Our journey, my Mom's and mine, began during the summer of 1997. I had been working with a metaphysical Homeopath who invited me to attend a sacred ceremonial dance in Canada . The only information he gave me was: “ I am having a dance this summer. You should come. Bring a sleeping bag.” Four months later, my mother and I drove twelve hours to this mysterious “dance,” and upon arrival we found ourselves embraced by a group of people who were seemingly strangers, yet I felt as if I had just come home after years of being away.

The ceremonial weekend was, in fact, a Sacred dance honoring Native American traditions. Gathered in the protection of a Medicine Wheel, a small group of dancers, a dance Chief, a moon mother and I danced in prayer for four days. The experience was profound and illuminating. I felt as if channels opened inside me, and when I was reunited with my mother, who had been observing from outside the Medicine wheel, I knew she too had experienced an immense shift and opening. This was our beginning.

About a year later, my yoga journey began. One night while away at boarding school, I found myself bored and looking for something to do, so I took a yoga class. I had an extensive dance background and as such was always concerned about my body and my appearance, and a bit obsessed with exercise. I saw this yoga class as an opportunity to get in one more exercise for the day. My expectations were not met. Yoga was nothing like dancing for me- being critical about my body in front of the mirror. Rather, yoga was accepting and gentle and there were no mirrors in the room. I had to go within and I liked it. Soon, I bought a yoga book and began studying in my dorm room. After graduation, I found a yoga studio and began to deepen my study. I began to meditate, and found that it created space for “Spirit” to flow within me. I knew that this was what I was meant to do. I attended the Yoga Institute of Houston for my initial teacher training in 2001, and continued to study through workshops and continuing education courses at the Kripalu center for Yoga in Lenox , Massachusetts .

I began teaching yoga across Middlesex County , just outside Boston , in 2001, and continued my teaching career there until 2004. In the fall of 2004, I moved to Southern California with my family and took a year off from teaching. The time away from instructing allowed me to deepen my love and appreciation for my own personal practice, but I began to miss teaching. It became “clear as a bell” to me that I wanted to teach again on a regular basis.

While I was experiencing my own growth and opening with Spirit and yoga, My Mother's own healing journey was well underway. After the Sun-Moon dance, her world had been tipped upside down, her channels were opened to God and to the Boddhisattva Maitreya and she was managing a huge practice as a healer. We were on seemingly different paths, but still knew we were destined to work together at some point.