We know we've been quiet... but we will have big news to share very soon... thanks for being here. 

P

Ohio’s stay-at-home order will be extended until May 1, Gov. Mike DeWine announced Thursday.

The new order will begin at 11:59 p.m. Monday, April 6, the same time the first stay-at-home is set to expire.
“This is a stay-at-home order, an essential business order and it will extend until May 1. This coincides with what we have done in regard to our schools,” DeWine said.

“Basically there’s no way we’ll be out of this by then.”

We here at village yogaworks are looking forward to reopening in accordance with that May 1st finish line! And we will need your support more than ever. Wanna help us out? Buy a package online through MindBody on our SCHEDULE page! (Our packages now have no expiration date!)

ALSO: Follow us on Facebook for helpful tips, meditations and Zoom yoga classes from some of our teachers. Our packages now have no expiration date.

​We'll see you on the mat, but, as Justin Timberlake says, "It's gonna be May" before we do. 

-- Peter

DUE TO THE UNFOLDING EVENTS SURROUNDING COVID-19/CORONAVIRUS,
VILLAGE YOGAWORKS WILL CLOSE TEMPORARILY STARTING FRIDAY, MARCH 13 AT NOON

Hi, friends. Peter here. A friend said today,  "This week has been the longest year ever."

Sigh. It has felt that way. We have been pouring over the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation, particularly after these past 24 hours. And Ohio has, quite literally, shut down in many places.

With the World Health Organization and Ohio Department of Health making grand pronouncements regarding the suspension or postponement of indoor gatherings, we have made the difficult decision to close village yogaworks at the conclusion of classes on Friday, March 13 at NOON.

You will notice on our MINDBODY schedule page that many of our upcoming classes are listed as canceled. 

It’s a heartbreaking decision, one that we didn’t take lightly, given the communal nature of our practice.

Barring some unforeseen complications, we will reopen for practice on Friday, April 3 at 8AM — a move in lockstep with our yogic contemporaries, and with Ohio’s school, gym, church, sports and social event closings / cancellations in mind as well.

If we are able to open before then, you will be the first to know... but given the statewide mandates for closings, it seems premature to state definitively that we will be open before the schools, churches, and public event locations will be, or give you some arbitrary date ahead of what you see above. 

Rest assured, no one is more devastated than I am. At almost a year old, and with our steady growth finally allowing us to breathe a bit easier as a business, this was the absolute last decision I wanted to make.

But in life, we should always be inspired to make the Next Best Right Decision, even if it hurts, and this one is absolutely the right one. You, our yogis and teachers, are my family. It was a no-brainer.

Yoga is about mindfulness and planting seeds; the specter of potential illness takes yogis out of their mindfulness. And those aren’t the kind of seeds of inner peace that this (or any) studio wishes to plant. That said, we all need yoga now more than ever, and I wish for you all to continue your practices while we’re on temporary hiatus during these historic times.

Please watch this space for possible VYW pop-up outdoor events (weather and such permitting) and links to VYW Facebook LIVE events. Rest assured, we will all do everything we can do make you, our village, feel comforted, welcome and seen when we return. During this furlough, we will be deep-cleaning and sanitizing the studio in anticipation of reopening.

Lastly, to our yogis with VYW class packages: you will have these three furlough weeks added to your expiration date — so you will be able to pick up right where you left off with us.

Anything less would be punitive for something 100% out of your control.

This is a time where we need our practice more than ever, and perhaps more importantly, where we all reflect on how we take the practice off of our mats and out of the studios. It’s easy to make decisions when all is well; it’s making those same clear-headed, mindful decisions when things get challenging that’s a measure of a life... and a sign that your practice is working.

This pandemic will also define the moral and ethical character of our country going forward, and in my humble opinion, we must all act in a way that is both morally and ethically responsible for the health and wellbeing of our community — and for all human beings. The heart of yoga is care, intention and wellbeing after all.

Sat Nam,
Peter

“In the fullness of time / A garden to nurture and protect / It’s a measure of a life.”
— Neil Peart

Happy July, everyone! Hard to believe we are in the throes of summer already, but that may have something to do with having been in here all winter and spring, watching the weather fly by and trying to make our lovely space that we call "the makeshift" just so. 

A few bits of housekeeping to tend to here: 
> We will be closed this Wednesday-Friday, July 3-5, in observance of the holiday. Because "it takes a village," as we so often tell you, gather up yours (family, friends, cohorts... pets...) and enjoy a peaceful respite and some summertime fun. We will resume our regular classes on Saturday, July 6 with Toria's Hot Powerful at 8AM and PowerCore with Deb at 9:30AM.

​> Merch! Swag! Loot! We don't talk about it much, because you're here for the yoga. But we do have a lovely little retail kiosk that features yoga mats, essential oil diffusers, headbands, "grippy-socks" (as the kids class likes to call them!) and more! In addition, our summertime logo tanks ($20+tax) are here in sizes up to 2XL, as well as a batch of our limited-edition holographic yoga bags ($35+tax) which were handcrafted by local artisans, Calliope Creations. We love them and you will, too!

> Parking! Window signs! When you join us, please park on the south side of the Pizza Hut in the spaces directly adjacent to Dover Center Road and enter at the rear of the building where you see our blue awning. We will have additional parking on our own parcel coming soon -- YEASSSS!! -- which will resemble urban "parallel parking" of sorts on our property. We will also have a bike lane and bike rack for you! Stay tuned... and yes, our window and door signs are finally going up! No more paper signs for our little building in the four four one four OM... can't wait!  

> Kids & Family Flow. We have changed a few of our class offerings based on your feedback, including this class. We love teaching to kids, and recognize that many families may want to practice together! Check out our SCHEDULE page and come be a part of it. During the summer we will have these classes on Tuesdays and Fridays; during the school year, intermittently on weekends and school holidays.

> UNLIMITED YOGA! If you said this in your best Emperor Palpatine voice, congratulations, you're Star Wars-nerdy just like me. In all seriousness though, we are running an UNLIMITED YOGA pass special right now: $75 gets you all the yoga you can do at village yogaworks during the month of July. It's a pretty sweet deal. Simply sign up on our SCHEDULE page and click it as an option after you register for class. And if you are currently working through a package you purchased, see me (Peter) for details on how we can adjust your existing package so you can take advantage of it! 

> Last but certainly not least, a heartfelt THANK YOU! On behalf of all the teachers here at village yogaworks, we want to express our sincere appreciation for your support since we opened on June 1. There's simply no way to express it that wouldn't sound over-the-top. Love and light, hearts and thoughts, hugs and more! We are grateful for you all, and we are seeing community building here that was always hoped for when the space was coming together. Please be sure to tell all your friends and family about us; we plan to "namastay all day" here in this "oasis of calm" (both VYW kid yogi lines, don't they say the best things?!?) for a long time.  We love serving you and this wonderful community. We won't ever take it for granted. 

Wahe Guru! 
Peter

Heya, villagers! Happy Friday! If you're in the neighborhood, stop by for a FREE community yoga class this morning at 9:30AM, celebrating the UN proclamation of the day! Looking forward to seeing you! -- Peter

It's finally here. The moment. It felt like it took forever to get here, but it arrived quickly. We're ready to open our doors for you, villagers. We will be holding three (3) community yoga class / "open houses" of sorts. They will take place Wednesday, June 5 at 4PM; Thursday, June 6 at 9AM, and Friday June 7 at 11AM. These are first-come, first-serve classes, limited to 20 spaces, and can be registered for online (via MindBody) below: 

https://www.villageyogaworks.com/schedule.html

If you don't currently have a MindBody account, you will need to apply for one.

This is as much a test drive for you as it is for us; the class will be a "basics express" that will run approximately 45 minutes in length, bookended by a brief tour of the building and a Q&A with Peter.

PLEASE NOTE: There is no parking available in the Vivid Jewelers parking lot adjacent to us. We previously mentioned this on the blog, but it is worth repeating. They are policing their lot, even during off-hours.

We humbly (and intentionally) request that you park in the parking lot on the south side of the Pizza Hut building in the spaces facing Dover Center Road, and then walk to our entrance, which is marked by a blue awning. Our little landing strip of a parking lot (north side of the Hut) will be repaved in the very near future. 

Namaste.

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Why yoga? Why a yoga studio? Why you? And why YOUR yoga studio?

First of all, thank you for reaching out... so many of you reached out. Wow... I'm grateful... Those are a lot of questions. And I expected them all… it’s all good. I’ll do my best to answer in some kind of order:
Yoga was a lifesaver for me when I was attempting to restore work-life balance to being a work-at-home stay -at-home father of two. I’m no Lululemon model, so what business do I have teaching yoga?
Well, that’s kinda the point, and exactly the reason why I am doing this. I know just how intimidating a yoga studio can be to someone who doesn’t meet some kind of “expert level” or “body criteria” for yoga (whatever the heck that even means!?!) and so creating a welcoming, creative and heartfelt space that didn’t spiral into those hackneyed clichés was important and front-of-mind to me.
What I do know? I DO know how it feels to be jumbled mess (if you met me from 2009-2012, my sincere apologies to you, I was mebbe a bit of a wreck...) driven on by Western culture and society to be and to do more… and so I guess to some degree, I’m proof that yoga helps everyBODY. Yoga is so good for everyone. Like learning how to do taxes instead of Pythagorean theorem in school, kids should probably learn yoga and mindfulness before algebra… I just want to help everyone find their way to it.
Will we be a perfect experience? Will it be 100% without flaws? Nah, fam. None of us are. This is yoga for real people. Not for Madison Avenue. It should be fun, enlightening, invigorating, and evocative. Peace inducing. Thought provoking. You have enough nagging at you in your day-to-day life not to wonder if your yoga teachers think you're "good enough." YOU ARE ENOUGH.
Also: Yoga is a practice. That means your downward dog or half-moon, or supported side-angle may not be the same every day, or the same as someone else’s. It won’t be perfect. It’s not supposed to be. EveryBODY is different, with different flexibilities. Practice is what makes the game of life go better.
As a writer/author and journalist, my quest was always to take people on a journey and share community; the tragic loss of my Mom, some pretty important work colleagues, an equally important pop culture acolyte (“take care of each other, alright?”) and the magic of a couple true friends who "arrived just in time," well, they all brought this idea squarely into focus:
Be good. Do better. Get peaceful. Stay graceful. Every day.
Also... it's not my studio. It's your studio. Just to be clear...
And so, that’s how village yogaworks came to be…. bringing all of the things that I love together in one place – yoga, music, community, camaraderie – with heartfelt fun and healing as its focus. I don't promise perfection or miracles. Hell. This is all a huge trustfall. But if the HR (Heart Responsibility) Department is on board and Accounting has run the numbers... if we will all have fun, learn, sweat and stretch... and most importantly, open our hearts... basically, show up... even if you think yoga “isn’t for me,” maybe we all win.

Maybe for a little while. Maybe longer. Maybe even forever.   ​

Testing... testing... is this thing on...? Well, let's find out. If you're here reading, you probably have some questions. Our FAQ is coming soon, but just so you know that you're not dreaming:

"Waitaminute, WUT? There’s a yoga studio in Bay?"
​
Yes! village yogaworks is located at 27209 wolf road. We open on May 24, 2019 and we are a true “third place and safe space.” Our studio is situated in a historic building that was built in 1949, nestled in between Vivid Jewelers (formerly Burns Auto) and the Allstate Insurance agency in the Bay Village Square shopping plaza. We’re a little different because you're a little different. Yoga is for everybody. Our building invites an urban approach into the suburban yoga experience and we don't take a traditional approach to you or your practice. Come help us give (y)our "Lil' Building That Could" the 70th birthday party it so richly deserves. Visit us and get your practice on!

village yogaworks loves you.
​OM yeah.
PC