What's Up 2026 September
Boise & Beyond
Welcome
Playa Avellanas Yogis!
For years, my husband and I dreamed of making Costa Rica our home. After spending several years exploring the possibilities, in August 2025 we chose Playa Avellanas as the place to begin our next chapter.
There was only one thing that made leaving our longtime home in Boise especially difficult: leaving behind my yoga teaching community.
But perhaps I don’t have to leave the teaching behind.
I’m beginning to explore what teaching yoga might look like here in Avellanas—private and small-group classes in my home, individualized practices, teacher training and mentoring, online offerings, retreats…and who knows what else?
After decades of teaching yoga and studying the human body, I remain passionate about helping people discover a practice that meets them where they are—one that can help us move, breathe and live with greater ease, strength and joy at every stage of life.
So, for now, I’m simply putting it out there, staying curious, and seeing where this lifelong passion takes me next.
Sometimes we gather the nectar. Sometimes we share it. And sometimes we simply trust the flow.
If you’re in Playa Avellanas and curious about practicing together, I’d love to hear from you.
Boise Shanti Yoga Schedule
September Shanti Intensives,
AND Book Discussion Series
Boise River Yoga,
virtual attendance available.
See details below
Shanti Book Club – begins Sept 13!
We had to cancel August’s book club, but really this is good because it gives you all more of a chance to read it. The book, Ignite Your Yoga: How to Live, Practice and Teach as an Authentic Yoga Steward by Susanna Barkataki is a great read that will help you incorporate much of what we learn in the 200 YTT into your life and heart.
In our first meeting we will cover part 1 of the book.
Reflection Prompts for Your Reading:
Which Yamas and Niyamas seem most relevant or most challenging to you right now?
As you focus on the inner limbs during your reading, what changes do you notice in your yoga practice
Date & Time: Sunday, September 13 | 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM MT
Location: Hybrid — In-Person at Boise River Yoga (please let Jarrett know if you will be there in person) and Live Online https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89861412696?pwd=UyfnWvjads0FhPib3ffnAxUVbb4oIV.1
Jarrett’s contact information – jarrettphipps@gmail.com or 850-386-2269. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
Sept 20 & 27 Intensives
ASANA: From Form to Function
The shape of the pose may change. The purpose of the practice remains.
Two September Sundays explore yoga asana through a single lens: adapting the pose to the person, not the person to the pose.
When asked why there were so many yoga poses, a guru answered, “Because there are so many different people.” We share the same needs: to live healthier, more peacefully, and more happily. Yoga asana is a tool —and each person may need a different way of using it.
Asana is a question, not an answer.
Sunday, September 20
12:30 – 4p Asana Lab: Foundations of Yoga Asana with Kimberly Azzarito
In this first session, we explore the fundamentals of the major asana groups through embodied practice and teaching.
We examine the function and common patterns of each group while asking a central question:
How do we adapt the pose to the person?
This is a hands-on lab. You’ll practice the asanas, explore how they function in your body, and begin teaching them to others. The will be a break.
Sunday, September 27
11:30 – 4p Adapting Asana: The Pose Meets the Person
How do we modify a pose without losing its purpose?
This second session applies the principles from the Asana Lab to a range of bodies, abilities, and needs.
11:30 AM–1:00 PM — Chair Yoga with Jarrett Phipps
What changes when we shift our relationship to gravity and stability?
1:00–1:30 PM — Break
1:30–3:00 PM — Quiet Practices for Noisy Times with Doug
Yin & Restorative
What changes when practice is defined by quiet, release, receptivity, and restoration?
3:00–4:00 PM — Group Discussion & Practice
Together, we explore what it means to teach yoga as an adaptable practice—meeting people where they are and placing asana in service of the person, not the other way around.
Doug also offers classes at Boise River Yoga
shantiyogastudio.org/retreats
All retreats are registered with Yoga Alliance and provide ceus or Shanti Yoga Advanced Studies training hours which can be used towards any of our offerings: 200, 300, 500 and Specializations in Wellness and Chakras.
Discover Panama, January 24 - 31, 2027 Trade resolutions for exploration!
Most New Year’s resolutions ask you to fix something about yourself.
What if, instead, you offered yourself an adventure that reminded you how good it feels to be fully alive?
Living here in Central America has taught me that true transformation rarely comes from pushing harder.
It comes when we slow down enough to actually notice where we are. That is why returning to Panama is so close to my heart.
From the historic, music-filled streets of Casco Viejo to the remote island paradise of Bocas del Toro, this week is designed as a deliberate shift for your nervous system:
Vibrant city culture → Lush jungle sanctuary
Fabulous food & ancient architecture → Fresh coconuts & wild coral reefs
Stimulating your senses → Soothing your nervous system
We’ll practice morning yoga under poolside palapas, snorkel azure mangrove reefs, share vibrant tropical meals, and sleep to the lull of the tide (and the occasional chatter of local monkeys!).
You won’t just take a vacation—you’ll bring the muscle memory of deep ease home with you.
Maybe this is the year you say yes to something you’ve been dreaming about.
To new horizons and warm waters,
Debbi
🙏🐒💃🦜🏝️
P.S. All participants are eligible for Yoga Alliance CEUs, contact Debbi.
Colorful Colombia, Nov 13 – 20, 2027
What You’ll Experience in Colombia
Colombia is home to vibrant cities and people, unbelievable coffee, music pouring out of open windows, and some of the most beautiful places on the planet. Dive into culture, food, and rhythm on this yoga retreat adventure in Colombia (with the help of local guides, of course). Hike mountain paths, take over a restaurant in Cartagena, drum to the beat on the beach and chillax while boating and snorkeling around the Rosario Islands. Explore by foot, beats, plane, hands and taste buds as you experience the best, and the tucked away, of Colombia. Add color, rhythm, and spice to your life as you luxuriate on this yoga retreat adventure in Colombia.
How You’ll Experience Colombia
You’ll start your yoga retreat adventure in Colombia by exploring Medellín. You’ll explore this vibrant city by foot, cable car and exceptional metro. Walk through two no-words-can-do-it-justice ‘comunas’ in town with graffitied walls that tell the stories of struggle, difficulty and perseverance. Be blown away by locals and the unsung beauty of Medellín. Next you’ll head into the wilds to hike, harvest, taste and create; the ceramics center of El Carmen de Viboral will enchant and expand your artistic sensibilities. Next Cartagena—a notoriously colorful and vibrant city—beckons! You’ll stay in the vibrant Getsemani region of town, known for its delicious food, impromptu dancing on the streets, beauty and diverse markets. You’ll head to the beach to learn and pound out the rhythm of the region and hop on a boat to relax on the islands. You’ll boat to the pristine Rosario Islands, swim, snorkel and eat fresh seafood. You’ll bookend your days with yoga sessions and mouthwatering cuisine to help you integrate and acclimate.
Teacher Training hours are available for Shanti students.
