Dear Yogis and Yoginis,
First of all, happy New Year! I hope this Newsletter finds you well and making your transition into 2013 with as much support and gentleness as you need.
I came back to Oxford a week ago after being away for almost three weeks and was struck by how quickly I started to feel overwhelmed by all the things that needed doing! From planning our classes together to taking care of my home, within 48 hours of having returned I felt like I was already back to full work mode.
On the second bustling day I noticed that I was moving very quickly around my house trying to get everything done, and decided I needed to just sit for a moment and recollect my energies. So I sat on the couch and took a couple of breaths, just looking around the space - a small pause that proved very welcome.
My mind went back to my teacher training at OM Yoga in 2009 and one of my mentors, a teacher called Edward, who always brought our attention back to how we transitioned between poses. Did we move rapidly to get to the next shape? Did we force things into place to achieve what we thought was the end of a sequence? Did we breath as we moved away from one place and into another?
It took me a moment to wonder: why the hurry? There was no way I could ever get everything done (there is always a new project ahead!) and in the meantime I had hardly stopped moving around for 2 days. What a contrast with the hours spent resting during the break!
The little pause of the couch made me realise that one of my challenges for 2013 is simply to pay more attention to the spaces in between, those moments of transition in which the inertia of the moment might carry us too far and we risk loosing our centre.
How do you take care of yourself when the awareness of the present moment falls in the back seat? Can you still pause and breath to notice how you are feeling? What would it mean to slow down?
To honor this practice, classes in January will focus on how to stay present in transitions. On my website you will find a full list of all the others being offered this term.
As usual, please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions (practice or class related).
With warm wishes,
Beatrice
