Years ago, someone gave me The Book of Joy.
Or maybe I came across it on my own.
Quite honestly, I can’t remember. But what I do remember is that the book itself landed like a gift.
That year, in the weeks leading into the holidays, I spent eight weeks teaching to each of the Eight Pillars of Joy in my power yoga classes.
If you’ve ever taken on of my yoga classes, you may remember that moment toward the end of class, somewhere around pigeon pose, when you had nothing left to do but let go. As a teacher, it was often my favorite time to share something. Your body was tired. Your mind was quieter. And somehow, the words seemed to find exactly the right place to land.
The words of the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu felt particularly poignant that year.
So much so that when Christmas came around, I decided to give every member of the Toledo Yoga teaching team their own copy of The Book of Joy.
There were well over twenty teachers on the team at the time. I hand-wrapped every book in brown craft paper, tied each one with a bow and wrote a personal inscription inside. At our holiday brunch, I stacked them on the counter in what became its own little Christmas tree of books and gifts for everyone to grab on their way out the door.
I loved everything about it.
And now, years later and thousands of miles away in Florida, I find myself thinking about that book again.
Maybe because we are once again heading toward the holidays. Maybe because life looks very different for me now than it did then. Or maybe because the Eight Pillars of Joy feel every bit as pertinent today as they did the first time I taught them.
So we are going back.
Over the next ten weeks, I’m going to use this Founder’s Letter to explore The Book of Joy with you.
We’ll begin next week with the first of the Eight Pillars and make our way through each one as we head toward the end of the year.
I can’t promise how this will unfold, but my sense is that some weeks, the emails may be brief while others may ask you to linger a little longer. What I do know is that the holidays are busy enough, and my intention isn’t to give you one more thing to do.
What I would like to offer you instead is something to consider. What actually creates joy, and how do we cultivate more of it?
And perhaps most importantly, how do we recognize it when it is already right in front of us?
If you’d like to take a deeper dive, pick up your own copy of The Book of Joy and follow along. Consider this our own little virtual book club, with all of us staying in the conversation together for the next ten weeks.
Because if there is an opportunity to arrive at the end of this year with a little more joy, a little more perspective and a little more appreciation for what really matters, I am all in.
And I would love for each of you to experience the same.
With intention,
Leslie
Welcome to The Founder’s Letter, where the practice of yoga meets the practice of living. A weekly letter I share with the yoga studio I founded, love, and adore, and now with you. A community where we can share, grow, and connect.
I’m grateful you’re here.
P.S. Over the years, I’ve perfected my own way of creating a little more ease heading into the holidays. It takes some advance planning, which is exactly why I’m sharing these ideas now, well before the holidays kick into high gear. In this article, I share some of my favorite ways to make the holidays more peaceful, less stressful, and a whole lot less hectic.
How I Make the Holidays Easier Before They Even Begin
There is nothing worse than sitting in traffic on a cold winter night, feet wet from melted snow, just because you realized you didn’t have Scotch tape at home.
That counter full of hand-wrapped books is such a lovely picture of a teacher who loves her people. Twenty-plus personal inscriptions takes real devotion. I love the slow book club format too. My Commonplace series lives in a similar spirit, so it's fun to see a ten-week version built around one book and the run-up to the holidays. 💛