Shortly after my return from wintering in Scotland last March, I began a podcast to interview my Yogis of 10+ years. I wanted to shine a light on why they keep coming back week after week, month after month, and year after year for their Yoga practice with our group on Zoom, what their favorite pose is, and what brought them to a Yoga practice to begin with. Being the non-techie person that I am, this was a challenge. Not a challenge to interview them - because I love talking all things Yoga and I love them - but to take a seat in front of a mixing board, decipher my notes from the Audacity 101 library class, and turn it into a podcast. I want to thank Jeremy Knox at the Milton R. Abrahams Branch Omaha Public Library Do Space for all his help and patience with me this summer. (You guys beat out the Toronto library system by a landslide when it comes to podcasting props, tutoring, and tolerance of children running amok.) These podcast episodes read like a book, so I give you the following written summaries with the links on Spotify embedded in the titles for those of you who missed it and want to give a listen. The second season will be out the first Thursday in November to my paid subscribers. Thank you for listening!
(June 2025)
Welcome to my podcast! In this first episode I discuss why I became a Yoga teacher over 30 years ago and why I closed my Yoga studio four years ago, transitioning to livestream teaching on Zoom. I am talking to you - the seasoned practitioner, the studio owner, the new Yoga teacher, and those thinking about beginning a Yoga practice. Swamis, ashrams, the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, what it was like teaching Yoga in the early 90s, and how to set your boundaries regarding how far you are willing to travel to teach or practice, is discussed. In the remaining episodes of this biweekly podcast, I will be interviewing my Yoga students of 10+ years as we decipher what it is that motivates them to continue their practice week after week, year after year. Thanks for listening!
(June 2025)
In this first interview-episode, I talk to Helen McIlvain, my longtime Yogi of 16 years. We discuss the disappearance of the phone book, why a Yoga teacher should never - ever! - ask a class “what they want to do today,” and why slow is strong. Savasana (Corpse Pose) is her favorite pose. It was a long time ago when she first told me that, and I said, “No, a relaxation pose doesn’t count as a favorite pose.” Well, it turns out that it does count and let’s just say she set me straight.
“I want to be like Helen when I grow up.” - everybody
(July 2025)
This week Jan Carlin is in the Bhadra Yoga House. We discuss the importance of community, the memory of a special friend who happens to have her same first and middle name, and chat about the future of the Yoga studio brick and mortar. Jan’s favorite pose is Tree Pose.
(July 2025)
This week Ruth Richter is in the House. We discuss a potential Headstand Pose relaunch, Ruth’s favorite Fire Log Pose, and how Yoga practice is never about what it looks like on the teacher or on the person next to you. Ruth loves Yin Yoga, and has aptly dubbed our Friday night class, “Sunset Yoga.” We also discuss how God can enter the spiritual aspect of Yoga via the graceful and powerful act of stillness.
(August 2025)
This week Marjorie Waterman is in the House. From the full moon to Lilias Folan’s Feather Pipe Ranch, this week we discuss how Marjorie found the courage - despite the intimidation factor of the stereotyped image she had of leotard-clad young women standing on their heads - to seek out and find a Beginner’s Yoga class to help on her recovery journey while dealing with the grief of her husband’s passing. Marjorie’s favorite pose is Moon Pose because of the rising sensation she feels when practicing it, which she says, “feels sacred and puts us in touch with our ancestors.” Oh, and she was born in a blizzard!
(August 2025)
This week I have Amy Nachman in the House. This woman is a powerhouse and a globetrotter. She will show up on camera in Arizona one week and Kathmandu the next. I cannot keep track of her, thus the moniker “Lil’ Stinker.” She saved my life seven years ago by badgering me into having a mammogram. Full of thoughtful pauses, we dive deep into conversation this week about what Yoga practice means as a wholistic foundation for our lives. Amy’s favorite pose is Tree Pose, which she refers to in this podcast episode as simply “Tree,” which might make a listener who is not savvy to the Yoga pose names think that she is talking about flora. This is exactly why I gave her the nickname Lil’ Stinker.
(September 2025)
Kathy Bass is in the House this week. Kathy first came to Bhadra Yoga studio in search of peace and solace during the emotional aftermath following the 2016 election. Grab a cup of cream tea as we discuss how the word “no” is a complete sentence, how we handle emotional triggers in a positive way with physical modalities like Yoga practice, swimming, or ballet and modern dance - Kathy’s love since the age of nine. We also pick up a passionate thread about the heated towel racks in the UK and wonder why Americans (and Canadians) have not latched on to this wonderous invention. Always ahead of the music in her modern dance class, she was given the nickname “Turbo.” I like to call her “Kathy B.”
Playlist: Fall 2025
Love & Blessings,
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