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Wait for your breath

I began receiving yoga therapy sessions in early May. I have since made the decision to become a yoga therapist.

The fun(ny) news is I’m serious. And no, the decision did not happen that fast. I have been practicing yoga for three years and teaching for one. Yoga has been so transformative in my life that I can confidently say I will never tire of becoming further educated in it. The more I learn, the more tools I have to share with people. The more I share yoga with others, the more I want to keep learning.

Something really cool happened in a restorative yoga class I taught on Monday. Toward the end, when everyone was getting situated in their final resting pose, I spontaneously decided to read Monday’s contemplation from last week called COMPASSION. I often read excerpts from other books when it feels right in class, and it felt so surreal reading something I wrote.

Right after class, a couple of students asked what the reading was from, and I was happy to share that I wrote it. I told them about this book of contemplations I’m writing. I could sense their mixed emotions, as they realized it wasn’t a book they look up. That was my cue to share my Substack! I’ve gotten some really positive responses on these daily-reflections-shared-weekly. I’m feeling the magic you guys.

I begin yoga therapist training in October. The yoga therapist I’m seeing will also be my mentor throughout the 3.5 year program. She developed a personal daily practice for me, which involves specific methods of movement, breathing, and meditation. One technique this includes is to breathe for two counts before the next movement follows. This applies to both the inhale and the exhale. For example: rest fingertips along collar bone, breathe in..1…2…then open arms out wide as you finish the inhale. Begin to slowly let the exhale out… 1…2… then close arms and bring hands back over the chest as you finish the exhale.

Training my movement to wait and follow the breath takes so much conscious effort. Doing this in my morning practice has been an absolute game changer for how I move through my day. I notice myself not responding or acting before I am ready. I’m learning to obey my breath, which encapsulates my vital life force, my spirit… ultimately the Spirit that connects all living things. How many times have I prayed for the Spirit to guide me, not realizing how much of my own responsibility it is to consciously, intentionally connect with it?

Needless to say, I’m feeling connected. I’m not surprised to find my creativity opening up. I’m having new experiences with my writing. Although I write from my experience, I’m seeing how it is transmuted into something that speaks to your experience.

I hope you enjoy the contemplations this week.

xo

SUNDAY

BRIDGE

You can be in multiple places and only so many. This is why it’s important to dial in your focus. You have immense potential with so much to give the world around you. As you discover this in yourself, you may pour yourself out very quickly. Remember that limitation is a part of life. Know your limits. Decide where you want to focus your efforts. You can do more than you ever thought possible, and that is something to celebrate. The next invitation is to direct your energy more specifically. Part of self realization is listening to where you are called. Amidst all of the excitement and new scenery, remember to become quiet enough to hear your inner voice, the same way you needed to when everything was dark. Your inner voice remains the same. It is always there waiting to guide you when you are ready to seek. Today, if you’ve become distant or forgotten the way to your inner voice, begin again with your breath. The breath is the way because it has one foot in the tangible and one foot in the intangible. We can sense it without seeing it. It is a primary indicator of life force flowing through us. When we slow down enough to observe it closely, a quiet voice, or resonation eventually emerges. This is not only for times of silent meditation with closed eyes. This can happen in a conversation with a friend or a small decision at the grocery store. If your breath is fast and shallow, pause until it becomes even slightly slower and deeper. This way, you know you are following your true self, your spirit, with what you say or choose. You can be in multiple places and only so many.

MONDAY

DEBUT

Your ducks are not in a row, and you are ready. Many of us spend our forming years imagining a set of conditions in which everything will be just right for us to shine. We became so comfortable daydreaming these ideals that they kept permanent residence in our imagination. For a long time, we couldn’t reconcile the disconnect between our fantasy and our reality. The chasm broke us into unraveling. Since then, we have surrendered to Reality. We work with what we have and who we have. Your feet are in the ground you are cultivating. This is not a daydream. Of all admirers of a garden, the gardener, who has been on their knees in the dirt, receives the most fulfillment. There is a distinct satisfaction a baker feels with their hands in the flour and dough. They are actively shaping their creation. Do the dishes with hands fully submerged in the warm, soapy water, rather than a stiff aversion to getting wet. The task becomes an exfoliating bath rather than a frustration. The work of it is cleansing. The more immersed we are in the creation of our life, the more realization we attain. It is messy. It is unpredictable. It will test you, and you will pass imperfectly with flying colors. Your ducks are not in a row, and you are ready.

TUESDAY

GIFTS

Let yourself have it. You have attracted what you intently sought after. The only potential barrier between you and your answer to prayer is yourself. Stay out of your own way by continuing. Don’t overthink this. Grace is not earned. This is not a reward but a blessing. You didn’t do anything to earn what is being given to you. This is simply where you are as a result of your journey, and Life wants to give back to you along the way. You don’t have to make yourself grow more or faster the same way a flower doesn’t water itself. Let yourself have it.

WEDNESDAY

AERODYNAMIC

You are well established where you were planted. The wind still blows, and now you are less affected by it, not because you are bigger or stronger than the wind, but because you are moving with it. You have learned its softness. It’s no longer a fight with the ever changing currents. You have found the natural movements. You can sway in all directions without ever losing your breath. Your roots in the darkness are nowhere to be seen, yet they channel nourishment to you. You are a delight in plain sight. You were designed to absorb the light shining on you. There is nothing to hide, and what a freedom it is. You are well established where you were planted.

THURSDAY

TRACE

Protect your remembrance of where you came from. Some days may be asking for reflection. Play the tape back every once in a while. Acknowledge how far you’ve come. Give your past self a blessing. Thank that version of yourself. Love them. Embrace them and tell them they’re going to make it. Thank you, thank you, thank you for not giving up. In this moment of gratitude, you are your own answer to prayer. If you journal, preserve your journals, and read back through them when you feel lost or unsure. You might even be your own help looking back at what you wrote on this day a year ago. If you don’t journal, find a physical way you can honor your past. Take a drive around a place you used to frequent. Look back through a photo album. Light a candle and draw a memory or write it down. If it includes someone else, send them a kind message. You are who you are because of everything you’ve been through. Protect your remembrance of where you came from.

FRIDAY

VOICE

The proof is in the pudding. As our hearts come alive again, we discover how we want to express ourselves. One translation of Matthew 12:34 in the Bible says: “For what has been stored up in your hearts will be heard in the overflow of your words.” How are people responding to you? The more your expression comes directly from your heart, the more magnetic it is. That’s not to say it will be received well every time. If so, then it’s a good test of yourself. Do you feel at peace with what you did or said, even if it did not resonate or sit well with someone else? We are human beings, so we will not always agree. This is why, at the end of the day, it is most important to know who you are and what you believe. It’s okay if it still feels like a work in progress. You have chosen a direction. You have continued. You are faithful to your becoming. When the window of opportunity opens, enjoy speaking your mind and sharing your heart. You will attract all that is meant for you. Your pollen is meant to be spread around. The proof is in the pudding.

SATURDAY

FUNNY

Different things make different people laugh. There are different types of laughter, as shallow as ringing from the nasal passageways and as deep as resounding from the belly. Everything is not meant to be so serious all the time. In fact, it is even very healthy to laugh at ourselves. If you have still been practicing self observation, it’s likely you’ve been amused in this way. We are hilarious! The more we open up to the universe and the possibility of a Grand Architect, the more we realize how brilliant, ironic, sneaky, witty, clever, and humorous it is. The offended one still has an open wound, and, therefore, should be met with nothing less than compassion. The humor transports us. It sends us. We’re rolling. We lose it. Lost what? Maybe we lose whatever was weighing us down in order to crack up. Look where this lightness has you, up here with a 360° view. Different things make different people laugh.

This song is from the same playlist I shared last week. I’m still loving it!