January 2007

::2007 intentions::

this past week, as we've crossed over into the new year, i've offered my students 1/4 sheets of goldenrod-colored paper titled, "intentions for 2007," with the sub-headings, "let it be different," and "do something different."

letting it be different (the realm of thoughts and emotions) and doing something different (the realm of action) are intentions i held for 2006. they served me well-- my creation of sol nia, my move to glenwood springs and my exploration of conscious loving in a new relationship are a direct result of my wanting something different for my life.

doing something different is easy to understand, but what do i mean when i say, "let it be different?"

for me, letting it be different is about being present in each moment and being mindful of my thoughts and emotions, and not falling into old patterns or storylines that no longer serve me. a courageous self-inventory, letting it be different is about being honest with myself and consciously choosing new ways of being, thinking, feeling.

as i explained to one of my newer students after sunday's class when she asked what effects nia has on a person, nia helps us to be more flexible in our thoughts, because that is what we are experiencing in our bodies.

so many of the moves in nia cross the physical mid-line of the body; as a result, new connections in the brain are formed, as right brain crosses the corpus callosum to talk to left brain and vice versa.

and, one of my a-ha! moments in nia came years ago when, after throwing a block and saying, "no!" ferociously, i turned right around, lifting my arms heavenward, opening the flute of my body and said, "yes!" with just as much emotion. in that moment i realized, "i am not my emotions!" they can change on a dime and i am in charge of that change. what a breakthrough that was for me.

having and holding intentions are important... they are the cornerstone of change and transformation. at the beginning of each nia class, we set a focus, an intention that we focus our attention on for the hour we dance together. nia is about disciplining, exercising, freeing, sensing, opening, expressing, liberating the body + mind + spirit + emotions. it really is all connected: all one. we really are all connected: all one.