Category: Life

GoldiLocks explores the meaning of life and all her life experiences in an effort to achieve a life that’s not too big and not too small… but one that’s just right.

Periscope with Azul Yoga

EveryBODY – EverySOUL – AzulYoga via Periscope

Hello Goldilocks Blog Fans! If you’ve been missing me it’s because I kind of traded in my morning journalling, into broadcasting yoga and meditation at sunrise on the beach here in Boca Raton, Florida. Same concept as my blog – hoping to inspire, spreading love and peace out into the world.  I can be seen at www.periscope.tv/azulyoga . It’s raw and unfiltered so not always pretty.  

I wake up about an hour before sunrise, roll out of bed brush teeth, leave my hair exactly as it is, throw on my yoga clothes, make my tea, and way to the beach. I’ve applied no make up and  I’m not in my 20’s anymore, in fact I’m middle age. No time for primping as my husband and I together have 6 children (3 boys, 3 girls) and 5 grandchildren (4 boys, and 1 baby girl). Right now I have 5 boys at home (2 sons, and 3 grandsons, plus husband and male dog). Once at the beach I set up my tripod, lay down my blanket, mat, and then settle in to begin my broadcast. 

I broadcast to a global community of over 20,000 followers (AzulYoga on periscope), and it’s growing stronger by the day. This group of followers from all over the world add to the broadcast, making it better by their comments and spirit, and it’s truly a joy to be a part of. Today however I had what they say on periscope – trolls. They jump into a broadcast and make lewd comments, forcefully gives opinions on religion or politics, or just disrupt the broadcast in anyway they can. I’m luckily pretty unfazed to any comments, thanks to my yoga practice, but I always hate it for the viewers, who are new to periscope and don’t know that they can block anybody. Today’s trolls jumped on my appearance as I practiced – face, age etc.

It reminded me of an important message – that the beauty of periscope is it’s rawness, without the edits and the filters. To see things as they are. Which is a gift we strive for in yoga. A gift we should strive for in ourselves. The essence of turning inward and of seeing and being our true self. The divinity within us all. So my package and container may not be as beautiful as it once was 30 years ago, but my light within shines brightly. And, with perfect lighting, makeup and a great photographer, I’m sure I could appear to many as quite beautiful. – In fact I need to do that again soon 🙂

Nevertheless, again it’s not about the external beauty, it’s not all about the physical postures. It’s everything else, it’s who we are at our soul. My yoga is for EVERY BODY, or maybe I should say for EVERY SOUL.

So join me on this journey – just as you are. No judgements, even if you look like a model, or if your young or old, tall or short, skinny or plump. The journey is within. Come join me, just as I am.

6:30 am EST via periscope – www.periscope.tv/azulyoga 

Love, Goldi

Donna Melanson

Azul Yoga in Boca Raton, Florida

Goldilocks Blog – Marvel At The Moment

Goldilocks Blog – Marvel At The Moment  

Every morning tired or not I wake up early to find a place of beauty, a place to sit in peace, meditating for whatever amount of time that I have, and relfecting on that moment with gratitude. When I’m at home I take myself to the beach and marvel at the beauty of nature as I watch the tide flow in and out, and the birds glide right on by. I see the sun rise always faster than what I imagine it should, and I gaze up into the sky and stare at the clouds moving overhead, noticing the many different images being formed. I deeply breathe in the salt air as if I’m savoring my favorite chocolate. I allow the sand to cling to my clothes and feet, which later become a gentle reminder of being fully present, as a few grains of sand always stay with me throughout the day. I allow the sight of the occasional ripple in the water to remind me of the unexpected moments that slightly alter the path, guiding me in the right direction. I sit in stillness with a knowing that nothing is really still.

When I travel, which I will be doing next week,  I marvel at life in a slightly different way.  When inside it’s easy to have a false sense of stillness within the unmoving walls of a room, and the heavy and solid pieces of furniture. I sometimes forget about how fast time is moving, which literally and unfortunately has often just past me by without any awareness. So the beauty that I look to see may be the varying degrees of a smile of one of my children, a beautiful and petite flower of a weed that moves slightly with the breeze, and then with the simple awareness of my own breath.  Here I feel like I’m still, but with a knowing that everything around me is moving.

Both ways are the same, but at first seem slightly different. The same is true in how we view many things. Another yogic lesson.

Marvel at the moment, whatever it looks like, and brings yourself into the present moment. Because it’s here and now where life is taking place.

Just a thought, With Love and gratitude,

Goldi – Mwah!

Goldilocks Blog-Transform Your Suffering-Richard Rohr

  If you don’t transform your suffering you will transmit it. –Richard Rohr

I turned on Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday yesterday as I often do on Sundays after teaching my yoga classes. I usually need a moment to veg out and I like to keep myself fueled up with positive thoughts, ideas, entertainment, and people. Richard Rohr was being interviewed by Oprah, a replay of a previous presentation, and as I was settling into the couch with hot tea and a few cookies in hand, the above quote popped up –If you don’t transform your suffering you will transmit it-Richard Rohr.  Since I’m a yoga teacher I try to be mindful of the energy I bring with me, but I never really thought of transmitting my suffering, and then immediately felt remorse at how many times in the past I had done just that. How many times that I allowed the action of another to affect me so much, that I carried it with me. And worse how may times I had started the chain of negative transmissions. 

Hopefully, as we navigate through the forest of life with our new awareness, we can all become more mindful of our transmitting energy, And maybe, just maybe we’ll be able to recognize it for what it is -negative energy that may have been picked up from someone else, and possibly not react, but respond in a more compassionate way.

Just a thought…

Love, Goldi