We have passed the Summer Solstice. I watched the sunrise on the 21st June with my dog on Burton Bradstock beach and did some walking meditation. In the afternoon I met a friend at The Kingston Russel Stone Circle. Prehistoric stone rows, stone circles and standing stones are littered across the West Country. If you can get to them, they make a nice pilgrimage for midsummer celebrations. Being in their presence not only makes you wonder what our ancestors felt and did during solstice festivities, but the considered placement and their ability to withstand millennia of change can be very inspiring.
These moments make us stand back from our daily routines.
There is a sense of time standing still. This gives us time to pause and examine our lives; both reflecting back and looking forward to what we want to manifest.
This can be a relief when our lives are otherwise in a state of constant busyness.
Like nature we must learn when to expel our energy in the act of creation and when to rest and be still.
While the turning of the year back into the dark half half can feel a little sad, for some it can be a relief to step away from the long hours of light and the frenetic pace of life. There is a sense of the calm returning. Although the days are getting shorter, there is plenty of summer still head of us. Many weeks ahead of fun, relaxation, reading books, sunshine, good food, hanging out with friends and family, and enjoying nature, the sea, and all that our beautiful countryside has to offer.
Summer is a great time to do work on deeper backbends, as we feel flexible with the hot weather and active with the long hours of sunlight.
- Backbends are invigorating and strengthening.
- They stretch the quads and hip flexors and help open up the shoulders and chest, an area where lots of us hold tension.
- They build strength and power in the legs, arms and back muscles.
- By increasing mobility and awareness of the spine, backbends improve posture and can help to alleviate some kinds of back and neck pain.
As backbends open the chest and upper body they stimulate the Heart chakra (Anahata) allowing us to open more fully in our lives too; to our emotions, experiences and in our relationships.
Have a wonderful Summer enjoy all that it offers, and enjoy all that we have on offer too.
There will be no newsletter in August so both July and August workshops and course dates are below. As ever, the details are below and in the calendar – please check it!
With best wishes from Sharon and all the teachers and therapists at Dorchester Yoga and Therapy Centre
Hengefest 2023
Home of Hillforts & Henges is an exciting event from 28th to 30th July that will celebrate Dorchester’s neolithic, bronze and iron age landscape, rich in earthworks and the people that have lived here for over 6,000 years.
We are taking part in the final day of the Hengefest festival again this year in Maumbury Rings. We will be offering free classes throughout the day:
- 10.00 am: Meditation with Sharon Cox-Button
- 10.45am: Gong Bath with Bex Leonard
- 11.30am: Tai Chi with Tim Button
- 12.15pm: Tuning Forks with Nicki Greenham
- 1.00pm: Gentle Yoga with Helen Heger
- 1.45pm: Tai Chi with Tim Button
- 2.30pm: Gentle Yoga with Kim Jones
- 3.15pm: Tuning Forks with Nicki Greenham
Classes, Courses and Workshops: July and August
~ ~ July ~ ~
Mixed Ability Vinyasa Thursdays with Toni Franklin
- Thursdays 6.00 – 7.00pm
- More about Mixed Ability Vinyasa Thursdays with Toni Franklin
Breathing and Yoga Nidra with Sharon Cox-Button
- Friday 7th 6.30 – 7.30pm
- More about Breathing and Yoga Nidra
Venture into Alignment with Ruth Mitchell and Ness Sherry
- Saturday 8th 10.00am – 12.30pm
- More about Venture into Alignment
Tuning Forks for Stress Relief with Nicki Greenham
- Thursday 13th 7.45 – 9.15pm
- More about Tuning Forks for Stress Relief with Nicki Greenham
Restorative Yoga for Deep Rest with Tracey Boast
- Sunday 16th 10.00am – 12.00pm
- More about Restorative Yoga for Deep Rest
Gong Bath – Arianna Purna Udini
- Sunday 16th 10.30am – 12.00pm
- More about Gong Bath
Yin Yoga with Toni Franklin
- Friday 28th 6.00 – 7.30pm
- More about Yin Yoga
Reiki Share with Wrio Russell
- Saturday 29th 2.00 – 3.30pm
- More about Reiki Share
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali with Sarah Ryan
- Saturday 29th 10.45am – 12.15pm
- More about Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
~ ~ August ~ ~
Summer Iyengar Yoga Workshop with Hannah Lovegrove
- Saturday 19th 9.30 – 11.30am
- More about Summer Iyengar Yoga Workshop
Yin Yoga Workshop with Chrissie Haskett
- Sunday 20th 2.30 – 5.00pm
- More about Yin Yoga Workshop
Yin Yoga with Toni Franklin
- Friday 25th 6.00 – 7.30pm
- More about Yin Yoga