JUNE 2025

“I Thought I Saw A Lightening Bug”

When EndorphinGirl® re-launched her Newsletter in January 2025, her intention was to blog monthly, though she quickly came to realize that quarterly is the better timeline. So here she is back with the EndorphinGirl® Newsletter Summer Edition (or Winter depending on which Hemisphere you live in). The half-way point, as in the writing time of this newsletter, is also certainly a period to pause, reflect back, and plan forward. Midway into something, whether it is a year, a project, a day, or something else, is always a good time to do this.

EndorphinGirl® had a few ideas as a main topic for June’s Newsletter, however, the writing was just not taking the proper form. Writer’s block? Hmm. Perhaps? Well yes! And then the idea came to share something that some of you might already know a bit about. During Year 2 of Covid, on a warm summer night in Finland, EndorphinGirl® decided she was going to ‘write that book’, with an aspiration to finish by a pivotal birthday the following May. The intent of the book was to share her story as a memory keepsake of her life’s experiences for the EndorphinKids™. The chapter format was initially designed by decade. A few amazing things happened as the writing progressed. One memory would trigger another, and another, and so on. She laughed, she cried, she cursed, she felt all kinds of emotions, and quite frankly amused herself through this self-executed and unplanned therapy session(s). Coincidentally, although there are no coincidences, about midway through, EndorphinGirl® decided to re-organize the chapter format from decade focused to topic centered. And just days, or was it hours, before her birthday in May of 2023, she completed her book. She felt such a sense of accomplishment upon completion. She realized while she set out to write her story for her children, the ‘writing’ and ‘remembering” became such a powerful experience for herself too. She also realized that she needed to ‘pause’ to reflect on if or when she would share her story further. So after this pause and reflection since May of 2023, she has come back to this story, her story. And she has serendipitously found an editor (there are no coincidences 😊), [she who shall be named later], to support her on editing her book for release!?!? So in her planning forward, stay tuned for EndorphinGirl'®’s story. The title you ask? “I Thought I Saw a Lightening Bug”.

Meanwhile, a short excerpt:

“In the fall of 1967, I set off for kindergarten at public school (PS) 98. Whether you had a morning or afternoon session was, without exceptions, scientifically determined by the time of year you were born. January to June babies, like me, got the morning session while July through December kids were assigned afternoons. 

My early school years began with a chauffeured black car service that transported me between home and school, five days a week. On this, I lucked out. The good fortune of a daily car service came down to practicality. Mom was weighted down with my soon-to-arrive brother so getting me to morning sessions in her state wasn’t happening. 

Schoolmates Pixie and Jennifer were in a similar spot as me so we traveled together. Pixie’s mom was expecting and Jennifer’s mom worked, not so common back then. Our driver was an older gent who always gave us candy (before men giving candy to little kids raised eyebrows), and it was hard to gripe about the luxury of a daily ride to and back from school with friends.”

Is this something you might like to read more about? And learn the meaning of the title? Stay tuned, the plot thickens!

Yoga Retreat 

For reasons to share another time, we have decided to move our Yoga Retreat from February 2026 to September 2026. Yes, we’ll be back in the Finnish Lapland in the Muonio area in Finland for our third “Return to Nature’’ Retreat. While the season for the Retreat has changed, the experience will be as spellbinding! We are keeping it an intimate group with only 8 spots. If you’d like more information and are ready to sign-up please click here https://www.evergreensstudio.com/return-to-nature-autumn or https://www.endorphingirl.org/retreats .

Book Share

This month’s book share is The Women by Kristin Hannah. The Women is a fictional novel that follows another category of unsung heros of the Vietnam war - the female nurses. I have always had a fascination with Vietnam, perhaps because I was a child during the Vietnam War. The book is an easy yet powerful read not only about life circumstances but also about how strong and powerful the nurses on the ground in Vietnam were during wartime. Having had the opportunity to visit Vietnam, when EndorphinDaughter™ taught English there some years ago, I felt transported back in time to the same country but very different period. It’s a good read!

Yoga Videos

Be on the lookout for a variety of four (4) different practices each month during a 12-month duration, such as Gentle Yoga, Slow Flow Yoga, Yin Yoga, breath work, meditations, mindfulness practices, and more presented during the seasons of Northern Finland Landscape. Available on-line and each set of monthly practices aligned and released to its respective season. Subscription options coming soon. Created, designed and led by Mia Kataisto. Stay tuned, you will not want to miss these, they are so unique!

EndorphinGirl®’s Feel Good Tip #4

EG tip number 4 is one of EndorphinGirl®’s favorites. It’s a yoga pose called Legs up the Wall also known as Viparita Karani. Viparita Karani is not only a morning but also an evening ritual for EndorphinGirl®. She loves to start and end her day in this way!

How to do the pose:

• Find a clear wall space, have a yoga mat or comfortable surface beneath you

• Sit with your hip against the wall and gently lower your back to the floor as you extend your legs up the wall

• Adjust your position, place your hips as close to the wall as feels comfortable without any stress on the body

• Relax and breath, arms can rest comfortably at your sides with palms facing up, or one hand can be placed on the heart and the other on the belly

• If it feels comfortable, close your eyes

• Stay in the pose for about 5-10 minutes, breathing deeply and consciously

• To release from the pose, bend your knees, push away from the wall, and gently roll to one side before sitting upright

  Benefits of the pose:

• Supports circulation, including gentle support for the heart

• Gives the legs a rest, relieves swelling from legs and/or feet

• Gently stretches lower back and hamstrings

• Supports nervous system

• Provides rest & relaxation, sometimes referred to as the pose that ‘quiets the mind’

  Why not give it a try!

  Sometimes the pause is also good as a reset to remember who you are and all your magnificence! Maybe it’s time to write your story, we all have one to tell. Keep us in mind as you plan your 2026 adventures, we’d love to see you in Northern Finland. Enjoy this month’s book read, and be on the lookout for a review of ‘I Thought I Saw A Lightening Bug’ in a future newsletter! And if you are inspired to try ‘Legs up the Wall” pose, let us know how it goes.

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Stay tuned for more adventures with EndorphinGirl® and we’ll be back in September 2025!