![A Person Meditating on Snow from pexels.com/photo/a-person-meditating-on-snow-8722676](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2023-01/pexels-person-meditating-snow-8722676.jpg?itok=STf3GiFV)
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![Post with information about the yin yoga and sound healing classes](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-10/yin-yoga-and-sound-healing.png?itok=SZ4k2BaX)
About a year ago I started incorporating harmonium and chanting in my yoga classes. Those have become regular features at the beginning and end of my classes. Now I'm offering yoga classes with (live) sounds throughout.
![Matthew sitting under trees surrounded by people in a yoga class](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-10/arboretum-summer-solstice-retreat-square-2022.jpg?itok=MXA01ZE9)
On Thursday (October 20, 2022) at 6pm I will be teaching another free yoga class at the Minnesota Arboretum. Whether it's indoors or outdoors, an evening class or a day-long retreat, I always seem to enjoy teaching in the Arboretum. It feels beneficial.
As the years tick by and I continue to go deeper and deeper into yoga, I feel more focused than ever. I prioritize activities like volunteering to teach at the Arboretum and let go of other pursuits. Happiness increases.
![Bike leaning against a bench in a park](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-09/roll-at-carver.jpg?itok=6TK7nlly)
I'm not sure what to call it. Biking meditation. Bike yoga. Meditation in motion. Meditative biking. Maybe just mindfulness meditation while biking.
But I know something happens on my bike. Riding by myself, unplugged, no earbuds, outside in nature feels good. It relaxes me. It helps me let go of concerns about the future or past. If I have a problem I've been trying to solve, I often arrive home from a ride with a solution. Especially if I was not trying to solve the problem.
![Blue M with the words City of Minnetonka](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-07/city-of-minnetonka.jpeg?itok=vW11-3e8)
![produce surrounding text describing the details of the event](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-09/chanhassen-farmers-market-yoga.png?itok=7SM1Xdh6)
![Matthew meditating on a rock near a river](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-08/matthew-meditating-and-devils-kettle.jpg?itok=hs2q1atN)
Last weekend I attended a 4-day retreat put on by a nonprofit organization called onelove.yoga. The title of the retreat was: "Moments of Silence Yoga and Meditation Retreat to Grand Marais." As is often the case for me with meditation retreats, I left feeling nourished. Even better, I had a breakthrough. I realized why this weekend led to feelings of relaxation, renewal, and joy.
![Circle containing the worlds plasticfreejuly.org choose to refuse single-use plastic](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-07/plastic-free-july-choose-to-refuse.jpg?itok=_r1eIWtJ)
![Blue Roll-Up Yoga Mat on a White Background, for fitness and meditation, with the title "international day of yoga"](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2022-06/international-day-of-yoga.jpg?itok=3Mtro22K)
In 2014 the United Nations General Assembly declared June 21 the "International Day of Yoga" and it has been celebrated annually on June 21 ever since. Because so many people around the world embraced yoga to stay healthy and fight social isolation during the pandemic, the theme for 2022 is "yoga for humanity." How can you not like a day that is literally for humanity (the most abundant and widespread species of primate on the planet)?
To leave a comment about this episode or watch the video version, visit matthewtift.com/prettygood/40.
The theme music is "Maxixe" performed by Edson Lopes and the background music is "Organic Meditations One" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), both under CC BY 3.0.