It came from a set of photos taken by my friend Razi, who shoots my promotional yoga photographs. In my best moments I look like this.I am a yoga teacher and mother. I'm starting this blog because since becoming a mother I usually don't feel this relaxed and certainly don't look this thrilled to be alive or so well put together most of the time. I came up with an idea (I'm not claiming it's original.) to start a business that gives moms more opportunities to reclaim themselves ---both in identity, and personal growth. This idea has been percolating in my mind since I found another mother in Venice, CA, my old stomping grounds, who was teaching a yoga class out of her home with child care provided. Thank you Whitney!
I absolutely love being a mother. It has been the single most enriching thing I could have done with my life. My daughters are inspiring and amazing, and I am grateful for their sparkling little faces, their wisdom, their attentiveness, and all the soul touching and often hilarious things that they do that make my life shine. I am so proud of them I can hardly contain myself. I think they're positively the best people on earth. Can that be possible? I realize I'm slightly biased.
In any case, despite my absolute adoration for my daughters, I am a nasty, bitter mother (not to mention wife) if I don't get enough support. Without breaks from parenting, and some semblance of something meaningful to do out in the world, I become depressed, angry, tyrannical, and short tempered (to put it mildly). It took me a while to figure out how to balance parenting with the other things in my life with the first daughter. Then, just when I seemed to be getting it together, I went and had a second baby and promptly forgot everything I'd learned. I'm still no expert. I constantly deny myself time away from them when I need it, often putting housekeeping and work above reading a book, exercise, or taking a nap. It takes its toll. Bless you Husband.
So it occurred to me: there simply must be a place where mothers (dads, grandparents, and friends too) can go on isolated days alone with the kids. Someplace where there are people who want to play with the little monkeys...I mean cherubs...maybe even teach them something. I would pay a hefty price for this service if I could...at the same time...say... slip out of the room and do a few downward dogs next door. Maybe there would be a wonderful teacher there for me too--- a nurturing someone who knows what it's like to ride the wave of mothering for hours at a time. Someone who could guide me back to myself...my good self. I mean the patient, loving, intelligent mother with enough renewed attention to spend the rest of the afternoon creatively playing, cooking, feeding, and diapering those little wonders without wanting to scream (much). Perhaps after the class the kids will want to stay and play with the toys in the lobby for a while and I can have a cup of tea, lounge on the sofas, and chat with the other mothers.
This is what I and a couple of other brilliant women intend to create. We insist on opportunities for rest, self care, and education (for caregivers) without having to find a sitter or hit up our partners, or our parents. We want a place where the kids get to have fun too. We want a cafe with internet access and really engaging toys. We want there to be daily story-time , so we can check our email without staying up until 11PM. We want a cute little shop where we can find an organic toy for our friend's new baby and, at the same time, buy some breast pads and a thermometer. We have such big plans, and we're calling it Maitri which means being a good friend to yourself first, so that you can then offer friendship to others. Loving, kind, compassionate friendship. This blog is an outlet (and inlet) for our vision. This is for our ideas, process, challenges, and triumphs.
Here we go!
