Observing Patience in an Impatient World

We humans often look for themes that resonate through our lives and I seem to have finally opened to one that has followed me for decades.  Perhaps it is something that people in their late twenties/early thirties encounter more so than any other time of our lives, or perhaps it is because I am living in the thick of it in NYC.

The theme is:

PATIENCE.  The willingness to persist.

My sister.

Practicing patience has had an enormous influence in my life since I was 2 years old, when my younger sister was born.  She is special needs.  This has greatly affected every decision I (and my family) have ever made.  Her presence in my life introduced me to both the gift and struggle patience presents me.

I recognize I have misunderstood patience for years.  I thought being patient meant bearing hardship.  As I stood by "patiently" waiting for my life to take off, I managed to lose my voice; I lost my ability to communicate and find what I truly wanted.  I believed my sister's needs were more important than mine.  It's taken me years to break that barrier.

In the midst of studying acting, I discovered this loss; actor's don't have to have their own voices heard, rather a character's and/or playwright's instead.  Compulsively, I left this self-evaluative study to take a flying leap into NYC where I began to practice Yoga fervently.  I wanted to find myself all at once and become me immediately!  I stepped away from the world of patience and began to run directly into my own vulnerability, searching for my authentic self as quickly as possible.  Total irony, right?

This did not work.  In fact I ended up moving in the opposite direction.  I lost any sense of patience and, with it, my sense of purpose.

As I continued to move, Yoga became a mainstay in my life.  Yoga had always allowed space for me to find a connection to myself, slowly but surely.

Today, months after stepping away from a deeply committed long-distance relationship that was engulfed in my own convoluted version of patience, where I carelessly sacrificed my own voice for his needs (finding myself back at ground-zero), I have had to regain my confidence and my voice all over again.

Somehow this lesson continues to present itself to me and I have finally begun to appreciate what is true patience (the willingness to persist) for the value it provides my life.

Here in NYC, I find people talk with me about patience on a daily basis.  Living in the city, patience is an important tool to cultivate in order to move through life with a little more ease and grace.  There is so much to do and so little time and space to sit with ourselves.  How do we open to patience when we can contact whomever we like via cell phone in text, facebook, email, twitter, linkedin, google+, etc in just a moment?  And why do we never call one another anymore?  Are we afraid of hearing our own and each others voices and vulnerabilities?  Have we lost patience amongst our own friends and loved ones?  Relationships these days seem so disconnected.

Finally, how do we cope with what we have lost and with what we have yet to receive?

Open to Vulnerability

The practice of patience is the practice of living in the moment.  Practice with intention.  Silence the "monkey mind," live here and now.  If we can open our hearts and minds to vulnerability we will find our authentic selves.  Silencing the need for hope and sitting with the understanding that this is what is, right now, that there is no other moment but this one, we will cultivate the practice of patience.  We will let go of the artificial and unreal.  We will live fully in our bodies.  We will speak from a genuine place with integrity and peace.

What is your theme?  Have you given yourself the space to open to it and learn from it?

The Reward of Teaching

Today was one of the sweetest days I have had the pleasure of experiencing.  Not only did it feel like the first day of spring on sunny Cape Cod, but my Yoga class was eagerly received by my students.

I taught my final class in Dennis, MA at The Yoga Center of Cape Cod.  After 15 months of teaching at the same studio, trying out all sorts of Yoga classes and times, today's 11am Advanced Beginner's class was full.  What a treat!  The love people have shown me on Cape Cod has been so generous, touching, raw and real.  There is nothing like teaching; it is my true expression of love.  Yoga offers me the ability to reach out to people's authentic-being which is an entirely satisfying reward.  There is a true art to it and I am so fortunate to experience this every week of my life.

Nothing says "I love you" like showing up.

Springtime on Cape Cod

I will be back myself, showing up as often as I can.  Stay tuned for more workshops.  

To my students, any specific requests?

Let's Try Breathing

How often are you aware of your breath?

In NYC I rarely breathe deeply.  Perhaps because the air is slowly filling my lungs with dis-ease or perhaps because so much is thrown at me in a matter of minutes, there is so much to take in, I'd almost rather not.  Probably a little (or a lot) of both.  I often don't realize it until I come home to Cape Cod when I wake up laughing or in tears.  Aha!  I am finally breathing again!

The breath is an enormous tool humans have 24/7 access to that is often forgotten or misused.  It feeds our life-force, creates our vitality and has the power to connect us to significant, allusive and substantial moments that would otherwise pass us by.

Take a moment:


Without altering your breath, where do you feel it move your body?  Place a hand on your chest.  Do you feel the breath there?  Place your hand on your belly.  Do you feel the breath more so there? Breathing in and out through your nose, take in a very big breath (never-mind the smells wafting in the air from your roommates cooking), how does that feel?  Now take the next several moments to focus on your breath, allowing your thoughts to settle in the expansion of the body as you inhale and the release of tension as you exhale.  Close your eyes.  Breathe deeply.

How do you feel?  Did you notice anything come up for you?  Something emotional?  Something physical?  Something spiritual?  Some days I feel emotion tumbling out through my breath.  I barely even realize I am holding on to anything and, suddenly, there it is.  There is always something there.  We just have to give it space, live in it and then let it go.  Within yourself, what is there to explore?  Allow it to be.  Listen to your breath.

There is a wonderful methodology at Kripalu, BRFWA: Breath, Relax, Feel, Watch, Allow.  This is a practical, helpful tool you can apply to your every day living, starting with the breath.  As an experiment for yourself, take out a pen and paper (or your iphone/smartphone) and write down BRFWA.  Carry it with you for the next several days to remember the exact words and try it out during different moments of your day.  Then please come back to my blog and share your experiences with us.  I love to hear about your life and your Yoga.  Remember, your words of wisdom may help a fellow reader through their own experiences.

How often do you truly allow yourself to breathe?

Who's the crazy lady jumping for joy at WF?

Wholefoods & Yoga (need I say more?)

ME!!  ME!!  ME!!!  Can we all sing "My Favorite Things"??  Just Sayin'.

Pausing in NYC

Life's Craziness

Since moving to NYC, I find being still is an impossibility... or is it?  There is so much to be done!  There is rarely a night off in sight.  The sounds are piercing to the ears.  The bright lights are distressing to the eyes.  How do we purge the desire to take another step and just be still?  Let it all go and come home to ourselves?!  In a city that never sleeps, it's entirely possible that there really is no such thing for most of us... ever.  How do we find true silence in ourselves when the stimulation never ceases?  How can we rest, but keep moving at the same time?
The human body does not function best when it is on sensory overload.  There has to be a break somewhere before we, ourselves, break.  Visiting the natural world on a daily basis can answer that calling in one deep-breath moment, but, let's be honest, how often are we able to get out of the city?  Once a week?  Once a month?  Once a year?

Resting in Peace

The next best thing is (of course) joining a Yoga class!  A Yoga class provides a sacred space, peace, time to be in your body, awareness, freedom to express yourself, mindfulness, etc.  Most importantly it allows space to let go.  As humans, we hold on to so much emotional baggage; both in the city and out, we often never truly let go, because we don't have time to sit with ourselves and work through emotional and physical blockage.  A Yoga class provides this space and time.  It is sacred time reserved for ourselves; sacred time to let everyone and everything else go; sacred time and space to just be.
In the midst of all this insanity, Yoga can be the best form of pausing or at least slowing down for literally every body.  Try it out.  You never know where it may bring you.  Perhaps you'll finally come home to yourself.

♥ Opening Your Heart to Yourself and Those Around You. ♥

The past few weeks I've set my class intention toward opening the heart.  We practiced heart openers such as Camel Pose and Side Angel Pose.  The classes focused on the Prana, the vitality of life and spirit.  We breathed into our heart, creating a little more space in the chest through our movements on the mat.  My students were slowly setting their hearts free.

I witnessed something that truly enveloped me as a teacher; pure, raw truth.  It was a beautiful experience.  Removing our hearts from our protectors, whether it be bars, a box or drape, can be tumultuous, shocking, soothing, and a relief, just to name a few.  Practice on your mat in a safe place, perhaps in your own home or with a teacher you trust. Let It Rip.  Succumb to your heart, let it take up more space in your body by exploring open poses and emotions.  Acknowledge what you feel.  Allow yourself to take your time through transitional poses and breath deep down into the belly, using your exhale as a release of tension, anxiety and judgement.  After several chest openers allowing your emotions to spiral through your body, find yourself on the other end in Svasana with a pillow under your heart.  Perhaps you are little more open to yourself and to others around you.

Rekindle the love you carry for yourself, let it radiate through your organs, and you will no doubt brighten another person's life.

An honest practice of Yoga, of union, for the world.

Transitions

I read an article the other day in Yoga Journal that mentioned using transitions as a focus in our Yoga practice.  I brought the idea into my next few Yoga classes as my intention (which I always tell my students) and noticed what a difference it made for both my students practice and for myself as a teacher.

We have a tendency to forget the small moments that make up our day.  It's a habit in which we lose ourselves on a regular basis.  What color was the sky when you looked out your window this morning?  How did your food sound and smell as you prepared breakfast?  What sorts of noises do you hear and scents so you smell when you leave your house?  I live in one of the most beautiful places on the planet and yet I still am guilty of losing my sense of self and how the world around me makes me feel as I jump in the car and head to my next Yoga class.  I shifted my presence this week.  I recognized the habits I've gotten into, acknowledged my every movement, slowed my thoughts and deepened my breath as I transitioned toward my next goal.  I restored the sense of beauty, calmness and serenity in my day to day life that I'd been missing.

Connecting your breath to as many moments as you can will begin to center you.  Your presence will take hold and move you through your transitions mindfully.  It will not only give you the strength to move forward, but will open your heart to the next pose, plan or event in your life.  Try it.  See what it can bring you.