At the end of this week's classes, I read the following: "Ships don't sink because of the water around them—ships sink because of the water that gets into them. Don't let what's happening around you get inside you and weigh you down."
I don't know who said it, but the message really resonated with me. In all honesty, I'm not always good at ignoring external disturbances and staying centered, focused, calm.
I'm often quite wet.
I don't know about you, but the past couple of weeks were really stormy for me–personally, professionally, and politically.
Often it felt like, if I was bailing out the water, it was with a thimble, spilling many drops along the way and having to start over again.
There's a beautiful Zen proverb that states, "You should sit in meditation for 20 minutes every day, unless you're too busy. Then you should sit for an hour.” The basic point is when everything is chaotic, it's harder to be reflective, mindful. To regain that, you need to muster all your reserves. Which makes complete sense outside the moment, but within it? A thimble full of water.
I heard from many friends and students this week, all dedicated yoga practitioners, who used much larger containers to bail out their ships. Meditation. Yoga. Prayer. Long walks. Crying. Soothing music. Hugs. Dancing. Uplifting podcasts. Reading by a sunny window under a cozy blanket. Conversations with friends and family. I admire them greatly for trusting in all their nurturing resources to stay upright and afloat.
This is when you know that yoga is so much more than a few poses strung together. The practice provides a window into the lifestyle we want to uphold, the core self we want to maintain, the values we cherish. A strong message to remember the next time we tilt to one side or the other because of all the sloshing.
(Photo by Robert Clark on Unsplash)
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