I’m featured in Podcast User Magazine issue 18! Cool!

check this out!

Lance Anderson interviewed me for PUM and I made the cover 🙂

Read the Article and you can listen to the interview!

Episode 11: Level 1-2, 50min class at Swerve Studio

I’m still in El Salvador so this is a class that I had recorded on August 25. A basic Level 1-2 class which runs about 50 min, with the theme of Faith, in sanskrit Shraddha 🙂

Links:

http://www.lululemon.com/beverlyhills/northbeverly

northbeverly-store@lululemon.com (the email address to rsvp to for the Lululemon Opening Party on October 12th from 6-10pm)

Also the living Sun Salutation Project on Santa Monica Blvd: Gather at the North Beverly Store, 334 N. Beverly Dr. Beverly Hills, 90211, at 4:30pm. We will do the Salutations from about 5-6pm. Please wear black clothes, top and bottom!

Sequence:

Warm ups

1/2 sunsalutes x 3

Sun Salutations x 3

Crescent Pose, jump switch

Vira II into Reverse Vira

Vira I

Trikonasana/Ardha Chandrasana/Urdhva Prasarita Ekapadasana with squared hips/Deep lunge on forearms

Pigeon

Ardha Bhekasana

Lunge with thigh stretch

Cobra on fingertips x 2

Child’s Pose

Ardha Matsyendrasana

Hasta Padangustasana

easy twist

A Tribute to Dr. Juan Jose Fernandez, My Grandfather

This tribute was made by my grandfather’s medical students at the University Jose Matias Delgado, where he was the Dean of Medicine. I have translated what it says for those of you who do not speak spanish.

I know that the majority of what you see are ‘things,’ earthly achievements, which may be seen as the things that he did, and yet all of this did not come about by my grandfather asking the question, “what do I want to do with my life?” but by asking “who do I want to be?” and what he did came as a result of that answer. The day that my grandfather finally fell ill, after suffering from lung cancer for 4 yrs. was the last day that he went to work. He was 87 yrs. old. May we see the virtues of a man whose faith and the choices that he made because of that faith, empower us all to choose a life that reflects the graces and divine gifts that we have been given. We have a responsibility to enhance life and live it as fully as we can, using everything that comes to us as an opportunity to be more, and as we do that, we help each other, just like seeing my grandfather’s life does for me and many other people.

A legacy
A story of one life
Dr. Juan Jose Fernandez

In 1936 he graduates from the high school Garcia Flamenco with a focus on Letters and Science

In 1943 he meets Miss Elsie Castillo Funes with whom he will share the rest of his life

“Towards the end of 1943 I met Miss Elsie Castillo who was destined to become the keeper of my heart, hopes and dreams” Dr. Juan Jose Fernandez

In 1944 he becomes the editor of the student magazine “El Salvador in Medicine” and he is named president of the student society “Emilio Alvarez.”

He graduated with a Doctorate of Medicine from the University of El Salvador in 1946

He recieved a gold medal and an honorary badge for his doctoral thesis

His first prescription

On May 4th 1947 he marries Miss Elsie Castillo Funes

He becomes a father for the 1st time in 1948

From 1949 to 1951 he earned his Masters degree in Internal Medicine from the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York

From 1951 to 1952 he was named Head Emergency Services at the Rosales Hospital in El Salvador

He became a member of the commitee for scientific activities for the School of Medicine in El Salvador, a situation that permitted him to participate together with Drs. Luis Edmundo Vasquez and Max Bloch in founding The Society for Internal Medicine in El Salvador.

From 1958 to 1981 he was Chief of Staff for Internal Medicine at the Rosales Hospital in El Salvador and was chosen to Head the Department of Medicine at the University of El Salvador

In 1968 he was named Director of Medical Education in charge of the organization of the Department of Medicine, in the School of Medicine of the University of El Salvador, which earned him a scholarship by the Rockefeller Foundation to study organization at for the Departments of Medicine at Tulane, Cornell, Columbia, Harvard, and Stanford Universities

He became President of the Society of Internal Medicine for the 1st time in the years 1958-1962. In August 1968, as President he is named Coordinator of the Committe ‘Ad Hoc’ for the study of medical education problems in the country.

In June 1985 the 3rd wing of the Women’s Health Center is named “Dr. Juan Jose Fernandez”

From 1981 to 1991 he was Chief of the Department of Medicine for the Rosales Hospital in El Salvador during which time he was the driving force behind the development residency of Internal Medicine.

In December 1994 the National Hospital Zacamil is renamed “Dr. Juan Jose Fernandez”

In April 1995 he is named Distinguished Doctor by the Legislative Office of the Rebublic of El Salvador, this is comparable to a medal of honor given by the President of the United States.

In 1995 he accepts the post of Dean of the School of Medicine at the University Jose Matias Delgado

In December 1996 he is named Doctor of the Year by an the Ad Hoc committe Gustavo A. Lopez Foundation

On May 25th 1999 he was awarded the Silver Plaque by the National Order ‘Jose Matias Delgado’

Silver Wedding Anniversary

Ex Chiefs of Residency of Internal Medicine

Family Fernandez Castillo Funes

Man, companion, brother, husband, father, master, teacher, friend, chief, but before all a great human being. These are a few words that describe the man who was our Dean, the excellent teacher, Dr. Juan Jose Fernandez, to whom we owe an enormous legacy, and unforgettable mark as time passes, a footprint of firm and successful steps worthy of example.

Thank you teacher for everything. You will always be in our hearts.

Living Grief

Every moment is full.

I woke up this morning at about 8:30am, my Dad was arriving in El Salvador! Yeay! I went downstairs to have breakfast and to my joyous surprise my grandmother was already having breakfast. During this time of loss, the loss of my grandfather, the one who is suffering and grieving the most is my grandmother. She has refused to eat. She doesn’t want to engage at all. She refuses to live.
When I arrived on Tuesday, the usual spunky grandmother was completely non existent. I expected grief, but I had never seen grief in this way. Her whole body, her essense, her heart was mush. Simply like a rag doll. She could barely stand. All she could do was cry. She was like a 5 yr. old. I really wondered if she was going to make it through this. It seemed like nothing any of us could say, reached her in any way at all.

That Tuesday was painful, just to watch her barely live.

Wednesday was a different story. She woke much easier than the day before. She ate breakfast and even engaged my Mom and I in conversation. We visited together and also ate lunch together. She didn’t fight the food, she just ate, like a bird, but ate. The rest of the day she was just beautiful. In comparison to the day before I have to say that she was 100% better. I saw life beginning to seep into her. She made a lot of references to the future, which made me happy 🙂

Last night, she was a spitfire again, her spicy self was coming out. She was doing crazy yoga poses! Goodness! I mean seated poses, nothing standing (I would have gotten her to do some standing poses but at this time it was 11:30 at night!). She proceeded to tell me how she could do yoga, so she started to stretch herself in all sorts of crazy positions. I was flabbergasted. She’s 80! I kid you not, last night I saw her start to come alive again. It made me so happy 🙂 I knew she was coming out of it when she started to make comments about my figure and the way that I look, as that’s one of her favorite topics of conversation. She hadn’t made any comments until then and to be honest, that freaked me out, for that’s the first thing that I hear from her every time I see her. I went to sleep with lightness of heart.

Back to this morning. So, when I saw my grandmother eating by herself my heart just felt good. I thought, ok, we are on the road. Then, she went to her bedroom and once again cried and cried and told me that she just didn’t want to go on. She pleaded loudly to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Sacred Heart of Mary, to all the saints that surround her to help her. All I could do was just hold her. She says she has no heart. She is no one anymore without my grandfather. If I were to describe what I saw in her eyes your heart would break. Her soul is aching. Every breath is pained as it’s a recognition that she is alive and that her love, her beloved of 60+ yrs is no longer with her. When she looks out she sees nothing but him. She has a picture of my grandfather on her bedside table and she moves the picture facing her depending on what position she is in. She talks to the picture and kisses the picture. She has full conversations with him. She caresses the glass and wipes it lovingly. There was such a deep bond between them.

As the day has gone on she has started to liven up again. She took a shower and she was just talking to me about her feelings. She says that she can’t believe that he is gone. She says it’s the oddest feeling to know he is no longer around. She was telling me this quite calmly, with some tears but not too many. She told me how much he took care of her, sometimes even too much. How her whole life was based on taking care of him, and as he is no longer here she does not know what to do. She feels lost.

I’ve never seen grief up close. I’ve never seen the human heart so broken, so sore, so hurt. It really is about being able to move with her at every moment. One moment she is steady, conscious, and forward looking and in the next second, she is unconsolable, broken and full of despair. I cannot say anything to her that has not already been said to her. She has 2 incredible sons that dote on her, my mother, who is her steadiness, 2 incredible daughters in law that are truly angels. They adore her. Plus 9 grandchildren who just want to love her and help her in any way possible. All that I feel I can do now is just be near her and listen. To listen to her heart express itself, it yearns to cry out loud. I can only hug her and kiss her and tell her how amazing she is. All I want is for her to recognize how much goodness and life she has around her. The hardest part is to learn to move with her, to align to her, not to my wishes. She deserves to grieve in her own way, to cry, to laugh, to get angry, whatever she wants to do. It’s hard not to want to do what I (we) feel is best. It’s hard to be steady, and strong and ready to be there, ready to support her in any way she requires at that moment, not in the way that we want it to work out. It’s the hardest thing that I’ve done.

click on the picture to see the bliss of the beloved. this picture was taken August 15, 2006.