One of the best parts of running a yoga studio is the people you have the opportunity to meet. Over the past 11+ years, the number of people who have trekked up two flights of stairs to take a yoga class with us is nothing but staggering and while there is no way I can remember every single person, I do have great admiration and gratitude to each and every one for sharing their time and their practice with our community.

Often those people, who may have tentatively arrived for their first class, go on to become regular students, occasionally instructors, and most importantly.... friends. That was the case with Antoinette Cardamone who first entered our studio in 2007 seeking out a yoga practice and solace following the death of her beloved sister, and who then went on to become one of our instructors after completing a teacher training program in 2014. As you may or may not be aware, we are now mourning Antoinette's death after her courageous battle with lung cancer ended last Thursday, June 4th 2015.

You can read more about her incredible life through her obituary and a very poignant article that featured on Monday in the Post Gazette. What I will always remember and cherish about my dear friend was her generous spirit and fortitude, especially in these last few months. In anything she pursued, she offered up her whole self. She knew her strengths - compassion, empathy, kindness, and love of teaching - sharing them without hesitation, but she also humbly knew her challenges - especially anything computer or technology related (and as her "boss," which is what she called me, she didn't hesitate to remind me again and again of her kleshas surrounding that!).

Please know that we will be honoring our sweet friend with a special event to be planned at BYS Yoga in the coming months. I hope you'll be able to join me in celebrating Antoinette's life and all that she meant to us. In the meantime, as we each continue to get our heads around her passing, please don't hesitate to reach out with your own stories and remembrances. I have already loved hearing from some of you this week and I think it's important to continue to share those memories so that her spirit can live on!

Namaste,

Kristi

p.s. I'm heading north soon to visit my family in Vermont and attend Wanderlust Stratton, so there will be no e-newsletter in the next few weeks. Instead, I'm committing to sharing some photos and thoughts through the BYS Yoga Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages... click on over to your favorite social media outlet in the coming week and a half for updates from the Green Mountains!  XX