Bio

After seven years of working at a university as the Assistant Director of Admissions I decided to heed the advice I gave out so liberally to the prospective college students who met with me: "Pursue something that you love so much, that is so central to who you are, that you would do it whether or not you got paid." I feel blessed to have discovered what those pursuits are for me!

Since the Fall of 2000, yoga and Feng Shui have become my vocation and my play; they are life-long studies that are integral to all aspects of my life. With both yoga and Feng Shui I explore the ways that energy (prana/ch'i) moves, both in our bodies and in our homes. I delight in discovering the ways in which the two traditions interrelate and how they bring harmony and balance to our lives.

Initially I wrestled with embarking on two seemingly disparate paths. In response to my concerns my sister casually let fly a simple truth that helped greatly: "But Andrea, yoga is just internal Feng Shui, and Feng Shui is external yoga." After that everything clicked into place. My studies and my work in both disciplines converged, and now they evolve together, continually informing one another. Energy in motion!

For example, a couple of years ago decluttering became a part of the services I offer. Initially it evolved from Feng Shui and my work with Feng Shui clients, but very quickly I realized that the practice of yoga, and the work we do cleansing and making space in our bodies, shares much with the process of decluttering in our external spaces. They are inseparable, and any understanding we glean from one practice can be immediately applied to the other.

As a result, the classes, consultations and retreats that I offer often include elements of both yoga and Feng Shui/decluttering. And it is not unusual for a client or student from one discipline to cross over to the other. It means that these studies, these approaches to improving our quality of life, are ever-changing and never stagnant!

I keep on the move, too. Menomonie is my home, but work takes me throughout west central Wisconsin and the Twin Cities area, as well as to Iowa, Vancouver and even Mexico!

My yoga training includes a certification from Kripalu Center in Massachusetts — the largest yoga center in the nation — and a training certification in Feng Shui with Carole Hyder in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Carole studied with Master Thomas Lin Yun, who introduced Feng Shui to the United States in the mid-1980s. My studies are ongoing, and I owe much gratitude to teachers and authors who generously share their expertise.

My deepest gratitude, however, must extend to the hundreds of clients and students who have magnanimously invited me to participate in their lives, their stuff, their bodies and their spirits. From them I have learned much about yoga and Feng Shui/decluttering, about the human condition, about my own quirks and foibles. From them I have learned that our bodies, spirits and homes can become stagnant and neglected, ill and decrepit...and that with a strong dose of intention and will, humility and humor, breath and movement, well-being can be restored and even flourish. Because of my students and clients I feel deeply hopeful.