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Stephanie Barksdale

@stephinba

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Scorpio Yoga -Road trips -Never too Full for Dessert San Francisco Buenos Aires Tucson #lululemon #Tucson @yogapodtucson @thesurrenderyogaproject

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Happy Hips Slow Flow: A Groovy Journey to Hip Harmony 1-2p Get ready to groove into tranquility with me. This session is all about embracing the rhythm of your body with a special focus on heating up and opening your hips. by @stephinba

Join me this Sunday, September 13th 3:30p @yogasix_casasadobes. We will learn the story behind the poses, workshop alignment considerations, adjacent poses and flow connecting it all. #tucsonyoga #godeeper by @stephinba

I got back home last night after a 14 hour drive from the Bay Area. Through dust and rainstorms and cobwebs on the front porch, I made it home. I know it's magical thinking but I half expected Gigi to be there, waiting inside, and really, in some ways, she was. I Unloaded the heavily packed car with dog beds, stroller, dishes and of course Alfie. I think he might have expected Gigi to be here too. I thumbed through a pile of mail, delighting that much of it I could quickly filter and trash. I came back to the pile after showering and found this card from @encantopetclinic_az. I thought upon opening it that it would be a preprinted card with condolences. I notified my vet that Gigi had passed because the reminders for meds and appts were little stabs at an already tender heart. When I opened the card and saw the handwritten messages .... well ... tears and a deep sense of gratitude for the kindness of people whose life work is supporting our fur families. Thank you! 🙏 ❤️🐶😊 by @stephinba

Sixteen years ago, during lunch breaks from my job at Macy’s, I would wander into the pet store at the mall to look at puppies. I had always dreamed of having a corgi, so one day I asked to hold one. The little short-legged creature was adorable but impossibly wild — pure chaos and energy. Then I asked to see the English bulldog, who sat like a sleepy little blob, barely acknowledging I existed.
And then there was Gigi.
I had never even heard of a French Bulldog before. But the moment I held her, she looked at me with soft awareness and gently licked my ear. Something passed between us in that instant — a connection so immediate and profound that I went back several times before finally doing something that felt wildly irresponsible at the time: I spent more money than I had ever spent on anything and brought her home.
From the very first night, Gigi and I were bonded.
What I did not realize then was that alongside that love, another feeling had quietly taken root: the fear of one day losing her. The depth of my love for Gigi always carried with it a shadow of anticipatory grief. Even in our happiest years, some part of my heart already understood how unbearable it would someday feel to say goodbye. As she grew older, that feeling only deepened. Every gray hair, every slowing step, every sign of age reminded me that time was moving forward no matter how desperately I wanted to hold still the life we had together. Loving her so deeply meant carrying the ache of knowing one day I would have to live without her. That grief lived beside our joy for years, but it also made me treasure her even more fiercely.
Gigi was never everyone’s dog. She was selective, opinionated, dramatic, and every bit the diva Frenchies are famous for being. But to the people she chose — especially to me — she gave a love that felt deeply personal and rare. She was endlessly funny, a true little clown who could make me laugh without trying. Before her hearing faded with age, she was also a fierce protector, always alert and convinced it was her responsibility to guard me from the world. Yet beneath all that toughness was the sweetest snuggle bug imaginable, happiest curled against me in by @stephinba

This week I learned that my BFFFB. best friend forever fur baby, of 16 years has an aggressive oral tumor that would be very difficult to treat, so I have decided on palliative care until it's her time to be released from this body and this dimension. Despite the many challenges that have occurred over the last 10 years, this one hurts so deeply. Gigi has been my constant companion and an immense source of comfort, laughter and joy. It was love at first sight. She has always been a diva and a clown and I know she has hung on to get me through. We have needed each other. I have so much gratitude for her and the time and love we share. ❤️❤️‍🩹 by @stephinba

As one year ends and another begins, I am struck by the kindness, depth and generosity of the people around me. From family near and far, friends, acquaintances and strangers, these last few days have moved me. I am so grateful for a world where people are kind and helpful. Empathy is essential and it is everything. My wish is for everyone to allow themselves to lean on others when they find themselves in need. Allow the warmth and care of your fellow man to find you. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking because it exists. My intention is to be that for others in 2026, to be one little light, a place of warmth, rest, laughter or support when the world seems like too much. by @stephinba

After 40 years Reagan appointee, Judge Mark Wolf, resigns to speak out against POTUS. by @stephinba

by @stephinba

Do some research before having the leader of the most powerful nation on earth proclaim "Don't take Tylenol" Didn't the same person question if injecting bleach would cure COVID??? by @stephinba

I heard from a friend who was upset with something I posted about wishing we had a leader who could bring us together. I shared that I claimed the Republican party before I could actually vote. When I turned 18 I registered as a Republican and also became a Deputy Registrar so that I could register other people to vote. At 18, I was a volunteer that walked house to house handing out pamphlets for John McCain in his run to fill the seat vacated by Barry Goldwater. At 19, I was an unpaid intern for Rep. Jim Kolbe in Washington D.C. serving as a legislative correspondent. I voted Republican until 2016. That year I couldn't bring myself to vote for Trump but I also wouldn't cast a vote for Hillary Clinton. 2020 was my first vote for a Democrat. My friend asked "same party, what changed" I don't recognize this Republican party. I have posted here a picture of George W speaking about terrorists who killed thousands of our American citizens. Next picture, Stephen Miller, words filled with hatred, vitriol, disgust about his very own countrymen. How can WE come together as a country when our leaders state they hate more than half of us? How? To be even more clear of who I am. I grew up in the church. I went to bible school in the summers as a grade schooler. I went J- High for middle schoolers I went to Sr. High for high schoolers where I spent weeks out of two summers on mission trips. 1. Re- roofing and orphanage outside of Tijuana another summer running a bible school on the Reservation in Kayenta, AZ. Other summers I worked as a camp counselor for grade schoolers at vacation bible school. Christian Nationalism is not Chritianity. You can read your bible all you want and if you are rooting against your fellow citizens, cheering for people being sent to concentration camps, and at the same time supporting the release and pardon of J 6ers and the tolerance of child traffickers and rapists - I don't know what to say. by @stephinba

In 2020, like much of the world I was suffering. Experiencing clinical depression and general anxiety all of my adult life, 2020 was particularly difficult. In 2018, my boyfriend Jeff, lost a short and desperate battle with esophageal cancer. At the start of 2020, I was heart broken again when a brief and intense relationship with an old flame crashed and burned quite spectacularly and then boom … the covid pandemic hit. Depending on your point of view, it was the best or worst time to be going through emotional strife. I had a lot of time to focus on myself without distraction which also meant I had a lot of time to wallow in my own self created suffering.

As a manager for lululemon and all retail abruptly shut down, I had hours to indulge in one of my favorite past times, internet sleuthing. Perusing the company website where past and current ambassadors had answered interview bio questions, I started to compile a reading list. The question, “What book has had the greatest impact on your life?” And the book that was named again and again: “The Untethered Soul” by Michael A. Singer.

I purchased the book on Audible and I headed out onto a journey of self discovery, self healing, self mastery. I HIGHLY recommend, listening to this work over reading it. The subject matter is lofty and the narrator does a fabulous job on emphasizing important concepts. Having already started self mastery work with my yoga practice was very helpful. Having a teacher, that offered online classes during the shutdown was a tremendous support. Thank you to @empoweredconnection.me for being that teacher!

This is a work that I go back to again and again. I “re-read” this book yearly because like yoga, the lessons are a practice. Self mastery is a practice not a destination. It is place you strive for without ever arriving but greatly reducing your own psychic suffering along the way. by @stephinba