Dear Friends,

For me, this has been a long time in coming, though I have felt the sense of goodbye deep in my heart for some time. For the reasons stated so articulately by so many, especially Philip Humphrey and Amber Huttner recently on FB, I am severing all connection to John Friend and Anusara as we know it.  Frankly, my view is that until John actually comes clean on everything, takes full responsibility, receives the needed help necessary, and starts afresh, all efforts to save Anusara will be in vain. The New Anusara Yoga School will be but a house of cards built on a foundation of sand.

In essence, John has not done what he told the Interim Committee he would do. In fact, his recent letters are worse than his first, with John attempting to sidestep the accusations—many of which he has previously admitted were true—and using language portraying himself as the victim somehow in this sad affair.

I will be ever grateful to John for this most brilliant evolutionary system of yoga he created, for what he saw in me so long ago and the support he gave to help me become the best teacher I could be. I will never put John out of my heart. But I am, for now, putting him out of my life.

John has often talked about levels of “initiation” for someone who has had to leave the community, and then later wants to come back. I agree with every word he said on this. John must show us that he has completely disengaged from any form of organization of Anusara Yoga, has received the necessary therapeutic help, and has submitted fully to an investigation by and accepted the findings of a new Ethics Committee. If and when John accomplishes all of this and shows that he is ready to come back to serve in a healthy and humble way, I will be the first to congratulate him and welcome him back.

I remain a certified Anusara Yoga teacher, despite the fact that I will be surrendering my license at the end of 2012, wanting to guarantee that all YTT hours, workshop hours, etc. will count toward Anusara certification with the new Anusara School if it is successful. And I truly pray it is.

I look forward to continuing my friendship with the countless awesome beings in this community, including my dear friends now on the Steering Committee whom I served with while on the Interim Committee. We are all innately free to follow the flow of Grace as our hearts dictate, and I remain indebted to John Friend for so beautifully reminding me of that each and every day.