theheadwrapsocialite…“Everybody”
theheadwrapsocialite…“Everybody”
Unraveling the Layers: A Conversation on Self-Discovery with Anthony
In today’s episode, I sit down with Anthony, co-owner of Radiant Soul Yoga, whose journey is proof that change is possible when we’re willing to face ourselves—honestly. Through his own transformation, he’s come to see growth not as adding more but as letting go—unlearning the conditioned beliefs that keep us stuck. He challenges us to ask: Why do I do what I do? Why do I believe what I believe? And in that questioning, we find our way back to something simple yet profound—love, joy, and childlike wonder.
Anthony’s approach to yoga goes far beyond the poses. For him, it’s about presence—learning to play again, to meet ourselves without judgment, to let life flow instead of forcing it. He shares the power of mirror work, showing how our relationship with ourselves shapes the way we connect with others. And he reminds us that everything—everything—is temporary, which means we can hold life with both urgency and appreciation.
The episode ends with Anthony sharing an original song that embodies his philosophy: “I am no caterpillar, I am no butterfly, I am everything in between.” His music, like his teaching, invites us to embrace the messy, beautiful process of transformation while allowing ourselves to feel it all.
Whether you’re deep into yoga or just looking for a fresh perspective on being human, this conversation will leave you thinking differently about yourself and the stories you carry.
Note: This episode contains some language that may not be suitable for young listeners.
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Good afternoon and welcome to Everybody. The podcast which shares stories that highlight people in life, that make the world an interesting place, which ultimately ties us all together in unique and wonderful ways. And who am I? You might ask. I would be the head-wrapped socialite, wife, mom, micro-influencer in the fashion and etiquette world, but on this podcast I will be introducing you to some people who I've had the opportunity to meet along my journey, who have helped enrich me and my life in beautiful ways and who I hope will do the same in yours.
Speaker 1:There are some people who don't just walk their path. They light the way for others. My guest today is one of those rare souls. He believes in the power of self-discovery, not just as a personal journey, but as something to be shared, something to be guided with care, patience and love. As a co-owner of Radiant Soul Yoga, anthony has dedicated his life to creating space for transformation, for growth and connection. What I've learned about him is he doesn't just teach people yoga. He helps people reconnect with themselves and peel back the layers, step into their fullest expression. That's part of his mission to be a loving guide for as many humans as he can in his lifetime. Please help me in welcoming my friend Anthony to today's episode.
Speaker 3:It's an honor, honor, honor to be here and to share the vibration, stories, the path For sure. So thank you for having me.
Speaker 1:Anthony, can you tell the listeners a little bit about who you are?
Speaker 3:I suppose that's you know, it's loaded. Who I am, uh, you know, as from a philosophy viewpoint I just am, and who I choose to practice or be is that loving guide to support people in their awakening, if you will? So that really comes down to it. I could say I am a musician, I'm a teacher, I'm a father, I'm a husband, I'm all the things, but I'm not those things. Those things are part of my human experience, but they don't define me, nor do I over-identify with them anymore. You know, it's really part of what I want to help people figure out, like, what are you identifying with? Because ultimately, the I am is the simplest aspect of being. I am, you are, and then you get to choose, you know, but the words you choose don't necessarily identify or define you, and if they do, then in my humble opinion that causes a lot of suffering, because when those things go away, then your identity is gone. You know, so I am in part. You know, all the other pieces and parts that I play are now aligned with my heart, whereas, you know, a long time in my life they were not aligned with my heart, whereas you know, a long time in my life they were not aligned with my heart. It was all ego and judgment and just a mess, and so that's another piece of that passion.
Speaker 3:Here is what yoga and the practice of doing this you know breath and movement, what it has done for me. You know they try to say, oh, people don't change. And if people only knew. You know some people do know some of the things I've done and things I've seen. I'm living proof. People do change actually and change is inevitable and most people do suffer because they don't want to change. You know the partner never changed. You know anti-age, all the shit that we get wrapped up in like don't change, it's change. That's the only certainty. Change, death and uncertainty.
Speaker 2:Yeah for sure.
Speaker 3:And outside of that I play parts that lie with my heart.
Speaker 1:Thank you, that's so beautiful. One thing that stuck out to me is when you say that I am, it encompasses so much more than who we actually are. I think about you, know my own, the identity of who others also perceive you to be, in that you start to lose who you should be.
Speaker 3:Right.
Speaker 1:What I appreciate about the space that you offer is that you tell us be in this moment to see that I am so much more than what this body holds at this moment. It encompasses so much more what this body holds at this moment. It encompasses so much more. It's centuries, it's all the energies that we carry of our former self, our familial baggage, happiness, whatever it is. You know, we are all of that.
Speaker 3:And on the same breath, we are not all of that. Those things are just parts of the journey. There's circumstances and situations that did help shape and form us to where we are as a person now. But in a sense, if I was the things of my past, I would still be an alcoholic and an asshole and a negative person because those things shaped my life up to my 30s person, because those things shaped my life up to my 30s. So that's the really key point is like I honor my past, my heritage, traditions, all the things, but I also know that those things are not me.
Speaker 3:Even up to recent years, you know, I've had issues with just my heart, understanding relationships. You know there's stuff about monogamy and non-monogamy and all things, and it was all ego and now I'm just, I'm done with it. You know, finding that space to really say like your past is not you, the pieces and parts that did bring you to exactly where you are right now. But again, the same guideline applies with that I am, I don't identify with it, it does not define me, and most people they see that you did this in the past. Yep, I did, and you can sit there and judge me all day, or you can move past it and we can grow together. I mean, it's up to you. But it is that point where people do get wrapped up in I am my past, I am my family and I am these things and like, no, you're not. Those things have shaped you and you can continue to allow them to shape and support your growth.
Speaker 3:But ultimately it's about letting all that go, basically unlearning. You know, the more that I grow, the more I unlearn, the more that I know that I don't know. And so we're just coming to the space where people are seeking I want to learn what book, what teacher? The best thing you can do is really focus on unlearning, taking off the layers. You know you're getting to the space, to where you're unlearning the ways of an egregious culture. You're unlearning the ways of greed and fear and remembering the ways of love and joy which, in my humble opinion, are the human essence. And if people want to argue that, it's like look at a child, no matter where they're at, look at a child and see that that's where we all started, that's where we all come from, that joy, that wonder, that bliss, that curiosity, and it gets muffled and to a certain point at an age where we are asking all the questions and one day a person that you respect says because I said so, instead of actually answering the question, and then the next day they say stop asking so many questions, and then the next day you just stop asking questions and then we grow and the questions just stop.
Speaker 3:So from this place, I think a big point of kind of starting the process of awakening, if you will, is ask yourself questions why do I do what I do? Why do I go where I go? Why do I talk how I talk? Why do I dress how I dress? Why do I like what I like? What do I believe? Why do I believe what I believe? And when you can fully answer those questions to yourself, there you are. Because a lot of times the answer to most of those questions is because they said so, because I want to attract this person, because I want to fit in over here, because I was born that way, because I was born into. You know, religion is geographic. It's insane how much we tie into the stories and you get to choose, like how you feed that and how you live that.
Speaker 1:When do we lose that childlike wonder? Do we become so jaded by society that all of a sudden I can't see anything in front of me? We, as beings, we were meant to experience the whole.
Speaker 3:The answer to me. In my own opinion, the moment that we stop being a child or have the childlike mind is the moment that we start over-caring about what other people think and so it just like drowns out. So the curiosity like, well, why do that? And I feel that they might judge me or they might not like me, so how do I fit in? And that openness just closes up and then it just becomes more and more layers until we're ready to wake up, if you will.
Speaker 3:And again, you know, it's interesting that in the Western world if someone says, stop acting like a child, right, because our idea of a child is tantrum, issues, you know, over-emotional. And now in the East they say childlike mind. Because of the beauty of curiosity, wonder, you know, blissful vibration of like, I love life, that's childlike mind. But interestingly enough, because of our culture and the way we've been conditioned, childlike mind here is deemed negative and so interesting to me and I've been really noting that like for me to return to that child like. We don't. You know, we don't stop playing because we grow old, if, if you will, like the mentality and vibrations. We get old because we stop playing and youth is in you. Youth is eternal. It has nothing to do with how many times you've been around the sun on this planet. Youth is of the spirit, if you will, and of the heart and soul, and that is forever you know beyond our comprehension.
Speaker 3:But that says again, play, and that's why I offer that so much in the yoga room. Like play on your mat, eat on your hands, do some cartwheels, Do something to break that, like I'm an adult and I'm serious. Break it up, have some fun and that's a big piece for wellness in general overall. Just have fun, enjoy your life, enjoy being a human. You know there's so much more to it than just like job, sleep, home, eat, sleep.
Speaker 3:You know, gym, do the things just like. You know. There's those mundane practices that most of which do serve in their own right, but you have to find that space in lambliting and to really be able to just play, whatever that means to you as a person.
Speaker 1:You know it's individual play, just play yeah, I noticed that when you do say that on the mat and you're like play you know, I always have a smile on my face because a part of me does revert back to when I was that seven-year-old girl playing hopscotch or double dutch. You know, if only for a little tiny moment. It is there and, like you said, youth springs eternal. And if we can connect to the inner child, we'll still find the wonder in the world.
Speaker 3:Right, and it's still there Now. Therein lies the beauty of the challenge, of the words we use, right? So when I say I want to connect with that means you're disconnected. So you can't disconnect. It's always there, you're always connected to that beautiful child. So the intention is to just remember, you know, start to unpack it and open it and feel it and remember, like every time, you just take that smile, take that moment to enjoy that open awareness that she or he, that that vibration, that they, it's there, it's always there. There is no disconnect, you cannot disconnect from it. It's, it's, it's more so, like I just forgot, and so now I'm remembering, and that makes it a lot easier, because if you see a disconnect, like, how do I reconnect?
Speaker 1:It makes all this work.
Speaker 3:What's the formula? You know there's no formula. It's just remember who you are, what you are and that essence of a child, that essence of joy and bliss and wonder, it's there always. This practice is about making it accessible. Know, it's there always. This practice is about making it accessible.
Speaker 1:Know it's always available. Listeners, as you can see, this is why I love going to Anthony's classes. You learn so much. You learn more about who you are becoming. During parts of the yoga class he asked you find your eyes in the mirror and sometimes it is hard to look at the person who is in front of you, but there's so much more to the depths of our being.
Speaker 3:Like you said, you know that child is there, you know you.
Speaker 1:could you say it much more eloquently A lot of the eye gaze like to yourself.
Speaker 3:First, it really starts with like discomfort. Most people can hardly look at themselves for a few moments in the mirror without extreme discomfort or awkward energy. So you're looking at yourself. Now the question arises if you can hardly look at yourself and connect to you in the mirror for a couple minutes, how do you expect to connect to any other human being? You really can't. There's a block there. There's an unwillingness to open to yourself. Thereby, inevitably, there's a clear unwillingness to open to anybody else.
Speaker 3:So superficial. Sure, I love you, I see you, but if you don't see and love yourself, that love is superficial for others and people do not like to hear that is superficial for others and people do not like to hear that. You know, if you can not love yourself on a full level, you really can't truly love anyone else, and this is one that's really hard for people to swallow and it's as real as it gets, though. I mean generally, how you see yourself and how you treat yourself is how you will ultimately treat and see others, and even in the beginning of this path for me, you know, I saw myself as almost holier than thou bullshit, you know, and I, and so I started treating people like less than. And I caught it, I noticed it from the help of some friends and family and people like hey, you know, this feels like this, and I'm like no, like hey, you know, this feels like this, and I'm like no, it doesn't shut up. And then I'm gonna go through the motions and then, ultimately, the practice is about listening and hearing and really tuning in. When you hear something that you're resistant to, like why? Oh, because it's not true. Well, if it wasn't true, you wouldn't be so defensive. So that is like okay, so you know, you tune into that vibration to how you treat and see yourself becomes literally how we treat and see one another, becomes how we treat and see the planet, becomes how the world is changing Again from the inside out.
Speaker 3:You know that's where the looking at yourself and making that connection to really break free from you know, the fear of connecting with people Because that's a general point, know we're afraid, you don't want to get hurt and ultimately the heart does not hurt, the ego hurts, so that your feelings get hurt. It's like okay, you know again, people are doing what they know best and generally it's defense, you know, coming from a place of fear. So that's the point of the eye gaze to look at yourself and just see. Okay, can I look and really see love? And I really like receive what I see and accept what I see. Because body dysmorphia, you know, for a lot of people men too people don't think men are weird about their bodies, but we are and that's part of it too. I want to be this, I want to look this way and skinnier, taller, more muscles, whatever. But there's not acceptance there, there's identification and judgment there and this is where, again, the challenge to see that and see through it that breaks open in a deep way your life and changes. It changes everything.
Speaker 3:There was a magazine cover a few years back, I digress, but that I was at the store and just started my yoga practice and in bold letters it said yoga will ruin your life. And I was like on guard. So then, when I'm standing there looking and fine print underneath it said as you know it, and I was like, hmm, okay. So when I really really now reflect back as like, yoga did ruin my life, the circumstances and stories as I knew it, because I mean, it changed everything, from again the way I think to the way I walk, to the way I stand, the way I played, the way I love people, to the way I share my heart and soul in that room and everywhere I go and song. You know all of it. It ruined my life as I knew it. Um, and a lot of people will attest to that. As far as like even you see a lot that like divorce rate, because a lot of women are waking up and a lot of husbands blame me and blame yoga. But it's like, dude, all you have to do is walk the path like wake up, get out of that toxic masculinity right, face your shit and you can be there for your fucking partner.
Speaker 3:Now, again, I've had like complaints, man, a nerd, my wife wants this, and now she's got yep, so what? She's a human. She deserves like equal share, like and I've been through it, I'm going through it with my wife. We're trying, I'm trying to be more aware of like the patriarchy and like I expect this and come home, and so I'm trying to work with that, like I'll do some dishes after she cooks and like help out. Now I tell her the same thing is like you gotta let me know, though, because this is such an ingrained thing Like we don't even think about it.
Speaker 3:It's just like that's what women do, that's what men do, and I call bullshit. You know, step up, like all of us, like, wake up and let that shift be a positive thing. So the rule in your life is like man, you know it's a bit intense, but it will change it intensely and then again the life is questionable, questionable, and then I'll get off this tangent. But the word life, right, life is a beach, life is hard, life is. Life is simply beautifully here it is. Life is. There is no nothing after that. Life is not good, not bad, it life is.
Speaker 3:So we confuse circumstances and situations for life, for sure the same way as we confuse circumstances and situations for the vibration of the day. So I ask anybody, how was your day? Oh, I had a shitty day, like no, you didn't actually, you had a beautiful gift of day with shitty circumstances. And secondly, you know, the circumstances don't have to be shitty, they can be a challenge. So it's just a shitty attitude, if you ask me so. So what's really shitty here is your attitude. And as judgmental as that sounds, you know it's just facing the facts. You have a shitty attitude about it. So you're going to continue on that path with the shitty attitude and suffer. Or you can change your attitude and it's not going to be this blissful, spiritual, bypassing fuck that. It's. Feel it all, but feel it with an open awareness that you are a conduit friend, that energy passes through you as much as you will release it, or your body becomes a sponge and you hold it and get sick. So again, I digress, but yeah, that's what I do I love it.
Speaker 1:See, you will fit right in here because I tend to digress a lot. Now you have described yourself as a loving guy to self-discovery. What does that mean to you and how did you come to embrace that role in your life?
Speaker 3:Well, I didn't even embrace that role per se because it didn't come up until you asked me the question, so it wasn't really something that I'm like. This is what I am. It's impossible to explain and how these things come up or how I, you know, talk about. What I talk about, it's my heart, it's it's life, studies and practices of circumstances and situations and learning from the space. That is non-judgmental. So I've never really thought of that as my role per se until the question was asked, and so what that means to me is supporting people in the process of discovering who they actually are. And again, the who you are is who you want to be, who you choose to practice. The deep point of that is does that align with your heart, like really? And so a lot of people play the parts that don't align with their hearts. They play the part that align with your heart, like really yeah.
Speaker 3:And so a lot of people play the parts that don't align with their hearts. They play the part that aligns with culture. I'm supposed to, I should do. I stopped shooting on myself years ago. I don't do, should anymore. It's like I choose and I choose to to do this or that, and so, in my humble opinion, you know even the vibration of self-realization. That is one of the greatest gifts that you can give to the world. Straight up self-realization, know yourself, share that out, because ultimately, underneath all the bullshit, it is love, bliss, joy. And if you're willing to do that work, that self-realization is what I guide through Again, through movement, through breath, through mindful awareness, and question everything you know. And that says again, I'm not against anything, I'm just curious about everything.
Speaker 3:So, I'll ask all the questions. You know, and a lot of people don't like that, especially when it comes to like religion or politics. It's just like ask questions Cause I call bullshit, you know, on all of it. And even in the spiritual world right now, like it's a fucking mess out there, so many people exploiting seekers and oh, if you do this you'll get that, and you know this is not that. But yeah, ask questions, challenge it. But for me, that guide to self-realization is exactly that Move your body, question things, deep breath, drink the water, eat. Well, you know, I mean I eat. Okay, I eat good because my wife cooks great food.
Speaker 3:That's fantastic, that's magnificent, but if it wasn't for her, it would be like hot pockets of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and that's fine too. I think, a big part of the missile on diet. I'm not going to go all into that, but it's like this culture has got that shit twisted. Like three meals a day, blah, blah. There's days where I only eat one meal a day and it's listening to my body. But ever since we're in the eye, you know, eat all your food at that table and this is the time we eat. And it's like the body and the energy of, like the animal I don't believe is created for that. Like you feel it and depending on the energy exert, you put the fuel back in. And if I'm not feeling like fueling, then I'm not going to fuel, not because of a time of day, you know, or because you say I'm supposed to eat right now. No, thank you, I'm not hungry actually.
Speaker 1:Delving a little bit deeper. So what was your personal journey of self-discovery?
Speaker 3:like I mean it was a mess. It was a mess. It was a mess because I didn't have a guide, I didn't have a mentor, I didn't have a teacher, it was just me and my ego.
Speaker 3:And my ego took over for like 15 years, maybe even 16 or 17,. Actually, I don't know if you know this about it. Um, if I'm being honest about it, um, yeah, I didn't have a teacher, so it was just a mess. You know, I, I was all over the place, you know, subscribing to this and that and all the energies and chakra, this and like. I don't. Again, I'm not denounce anything. I'm not god, you know all the things. I don't denounce it. I'm just willing to admit I have no idea. So, chakras, great, great concept, great theory, but I don't know. I don't know that there's little spinning circles of energy up my spine and I'm not going to pretend that there are. You know, I can honor that vibration and whoever wants to subscribe to that go right ahead.
Speaker 3:But for me, I did subscribe to that for a while and I got lost in it, just like again, again, that kind of holier-than-thou, better-than vibration came up and just gross, and so the practice for me was continuing I fell, I rise, I fell, I rose, I fell, I rose, and every time I fell I got up a little slower and just paid a little more attention, and that's the vibration of the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting something different For sure. And so I had to go through it. And it was well over a decade of just like deep digging, diving shitty mess, slugfest, until I realized, like what the what am I fighting? What am I fighting actually? But we're taught good and evil, right. So the light wolf, the dark wolf which one do you feed Again, theory judgment Is that where you're going to go with it, or you can realize that there was no fucking fight at all.
Speaker 3:You don't have to fight. It's not a fight, it's about surrender. It's the exact opposite. No-transcript, a space of surrender. Like just stop buying shit. Yeah, stop buying so much shit because we put the money in their pockets. Like we're making this, this capitalism, yeah, we've done it, we've created it. So I don't know why people are surprised that it is how it is right now, like money rules, because we have given it that power. So taking that back is is part of the practice as well. But yeah, my, my whole journey, I mean it started on my mat and it's spread out and again there's a mess. The shit show, if you will, all the way up to recent years, like really dialing into, like, oh there, I am okay, I've missed you and I can honor all the shit that I've done and been through, even on the yoga path. Um, just because it's, it's has supported me to this point yeah but again, I don't identify with it yeah
Speaker 3:no, so it was that. I don't know if that answers your question fully, but yeah, it's just been getting on the mat, falling, rising, you know, relations falling, rising, trying to figure out you know who I am on that level like again, with just relationships in general, friends, you know my wife and trying to maybe to open the marriage and just mess, fucking mess, just a mess. And now I, you know, after a lot of trials and tribulations, I'm free and it feels really really good and that is what, like the passion for me sharing this path is. It's again it comes back to what it has done for me how much it has transformed me as a person on so many levels.
Speaker 3:And there's one human that really really knows that on a deep soul level, which is my wife, andrea, and we've been together for 19 years, married, but before that we got married for a trip to Jamaica and it I mean we got married to for a trip to jamaica and to just like it was what we're supposed to do, and so that was what it was. And all the way through this path, you know, we've had our hits and misses and why really, let's get divorced and we're not gonna work together, and then now we're just perfectly good and, and you know, sorting ourselves out like in the best way of communicating we have separate rooms is when we're gonna get a divorce legally. Years ago we just split up yeah, this is my room, that's your room when we decide to come back together.
Speaker 3:We both agreed like, I want my own room my own bed, my own space, and we're like, yes, please. So now I, I suggest and recommend that to everybody. If you have the means, get your own room, because you get to design it. This is your space to just go when you need it in your home, but otherwise it's just, it's the smash together that you do not identify with, but it's just you two and there is no space for just you. So, if you have the means, get your own room.
Speaker 3:That was a game changer, especially because we all sleep different, right, and our sleep schedules were different. I work on the weekends. I'm up at five o'clock in the morning. She likes to sleep until like six, seven. You know she's weekday on weekend. It's just. It made sense. Yeah, I sleep like this, I'm just right out, sprawled, and it made sense. Yeah, I sleep like this and just right out, sprawled, and she likes 38 pillows and weighted blankets and just one blanket and one pillow, simple. So you get your own vibration. It's huge.
Speaker 3:My point is, you know we've been together for a really long time. She's seen the darkest parts of me. I've known her since I'm five years old. You know we're family friends. We've known each other like for our entire life. And now we're at this place where it's like we just like the deep kind of love that that is is beyond comprehension, like no matter what the future holds. It's like we, we know, like that's your person in in a sense.
Speaker 3:I don't connect like that anymore for anyone. I don't recommend it for anyone because, again, things change, people change and that could change for her. It's weak. She could be like I don't feel this anymore and it would. It would suck, but I know I would be okay because that's a part of it too. When we don't attach to, this is my person, this is my uh, just like anything, right? Non-attachment is not about detachment. Non-attachment is about understanding that if and when how about when these things go away person, thing, substance you're going to be okay. That's not attachment. Attachment is if I don't have this, I'm gonna lose my shit, this person's gonna, I can't, I can't even that's attachment and that's dangerous, right. So non-attachment says when these things go, because they all will at some point right yep, all of it will.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I will be okay. So, yes, it'll hurt, or, yes, I go through the grieving. Whatever it is, for whatever reason, whatever the vibration it's. It can be a challenge, but I will be okay. I am already okay and, from that space, understanding that applies to everyone and everything.
Speaker 1:That's interesting that you would say it like that, because at the root of it all is love, like we're experienced. But we have to recognize it Attachment. So, as some of the listeners know, it'll be eight years this year that my mom passed away. My world crumbled, the world that I knew it crumbled because you know she was my best friend. I talk about a hundred times a day as if she was next door.
Speaker 1:But now I can see, looking back, there were a lot of moments that she was already kind of preparing me, not that she knew she was if the time was coming, but she was kind of preparing me where she was going to launch me and she'd always tell me at some point I'm not going to be here anymore.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 1:Preparing me, but I didn't want to see it because I am attached to her. That is my mother. I need her. But in that I have been able to see, not that it still doesn't hurt, it just hurts in a different way. I am okay.
Speaker 3:It's taken me eight years and I'm sure it will take another hundred years. Thank you, Mother.
Speaker 1:But yeah, none of this will be forever, and I have been marinating on this ever since I started taking your classes. Is you say, enjoy this moment, for this moment, too, shall pass.
Speaker 3:I feel like that's a very important staple point of this practice in general. Actually, this too shall pass, as I say in class. It's really easy to apply that when things are uncomfortable or when things are painful.
Speaker 1:This too shall pass.
Speaker 3:It's almost like a bypass, so you don't actually feel it or you get to say, oh yeah, it's going to be better one day applies even more so importantly for people to understand. This two-shot pass applies to the positive aspects, to all of the things that you will ever experience, and so you know when, generally, when people hear that it comes, fear comes first. Right, oh my god, attachment. And so I I want to be around this and do this more because it's going to be gone, instead of actually just being in that moment and appreciating it for what it is, because it will be gone. So this is why every class I teach is from a place of passion and from a place of like.
Speaker 3:I know this could very well be the last class I teach, so I'm going to come with my heart. I'm going to give my everything in every class I guide, because I know full well that might be the last one. Every time I sing, I sing from my soul, because I know full well my voice. Tomorrow I might lose an arm, I might not be able to play guitar, I might die. I mean this could be the last time. No-transcript you soon, or I'm hopeful to see you again, and I feel like that was a bit much. It was freaking people out, so that's why, so I'm stuck.
Speaker 3:But it was the reality, man. I hope I see you again. I don't know, I mean not, you never know, and nobody thinks they're gonna die. The human brain can't even fully comprehend what that means, that you're not gonna exist soon. You know soon as subjective, but you're not gonna exist and we just cannot, can't compute. No, I'll see you tomorrow. I'll see you again. You might not, and so honor the time that you get and share it out and that is the essence of this too shall pass Not from fear and attachment, but just grateful for everything you get to do For sure, for everything that your body does for you.
Speaker 1:Thank you for sharing that.
Speaker 3:You know this kind of energy. It's a lot of information, if you will, but it comes down to common sense.
Speaker 3:You know, there was something I was watching a few years ago and there's common sense specialist. That sums it up. You know that this is all about common sense and common sense is not so common these days because everybody is just like following the lead, like a bunch of lemurs walking off a cliff, instead of actually like stopping, feeling like, yeah, if I eat poison and get sick, and then I wonder why I'm sick but I keep eating poison. That's the same with negative thoughts. It's the same with shitty processed foods. It's the same with, you know, not breaking the water and not moving your body. But you wonder, you know, why am I not as flexible? Because you don't fucking stretch. You know why am I so done it up, but again, or just like blinders on seeking this quick fix pill. The instant gratification, that's the age of instant gratification. That's gone on for far too long and it's like none of this is instant in a sense. But the practice of this drinking the water, stretching your body, mindful thinking, that's the answer to a lot of issues in our tissues.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 3:Drink water, deep breath, mindful movement, mindful thinking. Outside of that, yes, there are other things with pharmaceuticals and different things that serve the human body, but there is a very fundamental point that a lot of people are missing out on. Deep breath is a huge one. They say that you know 50 conscious breaths a day will do more for you than any self-help book or any practice 50 conscious breaths and people try to say I don't have time for that. You breathe all day. You know you can do it anywhere anytime just 50 conscious breaths. And you can do it anywhere anytime just 50 conscious breaths. And if you know, your mind's going to wander. So then maybe you start with 12 conscious breaths. Let's set a goal. Maybe I will get to 50 and maybe I'll go further than that, and then one day you're going to realize, like how much you're not actually breathing and how much these breath work practices actually do help.
Speaker 1:And when you talk about 50 conscious breaths, what do you mean to someone who has not practiced yoga?
Speaker 3:That means I would sit down and go two deep breath in fill up the lungs, empty it out. Three deep breath in fill up the lungs, empty it out. Four all the way to 50.
Speaker 1:Full conscious breaths.
Speaker 3:No, you can't think when you're focused on your breath. Actually, if you're truly focused on like I breathe in, I breathe out, you can't think. That's the cool part about like the practice on the mat, when you really get into the breath and rhythmic movement, it is virtually impossible to think. If you're focused and present now, you can wander off, but then you're not focused on your breath. If you're focused on your breath, you cannot actually think per se.
Speaker 3:Again, the thoughts are I breathe in, I breathe out, you know, and and thereby you can't think so, if I'm saying taking that breath, breathing out one, really focusing on that breath and focusing on the way it feels to expand those lungs and empty those lungs and really, really focus on the physical attributes of what you're doing, it's impossible to think Again it'll come up, it'll trick in in and then you just start back over. Maybe not zero, maybe you stay with the number you're at, but just give it time and give it space to say like 50 conscious breaths and doesn't have to be all grandiose, just big. Fill up the lungs, empty the lungs one.
Speaker 1:Fill up the lungs and the lungs two and is that why you direct us so many times during class to focus on the breath? So you're bringing us back, knowing that some of us will wander?
Speaker 3:yeah, absolutely. Then when you bring back to the breath and again a part of it with vinyasa is the breath, obviously we're moving and breathing the flow, but again, you know, bringing it back to the breath brings you back to pleasant moment and it allows your body to be at ease, because when you stop breathing, your body panics and generally when we're moving and our body's panicking we're going to get injured. So breathing into that is letting your body know it's okay, even if it's challenging. I'm breathing and my body knows it's okay. So that's why you hear it in a lot of classes.
Speaker 1:If you can't breathe it, you're doing too much and you're stressing out your body. Breathe into that edge and let that grow from the breath, thank you. So yoga for some of us who have not practiced before is often seen as a physical practice. As you speak more and more about it, I hope the listeners are also seeing that not only is it physical, but it's deeply tied to mental and emotional well-being as well. How do you help people move beyond the physical practice into a deeper understanding of themselves and who they hope to be?
Speaker 3:Well, I support people, right, so I give you tools and then you have to help yourself. Outside of that, it's about repetition. So some people come in here, there's gym mentality and that's fine, but if you're really open and hearing that, it's about repetition. So some people come in here just gym mentality and that's fine. But if you're really open and hearing it, it's going to shift. It's inevitable. So the practice for me it's like I'm not trying to tell you to do anything, just coming in and sharing my heart and sharing the vibration, the wisdom. If you will, Eventually, eventually in time, if you're consistent, it's gonna change. It's gonna shift. Your intentions are gonna shift. Your awareness and energy about, like, why you're there is gonna shift. If you're staying true to it and really consistent with it, it'll shift inevitably. So I don't have to do anything, I'm just supporting and sharing and then it's up to the practitioner to keep it up and dedicate their vibration to that which inevitably will shift.
Speaker 1:So I'm going to call you the guide of support.
Speaker 3:Right and just holding that space, and it's really really just supporting people on their path to so they can help themselves.
Speaker 1:I know fear and resistance are common roadblocks to the practice are common roadblocks to the practice, and also fear as it relates to self-discovery, because some people are scared of discovering who they truly are right. How do you guide, being the supportive guide that you are, people through those moments of that discomfort?
Speaker 3:Well, I would just say again the reminders of breathing and feeling and honoring that like, like even sometimes the fear is not real, no, it's coming from a place of like disbelief, and and again I'll circle back. But to say who they are right, it's not fear of who they actually are, it's fear of letting go of the identity, of who you think you are. So the fear is, it's not as powerful as you think it's, it is what you feed it. And now if that fear says, oh my god, this is my identity, I can't let that go, then that then that makes it that much more challenging to really understand what that means. To identify with the actual you. You know, and the actual you, again, is not even about identifying but just knowing. You know, so that, like, the most of the fear is coming from a place that says I can't let go of that identity because I don't know who I am. But the practice that I would guide is to say let go of that and so that you can understand, like your choice to be who you want to be and how you want to be, because you know.
Speaker 3:I think a more appropriate question of like you know, when they say existential crisis and people are like who am I? It's ridiculous. You are who you choose to be. You are who you practice Like. That's your choice. What you are there is a mind blower. You know because we don't know ultimately. You know the vibration of the earth, the dirt of the earth is in our blood. They say, theoretically, the, the dust and the stars is in our bones and the, the salt of the ocean is in our sweat. Like what are we? We are everything. It's like amazing. So that's more appropriate to try to really sort dig. Like what am I versus who am I? Because who I am is my choice, that's my practice.
Speaker 3:But who people identify with at first is where that fear base comes to, to shift. So again, my, my suggestions are like okay, who you identify with now is does that really align with your heart? Is that really what you want, or how you want to be or live? Because usually the answer is no. You know we're taught right out of high school. Go find out what you want to do for the rest of your fucking life before your brain is even fully developed. You know and then meet someone and that you're going to attach to and stay with until you die before you're even fully developed or understanding of who you actually are, open the door to midlife crisis. You know there's when people come to a point where, like what the fuck is going on? Like who am I? What this, like everything that they told me to be and it's not real? I mean, ultimately none of it is. But at least you get to choose and you get to be authentic with that.
Speaker 1:Goes back to what you said earlier. Even though you may have experienced things, those things don't define who you are, because each day you wake up, you can choose to be somebody different.
Speaker 3:Right.
Speaker 3:And that's the tricky part, because a lot of people like for me, my choice is coming from a space of like less is more, right, yeah, and everybody has filters and my filters are more coming from a space now and no matter what, you cannot not have filters. It's like saying don't be human, you know you're gonna have filters. But my filters, in my humble opinion now at least, are coming from a space of less and less external influence. But most people, the filters are all external influence. That's beautiful, because they say that's ugly and this is this. And now I see it a little clearer. With people it's like my filters are of wellness, of love and peace, but you have filters.
Speaker 3:You're not going to get rid of filters, just as like expectations, I used to believe that too. No expectations, that's not real. You cannot have expectations. You expect to. I used to believe that too. No expectations, that's not real. You cannot have expectations. You expect to walk and see and you expect your car to start and you expect that door to open when you push it. You expect da, da, da, da, da. You know all day long. You expect it's subconscious a while bit, but it's still there. So to even kid yourself into no expectations is a ridiculous setup for failure. So I say have compassion for your expectations, because the day that door doesn't open or that car doesn't start, you're going to be okay because you're not attached to the expectation. But the expectation is inevitable. You can't not expect. That's what we do. That's being human.
Speaker 1:Looking ahead what's next for you?
Speaker 3:in Radiant Soul looking ahead, it's next for you and radiant soul.
Speaker 3:That's true, that's perfect. I I have no idea and I don't even like I am at the first time in my entire life as a human. I'm completely content. I don't, I don't have aspirations on that level anymore. What I do is I'm living that dream. I'm living that 100 authenticity, like the roots of this space.
Speaker 3:Now I've had a couple opportunities to like, expand and do these things and I don't need that. I don't want that. I would love to share with as many people as I can, but I don't want to be a franchise or like a bunch of teachers. Like. This is my soul and I do have one teacher here and she's amazingly growing and a beautiful contribution to the studio. This is my soul. Like this isn't your run-of-the-mill yoga studio and what I guide is what I live and that's what I would expect from anybody that guides here. But for me I feel like right now, right here, where I'm at with this space, if I lived the rest of my life in this space working a weekend shift to support some of the bills, I'm good with that.
Speaker 3:You know, and so I don't see, like all this, what do I want in the future? I just want to keep sharing and keep growing, which we're doing, so I'm living it.
Speaker 1:I love it. I love it Contentment and love.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 1:Most beautiful things that I think I have ever experienced as a yoga student is the way that you incorporate your love of music in the class. For those who have not taken an Anthony Yoga class yet, I will tell you again you must try it because it is amazing. I will tell you again, you must try it because it is amazing. When I was on the mat and we were in our final resting pose of Shavasana, I heard this music and first of all, this voice is amazing. It touches something deep within. And then I'm like is that my yoga teacher? Is Anthony playing the guitar? Because I thought it was a song. You know that you're playing through the speaker.
Speaker 2:No lie, I left this class in such a state of bliss, I called my sons.
Speaker 1:I was like you will never guess what just happened, and I told my husband, I told my aunt this is amazing, so much so that I was trying to find your music on like iTunes. There are no words for the gift that you give us at the end of class, honestly and selfishly. I would ask you if you would feel so inclined to share just a piece with the audience.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I supposedly don't know how the audio will sound, but Rick will try it.
Speaker 2:I am no caterpillar, I am no butterfly, I am everything in between. Please tell me you know what I mean, for I am the darkness and I am the light. I am the love deep within and I know I am the reason that I fight everything in between Laughing and crying, living and dying. And I am no butterfly, I am no caterpillar, I am everything in between. Please tell me, you know what I mean. I am the darkness and I am the light and I am the peace Deep within you. I know I am the peace deep within. Yeah, I know. I am the reason that I fight Everything in between, in between Flying and falling, clearing and emptying and wallowing. And you are no caterpillar, you are no butterfly, you are everything in between. Please tell me, you know what I mean. And you are the darkness and you are the light and you are the peace and love deep within. Best believe, you are the reason that you fight Everything in between Hurting and healing, repressing and feeling everything.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much for sharing my pleasure.
Speaker 1:I'm just going to let you all sit here with that amazing spirit, the energy, the love. This conversation, for me, has been nothing short of beautiful. Thank you for sitting down with me today and sharing your soul.