Bittersweet

There is an artist I simply adore, named Brian Andreas (check out his goods at www.storypeople.com), who creates funky prints, sculptures, cards and other unique items with amazing quotes that seem to say things in just the right way. I love so many of his quotes, it would be hard to choose a favorite, but if I had to, it would likely be one titled 'Bittersweet', which simply says, "She said she usually cried at least once each day, not because she was sad, but because the world was so beautiful and life was so short." I know on some level we all know this to be true, but how often do we allow the knowledge that our breaths are numbered, that there is no guarantee we will see the sunrise tomorrow, have an impact on how we live this instant of this moment? Enter the practice of yoga. I continually seek to understand how this rich, amazing practice can make a difference in my life on a moment to moment basis, how breathing, meditating, twisting, turning, and bending can have an impact on my daily life. Most of all, I seek to understand how I can cross the bridge from physical to spiritual transformation, which is really the heart of yoga.

In my own life, the practice of yoga has given me strength when it seemed nearly impossible to stand at all, much less balance in Warrior 3. If life has not smacked you in the face with something bigger than you thought you could handle, chances are it will. I am not talking small stuff, but big stuff. You know what I mean...big hurt, big pain, the sort of pain that makes even your bones ache, a pain so deep that one simple inhale and exhale takes all of the energy you can muster. Maybe something big and ugly brought you to yoga in the first place. Maybe you already had an asana practice, but something unbearable led you to deeper places, past the physical, to the many gifts yoga offers if you are open to the experience.

I choose to practice and teach vigorous vinyasa, because I believe it best reflects real life. Frustration, discomfort, and challenge are built in to the practice by design and I am given opportunities to decide how I can stay calm, connected, and present when it is not the easiest choice. As I begin to place myself in postures that are exceedingly hard and uncomfortable instead of following the normal pattern of running away, I choose to take a deep, long, powerful breath. And in choosing to take one more big breath, in what would normally be something that is painful, in what would normally be something I would run away from, in what would normally be something I might fear, I am given the power to transform my reaction patterns, to choose love over fear, and to say yes to life, to all of it.

Hatha yoga is not a path for the weak of heart. Choosing love over fear means that we are willing to loosen our grip, to let go and go with the flow. Choosing love over fear means we are deliciously alive, open, and equally receptive to the joys and challenges of life. Choosing love over fear means trusting that all is happening at the right time for our personal growth, transformation, and awakening. In class, I will often guide students to bring their hands through heart center as they transition between poses. I do this in my own practice as well, and though the moment may be brief, each time my hands pass through heart center, I pause, and say to myself, thank you God, for all of it, for this breath, for this moment, and for this sweet but oh so short life.

With love & gratitude,

Amanda