the wars and plagues they endured and survived, their resilience is in your bones, your blood,

Blessed is the water that flows over our hands and the soap that helps keep them clean, each time a baptism,

Praise every moment of stillness and silence, so new voices can be heard, praise the chance at slowness,

Praise be the birds who continue to sing the sky awake each day, praise for the primrose poking yellow petals from dark earth, blessed is the air clearing overhead so one day we can breathe deeply again,

And when this has passed may we say that love spread more quickly than any virus ever could, may we say this was not just an ending but also a place to begin.

On a fine day, you can take your online yoga out on the deck.

And below we have a message from White Eagle (her photo is below), a Hopi leader, who sees the pandemic as a portal, or as an invitation to transcend and connect with the spirit realm of existence:

White Eagle

VISION QUEST

“This moment humanity is going through can now be seen as a portal and as a hole.

…..Take care of your homes, take care of your body. Connect with your spiritual House.

When you are taking care of yourselves, you are taking care of everything else. Do not lose the spiritual dimension of this crisis, have the eagle aspect, that from above, and see the whole; see more broadly.

….You were prepared to go through this crisis. Take your toolbox and use all the tools available to you.

Learn about resistance of the indigenous and African peoples: we have always been and continue to be exterminated. But we still haven’t stopped singing, dancing, lighting a fire and having fun. Don’t feel guilty about being happy during this difficult time.

You do not help at all being sad and without energy. You help if good things emanate from the Universe now. It is through joy that one resists. Also, when the storm passes, each of you will be very important in the reconstruction of this new world.

You need to be well and strong. And, for that, there is no other way than to maintain a beautiful, happy and bright vibration. This has nothing to do with alienation.

This is a resistance strategy. In shamanism, there is a rite of passage called the quest for vision. You spend a few days alone in the forest, without water, without food, without protection. When you cross this portal, you get a new vision of the world, because you have faced your fears, your difficulties …

This is what is asked of you:

Allow yourself to take advantage of this time to perform your vision seeking rituals. What world do you want to build for you? For now, this is what you can do: serenity in the storm. Calm down, pray every day. Establish a routine to meet the sacred every day.

Good things emanate; what you emanate now is the most important thing. And sing, dance, resist through art, joy, faith and love. ” Resist – Be reborn

Yoga Room with a View

This past week I met with my Spiritual Women’s Group on Zoom. We all took turns to talk about our perceived silver linings:

Fran: My silver lining is definitely teaching on line! I have been able to reconnect with students who used to take my classes within these past 24 years, but who had moved away or have been busy raising their families.  My sisters, my friends, my relatives from Italy, England, Germany, Belgium, and Canada have joined my sessions. It’s a yoga diaspora reuniting and it’s a powerful experience to bring this worldwide group together!  I feel I am able to do my part in helping others feel safe, positive, healthy, strong, grounded, sane, connected, and hopeful. Together, as we practice, we know we are not alone but, rather, part of a large community of caring, loving people.

Looks like pajama yoga and Miss Sidney doing the perfect pose, shavasana. You can wear whatever you like for online yoga!

Lisa: The silver lining is in technology.  It is a great tool to keep us connected.  Technology allows us to connect spiritually.  This situation has allowed me to connect to my dreams more profoundly and I am able to experience a strong feeling of expansion.  I have felt great emotional connections, so much love, time with my spouse, am enjoying being home, being present, being aware. I feel we are all called to use our special skills.  I call these the COVID-19 connections.

Michele: I feel this time is stressful because we have to live with so much uncertainty.  So my remedy is to sleep in whenever possible, and to make better connections with my family and community.  Another silver lining is that I am making better dinners for my family and really enjoying cooking.  I love the virtual happy hours.  This has been a time for being present with myself and making time to connect with others.

Yoga and Woodstove

Kara-Lee: I am loving my home and am loving this extra time with my spouse. I have time to look at and admire the magnolia blossoms in my garden, and to be with my magnolia tree. I am adjusting to a new way of being busy.  With my work, I am stepping out into a new realm, using technology platforms as a way to continue my work from home.

You got it: Dogs and Cats Love Yoga Time! I think I just spotted more pajamas!

Kristen: This Shelter at Home has given me time to be more conscious of my body, to take care of myself in new ways. I am making an effort to be on my phone less. I am reading more books.  I find myself more engaged with the world outside of myself as I reach out to others.  One great silver lining is that I get to be home with my kids. What a gift!

Don’t miss out on my online yoga sessions:

  • Facebook Online Yoga with Fran SEVEN days a week Live Streaming from Seattle on Fran’s Facebook profile page 7-8am Gentle Hatha  and 8:30-9:30am All Levels Hatha  Recorded sessions stay my timeline for 23 hours.  Classes by donation: Venmo (use my email address or Fran Gallo@FranGalloYoga), PayPal, snail mail (contact Fran for mailing address), or by Zelle transfers (contact Fran for more info)
  • OmCulture Studio presents Live Streaming via Zoom with Fran three days a week: Mondays and Wednesdays 4-5:15pm Gentle Hatha and Mondays 5:45-7pm All Levels Hatha
  • Seattle Athletic Club: I am offering one class weekly via Zoom for SAC members. Please contact me if you are a SAC member and would like to receive the Zoom link (class included with your SAC membership)