Tell us about yourself, Leslie.
Been teaching yoga for almost 30 years which makes me sound kind of old! However, as my practice deepens, I see the layers of subtlety. I love helping folks feel better in their body and mind and pointing them to the deeper layers. I have been doing a deep dive into the "death positivity" movement for the last few years and also help folks have a more conscious death.
What is your favorite movie, book, song or artist/artwork?
I hate this question! There are SO many favorites. In the past year some stand out books were: 4000 Weeks by Oliver Burkeman, Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller, How We Live is How We Die by Pema Chondron. Best movie of late is My Old Ass. Poignant, funny, meaningful. My favorite painter is Agnes Martin. Her paintings are meditation on the canvas.
What do you love the most about practicing yoga?
Discovering there are always more layers to explore
What is something you love about teaching yoga?
Taking folks on a journey. Planning a theme, a good sequence and a sense of humor, I like the sense that we are all going somewhere in this practice, together.
Favorite Yoga pose?
Handstand
What is your least favorite yoga pose?
Parvritta ArdhaChandrasana but I still like to do it. It is most challenging.
What is your favorite place to visit OR a place you'd like to go someday?
I love being in nature and most favorite in a redwood forest. The silence is deafening.
What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
That I get sore! Whenever I mention this in class students say, YOU get sore? As if being a yoga teacher is an inoculation. I remind them when I am asking a lot of them that I too have a teacher.
What is your favorite quote, or your favorite piece of advice?
Be kind.
What else would you like our community to know about you?
That I really believe my many many years of yoga practice have made me a better person in a multitude of ways. Presence, subtle awareness, that those of us that have more have an obligation to give back (just to name a few).
