The crisp, clear night was so cold you could see your breath. As the guests arrived, eager to snuggle up and defrost, there was a gentle buzz of light conversation floating in the ether of the mat and the table. The yoga mats were unrolled in front of the blazing fireplace, and we let the cracking embers and light guide us through our moving meditation.
There was a request for shoulder openers, likely from too much time spent crunched over a computer doing some last minute Christmas shopping. (Don't worry girl, we got you.) The group flowed through a creatively sequenced set of asanas and our bodies started to warm up. And, Karli and her elves were busy in the kitchen toasting up the homemade egg rolls.
We made our way down to our mats, turned off all the lights, and restored through the remainder of our practice by candles and the fading fire. Only two of Santa's helpers fell asleep in Savasana, but it's okay, you're still on the nice list this year (wink, wink). The snow started to come down around this part of the evening and continue for about the next hour. We feel this a beautiful acknowledgement from the universe that we are all exactly where we are supposed to be. Here, together, with each other.
And with a gentle massage of peppermint oil on to their temples, the yoga part of the night ended and the group flowed...From Mat To Table.
The kitchen was filled with sweet and savory aromas and the table had a spread large enough to feed an NFL football team (well maybe).
We toasted with a shot of healthy Elf Juice, ‘To all the good energy we can reflect on from this past year, let us manifest this same magic through the season.’ Just incase you are wondering, we patented the Elf Juice blend (kale, cucumber, mint, lemon and ginger). Thank you Roots Market for these delicious and fresh ingredients!
The group grazed at their own pace on a few appetizers. Edamame, spring shrimp rolls, fresh greens with homemade ginger dressing and a lot of sushi and sashimi. And yes, we even had a Crazy Elf sushi roll, complete with all the red and green sushi fixings, of course! No cookies for dessert this year, because the little helpers wanted Mochi. We had six different flavors (salted caramel, double chocolate, mocha coffee, strawberry, mango and pistachio) straight from Whole Foods Market.
December is about bringing people together. We shared in the magic and joy with a beautiful group last week. This positive energy exchange will undoubtably allow us to flow gently through the remainder of this holiday season.