Cold Hands, Warm Heart

I really love being around my New England families.  I've got my "real" family at home in western Mass., and my yoga family just a couple hours away in Boston.

We keep each other so warm inside, I don't even notice the snow.  There is more than one double meaning in that sentence!

I really can't give a blow-by-blow recap of this week, partly because there is just so much, and partly because some of the best moments and details are mine alone, and I need to honor them by holding them close.  But here are some of the things I've loved since I've been here:

Being reunited with one of my best friends in the world for an evening and seeing her dance on stage.  I hadn't seen her in maybe a year, and it's crazy how when we're together, it seems like no time has passed and we've never been apart.  Are some friendships just like that forever?

Seeing one of my first teachers again and practicing side by side like sisters, sharing stories, technique, ideas and laughter.

Walking into class in Bikram Yoga Boston after almost a year away and being greeted by half a dozen familiar faces.  I finally feel like I've been gone for a while, because there have been two cycles of teacher training since the last time I spent time here and there are all these teacher who I don't really know, but plenty of the regular students who I used to see every week are still around!

Hearing the dialogue EVERYWHERE!  New England rocks.

Having long meals and even longer conversations some of my favorite people, the New England yoga teachers and studio owners who got me started and filled me up with love before I went out to make my own way in the world.  Brad and Tomo, Jill, Diane, Charlie, and of course ALL the members, new and old, of the Tuesday afternoon West Roxbury lunch brigade.

Staying with the oh-so-lovely hannahjustbreathe (and her cute cat!!) for a few nights, sharing ideas, and finally getting her into Diane's class!  (Muahaha.)  We took Diane's class side by side, and it was fantastic to share that with her.

Snow!!!

Bookending my trip with a couple of totally killer and delicious classes in the little BYB studio on Lincoln Street.  (I actually started and finished my east coast visit in exactly the same way: class at Lincoln Street followed by soup at Pho Pasteur!)  The word for that room is "cozy" if you love it and "small" if you don't.  I absolutely love it.  Plenty of bigger and better practice spaces have since been built , but this one is the original Boston studio and my original Bikram home.  Call me sentimental if you like, but DAMN the humidity in that little room feels good on my body!

And of course, it was wonderful to see my FAMILY again!  I only had four days in my hometown (Northampton, in western Mass), and it wasn't long enough, but they were a good four days.  I finally had the chance to tell both my parents about my new life plans in person, which was great.  (Sometimes email and phone just aren't enough!)  Family gatherings are extra fun when you have some big news about your life that you're actually excited to share!  My sister and I spent one whole day baking Christmas cookies, we watched Love Actually for the 256th time (approxmiately) on Christmas Eve, and we did ALL the cooking for the Christmas dinner with no mess or stress.  We are a pretty rocking team in the kitchen.  The star of Christmas Day was definitely my cousin's 9-month-old baby, Spencer.  He's the first baby we've had in the family since my sister was born 22 years ago; it's the start of the next generation!!  And of course I'm biased, but he is absolutely adorable.  Another highlight was when Christmas carol singing evolved into Broadway show tune singing, with my step-sister's fiancee on the piano.  I know the words to a LOT of Broadway music.  And it turns out that my cousin's husband does a killer job on Pumba's songs from The Lion King - I could barely get Timon's part out because I was laughing so hard.  My family has expanded a lot this year and I really like it!

I'm flying back west at 6am tomorrow, and we will then return you to your regularly scheduled programming.  HAPPY HOLIDAYS to all, and enjoy the last days of the DECADE!  The next one is gonna be a really good one.  I can already feel it.