Peek Into the Week: 7/27/15

Unsurprisingly, my motivation to finally post a #PeekIntoTheWeek came in the form of a full-grown, slightly domesticated black cat and a good decision. On Saturday, I used my best judgement to postpone a hike up Volcano Mountain to practice outdoor yoga in front of my apartment. Typically, I am eager to do everything; this is one of my best and worst traits. So, I made the good decision to practice patience and take care of myself before I set off for my journey. 

During a gentle, seated twist, Midnight appeared. He came over to say hello and then continued on his way. A few moments later, he returned. I went inside to get him some water, as a gesture of my appreciation. Black cats are my good omen. Every time I see a black cat, I feel as if it is the universe telling me I am moving in the right direction and everything is more than okay. 

Ecstatically, Midnight casually walked right into my apartment. He explored the inside of my abode and stayed to eat a few treats my neighbor brought over and a little bit of cheese. We ended up relaxing and snuggling on the floor of my apartment for the better part of a half hour. As we left for our hike, my heart was full and I hoped to see him again some day soon. 

After hiking for hours in the hot, desert sun, I slept like a baby. Typically, I never sleep past 7AM; on Sunday, I slept until 8. A few moments after I woke up, I faintly heard Midnight and bolted out of bed. When I opened my door, Midnight walked right in and stayed with me the entire morning until I left for the day. In between bouts of playfulness, he peacefully sprawled out on my floor, he was content and at home, I was happy. 

I understand this misaligns with societal superstitions, but Midnight’s presence this weekend majorly motivated me and sparked my desire to take the time to do the “good” things in life. For the last two years, I have selected a theme or an intention for my class sequences and I use the concept as personal inspiration throughout the week. For months and months, I have wanted to openly share these ideas; simply because sharing is positive and powerful and what you put out there, you get back one-thousand fold. 

Therefore, moving forward, I plan to take the time to share a #PeekIntoTheWeek every Monday. It may or may not include a full back story like today’s post; but it will always include my intention and peak posture for the week, as well as a list of classes I teach. 

Peek into the Week:

Intention:

Take time to listen and linger. Find your expression, even if that means a few extra moments in the transition and doing things a bit different than everyone else. If you give it time, the answers and the inspiration will come. Avoid rushing to “finish”, take each move uniquely. 

Peak Pose:

In all level’s classes, we will practice baby crow and tripod with option for variation. In Level Two classes, we will work in to the variation of tripod headstand pictured above. 

I chose this variation because it’s different and being different is a lot of fun. 

Classes for Week of 7/27/15:

BIRD ROCK YOGA

Sunday 5:30PM All Level Vinyasa 

Monday 6:45PM 75 MIN All Level Vinyasa

THE LITTLE YOGA STUDIO

Friday 5:30PM All Level Vinyasa

COREPOWER YOGA SAN DIEGO

Monday

2:30PM C2 North Park

4PM C1.5 North Park

Tuesday

6:00AM C2 North Park

8:45AM Sculpt Mission Valley

1:30PM C2 Mission Valley 

5:30PM HPF North Park

Wednesday

9AM C2 North Park

10:30AM C1 North Park

Thursday

7:15AM C2 Hillcrest 

2:00PM BootCamp Class Pacific Beach

3:30PM Sculpt Pacific Beach

Friday

9:30AM C2 Point Loma 

The Evolution of JuliaSparkman.com

Alas, JuliaSparkman.com version 3.0 is live — launched perfectly, imperfect. 

From 2013 to 2015,  JuliaSparkman.com was hosted on Wordpress. Last June, I transitioned to Wix.  

Approximately three weeks ago, I received a notice from Wix.com; my renewal payment had been denied. For months, I had wanted to transfer to Square Space and I did not know I was set for an automatic renewal on Wix. Thankfully, my credit card was compromised over the holidays — what seemed to be an inconvenience in November graciously forced me to update my website. 

In Wix’s honor, it’s an easy to use platform and their backend requires little to no effort to function and look clean. Nevertheless, I prefer the look and features of Square Space — the payment decline was just the nudge I needed. While I am confident there will be major changes in weeks to come, I am happy with the updates and the aesthetics of my present rendition. 

I decided to re-write all of the copy on my website before making the change — that included new personal and yoga biographies. 

As I reflected on what I wanted to say, it made me consider why I launched JuliaSparkman.com in the first place. Initially, JuliaSparkman.com was a platform for me to write outside of academia and for me to share my story. Since I was 19, I’ve known I’ve wanted to write a book about my life and I viewed JuliaSparkman.com as an opportunity to practice “speaking” from my authentic voice. 

Shortly after I bought the domain, I began writing two posts a week for an organic, fair-trade incense company and the need for my own site became obsolete — I was being paid to write about yoga and wellness! From 2013 to 2015, JuliaSparkman.com received very little attention from me. I loved writing for myInsens, yet it was not a platform for me to tell my story.

A year ago, I was ready to share “my truth” and I updated to Wix. In hindsight, I was not as ready as I thought — I held back most of my truth and refrained from sharing A LOT of important stories. 

My resistance to put it all out there came from overwhelming fear and shame. It also came from listening to naysayers. Fortunately, I am no longer held back by what anyone else has to say. As of late, I am wholly surrounded by people that ask “why aren’t you sharing your story?” versus “why would you share?” 

For the last six months, I’ve barely written at all. I got tired of writing shallow stories that barely scratched the surface. I also was uninspired by a lack of purpose for the site. While my website is a nice landing page to direct students to find my classes — I wanted to have a greater vision behind my energy investment. 

Even with the templates provided by each host, building a website takes a lot of time and effort. Through building websites, I’ve learned that all a goal takes is a VISION and hard WORK. 

I’m happy to launch this new version with a clear vision in mind: 

A space to share my public yoga classes, teacher trainings, events, and retreats.

AND

A platform to share MY story and the stories of other inspiring beings. 

My stories and the stories of others will be coming soon. I cannot wait to share my heart, soul, and experiences with you.