When it’s Time to Grow
A regular yoga practice definitely heightens our awareness of what feels good, and what feels right. With each session we strive to find our “edge” - that zone that finds us somewhere between comfort and challenge. That place that stretches us to the next level. Sometimes we need to move a little differently to get there, and other times we simply need to think a little differently to get there. In between there is that feeling of being a little bit stuck, just going through the motions that were once comfortable, but now somehow monotonous. That feeling of “I really need to get off the merry-go round, or I’m going to be sick”. We oscillate, somewhere between our future and our past.
Yoga teaches us to strive for non-duality. We cannot think in the past, and move toward the future at the same time. My favorite lessons from my first yoga teacher were to “look to the future with courage”, and “look to the past with acceptance”. It is either that acceptance of the past that helps us move forward, or that courage to take a brave step into the future that sends us on back on our journey.
When it’s time to grow, it can be time to go, time to learn, time to accept, or time to take the extra step. When we decide to start preparing the backpack of essentials for the journey ahead, we remind ourselves that the first most important step to put forward is our intention. Tell the universe what you hope, what you plan, what you intend, so the path might be opened for you. Clear your mind of the non-essentials so that you are aware enough to see it when it is laid out before you. Put forward your best effort, “but don’t be attached to the results”. Be brave, be joyful, be gentle with yourself. You will get there.
