Cross Training

"Art is individualism, and individualism is
a disturbing and disintegrating force.
There lies its immense value.
For what it seeks is to disturb monotony of type,
slavery of custom, tyranny of habit, and
the reduction of man to the level of a machine." --- Oscar Wilde

As a Yoga instructor, I find that people from many different backgrounds come to take my classes. Because I make a point of teaching in a "western friendly" style, my classes seem to be more approachable to those students who are nervous about beginning something that's just too eastern for them. However, my philosophy, intent and structure are purely in traditional Yoga form. Because of where I teach, at my local YMCA, I've been able to reach a broader audience than I would if I taught in a more Yoga centered studio. At times, this is tougher on me....as I don't work with many people who can support my own Yoga practice. But, it's given me the chance to help people, of all stages in life, discover Yoga. I have had several older students who had never done any formal exercise before taking my class. I have had men and women coming out of rehabilitation from injury or illness. I have had mothers whose yoga class is their only time for themselves during the week. I have taught master Yogi's who could be my instructor, rather than the other way around. Interestingly though, the most fascinating group of students has been those who come to Yoga for cross training.

My son's hockey team had me come and teach flexibility and breath work. It was intriguing to work with a group of 16 to 18 year old boys, all in the peak of physical conditioning, but who were unable, in most cases, to touch their toes. The Coach's goal for me to was to also assist these athletes in learning to control their breathing. I've also worked with Triathletes in their quest for increased body awareness and adaptability. This led to my leading classes for the local high school cross-country team, and their coach's intention for a well rounded, relaxed and lithe team. All of these experiences highlighted how important it is not to peg ourselves in any one particular pattern for too long. Monotony can easily lead to stagnation and the cessation of growth and development. While any of these athletes could run (or skate) circles around me, there were none who were able to match my adeptness in flexibility. I came away feeling blessed that I had something to offer people who are far more fit than I am. But, I also began to see that I was just as guilty of ignoring other areas of my own adaptability. I had grown comfortable and complacent in my yoga routine and wasn't expanding in my own realm of learning either. I began adding cardio and strength training to my workouts.

All of these experiences have shown me how crucial it is to cross train...not just for our bodies, but in my minds. We can become so pleased with our patterns that we rarely vary them. We might have one particular genre of book we prefer to read. We might discover that we get stuck in a rut with one favorite food or beverage. We might even get too comfortable in our relationships.We might buy the same clothes over and over and wake up to find we've had the same style since high school or have only appreciated one medium of art our whole lives. All of these 'pattern based' forms of similarity and continuance can sneak up on us. We may not even realize that we're being tedious and repetitive until something jars us out of complacency. This can be a gentle nudge, such as a friend loaning us a book that's not our typical read. Or, this shove can be more literal...when our doctor warns us to make some big changes to our lifestyle for our health's sake.

These breaks in routine, likeness and uniformity can be scary at first. It's tough to do something completely different! We feel confident in our method of behavior and in our tastes and skills. By switching that around, we risk looking foolish by lacking in expertise. For example, when I was 36 years old, I decided to learn to ski. Believe me, it was not a pretty sight. I was ready to quit more than a dozen times on the very first day. While the rest of my family was carving up the mountain at Sugarloaf, I was mastering the fine art of 'snowplowing' with toddlers who had pacifiers in their mouths....and those same babies passed me on the bunny hill. It was embarrassing, and I fell so many times that my left hip's bruising was swollen in a 6" diameter. I simply couldn't stop and my daughter had to ski in front of me, backwards, in order to act as a shield between myself and innocent bystanders. And yet, it was liberating! I was doing something new, something I had never mastered and something that I did want to explore. While I'll never be Picabo Street, and certainly won't be winning any Olympic medals, I can ski just well enough to travel on most 'green' trails. Learning to ski, even in a rudimentary way, opened my mind and heart to other possibilities that may tease just outside of my reach.

When we choose to cross train, we make the decision to step off the path we're currently traveling. In doing so, we may find that we gain confidence in other areas. Just by expanding our bubble of knowledge in one zone, we may see that we've learned something fresh to apply to other parts of our lives. It may make us more willing to take a chance and investigate outside what's familiar. This doesn't mean that venturing off into the unknown, whether it's learning to ski or taking a painting class, is going to be easy. Having grown up in a very 'end result' family, I had never truly understood the philosophy of "process before product". Such a concept was alien to me until recently. But, I've come to realize that, just by exploring a concept I've never attempted, I can learn more about myself...and bring that knowledge forward into whatever else I choose to do.

I will never be an artist in a juried art show, but I've discovered that I like to paint. I can't carry a tune, but I enjoy singing. The Boston Marathon will not be on "Bucket List" but I can run in my own way for a couple of miles. I may never be on the NY Times Bestseller List, but I adore writing. Cross training means more than swimming, when one is used to hiking. It means allowing our minds to open up to a skill or an idea that is totally new to us. In doing so, we'll discover that our lives will be enriched exponentially.

Shanghai Girls

"We send missionaries to China so that the Chinese people can go to heaven, but we won't let them in our country." ---Pearl S. Buck


There are very few things in life that make me as giddy as the arrival of a new book by an author whose work I adore. Having enjoyed all of Lisa See's novels, and having felt as if I better understood Chinese culture and life through them, I was over the moon when I was called to pick up my copy of "Shanghai Girls" from the library. Lisa See's work is never apologetic about both America's and China's historical shortcomings, nor is she inaccurate in her portrayal of her characters, from both a personal, and a cultural standpoint. In her most recent novel, two 'beautiful girl' sisters, May and Pearl, live a comfortable and multi-cultural life in the international city of Shanghai. The sisters have friends of all nationalities represented in an exceptionally cosmopolitan region. Prized for their beauty and charm, the girls are artists' models for advertising commercials.


Of course, nothing lasts forever. In May and Pearl's case, their dreamy, exotic and open minded life comes crashing to an end, first by their father's bankruptcy, and then by the Japanese invasion of China. May and Pearl learn to depend upon one another, and learn to discover that courage exists even when we don't see it. As the sisters make their way to America, following an arduous, nearly impossible journey, their new life to be as big of a shock as their old one was. Despite having had close American friends in China, the girls discover a country that doesn't want them. They find that, as much as their own home city was welcoming to others, 1930's America's doors are firmly closed to Chinese. What comes as even more of a shock to the sisters is that other Asian nations are not treated with the same disdain and prejudice. Lives of privilege and elegance turn into lives of honor bound hard work. And yet, through all their hardships and unrelenting trials, May and Pearl find success is vastly different areas. Their sisterly bond remains strong and unbroken in front of a backdrop of Los Angeles' Chinatown.



I learned a great deal of history in reading this novel. As a California native, I had not realized the extent of prejudice and bigotry that existed in my home state for decades. Did you know that it was illegal for Chinese to immigrate to America? This dramatic law was put into effect in the 1800's to prevent Chinese works from becoming citizens. Despite the fact that China was America's ally against the Japanese during World War II, there were many lawmakers who felt that Chinese were not to be trusted, either, and to further cement their hostilities, considered all Chinese Americans to be Communist spies. In an extraordinary and unreasonable twist of fate, those brave souls who made it as far as America, and were actually allowed in (rather than deported), were always under suspicion and threat. Most landlords would not rent to Chinese and few could find jobs anywhere other than in Chinatown. Therefore, the Chinese population of California was confined to its Chinatown communities, thousands of people crammed into a 1 square block region. Much like a European Ghetto, these enforced communities gave outsiders the idea that Chinese wanted to be a separate country, adding further fuel to an already hot burning fire of mistrust. That mistrust quickly became a two-way street, leaving the Chinese population to feel as if they were a people without country.




"Shanghai Girls" is a wonderful novel. It tells the moving and beautiful story of two sisters, and their admirable closeness. Author Lisa See also paints an accurate picture of early to mid-20th century California....a picture rarely seen by anyone outside the Chinese community. In raising awareness, she is helping to keep alive the memory of those who lived this piece of American history. Hopefully, all of America will learn from its past mistakes of intolerance and discrimination. And yet, "Shanghai Girls" is simply a very beautiful read.

Change of Venue

With the 2010 Winter Olympic games less than a year away, the excitement is building in my home of hockey, skiing and other winter sport enthusiasts. Having just "completed" the 2008 Olympic experience, watching the games from Beijing, it seems that everyone loves use the Olympic sports broadcaster's favorite line, in their arsenal of expressions: "the change of venue". Honestly, I can't remember which games I first heard the announcers begin to use this term in their everyday vernacular. It became a bit of a joke in my home, as overused as the expression was. What about change in location, event, stage, locale, area, vicinity, space, neighborhood, spot, home or even 'neck of the woods'? Just as we know the Olympic anthem of trumpets sounding, we know that "change of venue" is here to stay.


Despite the anchors at the Olympic news desks overuse of the term, it's actually not a bad thought. Changing one's place can be a tremendous boon. In my Yoga classes, I often ask my students to move their mats to different positions in the room. This keeps students (and myself) from getting into a rut of behavior patterns. It's amazing to teach with regular students in new spaces in the room. For those students who normally arrange themselves in the back, they often find class is a new experience moving up front. Conversely, students who are normally right next to me, find that moving to the back of the room can also bring their practice more personal and internal, rather than keeping an eye on everything that I'm doing. Today, I had the blessing of being able to teach in a completely different building. Only half my regular students came, which was unfortunate. Our temporary space was beautiful and had a lovely view of the waterfall on the river. Yet, some people just do not feel comfortable with change, even temporarily.


Change is very important to our continuing development. Some people embrace change in all areas of their lives. They love to move, and create new lives in new places. I had friends that moved houses 4 times in 8 years....not because of work, financial or family related needs, but because they genuinely found the creation of new homes to be invigorating and exciting. I know others who have lived in the same place nearly all of their lives. They eat in the same restaurants, and they take the same vacations. They have enormous comfort in their safe zones, and this gives them the satisfaction of knowing where they will always be. And yet, I can't help but wonder if these people are selling their lives short by not experiencing something, to quote Monty Python, "completely different".


Change is good for the soul. While we need routines to help flesh out the framework of our every day lives, little changes can bring about vast implications. Routine is important to help us pay our bills on time, get to work and take care of our basic needs. But, beyond that, looking for a bit of adventure can bring us a sense of freshness to the ordinariness of life. If you normally only read one genre of book, or watch one genre of movie, how about exchanging your chick lit for a bit of a spy thriller? If you only run on the treadmill, what about heading outside for a run on the road? If you typically eat rice or pasta, how about trying something new, such as couscous or polenta? There are small changes we can make to broaden our perspectives that aren't a life altering commitment. The fact is, if you don't like the 'new thing', you can always change back to the old way.


Changes can also be brought about in larger ways than the food we eat or the movie we watch. If you have extra time on your hands, and tend to use that in your home, how about making a one time volunteer commitment? You could volunteer at a library, an elder care center or at an animal shelter. You could serve a meal at a soup kitchen or work in a food pantry. You can mentor a young person or read to someone whose eyesight is failing. Just by changing the use of our own time, even if we can't commit to it regularly, can change your own life, and that of someone else.

One of the most important aspects of change is simply being open to it. In our very quickly changing world, it's also vital to our well being to find the adaptive nature that lies within each of us. Resistance to change can bring about great harm to our bodies, minds and spirits. While we don't need to embrace every fad that's out there, being open to new possibilities, new locations and new ways of being can both powerful and necessary. And, if changing your venue helps you to be open to other changes in life, ride the journey out and see where it takes you.

Change has a considerable psychological impact on the human mind. To the fearful, it is threatening because it means that things may get worse. To the hopeful, it is encouraging because things may get better. To the confident, it is inspiring because the challenge exists to make things better. ~~ King Whitney Jr.