The Woman Inspiring Me this Month: Michele Sapanaro
As part of my ongoing personal growth, I’ve been reflecting on how I show up in conversations—especially in moments that call for honesty, vulnerability, or emotional clarity. I’ve noticed that I often hold back my true feelings. Sometimes it's out of fear of hurting someone else; other times, it’s the discomfort of being vulnerable or not knowing how my words will be received.
To support this exploration, I turn to the Four Gates of Speech as a framework for more skillful and compassionate communication:
This month, I’m honored to spotlight a woman I refer to as one of my very first teachers. They say “when the student is ready, the teacher appears”....and Voila! Michele came into my life. I started the practice of yoga to learn and develop skills to quell my anxiety and to quiet my forever busy body mind and spirit. As many of you know, I had been in recovery for a number of years from what I can accurately describe as a gripping cocaine addiction. That first decade of sobriety was all about keeping it simple. I alternated mantras with “The Serenity Prayer,” and “One day at a time” while staying away from people, places and things that triggered me.
Somehow I landed in Michele’s asana class with the stiff body of a runner and the racing mind of a recovering addict. And there she was, cool, calm, and collected with the bendy strong form of a gymnast and the spirit of a goddess. I’m not sure what was most challenging for me, the physical practice (in those days I was not flexible at all) or the completely foreign notion of quieting my mind, tuning into my breath, and letting the breath inform the way I moved. Michele held space with grace, non judgemental awareness, and a keen eye toward discovering each of her students’ potential. She invited us to meet ourselves exactly where we were, and remember that all mind-body practices are a framework for self-observation and transformation.
Even though Michele would always say it’s not about getting there, it’s about the process, in my type A competitive mind, I thought to myself, will I ever be able to do some of the poses she was able to do so effortlessly? I wanted to follow her like a little puppy! I wanted to get to know her secret! How could she be so capable and easeful as she moved through the poses? I remember psyching myself up to go to her class, hoping to notice just a little bit of personal progress. When I couldn’t see the microscopic transformation, Michele would notice and share with me. I kept showing up, and little by little my body softened and let go! Her positive, experienced, grounded approach empowered us to meet our practice with curiosity and enthusiasm, while her detailed instruction sprinkled with real life experience created a warm, safe space for inquiry.
Truth be told, I don’t remember how we moved from the student teacher role we played into a deep, meaningful friendship. We celebrate each other, we inspire each other, and we always make time for each other whether in person or on Zoom.
On August 17th, we celebrated her 65th birthday at Michele’s beautiful new home that she shares with her talented, artistic, husband and biggest fan John. Every detail, from the flowers to the presentation, to the food choices, to the fresh cucumber infused water was approached through the eye of awakened buddha nature… carefully put together with grace and ease. I can’t stop thinking about the speech Michele offered before we broke bread. I stood there, admiring her integrity, authenticity, and generosity. She celebrated each and every family member, and each and every guest. We all felt honored to be a part of her milestone birthday. I was in tears, as I am now writing this piece.
Michele is a fierce, devoted wife, mother, nonna, sister, friend, mentor, and spiritual guide. She is always well prepared, a life long student, with a never ending passion for learning. Her daily aspiration is to intertwine all the aspects of her spiritual life into her everyday world. They are not separate, but two streams that flow into a larger river called, Life!
Michele embraces all things exquisite…. from luxury fashion trends, including our shared love for Manolo Blahnik x Birkenstocks, to the sparse simplicity of a long, contemplative silent meditation retreat—revealing her remarkable ability to live an awakened life while fully rooted in the world as a householder. She wears both with ease, like a loose garment, free from attachment or clinging.
She focuses on awakening all those around her to the connection to the intimacies of their innate wisdom, inner strength, and trust.
Our friendship is grounded in a shared commitment to living an awakened, mindful life. We celebrate the awe and challenges of life on life’s terms, and we offer each other permission to be human: perfect in our imperfection.
