Spirituality & Motherhood: Interview with Dana A.Smith of Spiritual Essence Yoga

Transcript of Interview with Dana Smith of Spiritual Essence Yoga

Jeannette: [00:00:00] Peace and innumerable blessings. My name is Jeanette Lancien and welcome, welcome welcome to the spirituality and motherhood podcast, where we're going to explore different ways of honoring your spiritual path, your spiritual gifts and your divine connection all while being a mama. My intention here is to support your spiritual path, your divine connection and your gifts, by sharing  the wisdom of other mothers who are on the path

[00:00:23] like you. I come to this podcast. As a mother of two boys ages, four and six, a psychic a root worker, a Hoodoo, a tree talker. And an herbalist, I'm also an entrepreneur. I run a website called simple weekly ritual where offer intuitive wisdom and simple ritual to support you and your family and work working

[00:00:49]full and new moon energy. Let's dig on in here. So for this episode, um, I did a wonderful well I was excited about this interview. It's full of goodness. It's full of richness. I interviewed Dana a Smith of spiritual essence yoga. If you want to check out her website while you're listening, her website is spiritual essence yoga.com and it was very nutritious.

[00:01:18] Interview. It really, really was. I feel like I learned a lot and was inspired a lot and was reminded that, um, spirituality does not necessarily have to be big and complex.  You know, you can also have a really simple easy practice. And, um, the simplicity is not a bad thing. It's good for it to be accessible to you when ever you need it. And I was also reminded that practice, practice, practice, practice so necessary. So I hope this interview is, you know, it was a blessing to you cause such a blessing to me to do it. But before we get into the blessing, I'm going to offer some intuitive wisdom and a simple practice to support you in kind of like grounding what she said. This practice is very much, um, inspired by her. It was taken from what she said . Anyway, let's, let's get on into this intuitive wisdom, this simple ritual. Alright

Intuitive Wisdom

[00:02:16]All right, so here we go. For intuitive wisdom is as follows at this space and time, we are all still changing and, and there are so many moving pieces on the board. And as things continue to evolve, as things continue to shift, things continue to move it's important that we learn to move from a space of divine harmony rather than a space of, I have to

[00:02:54] or I need to, there is a difference even when you're moving from, I have to, and I need to, and divine put that there. It just feels different, right? There's a difference between push that is divinely, ordained, and divine working through you in a push that is egoic, right. Things fit and come together in a different space.

[00:03:19] And what I feel, what I've been instructed to say is that we are asked to move from a much more divine space, a space that allows the divine to unfold and to flow through us, even though sometimes that may fit may not fit even though sometimes that may be challenging, even though it may cause us to stand up and let some things go and, you know, push, you know, may not necessarily be

[00:03:50] easy, but it's important that we flow from the space, right? Because again, like there is a divine hand organizing everything. And the more we allow this to divine hand, knowing that the divine hand it is like essentially us to unfold through us, the easier things kind of just come together. Or maybe just the more beautifully things come together.

Simple Ritual

[00:04:17] So to support you in that the ritual, the practice to support you in that is coming with in at least  , three times a day, just checking in with a  loving, compassionate patient kind eye come within and just look. See what you're feeling, see how your emotions are, see what your body's doing. Slow down your breath.

[00:04:42] Just bring your awareness inwards and see what's going on. All right, because when you bring your awareness inwards and you see what's going on, it enables the divine to more easily flow through you. (Youngest son shows me dish) That is a beautiful dish Dear. Thank you for sharing with me. Please. Don't break that dish. I need it for plants.

[00:05:03] So when you allow the divine to flow through you. It, when you come within, it's, it's easier for the divine to flow through you.Right?. So at least three times a day, at least three times a day, allow your kids to adopt this practice too. It's not necessarily, you know, they may do it for a shorter period of time, but as discussed further on in the interview, this, this practice of encouraging children to take deep breaths to come within.

[00:05:33] To notice. Or just even to just slow down and breathe, keeps them rooted and connected with themselves being tethered to yourself in this world, which constantly wants to pull your attention and your awareness out of you to do whatever it wants you to do. That's powerful. That is so powerful.

[00:05:54] It's a blessing. So, you know, if you can get your kids to breathe with you, that's awesome. If not, that's cool too. Just, you know, also them see you just stop and pull your awareness in without watching you fly. That's helpful too. All right. So that's that. I can't wait to see you on the other side of this, this, um, this interview.

[00:06:18] I pray that it's a blessing for you to listen to, as it was such a blessing for me to see you on the other side. Oh yeah. Zoom was not messing with us. So please be patient with the audio it's there. But zoom was just, it was not our friend. Anyway, see you on the other side. Peace.

Interview with Dana

[00:06:46] Dana: [00:06:46] How are you?

[00:06:48] Jeannette: [00:06:48] How are you? I'm doing okay.

[00:06:53] Dana: [00:06:53] Good. I thought you were back in the States.

[00:06:56] Jeannette: [00:06:56] I know. Right? Cause we been struggling, um, with COVID it's been strange being in, just in, in the house and just thinking about all the things that I miss about America, but at the same time, watching America fall apart in a way where it's like, well,

[00:07:23] I don't know. And also realizing that, like, it's not just America, everybody's about to fall apart. So if everybody is about to fall apart, where, where can you be?  Where does the divine, where he wants you to be, where, where is the land happy to have you? Where is it a productive place for family to be?

[00:07:43] Dana: [00:07:43] Yeah. You know, the beauty of that, I believe that we can bring the light and good stuff to any part of the land that you know, and why is all this stuff happening now? It's always been happening. We're just privy to the information. People are just seeing it. And I don't think that the universe is doing this so that we can be triggered overnight.

[00:08:08] I think that the universe is about balance and the dark has prevailed for so long  all that dark stuff has to be revealed. So people are thinking that it's new, it's not new. The history of us being brought to this land, it's always been, I would say they try to dress up that pig, put some lipstick on and put a weave on it.

[00:08:30] It just, it doesn't work. So now you have people that have been privileged and they're riding the wave of supremacy. They're losing their little mind because they're, you know, they're not built for the fight. Bullies are never built for the fight.

[00:08:49] Jeannette: [00:08:49] And is that right there it's like, you don't know what to do with it.

[00:08:52] You don't know how to be in community and treat each other with kindness. Just the simple respect of I'm going to go out and behave in a certain manner, because I don't know if I'm sick and I don't know if you're sick, so let's find balance so we can be out together in harmony, but you know, let's respect each other's health and wellbeing, let's support each other's health and wellbeing.

[00:09:16] How can we be together and move forward?

[00:09:20] Dana: [00:09:20] And that's what it is. I think that, um, you said it, the word respect is so key because you can respect someone that you don't necessarily like or agree, but you respect that they have their own way and you let them be, you know, you let them figure this thing out and you figure your thing out without being so distracted and all this stuff.

[00:09:41] But it's a lot, it's a lot.

[00:09:45] Jeannette: [00:09:45] It is a lot. I mean, so I wonder like how are you maintaining center?

[00:09:54] Dana: [00:09:54] You know, I've never lost the center and the center is my guidepost. So I just, I guess just if to answer it, I maintain it by just remembering. And it's easy for me to remember. And for those of us that have been in a spiritual practice, you don't have to like blink in a week later.

[00:10:13] Like what happened. The minute you get off center, you feel it like, Oop, hold on. Mindful moment. I had one today. I posted on Instagram because the ceiling tiles were falling off the studio and the ceiling is like 10 feet tall and I'm five foot three and I couldn't get the broom and stuff. I was like, Uh-Oh, this thing that is out of my control is pulling me off center.

[00:10:33] So I just sat down at a corner and I took a breath in and out. And I always tell my students and those that care to listen to the sound of my voice, always ask yourself, where's your power and where's your peace. So we know that we have the power to change things within ourselves. But the peace comes from knowing that

[00:10:53] Jeannette: [00:10:53] Yes. And it prevents you from stepping out your power too.

[00:11:01] I feel like that's something we're trying to figure out within COVID it's like, where is our power? What are we, what can we affect? What can't we do in here?

[00:11:11] Dana: [00:11:11] And, you know, when we realize that we have power for self-change and that self-change inspires other people to do their own self change. That's how we change the world by changing ourselves.

[00:11:22]And then we stopped having expectations of people that don't even understand what the work is, let alone do it.

[00:11:29] Jeannette: [00:11:29] Yes. Yes. I'm so excited. So excited. So exciting to talk to you. So how did you find yoga? How did yoga find you.

[00:11:44] Dana: [00:11:44] Well, yoga found me in 2001, I was pregnant with my first child. Who's like 19 and it's so awesome because she works for me and she teaches for me.

[00:11:54] And she's just an awesome person. I was pregnant when 911 happened. And like all of this stress, you know, all of this stress and I never knew how to handle stress. And my doctor said, well, you're going to have to figure it out because you're pregnant and it's no longer just about you. So I complained around the office and I'd have to be very honest that I was in the complain game.

[00:12:17] Very, very deep. And a coworker she suggested I try yoga. And I was very hesitant because back in 2001, I didn't see any representation. And I was very hesitant to do it because of what I saw was scary. It was unfamiliar, but finally got over myself and started with the pranayam. And growing up with asthma, I was like, Oh my gosh, I can direct my breath.

[00:12:45] Like I need to pay attention to my breath because this is a wonderful feeling. So I started with that and then it grew after I gave birth and I just felt so good. I wanted to share it with other people.

[00:12:58] Jeannette: [00:12:58] Beautiful. So, okay. I'm curious for you how yoga has helped develop like your own spirituality and your own spiritual gifts, because I read somewhere that you were an intuitive counselor.

[00:13:13] Dana: [00:13:13] Yes, I do. I can step into other realms and see other things and it's okay. It's a beautiful place to be. So yoga was the catalyst for me, understanding the energy system and the way that our energy affects one another and then also that life, isn't just what we see with the physical eye. Like there's so much more.

[00:13:35] And in order to access that you have to get quiet. You have to get quiet. So yoga was the catalyst for me to understand that I was living too distracted. And then when I realized that my body was holding the trauma, the stress and all of this, I learned how to release all of that , and then I took a step back and I looked at the world and I was like, There's more to this world that I knew, like I could feel people's energy and I couldn't explain it.

[00:14:05] I'm like, Oh my gosh, I can feel your energy. I can feel the trees breathing. And you know, my family thought it meant we still think I'm crazy. Um, you know, but the yoga, it heightened my awareness, it heightened my awareness of the things that are all around.  I absolutely love it. And I use the word intuitive counselor because you know, that title, it feels safer for many people that are just stepping into this realm.

[00:14:38]Jeannette: [00:14:38] So what is it, what is, I guess, yoga and spirituality given you to support you in your path as a mother?

[00:14:46]Dana: [00:14:46] Oh, thanks. This is a great question. Great question. And I am so excited to be able to share, because I have a 19 year old, a nine year old and a four year old. I've had a child in every major, decade in my life.

[00:14:59] And now in my forties. Now what my yoga and spirituality help me do this connect to my children on a very deep, I call it like a cellular level where it does not feel good for me to give them those mantras that was given to me do, as I say, not as I do, I'm able to see them as human beings instead of, you know, children in a sense that we still see children that they should be seen and not heard.

[00:15:28] So I am able, because of my spiritual practice, I'm able to hear them. I'm able to understand their language and I'm able to guide them in such a way that it doesn't demean them. It doesn't put them down. It doesn't gas light them. I'm glad that this term has come up in recent years. You know, I said, you know, I cannot get mad at you for doing this thing because I've not sufficiently taught you how to do this thing..

[00:15:57] So teach.

[00:15:59] Jeannette: [00:15:59] Yes. So when it's in essence, it's like kind of cleared sort of, um, like, um, like the boxes in the fog around your children. So you can kind of see them,

[00:16:12] Dana: [00:16:12] see them for where they are. And it's also helped me to stop expectations of them based on what I wish I would have done or what I think I would have done.

[00:16:25] I didn't realize that that was part of my rearing that you should do this because I did it, or I never did it. And that should have been done. So step away from that, especially with my 19 year old, I said she got the hardest part of me because I was in transition when I had her, I was learning all of this stuff.

[00:16:45] So I had one foot in the old school mentality and one foot, you know, growing spiritually. So she got a lot of the rough edges of me, but I'm glad that now she's a young adult that I get to, you know, share with her so she can understand this is where I was. And I do apologize , can grow this relationship where she is and she cultivates forgiveness for me.

[00:17:10] And I cultivate this for myself, so that now when she's ready to have children, she's in slate. And she's got this understanding that my child is going to teach me as much as I'm going to teach them be open.

[00:17:27] Jeannette: [00:17:27] Hmm. That's balanced. And that's a very beautiful, so like the kind of, I guess, thinking back off that, and you, you mentioned having children and each decade of your life, how has each child shifted or like changed your relationship to spirit because  it seems like children bring gifts to you

[00:17:50] Dana: [00:17:50] So my oldest Brooke, she was the catalyst to my life, to my change formation. And I enjoy telling people that she was the catalyst. If it weren't for her, I would have many more life cycles to come back until I got it.

[00:18:09] And then Henry, he's a Virgo and I'm a Taurus. So he's taught me grounding where I realized that one of my main distractions was being very busy. And I didn't realize that I had anxiety, you know, part of my practice would be so I can calm down, but I didn't understand that that was anxiety.

[00:18:29] And that, that was a real thing. Because I was never taught that, Hey, here's some things that the mind does and how the body reacts. I didn't know that my constant movement was active anxiety. So he taught me how to sit still, because he's just a very chill kid. It's like, you know, pick up your toys and do this and he's like, he's going to get to it.

[00:18:51] So I'm like, Oh, so let me just relax. All will be well, things will get done. And Thaddeus is a Sagittarius. He's taught me to own my power. He is a powerful force in this home. He is the youngest, but he runs things. He is unapologetically who he is and I admire that. So he encourages me just be in my power and be unapologetic about it.

[00:19:22] And it's, funny because they brought me the lesson that I needed at that time

[00:19:30] Jeannette: [00:19:30] in all of this, because you were having a spiritual practice that allowed you to see the children as they are and receive them, so they can give you their gift and then go out in the world and give their gifts unencumbered by the expectations. And like the things, sometimes I feel like adults, we have, we end up processing because our parents laid on us that we didn't necessarily know better.

[00:19:53] That is so powerful.

[00:19:54] Dana: [00:19:54] Yeah. Yeah. My spiritual practice has been key in not only my trans formation, but me maintaining and continuing to grow. So some people may think that spiritual practice and it's going to get to this thing, to this Buddhahood to this enlightenment. And that's it. No, you have to maintain it.

[00:20:17] So you don't just get there and you're enlightenment, that's it, it's a practice. You have to maintain it. So my practice, it keeps me honest. It keeps me consistent It's not hard either. It's not hard.

[00:20:36] Jeannette: [00:20:36] Do you  feel like there is a different sort of practice when you're in motherhood versus like the practice you would do as like, a young woman who's single or young woman who's dating, or like an older woman who's children who are out the house and they have different constraints.

[00:20:54]Dana: [00:20:54] If you think about it, if your spiritual practice is one that is, that is complete for you, it touches every aspect of your life.

[00:21:04] No matter where you are, it touches your life at work. It touches a single life touches the married life, which has those that have children. those that don't your spiritual practices about you and not what you're doing for other people. It's about getting you where you're open. If that makes sense.

[00:21:23] Jeannette: [00:21:23] Yes. So, where have you drawn, like inspiration for your own spiritual practices to kind of take care of you and keep you open and grounded and centered?

[00:21:35] Dana: [00:21:35] So I will say that I'm just like the daughter of the earth that I, um, I respect different religions and different practices, or what I've settled down into is the Buddhist practice of Zen meditation. Just sitting Vipassana, sitting with oneself. And, boy, if anyone listening, if you haven't taken a moment to sit with yourself, I mean  truly sit with yourself.

[00:21:59] It's an amazing thing. It's an amazing thing. I remember when I first got into the practice of just sitting still and all of these thoughts, I'm like who--woman, all these thoughts, what is going on,

[00:22:16]and I was raised Christian, so I definitely honor, the things, the foundation that my parents built for me in that, but my daily spiritual practice, the one that I don't divert from is the, the Buddhist meditation. It's the sitting with myself. It is to just really look and assess where I am, because how can we make changes in our life if we don't know if we don't know what's going on?

[00:22:40] Jeannette: [00:22:40] Yes. Yes. So how did you learn about, um, this meditative practice?

[00:22:48] Dana: [00:22:48] So there are a few groups in my area and this was well, well before the pandemic introduced me initially to Nishram  Buddhism, and I believe as part of the Mahayana Buddhist, I realized, and I'm going to admit I'm a severe introvert. So I absolutely love and enjoy being by myself. I can't, you know, I love, I love groups too, but I find that greatest insight from being alone. So I started to do self study. I got books and I love Thich Nhat Hanh in his approach to meditation and the practice.

[00:23:26] So I got books and I began to study myself and I realized that initially I was over-complicating my spiritual practice and started to really like, be more simplistic. Well, you know, the, the bells and whistles and you don't need certain things, just be with yourself. It's good.

[00:23:51] Jeannette: [00:23:51] Wow. Like, that's amazing.

[00:23:53] There was a thought that came up, earlier today about like, you know, spirituality is just being, not necessarily all these things that we feel like we have to do to like either look spiritual  it's just about your connection with yourself and the Divine and kind of just being in that sort of space and staying there as much as possible.

[00:24:17] Dana: [00:24:17] Yes. Yes. And I find that that's the most amazing part for me that it is literally come as you are be who you are and be willing to explore that. So, yeah, it is amazing. It's like, you don't need the bells and whistles. Oh, that's so great.

[00:24:38] Jeannette: [00:24:38] That's so comforting and also accessible. Sometimes things don't feel accessible.

[00:24:44] Like there's always like these high barriers or you're just not like enough . It's like, no, I can just come and observe.

[00:24:53] Dana: [00:24:53] Yeah. And I think the one thing, um, definitely ask questions, but ultimately your spirit, your soul knows your path. There's no hard way.

[00:25:06] There's no one right way. Just get still and just decide for yourself what works and be willing to explore a bunch of different things before you settle into that one thing.

[00:25:19] Jeannette: [00:25:19] I love it. I love it. So in terms of giving advice to mothers about something that they can do. To  increase their own spiritual connection with themselves. Like what would you say? What would advice would you give?

[00:25:38]Dana: [00:25:38] My advice is to take that time for yourself, unapologetically, don't try and makeup for it and know that that is your time. You know, ideally it would be the same time every day, but at least every day, you're carving out some quiet time for yourself.

[00:26:00] And you don't feel about that because I think as mothers, we want to always be available. And when we take time for ourselves, sometimes it feels selfish, but it's not. So to build your spiritual practice, just carve that time out for yourself every day. If it can be the same time every day. Great. It could be like the most important appointment on your schedule.

[00:26:25] But if it needs to fluctuate, let it fluctuate with do set that time each day and don't feel bad about it. Don't feel bad about it in you know  dishes may not get done. Kids may be eating cereal for dinner or for lunch, but that's okay. But we need that time because when we take that time for ourselves, our children benefit, and then they learn that they've learn it.

[00:26:54] Jeannette: [00:26:54] Yeah. They do need to learn that because I think it's really easy in, especially in Western society to kind of forget yourself, get so caught up in doing in all these other things that you kind of get that you're more than been doing more than buying within all these things.

[00:27:14]Dana: [00:27:14] And you know, the hardest time for me to take was when I was nursing, my children.

[00:27:20] And I was like, always be like right there. Don't even let it cry, get out and let me feed you. But I realized that it was more important for me to do that nursing because they are sharing of my energy in that way. And if I am feeling like I'm running on fumes or I'm feeling, if I'm not connected to myself, I can't connect to my children.

[00:27:43] So really very, very important. Even if it's just 10 minutes, 10 minutes can be 10 minutes and the spiritual practice can look like I am a mother, but I am much more than a mother. I'm a wife, if you are a wife, but I'm much more than a wife who I am as divine, who I am is whole.

[00:28:03] Jeannette: [00:28:03] Yes. We forget that. And it feels like it's so integral to who we are, but it's so easy to get lost and forget. And being able to sit in that reminds our kids, that they are divine too. So whatever they're coming up against, they're going to be fine. Cause they are Divine.,

[00:28:24] Dana: [00:28:24] They have such strength. Yes. They have such strength.

[00:28:28] And I see this, um, with the boys that they've got such confidence and I'm looking like, Oh no, I'd never had this growing up, but it's because I teach them how to affirm themselves. And they take, their little breaks is what we call them. But when you know yourself and when you're connecting, when your children see that, no one can tell them anything.

[00:28:56] No one can tell them anything.

[00:29:00] Jeannette: [00:29:00] I feel so inspired. It's so beautiful. Cause that's I, that's an ideal gift to give your child to make sure that they're connected to themselves. And to give them the tools to remain connected to themselves, and to  , have them watch you always come back to yourself rather than kind of float off into everything.

[00:29:21]So what does your practice have been like?

[00:29:23] Dana: [00:29:23] And, you know, I So I opened a second studio, so we had started the process in November, 2019, and everything was supposed to kind of be settled up by February, but 2020 happened. And I, I do have two studios now, so there's a lot that I'm managing. So my spiritual practice has to be more than just my morning routine.

[00:29:50] It has to be like today when the ceiling tiles are falling out, it's Nope. You're being stretched out of that center. Sit down, do your practice. So it's multiple times during the day, because if I allow myself to be pulled away from the center, it's going to snowball. It's going to carry me throughout that whole day.

[00:30:10] Then if I don't think to come to the practice before I go to sleep, I'm going to sleep on it. I'm going to have have weird wacky dreams. I'm going to wake up and I'm going to have to do heavy lifting when I wake up. So I do it several times a day.

[00:30:27] Jeannette: [00:30:27] Oh, that makes sense though. It's like, you know, you eat several times a day, so why don't you come back and nourish yourself?

[00:30:38] It makes sense. I can dig it because also what you were saying about sleeping and energetic hygiene of not wrestling and tussling with stuff that, you know, may not need you to wrestle and tussle with . Have you been able to like sit with your kids or encourage your kids to sit with themselves?

[00:30:58] Do they have any interest?

[00:31:01] Dana: [00:31:01] Oh, they do. So , you know, it just changes the amount of time changes with the child. My daughter actually teaches meditation at the studio and my nine year old takes every day virtual school now. So before he logs on, he'll take a few moments. And even with the four year old sitting now it's maybe 30 seconds, but it's least it is 30 seconds.

[00:31:24] He'll sit still. And we do every day, we. So each of them getting still and getting quiet.

[00:31:33] Jeannette: [00:31:33] That's beautiful. I love the 30 seconds .It seems really doable, especially if it's like, just to sit with yourself breathe and see if anything comes up.

[00:31:42] Dana: [00:31:42] Yeah. And that's all you need because it will grow from there. So

[00:31:49]Jeannette: [00:31:49]  So you're teaching online a little bit? Are you?.

[00:31:53] Dana: [00:31:53] A lot bit. So everything that I do is available online and we made this shift. Um, the day after a lockdown, I intuitively spirit was saying something is coming, be prepared, be prepared to go virtual. And I was always opposed to virtual because I love people.

[00:32:15] I love sitting with people sharing that energy in the same space, but I had to pivot. So since March, 2020, everything has been virtual. It took about a year to get my rhythm and flow with making sure that those that were virtual really felt,  the energy of still being present in studio.

[00:32:40] Jeannette: [00:32:40] Yeah.

[00:32:41] Dana: [00:32:41] We've been doing it and it's, it's, it's improved greatly since 2020 and it's here to stay. It's here to stay. You know, there's always going to be that virtual influence and it does not have to take anything away from you .

[00:32:59] Jeannette: [00:32:59] Yes, it allows things to expand . You know wherever people are , you have an opportunity to resonate more deeply with your practice and the teacher. And there's more options in there ever were..

[00:33:13] Dana: [00:33:13] That's what it is. And we can utilize this for good. I know that there's some that don't trust the virtual space or you know we all have feelings about it, but just like with social media, we can use it. We can shift it, you know, for good.

[00:33:33] Jeannette: [00:33:33] Yeah, it's definitely not going away because we got to get used to it.

[00:33:38] Dana: [00:33:38] We do we do. .

[00:33:40] Jeannette: [00:33:40] So like, um, I'm going to back off that question, because there's a question about lineage that I wanted to ask you and the sense of like your own.

[00:33:51] Your own choices and how to, how you've parented you've mothered, your children. How, like, do you feel like it's made an, like a shift in your own lineage and what, what it means that your children will be passing down and leaving on earth?

[00:34:08] Dana: [00:34:08] Most definitely. I have, um, a podcast that I need to start.

[00:34:13]I will be, you know, I hit you up, it's called a Yogi's round table healing back to heal forward. So it's the ideal of Sankofa going back to get it that I know that my, my healing is healing our generation seven years back, and then I'm healing our generation seven years forward. So this works, now it does heal the lineage.

[00:34:38] It heals the lineage and it's, it is a beautiful. Overwhelming, but powerful place to be,

[00:34:49] Jeannette: [00:34:49] but you wear it with such grace, though. Grace and power, but also like a consciousness of what the power is. Because like when I kind of, when I kind of feel, and I look into the future, I, I think about what things that I can make sure that, what tools I can make sure that the children have in their little arsenal to live life and live life in peace, live life in  harmony and love and integrity.

[00:35:20] And like, I think about the things that you've said in the sense of being able to be fully present for your children, to like support them in being who they are, giving them tools of just being able to sit with themselves like that, that is healing because they'll be in their body and they'll be able to understand, okay, well, this isn't mine.

[00:35:40] I don't have to do this.

[00:35:42] Dana: [00:35:42] Right. Right. And it protects them from someone directing them out of their body, into their own, you know, into concepts that are really not in alignment with who they are. So they'll be able to spot this and they won't be vulnerable to being taken paths that aren't really meant for them,

[00:36:09] Jeannette: [00:36:09] which is really important because I feel like there's this loss of, um, well, not necessarily loss of soul, a loss of self, but kind of a disconnect where it's easy to get kind of off track. And it's like this desire, this feeling that, you know, searching for something, searching for something. So you just grab anything and it can be very detrimental.

[00:36:31] And you don't realize when you grab the wrong thing until you get some obligations in terms of some things and. Well, if you could back out, but there's going to be some problems with all this. And it's like, well.. I was just looking for home.

[00:36:48] Dana: [00:36:48] and that's exactly it. That's right.

[00:36:55]Jeannette: [00:36:55] I really love the fact that you, your, your path very much opened up with your first pregnancy, because that feels very much, there's something about that. The first child that just kind of cracks things open in a way, you could never do it by yourself. .

[00:37:16] Dana: [00:37:16] Yes, yes, yes. And having a child helped me to see how much my energy influences those around me, help me stop complaining about who someone is or isn't get yourself right .

[00:37:36] Jeannette: [00:37:36] So like your first child very much brought you into yourself and helped you. She, she helped you just kind of pull it in and pull it down

[00:37:45] Dana: [00:37:45] completely, completely, because she was a beautiful surprise. I call it a sorta kind of relationship, nothing really deep. And you know, this pregnancy happened and I was just like, what is, but the beauty and the direction that this pregnancy has given to me, it's just it's life changing.

[00:38:12] So I said, okay, creator needed me to have that, something that was life-changing because I honestly think there's nothing else that would have shaken me into this place that I am now or shaken me even thinking that there was anything that needed to be changed in my life. Stress was stress I was always on the grind.

[00:38:36]I thought that that was life. So I needed something, a major thing and being pregnant, as you know, major thing.,

[00:38:45] So we began to think, okay, what do I need to do to be ready for? And then your children teach you how to parent them. .

[00:38:55]Jeannette: [00:38:55] So COVID. Huh? What was that like for you?

[00:39:01] Dana: [00:39:01] It was really frustrating cause I had it in January and the doctor wasn't they weren't testing for it until about like late February, early March. And I know it was so because my asthma came back, my middle child had pneumonia and my youngest child has asthma like me. So we're all breathe. I'm in the bed thinking I'm going to die and all of those symptoms.

[00:39:28] Like once you have it, there's this honeymoon period where you feel fine. And then the weight of what happened to your system comes back. So when December I'm like, what is going on? Well, the doctor said that, you know, you just be mindful of your system because the virus breaks your system down.

[00:39:48] And it's something that you have to constantly be aware of. I have a pump again, and we're just really, really mindful, but it was, it was really, really hard. It was really I mean, I'm thankful to have had my spiritual practice but it was, it was like one of the scariest things in my life I honestly thought I wasn't  going to be here.

[00:40:08] But spirit was like, nope, you're going to be all right. This is just you, you got to sit down and you have to, you know, again, be one with yourself. So I did Reiki and I did all of my healing things, crystals to help move the sickness through and out and help with my breathing. So it was much, better, much, much better, but.

[00:40:30] It was the scariest thing. And, um, you know, there's people that really don't see the weight of it because they might consider themselves healthy. I was extremely healthy myself and it's still, it took me down to the studs on the house,

[00:40:50]Jeannette: [00:40:50] I am thankful you had a practice to keep yourself together because I could imagine if your mind would have gone off it would have been even harder.

[00:41:03] Dana: [00:41:03] Yeah. And then having the practice, my daughter and husband, they got a little sick, so some respiratory stuff, but they weren't as sick as the boys and me. Uh, but I stayed kind of calm and focused which helped them to take care of us during that time.

[00:41:23] Jeannette: [00:41:23] Which is  like a whole conversation altogether around remaining calm and focused, especially, especially as a woman, and the importance of finding that space to kind of be that way.

[00:41:38] Dana: [00:41:38] Yeah. Yeah.

[00:41:42] Jeannette: [00:41:42] Wow. Talking to you reminds me that practice is everything.

[00:41:47]Dana: [00:41:47] It is everything. It is everything. And like we were saying, make it simple. Simple doesn't mean it's less impactful. Means it's available.

[00:42:03] Jeannette: [00:42:03] Cause you gone need it several times a day, several times a day, sometimes a day to come back to that, like spiritual nourishment and then just go out to whatever.

[00:42:16] Also needs to be done.

[00:42:17] Dana: [00:42:17] You gotta do.

[00:42:21]Jeannette: [00:42:21] It felt like the lineage question was very important because like you were talking back and forth.

[00:42:30] Dana: [00:42:30] Yeah. So as we do this practice, we're not just healing ourselves. We are healing the lineage. We really are.

[00:42:41] The practice can be so simple because we just want to reach back.

[00:42:44] We want to connect, and there's certain people that will have to do rituals to get that connection. Their blood runs through you. So as you heal yourself, you are healing them. And within that practice comes forgiveness because of, um, my pain points were things that I was taught for survival and those survival tools are really, um, it created some weakness.

[00:43:15] It did because those tools were just built out of their time. And that's one thing again, with relating to my children, the same comes down. We talked earlier about, you know, things, the darkness, this being revealed, but we have to understand that the tools have to look different. So I'm making sure that I understand which tools to teach children and as I teach and as I heal and as I give things, and as I forgive, my ancestors are benefiting from it.

[00:43:51]Jeannette: [00:43:51] Yes. Yes. We're all benefiting from it

[00:44:00] because we're all together, especially in this virtual world.

[00:44:06]Dana: [00:44:06] And I can't remember which yogi said it. That's the problem that plagues humanity is the fact that we think we're separate.

[00:44:15] Jeannette: [00:44:15] It's a funny thought to think about like how we would all treat ourselves and each other. If we knew that we were really, we could actually feel the connection from the heart and from the root that kind of came all together. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:44:30] Dana: [00:44:30] I think that's where we come in, that we learn this and we embody this and we're courageous enough to share it with those that need it, want it, and  continue to pass it on.

[00:44:45] So I think that's where we come in and is with us doing the work, being brave enough to share the work and that's sharing our vulnerability. sharing stuff that we've gone through. And heal through, that's what we do. And the only way that we'll have enough steam is if we stayed or our daily practice, therefore feeding ourselves spiritually each and every day.

[00:45:12] Jeannette: [00:45:12] Yes. to that. But yeah, thank you so much for your time.

[00:45:24] This was a blessing. Wow. Very inspired though. Cause like, I, I, you know, I've always been inspired by you in the times that we have connected. I've always like, felt like it was like a blessing, like a little golden dust on my day of things to think about and to carry forward. So thank you for being that.

[00:45:50] Dana: [00:45:50] Oh, thank you. Thank you. You too. Thank you. A pleasure. And honor, I always say that because I really truly feel and hope that you feel those words. Pleasure and an honor.

Closing

[00:46:06]Jeannette: [00:46:06] I know, right. All you need to do is maintain your practice and be open to that practice needing to shift sometimes you need to deepen, but just maintain your practice. Keep on coming back over and over and over and over again. And that's where the blessing lies,

[00:46:29] the simplicity and the power. I was very nourished by this interview. So I pray you were too. It was such a blessing for me to be able to sit with Dana. So if you want to check Dana out, check her out at spiritual essence, yoga.com. She teaches classes, meditation. She even does teacher training. So all of, her offerings are there on spirit, spiritual essence, yoga.

[00:46:57] Dot com and wherever you are, you could access her. That is the blessing of this space in this time. So please go support Dana. She is really amazing. And again, thank you for being here and supporting me. Feel free to, you know, please share this podcast with other people with other mothers and please like subscribe, write a nice review wherever you're at.

[00:47:22] So other people can get in on this good stuff of listening to my children, yell outside.

[00:47:30] All right. That's that I look forward to connecting with you again soon. Stay blessed. Peace.