I thought I would share how the Pandemic has completely reshaped my life, just like I am sure it has so many others walking this planet. From the way I think regarding my inner circle to rediscovering a new direction that has impacted Mango Jane Publishing, I am standing on new ground.
When I began this journey two years ago with an idea, I had another vision.
However, because of the Quarantine and my life coming to a halt as it was–my old routine: Marketing part-time/teaching two to three classes only a week in yoga to teaching more yoga and helping keep my husband sane during the pandemic at our fruit stand.
(Do you have any idea how interesting and crazy it is right now to listen to all of conspiracy theories to mask/no mask debate to some actually prepping for the apocalypse?!)
I guess we are living in 2020, so what was I expecting?
When the Quarantine happened, thousands of shoppers flooded our little open air market by the highway near a lake called Lake Hodges in California and my time for this for at least three months was unfathomable.
While most of the world was locked in, I was out and about helping Robin pick-up produce from all over Southern California so we continued to have enough to help the locals NOT have to go into the grocery stores.
And, if this would be our new life, is this it? Do I love it? What makes the heart feel full? What makes the soul ponder more important aspects of it its own heart? What exactly is important to us at the end of the day?
**I believe most of us discovered rather quickly what that list was and now we are re-adjusting our ways accordingly.
And what came up for me was something quite different than the way my world had been prior to those two months in quarantine. If this is the new Pandemic world and staying healthy is a must to survive, you can see how my yoga world increased in size over night. New dreams began to bubble forth from this new uncharted course.
New realizations formed. My life folded over into my legs crossed every day on the floor counting my japas (counting breaths on my fingers or if you are doing a mantra) on my fingers, breathing 22 breaths with an array of mudras (hand gestures used in Meditation) to practicing my yoga every day without fail. Through these shifts of my own daily routine, previous ideas that did not fit the model of the post quarantine world faded.
Gentle Yoga TV Channel A Free Yoga Channel for Anyone and less sitting and more moving.
My marketing career is on furlough.
So now, I am filming short YouTube videos weekly with Robin at the park featuring free yoga videos.
I wear a mask at the gym to teach yoga. I teach in Phase One a fitness gym that just re-opened.
I am doing so much yoga, I wonder how I ever thought this wasn’t the correct, REAL road all along? I wonder how I ever thought I could just dabble my toe in the shallow end of the yoga pool and come and go as my please?
So here I am midlife, midlife yogi and midlife author with a NEW FOUND EXCITEMENT for everything. What once felt trivial, I have learned, never was. I am living each day as my last (I thought I was doing that before).
And, I’m taking a seat every morning with a humble heart, counting my breaths, changing my mudras, then prayer time to stretching and keeping my heart aligned in an upright position fully opened to the new unknown world I have never known.
I am talking into my phone in my Milkshake car for a Podcast called The Inspired Mind (It’s British and tiny, take a guess and did you know I’m 35% English?! My maiden name is PENN, you know like William Penn and my maiden name originated in Cornwall).
Woohoo. Polkdark World! (That’s a Masterpiece Theater Show & it happens to be my favorite.)
Anyway, I’m off track here, or not it’s actually the opposite, I’m on the right path for the very first time in a long time and it’s as if all systems are A GO!
Amazing. While, 2020 has been the worst year for many, these life shifts and a new routine that would not have materialized without those two quarantine months. The beginning of the year, my only yoga goal was to build my Friday Night Happy Hour Class to 15 people, focus on marketing and book publishing. Now it’s YouTube launch all systems ago, and focus back more on my own writing projects for now and occasionally publish a public domain book. (I hope to publish War and Peace next year in a three part series! Mango Jane Publishing Goals. The dream is still alive. It’s just shifted from growing into a larger small press and represent new authors to focusing on publishing my books and public domain books that make my heart sing.) I am looking forward to publishing GUNS TASTE BAD, when the edits and foreword are finished (Long story short…TRUST ME, it’s going to be worth the wait!)
So I hope you subscribe to GENTLE YOGA TV
I am thrilled to find my body telling a story and my heart listening.
Move that body! Keep breathing deep and taking a seat.
I am.
Breathe.
I’m out.
M