Always Learning, Always!

Am feeling rather under the weather this week but I can't say that it is bothering me too much... well other than my not running today (hey, the SUN WAS OUT!). Sometimes we need that permission to take it easy, to give ourselves a break. And when that doesn't come from within... well, getting a cold will do it for you!

That being said, I taught 2 yoga classes today and really enjoyed them. I subbed for a friend of mine at 6:45am and love seeing familiar faces that I don't normally get to see that often. And my practice at that time of day is softer and more introspective, gradually waking up and getting ready to greet the day. It seemed to be the right pace for everyone in the class too. I spent less time practicing and more verbally cueing and find that influenced my wording. Perhaps because I am feeling a little sick, I was gentler and saw it reflected back at me through my fellow yogis. As the title of my post says: Learning, always....

Then my usual Tuesday morning crew (plus & minus a few) arrived a scant half hour later and it was wonderful to see them and be ready to take the slow-flow up a notch and build more heat, albeit also in a gentler way today. Not only for me but for a couple of student's injuries. Again, room for learning as I watched the students a little closer for the cues as to when to take it up a notch and when to dial it down. Not that I don't do this ANYway, but it just felt more in tune today, more intuitive.

OH, and then this blog posting arrived in my inbox this morning: 5 Signs You Might Be Trying Too Hard. Gave me a lot to ponder as I recognized myself and some of my students! Read the blog posting and let me know what you think.

This is excerpted from the posting by Erica Rodefer:

If I've learned anything from my practice it's that trying hard doesn't always lead us to our goals. It is possible to try too hard. Trust me. If trying too hard were a place, I'd be the queen! If you try to force your body into a pose you're not ready for it might work for a while, but over time the outcome will not be pretty. Slow and steady almost always is more effective. There has to be some effort, though. So how can you tell if you're trying too hard?

Thank you Erica. Again, learning. I love life, makes my heart sing.

On another note, perhaps related, perhaps not. As I was running the other day a thought occured to me... why is it that many of us have such difficulty taking care of ourselves, really taking care of ourselves? Not the diet, exercise, beauty, blah-blah stuff... but the REAL stuff. Taking care of our mental & emotional health? Maybe because it is so much easier to take care of the external: going to the dentist, getting a haircut, buying the "right" groceries, running etc.... But when it comes to taking time for ourselves to decompress we leave it be, or squeeze it in at the end of yoga practice... (apologies to David Bowie's song)

A savasna, an OM, and thank you ma'am, we are DONE. Hmmm. Makes you think.

Not to take away from meditation in motion, which improves my mental health as I run, cycle, ski, paddle etc, etc but sometimes moving all the time takes us aways from what is REALLY going on underneath the surface. You know what I mean... what is silently, slowly simmering under the surface.

SO, on that note, I will endeavour to take time each and every day to listen to my mind. To be still, and quiet, to see what rises to the surface.

What do you think? Let me know. Or not!

Namaste, my yogis and yoginis.