CURIOUS ABOUT MY BACKGROUND?

I grew up in Central California. I had close-knit ties to my family heritage through my maternal line and spent a lot of time with family on a small piece of land in Northern Italy where many generations lived. We were vegetarian, drank milk from the local dairy, and practiced Transcendental Meditation. My active ‘imagination’ kept me pretty connected to the beings all around me.

I grew up.

Things changed.

I forgot who I was.

Then, I started to remember. In the remembering, I met Ayurveda and while she traveled from a distance far away from where I lived, she seemed very close. As I studied and learned, I was so struck by the similarities of a science and lifestyle from India and that of my Italian heritage. I have since come to understand that the tenets and practices of Ayurveda are universal. The Science of Life can be applied to each and every one of us, and in my opinion is useful and wise and one of the greatest Truths known. And through the amazing sciences of Ayurveda, I have started to learn and connect more and more to the other part of my heritage that I have been fairly disconnected from. Like so many other children (and grandchildren) of immigrants from other parts of the world, my father’s father traveled from Damascus, Syria as a young person. He worked hard and wanted to give a “good life” to his family which meant that the life of our ancestors was left behind. I feel very grateful to Ayurveda for whispering in my ear and guiding me to share practices that come from within my bones. It helps me stay true to myself, my heritages, my practices, and the community around me.

I am a forever student. I believe this to be one of my core oaths. As such, I think I will always be in learning. I hold my Masters of Arts in Ayurveda from the beautiful community in the mountains above Santa Cruz, CA, the Mt. Madonna Institute founded by Baba Hari Dass. I have had the good fortune to receive sincere training there by amazing, classical Ayurvedic doctors and teachers for which I am eternally inspired and grateful. I became a Certified Ayurvedic Practitioner (CAP) there as well. I have taken regular classes on the foundations of health. I am learning, growing, and deepening through the classical Ayurvedic text, “The Astanga Hrdayam,” along with study from the amazing teachers at The DIN Masterclass Institute, based in India and led by the brilliance of Dr. Bhaswati Bhattacharya, author of one of my favorite books “Everyday Ayurveda,” and Vaidya Satyajith Kadkol. And through this Dr. Satyajith has become one of my most significant and valued teachers that I continue with today. My own health practices have been guided and influenced by Vaidya Yash Mannur, founder of Shubham Ayurveda based in Fremont, CA.

Yoga, the sister science of Ayurveda is of particular interest to me too. I have done my Yoga Teacher Training, both 200hour and 500hour at the Bhakti Yoga Movement Center, founded by Lisa Mae Osborne. I have had several other teachers that have impacted me over the last couple of decades including Kamalesh Hooven and Mangala, and a few others from The Mt. Madonna Institute all having received their guidance through Baba Hari Dass. Additionally, Maria Garre and the community of The Ayurvedic Institute have taught me how to use Ayurveda and Yoga twined together. Through these studies, my interests and needs have led me to study more deeply about size bias, social justice, the inequalities that exist in our society, how trauma moves through the mind & body, and appropriation as it relates to modern-day practice through both history and capitalism. These studies are lifelong and continual for me.