" Resonate ... "

“ ... Feel your presence all around me

On the same frequency.

Resonate, resonate ... 

I reach for you and there you are.

You bow the strings that move my heart ... 

Resonate, resonate ... “

~ Journey ~ Resonate ~

***

It’s a pretty cool feeling to be at a ‘certain’ age, learn something new which ignites your passion for the subject itself ... my personal experience with yoga teacher training, and specifially ... Yin Yoga.

Yin Yoga as its roots in the Taoist healing arts.  It was a merging of an elemental based healing art called Tao Yin and a creative/fluid practice of animal forms.  The philosophy being that the human being can shape-shift their energy to align with the five elements: Earth, Wood, Fire, Water and Metal–to heal, rejuvenate and regain primal range of motion.

Personally, Yin Yoga has brought the essence of each asana to life.  Visualizing the shapes, their shifts in energy and their ability to constant change.  Yin naturally mimics animal forms and because animals have their elemental integrity in tact, they call upon their distinct kind of movement to function.  This imagery helps me to recognize how we can call upon our own distinct kind of movement, naturally & organically.

And for those who practice Yin, we understand the three tattvas ... play with your edge, resolve to remain still, hold for time.  Waiting for the invitation to go deeper within a meditative state and holding beyond those first couple of minutes when we just stretch and stress the connective tissues and fascia ... and beyond that threshold ... we meet the Yin in the pose.

Personally, I have embraced the whole miracle of Yin as it resonates deeply ... getting out of the way to allow something greater to feed, nourish and heal the mind-body.  Yin allows me to either dance with the energy or stay right at the eye of the storm ... that place I anticipate between trust and fear.  

Beyond gratitude, Yin has helped me to place trust in the wisdom on the mat ... and extended further ... into the rest of my life.  Yin has supported and encouraged me to find a place of surrender where a layer of surrender, I didn’t existed let alone I could access, starts to peel away.  Beyond gratitude for the allowance, the space to be, and accept what is, with clarity and resolve ... 

http://www.walkstrong.ca/mahi-aum-yoga.html

" I'll Meet You ... "

“Yeah these windows are crying

And this train is dying

To meet you

This train is filled with emotions

They all make me think about you

When we pass these old desert stations

I want to go there with you

....to meet you

... to meet you”

~ Teitur ~ I’ll Meet You ~

***

Having been immersed in yoga teacher training for the last few months, I have faced the majesty mess of life.  Our matt is a reflection of everything we have endured to date.  The good, the bad, the ugly ... and the injuries.  

... similar to life, the state of yoga is flexibility, strength, consistency, practice and patience ...

Sharing space with like-minded yogi’s has been educational.  Our combined cheer for mental, physical and emotional health.  However like anything we tackle in life, you decide your intentions.  Some gravitate towards competition, the rest of us, towards health.  

And there are plenty of mistakes to be made when learning something new.  Within the excitement a beautifully layered cake of anxiety, nervousness and fear, stepping into the unknown takes courage.  So being aware of your ego traps can help you navigate situations more smoothly.  So what are ego traps???  ... when you get stuck by comparing yourself with others, comparing your body to how it was years prior, pushing your body too hard without awareness, inconsistency in your practice and getting impatient with your body.

... at this moment, 

this is where I am ... with this breath and this body ...

It is about getting over yourself and how you think it should be.  The image, the experience, the interaction, the communication ... may not match your ideal vision, but what does occur, what comes up is an opportunity for exploration.

From experience, this discovery can bring to light the things you’ve buried, avoided and had great resistance with.  Some may find it odd to compare an Asana to what is occurring in your life.  Yet the posture you resist the most, you need the most.  Much like life.  Our soul knows and channels us through these moments to get us to the other side.  The other side of fear.

Sometimes the leap from where we are and where we want to be is to great. My meditation teacher advised that I make friends with it, that leap, that gap, rather than be in resistance to it.  A simple philosophy, hard to apply at times.

So we start over.  We meet ourselves all over, again.  And realize that when we meet ourselves where we are, whether it be on a yoga matt, or in a place of transition ... we are a work in progress.  And a beautiful one at that.  

www.walkstrong.ca

" Teacher … "

I've had enough of danger
People on the streets
I'm looking out for angels
Just tryin' to find some peace

Teacher, there are things that I still have to learn
But the one thing I have is my pride ...
Who just isn't willing to try
I'm so cold inside
Maybe just one more try

~ George Michael ~ Teacher ~

***

Over the last year, I have embarked on my spiritual journey with teachers, classes, seminars and techniques.  Unsure where to look and what I would find.  Unsure how to practice spirituality.  And, there are no guidebooks or manuals that can tell me how to make the journey, which is part of the beauty of the rite of passage.  So with no traditions or ceremonies to follow, I had to learn what steps to take on my own.  Hence, I believe we are our own spiritual teachers because the greatest teacher you could ever want is always with you ... your life.

“ ... floating on an iceberg that broke of the glacier, stranded on a desert island in the middle of the ocean and wandering in an infinite wilderness without a compass ... “

Our daily interaction with people and situations can teach us when we are open to receiving wisdom.  Yet we don’t recognize when our greatest teacher is within.  We only need our own approval.  What a liberating thought!

Brutal honesty alert!! ... previously in my pursuits of gaining knowledge from others, I would hope they would do the job for me or perhaps put a spell on me to experience bliss.   But there are no short cuts or Coles notes.

“ ... your thoughts become a tangled ball of yarn, throughout your life, until you gain awareness. Then, thread-by-thread, carefully and patiently you begin to untangle the threads and weave them into a beautiful scarf, which will keep you warm and comfortable and make your life better ... “

Oddly enough, I find myself less alone then when I had others telling me what to believe and how to proceed.  I am thankful for the sharing but I know have my own path to follow.  I realize that is what they have learned but don’t not necessarily know what is best for me.  And to proceed is to know my higher self, where I can find answers to the unanswerable, a way from hopelessness to bliss.  

Only you know the how's and why's of your life.  

The answers that you seek can be found when you start answering your own questions …

Patience, compassion, perseverance, honesty and letting go ... topics in the classroom of my life ... I am an observer ... I am an onlooker ...