Orchard Hill Center: Health & Wellness - formerly Princeton Yoga

Orchard Hill Center: Health & Wellness - formerly Princeton Yoga Deborah Metzger, founder & former director of Princeton Center for Yoga & Health, continues to offer
(267)

You will dwell in booths for seven days... -Leviticus 23:42The holiday of Succot is a lesser known holiday in Jewish tra...
09/26/2026

You will dwell in booths for seven days... -Leviticus 23:42

The holiday of Succot is a lesser known holiday in Jewish tradition and comes on the heels of the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashonah and Yom Kippur. It is a festival of harvest and rejoicing and giving thanks for the bounty of the fields.

All things change and he who wanders is not lost – It is taught that the Israelites were condemned to wander in the desert for 40 years on their way to the ‘promised land’. They dwelt in temporary huts called Succot and were given a daily ration of food – manna –always enough for each day. Many lost heart and began demonstrating and wishing they could go back to the bo***ge of Egypt, which perhaps seemed less fearsome than the unknown before them.

Biblical stories are great allegorical teachings on the road to personal growth and transformation. From slavery to freedom…from lack to sustenance…from solitude to community…

Have you felt that you might be wandering in your own personal desert? Have you perhaps been given temporary shelter by friends, family, and community? Perhaps just enough sustenance for each day? Do you have it in your heart to offer shelter and sustenance to others less fortunate? Perhaps just in the form of a smile or an act of kindness?

Can we notice a tension between the part of us that wants to just stay in the known, stay in the old, even if it's uncomfortable, even if there is no room to move or grow, and the part of us that wants to change?

So, perhaps - whatever your tradition or custom – find time for a brief meditation on this allegorical story. Does it serve to want to go back to something “known” for the illusion of “safety” when it is no more? How to “be” in this moment when we truly do not have a clue of what tomorrow will bring? What “bounty” might you be able to share with others?

Can we practice coming out of restriction/habit every day of our lives? What temporary shelters might you find along the way on your journey in the form of friends and loved ones or you own inner resources/wisdom - perhaps just enough to sustain you each day on the way to your “promised land”?

(The custom today on this holiday is to build and decorate temporary huts with symbols of the harvest and take meals in them, as well as to take in guests (ushpizin or mysterious guests) and wanderers who might be less fortunate – offering meals and shelter. There is a bringing together of 4 kinds (4 minim) of plants – symbolizing different “types” of people. But that might be another post!)

#

And we come to the last of the Days of Awe in Jewish tradition – Sunday evening, September 20th marks the start of Yom K...
09/19/2026

And we come to the last of the Days of Awe in Jewish tradition – Sunday evening, September 20th marks the start of Yom Kippur, Day of Atonement - or At-One-Ment!

There are ‘confessional’ prayers which remind us that we are collectively responsible for one another. From a yogic perspective, it’s about looking at the suffering one has created and asking for help in diminishing negative patterns (samskaras). Returning to the source and letting go.

There is a common theory that the soulful Kol Nidre prayer recited that evening commenced during and because of a period of extreme persecution, in which Jews were forced at sword's point to convert (either to Christianity or Islam) and that Kol Nidre was supposed to nullify that forced conversion and release us from all such bindings. Many of us took sacred vows as children as a strategy to cope with life’s pain and challenges when we had no tools or even language to understand those vows of survival.

How might we now release and annul non-constructive patterns of action, speech and thought?

It is also a time of the year to honor the harvest that we are reaping and those gifts that we have received over the past year. Can we return to our source and find balance and unity in all the many realms?

And, finally, it is a custom to start fresh at the end of Yom Kippur with a mitzvah, and to begin to build the Sukkah the day after. Mindfulness teaches that It is always possible to begin anew each moment. How might we 'start fresh'? Each moment new...

So, let us welcome all opportunities - interweaving the customs of varied traditions - to pause, to find balance, to be at one with ourselves and our fellow travelers on this plane and to release ourselves from negative patterns (samskaras). And to begin anew...

May we all be inscribed in the Book of Life.

Deborah Metzger

(Below, from Leonard Cohen’s “Who by Fire”)

,

Dear Community,Many of you know I like to weave universal teachings from varied wisdom traditions at holiday times.This ...
09/11/2026

Dear Community,

Many of you know I like to weave universal teachings from varied wisdom traditions at holiday times.

This evening through Sunday, September 13th is the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah and the beginning of what are called the Days of Awe, ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, Day of Atonement, Sunday eve September 20th and ending nightfall, September 21st.

Rosh Hashanah is known as the New Year for People [There are several “New Years” in Jewish tradition, for example, there's a New Year for Trees]. It's about our relationships with fellow travelers on this human plane and a season of personal and universal renewal - a symbolic opportunity to say goodbye to the old and hello to the new.

It is also a new year of sorts for folks settling back in from vacations, summer activities and back to school - as a perennial student, I always think of early fall as another new year, fresh new notebooks, new pens...may we all be inscribed in the Book of Life!

Yoga tells us that every moment, we have the opportunity to begin anew - This moment that you're in now is new. So is this one now. And this. And this. On and on, each moment is a New Year. So, set your intentions in clarity and joy, welcoming each moment anew…an opportunity to begin again with each new breath…

Can we find a new way of thinking, a new way of being, and certainly a new way of greeting one another at this challenging time and moment of choice – shall we evolve or devolve?

I want to take this opportunity to ask forgiveness of all for any words or deeds or actions I created, conscious or unconscious, which may have caused you any pain or suffering. Another custom!

So, taking a moment to reach out. May this New Year (moment) be a good time for you, a time of inspiration and renewal, discovery and learning, good health, ease of being, and joy. There’s no time like NOW!

And, now as I retired from Orchard Hill Center: Health & Wellness - formerly Princeton Yoga, I want to take another moment to thank the Princeton Yoga community for sharing your moments with me all those many 26+ years and collectively building a community of new moments. I remain forever grateful that we crossed paths on this short journey of life and the experiment called PCYH!

Deborah Metzger

Sept 11Yitgadal v’yitkadash shemey rabahWe remember all who lost their lives [22] years ago today.All who died in the bu...
09/11/2026

Sept 11

Yitgadal v’yitkadash shemey rabah
We remember all who lost their lives [22] years ago today.
All who died in the burning Towers,
All who perished in Washington and in the fields of Pennsylvania.

We honor all who gave their lives in hopes of saving others
We bow to the courage of the first responders who without a thought rushed into the flames.

We stand with the children,
With the mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, partners and spouses who said good-bye in a phone call
Who searched the rubble,
Who came away empty.

And we mourn.
We mourn the lost lives.

And we mourn the lost opportunities.

Twelve years ago we were a nation broken, raw, vulnerable, exposed.
And we were a nation poised for greatness.
We were ready. We were willing to do anything.
Ask anything of us. We were all set to give.

But instead of reaching out to join with others
Instead of building bridges, of searching for connection
Our leaders turned our nation to war.

And so today we also mourn the young soldiers
The dead, the injured, the maimed
And we mourn the mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers and children
Of Iraq and Afghanistan. [DM add: And Ukraine and all places of senseless terrorism and murder and unspeakable horrors]

We mourn the lost lives
We mourn the squandered resources
We mourn all that could have been.

Oseh shalom bimromav
May we find a way, amid the rubble and the pain, to reach each other once again.
hu ya’aseh shalom
May we honor all that was lost by recommitting ourselves to peace,
Aleynu ve’al kol yisrael ve’al kol yishmael, ve’al kol yoshvay tevel
May our grief break open our hearts to each other. May our sadness break open our hearts to love.

Ve’imru amen. And we say amen.

~adapted from Jewish Mindfulness Organization, 2013

When science confirms what the ancients knew!“When you feel pain or an itch, you might try to ignore it.But a fascinatin...
09/09/2026

When science confirms what the ancients knew!

“When you feel pain or an itch, you might try to ignore it.
But a fascinating new study has found that this may actually make your inflammation worse in certain situations.

The study, published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, suggests that our brain and attention may change how our immune system responds to inflammation. When people tried to distract themselves from an itch, it caused the inflammation — as measured by redness and swelling of the skin — to grow larger in size and last longer than if they focused their attention on it….”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2026/09/08/focusing-your-attention-may-help-your-brain-fight-inflammation-study-suggests/

Hello September!“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost;The old that is strong does not wi...
09/01/2026

Hello September!

“All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost…”
~J.R.R. Tolkien

Depicted here is the labyrinth at the Orchard Hill Center. Created in 2016 in honor of the 20th anniversary of the Princeton Center for Yoga & Health. Memories of times gone by at the Orchard Hill Center: Health & Wellness - formerly Princeton Yoga. Yet the labyrinth still endures and is walked.

See Deborah Metzger’s blog about the impetus and process of its creation.

https://orchardhillcenter.com/unveiling-of-new-labyrinth-walk-the-labyrinth-with-intention/

The oh so very gifted and passionate Adrienne Jamiel. Yoga off the mat is whatever lights you up. It is your flame on to...
08/26/2026

The oh so very gifted and passionate Adrienne Jamiel.

Yoga off the mat is whatever lights you up. It is your flame on top of the ocean of consciousness.

Thought for the day...Since everything is but an apparition,perfect in being what it is,having nothing to do with good o...
08/19/2026

Thought for the day...

Since everything is but an apparition,
perfect in being what it is,
having nothing to do with good or bad,
acceptance or rejection,
one may well burst out in laughter.
~ Longchenpa

"You can't possibly be thinking about nothing if your tail is wagging."But you CAN observe yourself in the moment thinki...
08/18/2026

"You can't possibly be thinking about nothing if your tail is wagging."

But you CAN observe yourself in the moment thinking of something and label it: "Thinking, thinking" and my tail is wagging...

And smile to yourself! 😉

Come to work happy every day - and wag your tail!

Unique office space available at the Orchard Hill Center

More info and photos here: https://www.craigslist.org/view/d/rocky-hill-commercial-office-space/b7diJpLjgNfVVEXhGuV6vS

More body wisdom from the gifted and knowledgeable Adrienne Jamiel!Adrienne was an early influence in my yoga teacher ca...
08/15/2026

More body wisdom from the gifted and knowledgeable Adrienne Jamiel!

Adrienne was an early influence in my yoga teacher career and offered yoga teacher training programs in times gone by at Orchard Hill Center: Health & Wellness - formerly Princeton Yoga.

I remain forever grateful for her long time friendship and gifts she shared with our community. 🙏



https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbqNei4hCke/

Address

88 Orchard Road
Skillman, NJ
08558

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Orchard Hill Center: Health & Wellness - formerly Princeton Yoga posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Orchard Hill Center: Health & Wellness - formerly Princeton Yoga:

Shortcuts

Share

Category