Taking the Practice Off the Mat

I started practicing yoga over 13 years ago. I did it for several reasons, some of which weren't obvious to me when I began. As I practiced more and more, I began to use yoga as a form of escape. I was unhappy, so I would go to the mat. I was angry, so I would take it out on my mat. I was depressed/unsure/lost/unsatisfied... so I went to my mat. I always felt better after, but in looking back I begin to see a pattern that developed.

The practice on my mat was a different world, and I was a different person there. I grafted myself to grow compassionately in the yoga studio, but not outside of it. During the past year, I've worked hard to reconnect those branches of myself, to wrap them around each other in an effort to blend the fruit of my labors. After 13 years of practicing, it hit me today: it is all my yoga practice. Driving to the studio, running late, dealing with what I see as obstacles to my practice - these ARE my practice. These are the challenges, just as an Ashtanga jump-through is a challenge, just as Agni Sara is a challenge, just as meditation is a challenge. They are all challenging me, and how I meet them is my practice. Some days, I will float through the challenge, and some days I will fall flat on my butt. Isn't it great that this is the practice?

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Please let me know if you are coming to Saturday's Yoga for Cancer Survivorship workshop, so I can be sure we have enough props.
• Stay tuned for an exciting announcement about the Sunday Yin Yoga class at Breathe (don't worry, you'll like the news)!
• Fundraiser workshop on August 26 at Willow Glen Yoga... more details to come...