nature – The Branches

on deadlifting during climate emergencies

This post is from the mind and heart of Leslie, one of The Branches’ co-directors and co-owners.

Lately we’ve been (lightly) waxing poetic about summer in our recent posts, saying things like it doesn’t last forever, or it only comes once per year, and asking how you like to make the most of it. Gardening, beach-days, camping, or maybe hiding out in the A/C or basement with a good book?

Yoga in the Park, a staple of Branches summers, wrapped up yesterday a week later than planned. We had to dip into our reserved rain dates to make up for a cancellation earlier in the season. But this free community offering hadn’t been cancelled due to rain – it was the abysmal air quality.

No matter how each of us likes to spend the season, for nearly a week last month, summer was no longer about seizing the day, it was about… surviving. The wildfires in Northern Ontario that resulted in what was sometimes the worst air quality in the world had us canceling outdoor activities, shuttering windows, and for some, wearing masks while outdoors as a way of protecting our health.

I sometimes think (more like delude myself into thinking) that I did all my grieving around climate disasters decades ago when I first started reading the work of thinkers like John Michael Greer and Joanna Macy. Then this year’s heavy smoke – and the five-day self-imposed prohibition on going outside – brought a fresh wave of despair. The fact that I am now a parent adds its own weight. A more realistic expectation might be that these feelings will renew themselves alongside other markers of climate changes on cyclical, incremental, and even exponential patterns.

If I can sit with these feelings, I remember that there are a few things I already know for sure about climate stress and its causes: one is that it doesn’t do me any good to pretend it doesn’t exist. So thanks for reading this letter and joining me in recognizing our shared reality. Another truth is that whether or not we feel that correcting the course of human civilization is possible, we still need to adapt to the daily and yearly fluctuations of climate patterns as they get wilder and weirder. And finally, we need to do that adapting together.

One sign of adaptation on a micro scale at the studio is that three summers ago, extreme heat events became frequent enough that we had to add a heat wave policy for yoga in the park and classes on the back deck. Two summers ago, we added one about air quality due to the increasing incidence of wildfire smoke. Weather extremes are no longer rare or anomalous, so new norms required guidelines our staff could refer to. We’re grateful for the HVAC system we chose when we renovated the building – it includes top-of-the-line HEPA air filtration – but we are considering additional resources to enhance the indoor air quality even further. We take our responsibility to provide a supportive space in which to practice seriously, which includes the basics, like air.

We also aim to emobdy the values of resilience-building and social change, and these feel relevant in specific ways in light of ecological and climate disaster. There is a time and place for personal resilience, and we sincerely hope that your yoga practice and strength training sustain you mentally, emotionally and physically for the joys, but also for the challenges that the coming years and decades will bring. If you’ve been feeling frozen in the face of all that is f*cked up in our province, consider this your reminder and gentle nudge (or hearty pull) that you should still come do your deadlifts, your supported sidebends, or whatever practice keeps you clear-eyed and afloat. The world needs you feeling good enough to show up and share your gifts as we navigate difficulty together.

Having a safe(r) environment for practice might mean the building or room itself, but our responsibility doesn’t end at the doorway to the studio. Adaptation isn’t just air purifiers, and resilience must go beyond our own joints and mental attitudes. Let’s not forget that for some Ontarians, including those of settler-descent, but much more so Indigenous northerners, that the wildfire smoke has been a concern of minor importance compared with the fires themselves, which destroyed homes and displaced thousands. From our home-base in Kitchener, we can’t do the work of rebuilding the communities, but we can contribute to immediate emergency needs, especially through our chequing accounts. Here is an article that outlines a mix of specific First Nations, and some larger organizations that support those affected by the wildfires, who could really use our donations.

When surges of chaos or emergencies rise, I have to coach myself to do two things: one is to access whatever inner and outer resources I have to stay present instead of numbing out, and the other is to find a balance between dealing with present and future challenges, and connecting to joy so that I don’t wind up back in numbness. Easier said than done, but barbells and bolsters are not just to grow my resilience, they are a part of my presencing and joy practices, too.

There is so much more I want to say about our provincial and federal governments and the choices they’re making that seem not to respect our shared home here on Earth. But I’d rather hear back from you. How did you deal with our smoky air last month? Are there any beliefs or affirmations you say to yourself when a wave of climate chaos spikes up? Do you have any charitable organizations, or other forms of support you’d like to tell us about? We love hearing from our Branches community, about this, and everything.

Yours in solidarity,
Leslie

A different way to get outside – Forest Therapy

This post is by Kristina Domsic, one of the facilitators of our upcoming Seeds of Intention: Yoga & Nature Retreat, May 24-26.

One of the things that makes our upcoming Seeds of Intention retreat unique is that participants will get to try out Forest Therapy, also known as Shinrin-yoku, or Forest Bathing, with a certified guide. This is an amazing way to explore the beautiful landscape around Harmony Dawn retreat centre. The landscape of rolling meadow, gardens, and forest around the centre have so much to offer.

When people first hear about the idea of forest therapy, they often have an intuitive sense of some of the ways this practice could be beneficial; since we were young, many of us have heard that fresh air is good for us! When we have felt overwhelmed by stressful situations, loved ones might have suggested we go for a walk to help shake it off and gain some new perspective. That part makes sense.

So, why not just go for a simple walk outside on your own?

Well, going for a walk outside on your own is definitely a good idea. But, there are also some stand-out benefits to joining a guided Forest Therapy session! Here are some of the highlights of what you can expect on our Forest Therapy sessions at the Seeds of Intention Retreat this spring:

1. Time to unplug

Continue reading “A different way to get outside – Forest Therapy”

Let Someone Else Cook – Fall Retreat

I called it my artist’s retreat, to describe to others why I was going away all by myself. I have always been one to juggle too many balls in the form of jobs, socializing, craft projects and learning new things. A few balls in particular had been dropped for too long, so I decided to set aside some time just for them. I began constructing an agenda of how I’d spend my time on my fantastic retreat: yoga practice, meditation, plenty of sleep, hikes and bike rides through the wilderness, and above all, making a lot of art.

I booked a cabin for the week leading up to the Summer Solstice. I was ready to get up early, tackle my art and get somewhere with my meditation and yoga practice. But my retreat had something else in store for me.

Continue reading “Let Someone Else Cook – Fall Retreat”

Walking Backwards – Widening My View

This blog post was written by studio director Emma, who has been travelling across Canada and in the United States for the last few months on a sabbatical from teaching. Emma will be back to teaching at the studio in November, and wishes to share this update about her trip with the QSY community. This post relates to the recent work Queen Street Yoga has been doing on Indigenous land acknowledgement and educating ourselves about the cultural genocide of First Nations populations in Canada.

At a contact dance workshop this summer, I participated in an exercise that included walking backwards along a forest path. The exercise encouraged us to sense the space behind us, which is a useful awareness to cultivate in dance. I walked backwards for over an hour along a winding forest path, over jagged rocks, bumpy tree roots and clumps of moss. The sensation was fascinating. I realized that I have had a habit of looking down at the ground as I walk, in order not to trip. Facing away from where I was walking to required me to slow down a great deal and sense carefully with my feet the texture and topography of the ground. Looking down was no longer a helpful strategy. My gaze was up and my awareness surrounded me like a sphere. I was no longer focused on moving ahead, on getting somewhere; I was filled up with the view of the landscape I was moving through, and an energetic sense of the landscape I was backing into.

One of the most noticeable differences in the experience of walking backwards is that your view is constantly widening. Rather than things disappearing from your peripheral vision (which is what happens when you move forwards) the landscape appears slowly at your sides and seems to bloom out and emerge from the edges of your vision. What you see seems to grow in context and size, rather than shrink in anticipation and pursuit of your destination. Walking backwards, one is not preoccupied with the destination, rather, with having the fullest sense of the landscape, and of treading carefully on the ground. Continue reading “Walking Backwards – Widening My View”

Thunder and Enlightening [Practicing Yoga Outside in the Rain]

Monica recently graduated from our Teacher Training program, and currently volunteers behind the desk on Friday mornings. In this post she shares about her experience of practicing yoga outside in the elements, and in particular, during a summer storm! As the weather warms up we might think about taking our mat outside for a few poses in the sunlight (or the rain). We hope you enjoy Monica’s poetic writing.

There wouldn’t be a concept of Space if the Earth element were nonexistent.

I’ve always had the desire to ground myself. The enormity of bringing myself down from lapses of panic requires more mental concentration than I sometime deem possible. Anxiety has a home nested within my chest. A taut, clenching sensation blooms words of worry and fear – in replacement of mindfulness – up my throat; sometimes only to have something spoken to fill the space.Continue reading “Thunder and Enlightening [Practicing Yoga Outside in the Rain]”