I spent the last 5 days relishing in the teachings of John Friend, the founder of Anusara Yoga, for the first time. I'm blown away, mostly because as my yoga teacher Bernadette put it this morning in class, it's like he's talking directly to you. She's says most of us have this experience with him, and it's because his teachings are so universal - they touch each of us, deep in our heart. It's amazing, profound and I'm in "lawe" ~ a little slip of the tongue John made this weekend as he combined the words "love" and "awe" ~ perfectly said.
The depth of his teachings are impossible to cover in just one blog post but one of his greatest gifts this weekend was, "To be able to find the extraordinary in the ordinary, you have to slow things down." Woah, yes. Since I've been back on this side of the globe, life seems to be moving at an amazing accelerated rate and I'm not finding many quiet moments to see the beauty in between the madness. I took those words to heart and at the added inspiration of Bernadette's latest blog post I went into the woods yesterday. The leaves are just starting to turn and I haven't been around for the beautiful bliss of the northeast autumn in two years. I walked through the woods with my dog and literally felt spirit running through the trees. It was exhilarating. I remember thinking, "I need to do this EVERY day." There is a kind of magic amongst nature that is so alive and potent. I never did things like that before yoga entered my life, like EVER. I wasn't into it. But now the pull to retreat in nature is powerful. And get this, I felt more gratified and satisfied from the hour walk through the woods than having checked anything off my supposedly important to-do list. Imagine that - slowing down was more gratifying than speeding up.
Towards the end of the path I came across a streaming river and a wood bridge. I took a seat and let my feet drape just over a small waterfall and looked up at the sun shimmering through the golden yellow leaves on the tall trees. Breathe this in, I thought. The sight, the sounds, the smells. Truly inspired and profoundly grateful for all my teachers, I'm sinking in and slowing down.
Love to each of you.
The depth of his teachings are impossible to cover in just one blog post but one of his greatest gifts this weekend was, "To be able to find the extraordinary in the ordinary, you have to slow things down." Woah, yes. Since I've been back on this side of the globe, life seems to be moving at an amazing accelerated rate and I'm not finding many quiet moments to see the beauty in between the madness. I took those words to heart and at the added inspiration of Bernadette's latest blog post I went into the woods yesterday. The leaves are just starting to turn and I haven't been around for the beautiful bliss of the northeast autumn in two years. I walked through the woods with my dog and literally felt spirit running through the trees. It was exhilarating. I remember thinking, "I need to do this EVERY day." There is a kind of magic amongst nature that is so alive and potent. I never did things like that before yoga entered my life, like EVER. I wasn't into it. But now the pull to retreat in nature is powerful. And get this, I felt more gratified and satisfied from the hour walk through the woods than having checked anything off my supposedly important to-do list. Imagine that - slowing down was more gratifying than speeding up.
Towards the end of the path I came across a streaming river and a wood bridge. I took a seat and let my feet drape just over a small waterfall and looked up at the sun shimmering through the golden yellow leaves on the tall trees. Breathe this in, I thought. The sight, the sounds, the smells. Truly inspired and profoundly grateful for all my teachers, I'm sinking in and slowing down.
Love to each of you.
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