Yoga Reflections of ’09 and looking ahead to a New Year

Sitting down to write the plan was to write about my top 9 yoga moments of ’09. I’ve already blogged about many of those moments; doing yoga with my kids, rediscovering headstand and yoga with the didgeridoo. As I began to list those moments, the one thing that came back to me over and over again was how yoga helped me grieve the loss of my father As the New Year approaches and I reflect on life over the past year, I’m grateful to have yoga as part of me, and part of my life. Forget about the first 8 moments, the number one gift of yoga, beginning each moment new with each breath.

2009 was a year of healing for me after the sudden loss of my Dad in Nov. 2008. High Street Yoga opened its doors only two months before my Dad’s passing. A few short weeks after his death, I began to teach again. My leg shook with every balancing table pose and my body, mind and spirit were numb. But with each pose and each class, the lessons of yoga taught me to live each moment in the present. I measured my healing in the moments of breath; in the time that I could sit, undisturbed without thought. Initially those moments were brief. I tried setting a timer to meditate, but usually gave up quickly. I tried doing DVD’s in my living room, but usually turned them off within 5 minutes. Eventually I learned to be kind to myself and recognize my limitations. There were many days when my mind could not be still, but somehow, I stopped and acknowledged each effort.

Yoga taught me to surrender to the feelings of grief and despair. Many days my only practice was folding into child’s pose and trying to feel comfort and serenity. We are not taught how to grieve. There are plenty of books that explain the stages of grief. Yoga helped me grieve and find my way home again.

As I say at the end of each class “We take the effects of our yoga; open heart, open body, open mind and radiate them to others” In this New Year discover your open heart, body and mind, find your truth, your peace and radiate them to the people in your life.

Namaste’