I'm back from la dolce vita in Italy, and trying to keep it sweet here, too. I hope you'll join me. New weekly class in Ojai…

While I was in Italy this summer, I stood in awe in front of L'Ulivone di Canneto - which is believed to be the oldest olive tree in Europe, at 2,400 years old…

I am thrilled that I can (finally!) go back to my lovely home in Toffia, Italy this summer!

“Beauty is not only in the spectacular glow of a sunset, in the delightful face of a child, in the incredible structure of a flower, in the joy of bright colors, in the shape of a sculpture, in the words of a poem, in the voice of a song, in the notes of a symphony. There is beauty in the logical process of thinking, in the discovery of a truth, in the realization of harmony, in the astonishment arising from observing the perfection with which a tree or a plant is put together. In the absence of fear (not in courage, courage being the opposite of fear, therefore a reaction), in the absence of noise (outside and inside us), in the violence of the wind, or in the fury of a storm.”

—Vanda Scaravelli, Awakening the Spine

“...to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time.” — Georgia O'Keefe

How fortunate we are to have this practice that cultivates friendship with our body. Join me in this process of discovery...

“When you look at the keyboard, all the notes are there already. But if you mean a note enough, it will sound different. You got to pick the notes you mean.”

— Thelonious Monk

“We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.” — Anais Nin

I am very fortunate to have spent half of the summer in Toffia, Italy studying with my teacher Diane Long, as well as teaching…

“The great revelation perhaps never did come. Instead there were little daily miracles, matches struck unexpectedly in the dark.” — Virginia Woolf

This year so far has been filled with monumental occasions - both wonderful and difficult.

I began the year in Mexico working with friends and fellow teachers…

“I had spent many years pursuing excellence…now it was dedicated to freedom, and that was far more important.” — Nina Simone

This time of year inevitably brings up the question - to make or not to make New Year’s resolutions?

It makes me think of a time several months back when, sitting around the dinner table with good friends and family, someone posed the question to us all “What’s one thing about yourself that you would really like to change?”

“We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.” — T.S. Eliot

Saying goodbye to summer is a bittersweet experience. It's my favorite season - I love the open ended quality of time in the summer and the sense of ease and possibility it invites. And summer often means travel. In order to learn and discover, we have to let go of what we think we know and allow ourselves to see things differently…

I am thrilled to be a part of this wonderful event!

In March I went to Charleston, SC on one of my many trips to see and study with Diane Long.

The peripatetic nature of Diane’s life means that for 17 years I have been not only studying with her, but traveling with her…

"If we can see ourselves as slightly ridiculous, it is easier to meet the marvels of what the body might reveal - unburdening not only the asanas, but also ourselves."

Diane Long has been helping me unravel the mysteries and magic of the body for 17 years…

This summer I moved to LA!

I am so happy to be living in California again! My love affair with California started when I was very young and I came with my family from Pennsylvania for many trips to visit our cousins out here.

This love affair was honed over the years, and I finally moved to Berkeley in 2000. After just three years, however, Rome called to me and I set off to Italy from California. It has always held a place in my heart, though, and moving back here just feels right…