Did you know that if you hit shift -four instead of simply hitting the four, you get a dollar sign?  Thus 4th of July becomes $th of July, and I wonder if there was any significance in that typo?  Has celebrating American Freedom come to mean celebrating our quest for financial freedom?  Or the celebration of the almighty dollar as opposed to the celebration of the spirit of religious and political freedom upon which this country was founded?  I am afraid I am about to get to heavy and cynical here.  This is a yoga blog after all, and my original intention was to write a blog of celebration.

So first a scheduling note.  Sunday Salutation Class is cancelled this Sunday as I will be out of town with my family for the holiday weekend.  Do lift up your arms in celebration and bow to the earth in respect and bring your hands back to your heart in honor of the connection you provide between the heavens and the earth.

Playing at the beach

Second, Yoga for Hope:  Samena Club and I are joining forces to offer an Eastside event for Yoga for Hope on July 16th at 10:00. Yoga for Hope supports the work done at City of Hope for Cancer, AIDS and HIV/AIDS.  Come out and join us.  This is a really good organization, doing some of the most cutting edge research and providing the most nurturing and integrative of care for patients and their families.  You can support me and them by coming out on the 16th and doing some salutation with us and/or by clicking here and making a donation.

And now back to 4th of July.  I spend every 4th with my family in Cannon Beach, OR.  We have a great gathering of the clan.  Meals are shared on porches, bonfires lit on the beach. Old and young share in songs and s’mores around the bonfire.  And yes, we join in the annual parade.  It is truly a small town parade, half  the town is in it and the other half line the street, cheering.  Everyone dresses in red, white and blue.  In these moments, with family and friends surrounding me,  I am reminded of how truly lucky we are to live in this beautiful country.  And I honor the strength and perseverance of our forefathers, who left the confines of religious persecution to come to this country to start a new life.  On the 4th of July, I stop to honor their  strength and vision, and I hope that  our country will try to remember the purity of vision that brought so many of us here.  May we continue to open our hearts to others and support all peoples in their quest for freedom – freedom of religion, freedom from war, freedom from fear and hunger and persecution.  And may we take better care to support those freedoms within our country, so we can truly be a country of light and hope and possibility

So, lift up your arms, and let your heart shine forth.  Breathe in – in Celebration, and Exhale with Joy.  Sparkle!

Shalom & Namaste,

Diana Bonyhadi