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This month, we are honoring Jane Eckles, who recently passed away, as our yogi of the month. Jane has been a part of The Yoga Sanctuary for quite some time. She was kind and compassionate, and always interested in others. She loved her family and really enjoyed her...
I was born and raised in Wheaton, IL as a fifth generation Irish Catholic. My mother still lives there. I have two brothers and a wonderful husband of 36 years, Paul. I unexpectedly retired from the telecommunication industry after 32 years of service due to multiple...
I began yoga in 2002 as I was finishing my master's degree and found myself very much stressed and increasingly gaining weight. A friend recommended yoga and gave me some VHS tapes to get me started. I spent over a year with Brian Kest Power Yoga tapes and Yoga...
I was born in California and raised in a military family, the oldest of three kids. My father was an officer in the Air Force, and we had the great experiences of traveling and living throughout the United States and Europe. I moved to Punta Gorda 14 years ago with my...
An important lesson that I have learned since beginning my yoga practice in 2005 is that it’s best to not overdo, overthink, or over plan, but instead to go back to the roots of existence, to the rules of nature, and to feel one with what really matters. It’s what we...
Before taking yoga teacher training, I had never used the words surrender or non-attachment. These particular words peaked my interest, however, when I came to realize that they could change my life. I would never have labeled myself as controlling, but I would...
Before I moved to Florida in January of 1996, I retired from Human Services as a caseworker, a career in which some days were greatly gratifying and others a true heartbreaker. My husband Bob and I married in November of 1995 after having known each other for 24...
In this day and age it’s easy to become jaded or disassociated with ourselves, with each other, and with the world around us. At first glance, it can sometimes feel as though each of us is alone and left to fend for ourselves as we fight our way through this...
The Yoga Sanctuary—this is the place that I can just be. This is the place I can find silence. This is the place I make intentions. This is the place I'm learning to meditate. This is the place I'm allowed to have “spicy” spots. (Thanks Ms. Jennifer.) This is the...
I grew up in New York’s Hudson Valley, later attended college in Massachusetts and then grad school in Washington DC. After graduation I continued to work and live for 20 years in the Washington DC area. My husband Bob and I then moved here to Punta Gorda in 2001. We...
"The yogi is entitled to action only, not to the fruits of his actions." —Bhagavad Gita The first time I read this passage I cried. Jumping to the negative interpretation, which was my habit, I understood this to mean that no matter what I did, no matter how many...
Before she passed away, I had planned for Marilyn Bunte to be our yogi of the month. So in honor of her, I’d like to share some of my memories of Marilyn as well as some memories from others at The Yoga Sanctuary. Marilyn was of my very first students when I began...
“You think too much.” I’ve been told that more than once. And you know what? The people who said it were right. I’ve always been a worrier—I worried about everything! I also have a great imagination, which, as a writer, is an asset. But I used to believe that I had to...
Many of us are familiar with the phrase “yin and yang.” We recognize at once the black and white symbol, which seemingly represents polar opposites. As I look at my yoga practice, I see the yin and the yang. I love Ashtanga and our Monday Level 2 class for the...
I moved to Miami from Alabama in 1969 to work for an airline for ten years, and then bounced around the state of Florida, finally landing in Port Charlotte in 1983 in time for my two daughters to start school. My girls now live in Nashville and Jacksonville with their...
By Jennifer French In the Yoga Sutras, one of yoga’s most sacred and oft referenced texts, Patanjali tells us that our “practice becomes firmly grounded when well attended to for a long time, without break, and in all earnestness.*” When I think on firmly grounded, I...
Harold and I were high school sweethearts. We married after I graduated high school one year after he did. We both got jobs in Ohio after graduation, and we started our family two years later. We have three wonderful sons who have given us nine grandchildren....
I took my first yoga class 10 years ago. After teaching fitness classes at the YMCA for several years, I enjoyed the calm, quiet, peaceful feeling I experienced after practicing yoga. Growing up in a...
I grew up in Michigan enjoying the things offered by Lake Michigan—nature and blustery winters. Because of those roots, I am an avid sailor, snow skier, and hiker. After receiving my BS in Education from...
Yoga has been a continuous journey for me. Early on, I enjoyed the asana practice and how good it made me feel every time I met the mat. Then later, I took the plunge into teacher training and finally realized I am a student of life...