Easter Meditation

Joy.  
We can accept the world for the way it is and live our lives for the love that is in it.  We can choose whoever we want to be, do whatever is within our capabilities and learn to transcend our own limitations.
You are being asked to find the light in your life and embrace it.  The tools of healing lie within - in the love that transcends everything.  

Hmmmmm....this is not the first time I've drawn this card and it's not the first time I've drawn this card when I've asked for Grace in the same specific area of my life.  As I placed my hand on the deck and closed my eyes, I thought about the enlightening, heart-opening practice that I had with Carmen this morning and asked silently what it is that I need to focus on to move forward in my relationships with my sisters and my mom.  I'm a person who is biased towards action, towards fixing, towards moving forward.  The thing I struggle with is how to be accepting, especially where the same attitudes and behaviors are repeated but different outcomes are expected.   It's not my style to repeat-again.  I'm a tweak-and-try-again kinda girl.  In a family where apologies are rebuffed, sides are picked, and blame is laid, I feel inadequate to try to fix situations or mend relationships.  I think the Universe is being deliberate in re-handing me the lesson that it's not always about tweaking and trying again.  Sometimes it's about focusing on your own joy, your own light, and being who you are.  And leaving other people the space to do the same.

I also have to smile that this beautiful hummingbird representing healing comes on the day that Todd and I rescued a beautiful Red-tailed hawk.  Putting aside our own fears and uncertainty, not ignoring a spirit in need of help, being persistent and not saying "oh well, we tried and it wasn't there when we looked the first time".  Helping is healing to both the helper and the helped.  I also can't overlook the fact that we always talk about my dad's spirit being a Red-tailed hawk, which I think might be why my eye is quick to spot them.  As I struggle with family dynamics, I've been thinking about him a lot lately, especially in the quiet times:  like when I'm driving home at the end of a day and I see a Red-tailed hawk, standing injured, along the road.

Namaste

Preconceived Ideas: What Makes A Yogi?

I officially taught my first yoga class today.  Whoa.  I OFFICIALLY TAUGHT MY FIRST YOGA CLASS TODAY!!!  Actually, I taught my first two classes and I loved it!  I want to bottle up the experience and carry it around my neck like a jewel...it feels that precious.  Ahhhh...on this rainy dreary Saturday morning, I'm planning to bask in the radiant happiness the rest of the day.

The theme I used was about not bringing preconceived ideas about what it means to be a yogi or a runner.   Looking at the cover of a Yoga Journal or Runner's World can be inspirational and intimidating.  Beautiful, limber, strong, experienced practitioners.

Then there's the rest of us.  Most of us find challenges in simple aspects of our practice.  Straight legs in Utanasana (Standing Forward Fold) is tough for a lot of people, especially for men.  Arms extended so biceps are by the ears in Warrior I can be a challenge if shoulders are tight or muscular.  But, when the gun goes off, everyone who runs is a runner.  When we come to our mats and begin our practice, we are yogis.

We set an intention for the practice to bring only ourselves to the mat and by doing that, we are yogis.  Virabhadrasana  (Warrior) I and II sequences, Crescent Lunge (Deep Lunge), Parsvakonasana (Side Angle Pose), and Sun Salutation series at the end of class with Salabhasana (Locust) and Dhanurasana (Bow) added in after the Cobra section, and then finishing up with Setu Bandha (Bridge) and Paripurna Navasana (Boat) poses made a class that was focused on building strength.

We ended class with the following blessing, which I think is beautiful for runners and yogis.

The Runners Blessing
May you have cool, still nights
and the promise of clear, endless morning.
May the sun rise to greet you with open arms;
and the horizon bow deep beneath your feet.

May you always have water to quench your thirst,
Air to fill your lungs and joy to lift your heart.
May your feet carry you wisely
Swift or slow, towards home.

May you always have heart for your fellow travellers,
and the rhythm of the road to guide you;
May you know the sweetness of victory,
The sorrow of loss and the surrender of both.
--Hannah Broom

Namaste