Begin Here | From Scratch
A Gentle Guide to the Rhythm, Reflections, and Practice Threads
Dear reader,
Welcome to From Scratch — a space for reflection, recovery, and realignment.
Whether you’re a longtime teacher of Yin Yoga or someone who’s never rolled out a mat, this is a space for anyone drawn to the quiet technologies of being—embodied stillness, elemental wisdom, and the kind of insight that doesn’t arrive with clarity, but with reverence—for the question, and for the strange privilege of asking it.
Each week, I explore the subtle and subversive art of coming back to center—through essays, meditation experiments, and Yin Yoga practice labs.
🌀 What You'll Find Each Week
This newsletter unfolds in a three-part rhythm:
Meditation Experiments (Tuesdays)
Short reflections and prompts to accompany your inner life. Less instruction, more invitation. A contemplative nudge for the week ahead.
Yin Practice Labs (Thursdays)
Grounded, accessible Yin Yoga sessions that explore:
The Five Elements of Chinese Medicine
Fascia, the vagus nerve, and subtle energy
Integration of embodiment, energy, and mindfulness
You don’t need flexibility. You don’t need a mat. Just somewhere comfortable on the floor with some blankets and a cushion or bolster.
Sunday Reflections (Sundays)
Essays and poetic fragments about starting over, falling apart, and finding meaning in the middle of it all.
🪷 Who I Am (Briefly)
I’ve been immersed in Yin Yoga, Buddhist meditation, and Chinese Medicine for over twenty years—as a student, practitioner, and teacher. These threads continue to weave through my life and work, shaping how I listen, move, and begin again.
I come to this work from within the process of recovery—from addiction, and from a life-altering rupture that reoriented everything. These experiences aren’t the subject of every post, but they live in the marrow of what I teach. You’ll find traces of that journey—its questions, its cautions, its grace—woven through the stories and practices I share.
✨ Not Sure Where to Begin? Start Here:
🧘♂️ Yin Practice Lab #1: Embodied Listening
A 60-minute class for reconnecting to the body’s quiet intelligence.
👉 [Read and practice →]
🌀 Meditation Experiment #6: Earth-Based Breath Meditation
A short practice for letting the Earth hold you with every breath.
👉 [Explore here →]
✍️ Why Yin Yoga? Beyond the Physical
An essay on grief, stillness, and why we keep coming back to the mat when nothing else makes sense.
👉 [Read →]
What This Feels Like, According to Readers
“Your invitation—to partner with the wisdom of your body, not push through it—has become a truth and practice in my life.”
“This practice is keeping me from losing my sanity in the face of today’s unbearable news.”
“The writing is exquisite. A lifeline.”
💛 A Note on Subscriptions
Much of this space is free. But if you’d like access to the full archive of guided meditations and weekly Yin Practice Labs, I offer a paid membership that supports my writing, teaching, and ongoing work.
If you’re not in a position to pay, I offer scholarship subscriptions—no questions asked. Just email me. Practice should remain a refuge, not a privilege.
If you're able to support, your generosity makes this work possible. Thank you.
Stay Awhile. Start Where You Are.
You don’t need to know yoga. You don’t need a belief system. You don’t need to be healed.
You just need to be curious about what happens when you stop trying to be somewhere else.
Welcome, from scratch.
—with warmth,
Josh