{ sukha mukha } - yogi. photographer. austin, tx

Sukha; pleasant. It is a sanskrit word I have been mulling the last few days. With breath I bring this gentle, soft, happy quality into any place I locate the need. Replacing all dukha (suffering; misery) with joy. Challenges arise to teach me to appreciate the good, to witness my strength, and to grow up. As I assume this seat and watch the story of life in my head, I am grateful for so much. The beauty always outweighs the beastly. The transformational journey is exquisite, I look forward, but I will always cherish my memories that have brought me here, for truly they inspire me on to more.



Lie on your side and draw from the Mother endearing glances.
She strokes your hair, gently tucks each strand behind your ear.
Listen as she leans in close to whisper of your beauty and grace.
All her love pours down through word and settles into your heart as golden light.
Be held, allow embrace,
close your eyes and feel your skin prickle with magic.



Some days it's good to simply breathe, lay still and listen to my mind. Below all the chatter of my thoughts is the field of emotion, underneath that layer I find truth. Luminous and wonderful, sparkling reality of love, our universal connection. Stay the course my friends, feel the feelings, and breathe in the freedom.

{ the weary kind } - yogi. photographer. mama. austin, tx

I believe I can do most things.
I am stubborn, so stubborn.
Tenacious at times to a fault.
Humbled when I realize that I too require rest.



My eyes sting from tears unshed and slumber not had.
Emotions blend with exhaustion.
It wasn't such a big deal.
There have been worse.
A nap will mend me.



Sweat takes the place of slumber onward to workout.
Endorphins melt away hurt.
Working always to be fine.
Challenges never too big.
A run will smear out pain.



It always catches up to me no matter how fast or far.
Healing washes over the wound.
My work is to sit.
Terrified to witness Self.
A meditation will soothe all.

{ gentlemen } - yogi. photographer. woman. austin, tx.

A couple of years ago I posted about my dating life. In a very humorous review of some good, bad, and terribly exhausting experiences I pretty much chucked the whole idea. That lasted a while, actually two years. This year I have ventured out a few times on actual dates. My opinion is still similar to previous years, I just don't believe I'm cut out for casual dating, it's so much work and I have other ways I enjoy spending time. There is a lovely balance that must be struck and when it's found, being out with someone can be entirely enjoyable (I've recently learned).

What I have learned this time around is that there are actual gentlemen in the world. It's incredible to have never witnessed certain tiny gestures that make a massive impact on how I feel when I go out with someone. So, in advance, dudes...you're welcome for this list of things that you can easily begin to practice with your lover, dates, random women you want to impress......


1. Walk between her and the street/traffic. I swear this made me feel like a true princess, how am I almost 32 and no man had ever done this for me?! Guys, come on, it's so simple but so darn sweet and makes you look like a hero.

2. Pay. I know it is 2014, but honestly it's that good old fashioned care that makes it feel like a treat to be taken out. If I have to buy my own (and god forbid YOUR - this happens way more than I can believe) meal, I would rather save that money for things like yoga and gemstones. I feel pretty confident that most ladies would agree with me. I will offer to pay if I want to.

3. Be chivalrous. Open my door, pull out my chair, etc. If you aren't sure what that means, ask your significant other's dad...he will tell you how to treat his baby.

4. Communicate. Confirm plans, respond to calls/texts, even just to say "busy right now." It's disrespectful to assume that we don't need notice of changes in plans or time to adjust our schedule. Value my time, both in person and via phone. I am pretty low maintenance and spontaneous, however even I require some time to get ready, drive, park, arrange my day, etc. Just give it as much as you can and let's be honest you're on your phone all the time men, some of you even bring your phone into yoga (which is lame unless you're on call for work).

5. Make the plan. Ask for opinions, that's fine, but if you invite me out I don't want the added work of making the plans. Take me out, take responsibility off my shoulders for an evening. I can't promise you that all girls will be as honest as I am, but if you make a choice that sucks, I would be the girl to speak up and offer suggestions.

That's enough to get you started. Good luck, and thank you for making the dating world a tiny bit less frightening to women.





*** Disclaimer time ***

After having been pampered in the ways mentioned above I have a greater appreciation for dates, but I am not actively dating so don't take this the wrong way, I'll probably still say "no thanks."

{ lazy pigeon } - yogi. photographer. ponderess. austin, tx

Roll to your side and let your gaze scan beyond your covers.
Dance your hands over the cotton and down.
Pillow, your support and halo, be engulfed.
Sink into the hold and see the sun play above you in textured lines.

Pictures from your rest reel through your mind, a comfortable cinema.
Write the story to appease your desire.
Sheets, a smooth touch, be caressed.
Bury yourself in a mound of warmth and stave off the chill of winter.
Morning, a new miracle each day.

{ wrap } - yogi. photographer. austin, tx

In honor of the teenage boy who peer pressured me to walk down the escalator (that's so mean by the way).

Slow, take it so slowly.
Feel the comfort curl around you,
from your left side to your right side.
The hold is gentle, you won't realize the strength.
Hammock, embrace, guardian.
His wings are all things, they meet every need.

Brilliant, a light beyond any light.
Encompass me warm and strong,
You are the angel I call daily.
I surrender to your help, I need your support.
Breath, touch, challenge.
I welcome you into my journey, I receive your guidance.

{ trust + practice } - yogi. photographer. writer. austin, tx

Fall my darling into the arms of the divine.
Let curses drop away and blessing spill from your lips.
Your skin is luminous, your eyes shine your truth.
Rest your weary body against the support of the earth.
She will stroke your hair with her breeze.
The brush of her satin hand will melt away your sorrow, even your fear.
Lay here, stay long, return often.
This den is your home, your right.
Continue to let your heart be heard through your voice and felt through your presence.



The above photo has been misunderstood. Make of it whatever you would like, for me it has been a great teacher this week.
The story is that I am in this ongoing self portrait project with my yoga practice. It is a practice, of physical asana, breath, meditation, dedication, self acceptance, and other things that pop up day to day. I use a remote to trigger the shutter of my camera, and I have to try things out, it's part of the process. This photo was a trash photo, I was simply testing my placement and focus, clearly I still had to make adjustments. This picture reminded me that sometimes my practice feels easy, sometimes so hard, no matter what it's always practice, never perfect, never performance. Even as I pose for my own frames, it is simply my practice and I share it, flaws, growth, triumph, work, pain, judgement, celebration, etc. I love this photo because it's not even close to perfect, it's just a practice shot.

{ i remember } yogi. photographer. lover of details. austin, tx

The way I couldn't choose between the Noir and the Blanc,
so I smelled of Gray.
A teardrop on the cork floor, I smeared it with my thumb.
Silhouettes of branches, Myth plays tauntingly.
My lips turn in quiet appreciation.
So much to give, and surely to receive.



Is there a more beautiful place than the land of my imagination?
Where I paint in magic oil and breath,
where wind grazes my skin and carries my scent to my lover.
chest swells, a heart lifted.
The air is alive with electricity.
Flowers blossom from thoughts, more vibrant than colors of this world.



All these pictures, images of grace.
Memories, dreams, perhaps I have created it all.
I hold my heart open to gather more and share entirely.

{ scripting life } yogi. photographer. mama. writer. austin, tx.

The other day I was sitting on my mat waiting to take a yoga class when I began to smell a most treacherous odor drifting from a fellow yogi. Typically I could hold my breath while aforementioned scent passed, but this lingered. I began to plot my escape, I wasn't far from the door so I decided I would lunge for the exit head first to drive myself across the threshold into the clean open air. As I began to think of how I would leave the terrible rotting food-flesh-digestive-juice-toxic-fart zone I realized something that made me laugh.... I am a writer. Any normal person would just have thought "it stinks."

It is with that realization that I have been actively writing and being much more open about it, which feels healthy and challenging. Without rhyme or reason, I pray that my words will reach those who need them and not offend those who don't.



Dark hair, dark ink, dark eyes.
Light sheets, sunshine, summer.
Years or days, how long have we rested?
Tilt your chin down and kiss the top of my head.
I'm a hand inside the glove of your arms.

More time, more teasing, more distance.
Loud concerts, music, melodies.
Space or isolation, do I always hide?
Take me on a picnic and sing away my fears.
You're the prince of my childhood dreams.




Tiny drops splash down to the earth.
They may be tears at this point, I tell myself they are sweat.
A tenderness in the center of my chest, a pressure behind my heart.
I will not bend,
I don't believe I can break,
but I continue to try.

An audible breath enters my lungs.
I exhale with even more sound, it's more than air I let go.
My life is bigger this moment than 2 seconds ago, a year unbelievable.
I gain gratitude,
I think I will burst,
and still love grows.

My body and soul partner in this dance.
One hand through the air, I'm reaching and anchored at once.
How much this practice has changed me, audaciously saved my life.
I found my way,
I stepped to the door,
finally I opened.




I want to thank you all for the emails, notes, social media messages, ect. that you have sent to encourage me to keep sharing. As many of you have experienced as well, it is always a welcome and uplifting thing to be told that what I share is appreciated. I am so grateful for those who continue to give their own gifts and inspire me to do so. If you ever find yourself narrating your life, you might consider writing, also if you make up stories about strangers in the car next to you in traffic, I suggest journaling or therapy (because we all need to vent our crazy and it's a best practice to do it artistically and with non-violence). I have so much love for you all, continued gratitude from my heart to yours. xo.

{ recollection } - yogi. photographer. storyteller. austin, tx

There she sat in her chair, just as I had seen her so many times. Together they had looked like King and Queen of their home in their recliners, each with their own lamp and side table. She was so still, in disbelief or reverie. It was this moment that I was able to place a word with what I had witnessed between my grandparents for nearly 20 years, love.




My grandmother with whom I share a name, was my first glimpse of true love. In this one visit after my grand father's passing, I saw her heart missing the piece which she called "Norris."
In her eyes and in her countenance, it was clear she would never be the lively Me-Maw that I had always known and cherished. Her spark came from their playful banter, the way they teased each other and pretended to argue, when all the time she was devoted and in mad love.

She broke the melancholy silence... "You know what I miss the most?" she asked me, not really needing an answer she continued on, "I miss how he came home every night and would shout to me "Sallie, I'm home!" it was the best part of my day and now I won't ever hear that again."

I believe in love, I've seen it. It looks like two people grumbling around a house with a mischievous twinkle in their eye for one another. It looks like a smile when you walk in from a long day away. It looks like a wink across the table at a bad joke. It looks like pictures displayed and stories told with the greatest pride for a lover. It looks like Buttered Pecan ice cream in the freezer.



I might wear rose colored glasses, but what I have seen and what I recognize that charged between my Me-Maw and Paw-Paw is the sweetest of romances. A true love story.

{ with words } - yogi. photographer. storyteller. austin, tx.

I'll tell you not only with my eyes and my touch, you'll hear it in my voice and read it in my written word.



Tell me a story.
Whisper against my cheek a tale of lovers.
Let passion spill from your lips onto my skin.
I want to experience your every word,
have them ripple sensation throughout my body as if poured into my ears.

Speak to me with your slow, seductive voice.
Look over at me with your quizzical brow and your admiring eye.
My heart pains at the site,
at the memory.
Cover my hand upon your chest.
Close my eyelids with your fingertips.
Quiet my lips with your strong kiss.

I soak you in.
Vision, sound, embrace.
There was water, there were tears, there was trembling.
I hang on your every word.
Interesting, curious, unexpected.
It was dark, it was sunrise, you were my fairytale.