For the Love of yoga

When I first found yoga, I was in a life situation that demanded I get out of my head and into the silence of my own heart so I could hear God's voice and direction. This yoga class was everything I should have hated: slow moving, silent, 75-minutes to cover THREE very basic postures (staff, tree, and table top), and it took 8 weeks to build the sun salutations.  

I was used to going mock 2 with my hair on fire. Even with all this, I fell in love with my yoga class, for it was the one class where I wasn't judged on how good I performed, or if I looked the part, or anything else. I was allowed to be, to breathe, and to receive, instead of "do." I loved the way I felt AFTER class--more grounded, more clarity in my mind and in my heart. It was a SAFE space for me. It may have been the first time IN MY ENTIRE LIFE I actually exhaled.  I truly fell in love.

Like any new relationship, I had to have my yoga wherever I went.  I couldn't afford to continue yoga classes so I did yoga on my own. I was thirsty for yoga knowledge and techniques.  I read anything I could get my hands on. This yoga supported me through many dark and twisty life situations.  It changed me in so many way. It was the catalyst to me leaving a situation with someone I loved, to taking a leap of faith to explore a new career path, to making new friendship choices, to viewing 'success' as a place in my heart rather than large numbers in my bank account or on my paycheck, to viewing life in simple pleasures rather than huge accomplishments, and to enjoy resting.  It made things clear in my mind and in my heart.

They say love ripens over time, and I gotta tell you, it really is true. Love has a way of changing our world in more ways than we could ever imagine. My relationship with yoga has continued to grow deeper over the last 25 years because I got to know more about each aspect of myself (body, mind, and spirit) through the poses, the sequencing, the history, and the philosophy. The learning is never ending just like inner transformation. It and we are always evolving.

I was blessed to have had some amazing teachers cross my path who brought new yogic insights which helped me grow even deeper and fall even more in love with yoga, myself, and ultimately with God. Which is really the point of yoga...to prepare the mind and body to mediate with God. It's all about relationship!

Yoga has allowed me to give myself permission to wrestle with God and faith, to shed my insecurities, and to enjoy life rather than becoming slave to my driven and dare I say, perfectionist way of being. Yoga's tools have taught me to slow down, to be present, to enjoy, and most importantly to live from the heart. To love authentically and free fall, full of faith.

I love more freely now and am now just a type A rather than type AAAA. I get to take time to learn something new like learning to snowboard from my daughter this last year and being okay with sucking at it. This last year I got to walk 22 miles with a loved one and laugh until my belly hurt and met random strangers along the way. I got to take road trips by car and by motorcycle where I got to not only see amazing things, but see things from new perspectives. I got to travel by plane to live in paradise for 10 days, experience fire dances, hike waterfalls, and watch whales with their babies.

By giving myself this space to enjoy life, it always brings me back to my yoga with a renewed sense of appreciation and value. I am blessed for all the lessons and hard truths about myself, God, and life my practice has taught me and helped me to see. My devotion to God and yoga are ones that won't ever stop.  

What I used to do on my mat 14 years. 8 years, even 3 years ago is so very different than what I do on my mat now. This teaches me to not hold on to what I'm doing now, but to be open to how things will change in my life and on my mat in the years to come. To accept the flow of life and understand the I am to be the change I wish to see in the world. To use the God-given talents to fulfill my dharma, or purpose I was created for. To understand and live in the fact I am here solely for the audience of ONE and I can let go of learned expectations, others' expectations, and all the you are supposed to's. I can be the witness to my thoughts, emotions, and circumstances in order to see the truth at the heart of the matter, decision, or path forward.

2023 has been a a year filled with many, many changes, challenges, and triumphs.

So....as the winter brings this year to a close, I salute the past and welcome the future.....no matter what it holds....the good and the bad.....for it is all one big lesson on how to BE.....not do.  

Just open your heart, love one another and your yoga......and BE.  BE still and KNOW!!

Thank you for another amazing year of sharing life together.
Namaste,
Trish