One of the most addictive things to me in my yoga practice is that exuberant feeling of joy and accomplishment when my body bends, balances, or aligns in a way I didn’t think was possible. You work and work into a pose and then one day it happens. One day you just relax into it; you forget your fear of falling or breaking. You just glide into something beautiful. When I am doing well and I am standing shoulder to shoulder with other yoga practitioners, all moving in synch with each other, I feel like a part of a grand dance. Continue Reading…
“The attitude you bring to your mat is the attitude you carry throughout your life.”
This is wisdom I have gleaned from my elder yogis. The physical and mental obstacles you face during your practice reveal your true colors and brings you face to face with it. Continue Reading…
When Seth and I were a little younger, we used our words to tear down and criticize the things that offended us about Christian culture. It’s hard to wear the name “Christian” with such a diversity of representation. The connotations connected to the terms are based on the personal encounters a person has had to someone who wore the label. That’s just how we are. Continue Reading…
Do you ever feel like life is just a process of survival? Aging is just a means of gaining the skills to breathe a little deeper each day. If there is anything I have learned in my process of becoming a yoga teacher, it is that I never again want to be so busy that I can’t enjoy life. Continue Reading…
At this moment I am devouring an entire bag of popcorn because it’s the end of the day. Never mind it is 5 o’clock in the evening and I’ll be eating a meal in another hour and a half. It’s the end of the day. I’ve worked hard through the week and I deserve it. Don’t I? Continue Reading…
I’ve told you before, that discipline does not come easy to me. Looking deeper into myself, I have discovered why. I am easily bored with routine, and I am addicted to change. In order to keep me interested in doing the same thing again and again, I have to change it up. I can’t stay stagnant in my practice. I have to move deeper. I have to keep the fire burning. Continue Reading…
I have a desk job during the day that requires me to sit in front of a computer. While my job is a blessing in many ways, sitting is not a blessing to my body. The first couple of weeks began to build a tightness and soreness in my shoulders. I began to slouch and shift my body into positions that were not meant for my spine. I now sit on an exercise ball, which has caused lots of buzz among the people who file through our office doors. Continue Reading…
What do you think about when you hear the word, “meditation”? Hippies seated in lotus chanting “AUM”? That’s what came to mind for me as well. Yet a voice inside of me wondered if it could be something more. Continue Reading…
I’m learning a hard lesson. In my life I want to be good at something. I’m tired of fitting that old saying so well: “A Jack of all trades, a King of nothing.” But what fuels that need? Is it human ego or Western culture? Why are we discontent and unwilling to accept ourselves where we are? A yoga teacher of mine once said, “Yoga practice is yoga life”. And she is right. The attitude we bring to our class is the attitude we carry through life. In the same way I’m learning to step back to where I am realistically challenged and get that right first before advancing. I need to carry that into other areas of my life as well. Continue Reading…
In many Christian circles the word “acceptance” makes parishioners squirm in their pews. It’s that dirty word that is up there with “tolerance.” Yet recently I have had a bit of an epiphany as I was listening to the words of a local yoga guru. Continue Reading…
