Last week we finished another great year of yoga in Hawthorn and Malvern. I certainly enjoyed being part of the growing and expanding friendships amongst us all. I was lucky enough to attend 3 memorable break-up parties. With the Malvern bunch we celebrated over lunch at Ilona Stoller in Balaclava , the Wednesday night group had yummy pizzas for dinner at Pizza Religion and the Friday morning group enjoyed a delicious brunch at Sassa’s in Hawthorn.Our last term of classes was a real ‘mixed bag’. We had a play with some pranayama concepts from Laughter Yoga , we also had some sessions focused on alignment against the wall and we learned the mindfulness sequence of the famous Vietnamese Buddhist Thich Nhat Hanh. Added to that, we practiced the classic standing and seated Salute to the Sun, as well as the very much loved restorative class as a treat before Christmas. For next year’s ‘added extras,’ I am looking forward to including some concepts regarding the Universal Laws of Energy and the directions of energy flow in and around the body, called vayus.At the end of the last Friday’s class, I had an unexpected little incident while kneeling on the floor, which resulted in a sprained medial ligament of my knee. Apparently the patella ‘had lost its tracking’ for some unknown reason. It is now a week later and with the help of lots of physio exercises my knee cap is tracking better and better all the time. I can walk  normally again, albeit slowly and I should be completely recovered for when we all return to our regular yoga classes in the new year.With all the busyness surrounding Christmas, I hope you can find some time for a little reflection and quietness. I often wish it were possible to keep the spirit of Christmas all year round, so we can give and forgive, keep an open mind and allow peace and harmony to flow easily to everyone around us.

Best Wishes and looking forward to seeing you all in 2014,

Ernestine