In yoga I find the use of props an essential part of teaching and taking classes. In class, I may refer to them as toys—I am the teacher who hauls in lacrosse, golf, tennis and even beach balls. I may joke of them being toys, but they are truly tools. These tools help deepen a practice and allow proper alignment to be achieved. There have been a few students who come in to a class and announce to me that they do not need props. They have been practicing long enough, they say, to not need any assistance from props. I usually smile and remind myself that the practice is theirs, not mine. But I also know that I will practice yoga the rest of my life and always use props. Even when I do not need them, it is nice to know that their assistance has nothing to do with my years of practice. It has to do with my desire to accept support. Continue reading “Prop, Please…” »
Nov
29
Oct
12
Sparkling Acts of Kindness
Autumn slipped in through the gold sparkling Aspens. Their white bark somehow heightening the illumination. With so many conifers making a blanket a green and emitting a strong festive smell from pine covered floors at the edges of granite mountains, it only takes a few Aspens to steal the show. Only a few. Somewhat like small acts of kindness.
Sep
28
The Tools We Carry
Over the fall, I have taken on a traveling adventure across the great United States. To see places I have not been, to meet people I do not know, and to stretch my comfort level in ways I have not done. My car is loaded with more supplies than most families of four would require and yet I have one tool that I did not have to think about packing, but occasionally have to remember that I have it with me. Whether we are off to cross the country or off to the local grocery, we all have a tool that is necessary to carry along. That tool is our breath. Continue reading “The Tools We Carry” »
Sep
14
The Difference We Make
If a person is fortunate in this life, they love the work they do when they are doing it. I love teaching yoga and what’s more, I realize I love it when I am doing it. One of the reasons for this has to do with the people I am privileged to teach. Several times a month I teach chair yoga to senior citizens at a retirement home. They remind me in the most natural way to stay in the moment. They do not ask what comes next or seem to worry about an upcoming obligation. Their obligation is being fulfilled right there in their chairs. Continue reading “The Difference We Make” »
Aug
31
Labors of Playfulness
With the final holiday of summer we are reminded that it is time to go back to work. The long days are beginning to shorten and we should return to routine: put that nose to the grindstone, crack those books wide open, and adhere to all the rest of the cliches and sayings. The transition back to the schedules of school and work can be met with some resistance. It can be like someone took all the games from the playground and left you with an expanse of emptiness. Perhaps you resign to the realities of work and let the fun fade like a summer tan.
But what if we didn’t resign ourselves so easily? Sure the calendar ticks off the days and the sun is going to start playing more hide than seek, but does that mean we have to give up our attitude of playfulness? I’m not advocating for clown noses and big red shoes to work, but even if we don’t outwardly carry a jovial spirit all the time, can’t we start with carrying one inside?
In a mediation I did this past month, through Oprah & Deepak 21 Day Meditation, the focus was on inviting more happiness into your life. There were many thoughts to consider and I will do the entire mediation an injustice by picking just one piece, but I find it is the mantra from one meditation that I go back to again and again: Lila Hum (pronounced ‘lee-la’). Lila Hum translates to I am playful.
What a delicious mantra to bring onto your yoga mat as you begin a practice—one rooted in turning inward, but finding a lightness not only in the body but in the mind. What a curious idea to pack along in the briefcase or computer satchel—a little attitude that you can be productive and powerful, but you can also pull out a little playfulness.
What I think I like most about such a mantra is that I can use it to break up the routine of the day. At the grocery store—waiting in line—I smile and think, Lila Hum. My run that has become so slow that it is sometimes difficult for my constitution to consider it running, changes when I open my eyes to the wonderful nature around me and think, Lila Hum.
The intention is not to make everything a game or to downgrade that which is serious, but in a world with so much tragedy and struggle, perhaps one response we can offer is an attitude that positions positiveness with peace as well as a dose of playfulness. That playfulness can be found in the simplest of actions—start with a smile, share a laugh with a friend, listen to music that makes your feet move.
As you finish your final official weekend of the summer, don’t pack away the attitude that offers joy to yourself and others. Instead, infuse a little playfulness all year long.
Aug
10
The Revery of Solitude and Silence
On the hundred and sixtieth anniversary of Walden it seemed appropriate that I started the morning sitting alone on my porch before daylight. While I was wishing for the clouds to clear so I could catch a glimpse of the emerging super moon, I remained enthralled by being part of the world while so many others slept. I picked up Walden again, a practice I do before I leave for a trip that will take me back into nature. I will camp my way across the country this fall and while I prep provisions, I also prep myself. This morning I landed on Thoreau’s passage from his section entitled Sounds: Continue reading “The Revery of Solitude and Silence” »
Jul
30
Allow A Little Change To Pay Off
I believe a little change is good thing. Change is good because it challenges us and often helps us open up to new ways of thinking or processing old thoughts. But change happens often in small amounts like collecting loose coins, slowly the change accumulates to larger amounts. Continue reading “Allow A Little Change To Pay Off” »
Jul
13
Sit a Spell
I heard the comment yesterday: “The summer is flying by!” Of course the reality is, all days contain the same number of hours and if you consider that there is more light right now than the rest of the year, the days are in some ways longer. Yet, the season can seem to fly on by. We have no ability to actually stop time, but we do have the ability to linger in time. Continue reading “Sit a Spell” »
Jul
04
Broken Clouds
The summer turns warm and I remind myself not to complain. The winter was so harsh I bartered with the weather gods—promising that I would not complain once the heat finally took the place of single digit temperatures, winds that teared my eyes to frozen strands, and layers of ice that made my driveway a hazardous zone. So I am not complaining, but it has been rather warm out there. This time of year, though, the weather changes quite quickly. Morning haze breaks to sun and is followed by clouds and rumbling skies. Last week I looked out at the forecast—the obsession practiced by so many of us—and the days ahead called for high temperatures and broken clouds. Broken. Clouds. Continue reading “Broken Clouds” »
Jun
24
Prime Number is Prime Time
Math has never been my strong suit and yet I think about prime numbers as I hit one this year. A prime number is only divided by itself and one. Somehow that seems appropriate for the woman who is not a part of two and often the third or fifth or seventh wheel—all prime numbers. Yet, I am—like the definition of prime numbers—greater than one. And, I believe others are too. I’m greater than one because I have the fortune of many friends. While there is much that makes this life worthwhile: beautiful sun-filled days, afternoons by the ocean’s edge, running and biking, and of course coffee, I sometimes forget how my life is filled with interesting people and many good fortunes. I don’t think I’m alone in this forgetting.
I imagine many of us lose sight of fortune in the reality that life can be a struggle especially when faced with loss. I think of my friend whose mother passed last week, and an old friend I’m visiting this week whose arthritis limits her movements, and another friend who recently lost his job. As they are faced with these struggles, my hope is that they do not doubt the certitude of having people who care. For those friends who struggle, I would like to make life better for each of them but sometimes I feel I cannot because I am only one– one person with limited talents and limited resources.
But if I am held back with this thinking then maybe others are too, and if we all think our sum of one does not make difference then what happens? I think we lose out on the opportunity to make a difference for another.
I cannot promise that I will always be the one to act right and make a bad situation better, but if I truly believe that I am greater than one, and that everyone else is too, then we can at least try.
As I turn toward this prime number year, I think of those things I am grateful for and right now it starts with being in my prime of gratitude and giving.