Living the Practice

  Lately I have felt the need to live my practice alot more. I have been on the Yoga path for a long time, and it has been a slow path for me. I teach, I practice, I love, and I continue to study. Its been this way for many years, always growing and growing.
  But lately, its taken on a new path. A path where I find less of a need for past enjoyments, and more of a need for my Yoga practice. I find that when I am driving from one class to another,  I want to listen to Kirtan, or music that expresses Love. I feel the need for more Mantra, more meaning to the practice. I find the need to expand my teachings beyond what I already know. Its constant, and incessive. I've branched out in so many different modalities of Yoga, that I feel that I am not rigged in my teachings any longer. The funny thing, is that I never thought of myself as rigid in my teachings before, but the more I expand, the more i realized I was. Crazy, huh? Ive taken on new approaches, embraced areas of my teachings that I didnt really enjoy before.
  What does all of this mean? This new growth? Well, I'm sure it means different things to different people, and I know each of us would have thier own opinion and experience of this view. But for me, I feel like I am breaking out of a shell that was keeping me sheltered, because at the time I needed that shelter. But not anymore, the shelter is no longer need and I am soaring into a new life, a life that I have been asking for, but was never ready for. I see that now. I see that I am still not ready for some of my wants, some of my dreams. But, I know that if I keep the path, if I stick to the work that it will come. Exactly when its supposed to come. Because that is the beauty of this practice. Do the work! and your dreams will come true. But what you may be surprised to find out, is when you do the work, you may find that your dreams change, and thats ok. Because in reality, you are still working towards what you want.
  With this new light in my life, I feel a lot more freedom. I feel a new sense of relief from what was holding me down. Have you ever seen the movie "Eat, Pray, Love"? In the movie Julie Roberts talks about how everyone has a word that fits them, a word that describes them as a whole. They gave a word to Cities, and various other things. I believe that at times we all have a word that describes where we are. I think those words change as our lives change. My word was balance, I was always trying to find balance in my life. I found success in that, and its still a part of me. But my word now in the forefront of my life is Work. Whats your word?

Readings from today's class

"Imagine two hands, one open and offering, the other clenched in a fist of resistance.

Which hand do you put forward most?

Do you hold out both hands in equal measure?

Do you allow yourself to receive as much as you give?

Do you overhelp, then resent it?

Where does your responsibility end and that of others begin?

Have you found a balance in your life?"

The life you were born to live: A guide to finding your Life's Purpose by Dan Millman

"Hiroko somehow managed to raise three young children, work part time, and also volunteer as combination secretary, vice president, and treasurer of her neighborhood association. She wrote the neighborhood bulletin, invited speakers, and cooked for and helped organize block parties. Whenever neighbors needed information or assistance, they would call Hiroko, who had a bad case of over-cooperation. (People rarely complain about someone who gives too much.) One memorable weekend when two of her children were ill, it seemed that everyone in Hiroko's world needed help with something. She finally snapped, and she was forced to recognize her general state of imbalance. She told her older child he would have to help take care of the two younger ones for the next few days, something she wouldn't have dreamed of before; she called some neighbors and started to delegate responsibility; and she called all of the other people who had made requests of her, took a deep breath and said no. To her surprise, the sky didn't fall; the Earth, and the neighborhood, went on spinning. Hiroko learned that in resigning as "general manager of the universe," she not only found her balance and retained her health, she also served others by empowering them to take their fair share of responsibility.


The life you were born to live: A guide to finding your Life's Purpose by Dan Millman