Mary 
            Esther's Favorite Music, Poems and Meditations 
         
          
        Music 
          - These are some of the most commonly played CDs during class: 
        Reiki 
          - The Light Touch, Merlin's 
          Magic 
        Sea 
          & Silence, C.G. Deuter 
        Solitudes, 
          Natural Stress Relief, 
          David Bradstreet 
          
        Books 
          that I like to use for reference (in no particular order): 
        Yoga 
          Basics: The Essential Beginner's Guide to Yoga for a Lifetime of Health 
          and Fitness, Mara Carrico 
        Yoga 
          Mind, Body & Spirit: A Return to Wholeness, 
          Donna Farhi 
        Healing 
          with the Timeless Teachings of Viniyoga: Yoga for Wellness, 
          Gary Kraftsow 
        Yoga: 
          The Spriti and Practice of Moving Into Stillness, 
          Erich Schiffmann 
        Bringing 
          Yoga to Life: The Everyday Practice of Enlightened Living, 
          Donna Farhi 
          
        Quotes 
        “The 
          purpose of life is to watch and experience living. To enjoy living every 
          moment of it. And to live in environments, which are calm, quiet, slow, 
          sophisticated, elegant. Just to be. . . . The ideal purpose of your 
          life is that you are grateful - great and full - that you are alive, 
          and you enjoy it.” Yogi Bhajan 
        “The 
          most profound benefit of yoga and meditation for me has been a natural 
          relaxing into my life. Obstacles are not so scary. I am more fluid, 
          more curious, and at the same time more patient. I have more options 
          for happiness because I don’t require specific conditions. It 
          is a relief to discover that I can be happy even if the world doesn’t 
          revolve around me or my agenda.” Cyndi Lee 
        Poems 
        May 
          today there be peace within.  
          May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be.  
          May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith 
          in yourself and others.  
          May you use the gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that 
          has been given to you. 
          May you be content with yourself just the way you are.  
          Let this knowledge settle into your bones, 
          and allow 
          your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. 
          It is there for each and every one of us. 
        Lines To Unfold 
          By, Leza Lowitz 
         
          "Pranayama" 
          Slow and deep 
          into the heart of the day 
          with each inhalation 
          comes an exhalation 
          twice as long. 
          Slow and deep 
          filling the lungs 
          with infinite space 
          the sun rises & sets 
          in each single breath. 
          Forget about tomorrow. 
          Now is an eternity 
          and life is a victory. 
          So celebrate 
          the heart of the day. 
          
        Today a new sun 
          rises for me: 
          everything lives, 
          everything is animated,  
          everything seems to speak to me of my passion, 
          everything invites me to cherish it. 
          --Anne De Lenclos 
          
        Lokah Samasta 
          Sukhino Bhavantu  May all beings everywhere be happy.  May the thoughts 
          and actions of my own life contribute, in some way, to that happiness. 
          
        Meditations 
        From “Blessings: 
          Prayers and Declarations for a Heartful Life” by Julia Cameron 
          
         
         
          *This World Is Magical In Its Diversity, Abundant In Its Blessings* 
           
          My abundance comes to me in many forms. My life 
          is abundant in 
          multiple ways. I savor its specific abundance. I cherish its 
          particular multiplicity. Loving humor, a tender smile, a 
          compassionate conversation—all of these are forms of my abundance. 
          Beauty in nature, the bounty of good food, music, the delight of 
          sunlight on the skin—this is my abundance. The scent of flowers, 
          the 
          smell of newly mown grass—this is my abundance. The smile of a 
          stranger, the leap of a cat, the sound of bells—this is my abundance. 
          The satisfaction of a job well done, the pay for services rendered, 
          the thank-you of gratitude—this, too, is my abundance. I recognize 
          and enumerate life’s generous gifts and hold them as blessings 
          in my 
          heart. 
        Mountain 
          Meditation 
          Create a comfortable, stable, supported seated position. You can support 
          your knees with pillow or blocks, blankets, or mats. Sit upright and 
          close your eyes. Let your breath flow naturally, without manipulating 
          it. Rest your attention on the rising and falling of your belly and 
          chest. 
          Imagine a majestically tall mountain. Contemplate how solid and stable 
          the mountain is throughout the changing seasons. At times the mountain 
          may be clouded over, its peak covered in fog. Sometimes the mountain 
          is assaulted with thunder, lightning, and heavy rains. Sometimes it 
          rises into a clear blue sky of a few white puffy clouds. At times it 
          is covered in snow, at times with lush foliage, and at other times it 
          is barren. Throughout, it remains stable and unaffected by the changing 
          weather or seasons. Let this stable quality of "mountainness" 
          nourish your concentration and your ability to sit through all the varying 
          experiences that arise while practicing this meditation. 
          Now feel your posture to be like a mountain. Breathing in, see yourself 
          as a mountain,. Breathing out, feel stable. Some thoughts and emotions 
          are like storms, others like sunshine. Your mind can be clouded over 
          or clear and bright, but through it all, you can still sit solid. 
        Quotes 
        To see a world 
          in a grain of sand, 
          And a heaven in a wild flower,  
          Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,  
          And eternity in an hour.  
          -- William Blake 
        I wish I could 
          show you when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of 
          your own being. 
          -Hafiz of Persia 
        Mary 
          Esther Middleton 
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