 When I started out with yoga I was in my late 20s with an exciting career and crazy-busy life. I was having fun and there was opportunity and potential all around. However, I was also going through a divorce, working long hours and knew that stress was my default mode.
I thought I was pretty healthy and fit (ish), ate a 'not awful' diet, and seemed to be getting away with what I was demanding of my body and mind. So what's the problem? Why change? A few clues started to show themselves that this wasn't sustainable. Crashing flu and colds every now and again, irritable moods, and a feeling of dissatisfaction even though things seemed to be going well. Do your yoga A friend suggested yoga to me. So I bought a VHS cassette and went home and did it. 20 minutes, short and pretty easy. And it was an absolute revelation. It felt great. I felt great, and more than that, I felt grounded and more vital. I was able to land for a moment in the midst of the whirlwind of my life, and look around and see more clearly what was going on. I already had a movement practice of morning stretches that I had kept up since my dance training. And I had begun a meditation practice to help with stress and the underlying feeling of dissatisfaction. Yoga simply and perfectly bought the two together. I did it every day. I would get up early to fit it in. The 20 minute video became so familiar that I could do it on my own when I was travelling and know more or less what to do. And it kept bringing me back to my centre, to the ground beneath me, and a place of solidity in the midst of a busy, crazy life. What brings you back to your centre, everyday? Everyone needs something to bring them back to their centre. What is it for you? And if you haven't found this yet, then what are you waiting for? Life gets better, right away. You enjoy everything more, immediately. You are more able to ride the highs and lows and aches and pains of life with more grace and less frustration. And you connect to what is truly important to you. Live from your centre Living from a place of feeling grounded in your centre instead of being buffetted around by life is well worth making the time for. And has never felt more needed in this rather chaotic world we live in.
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 The sounds of that day are still vivid. And for months afterwards I couldn't hear anything even close to them without being transported right back to a frightening experience I once went through. It is over 20 years ago now, and while my reaction is much more neutral than it was, I can still feel it.
Many more sounds have wonderful and positive associations, and some are utterly delightful. Certain music, bird song, beloved voices, laughter, the sizzling of delicious food. Sound can be jarring, soothing, rhythmic, regulating, informative, stimulating, annoying, inflaming, desirable or undesirable... or absent. There is always something to hear when you tune in. Sometimes we might notice the silence. The gaps between the sounds. We've worked with sound as a theme this term. The sounds of our breathing, the environment, our bodies, the chiming of the singing bowl. Sound can help us stay very present and connected to the immediacy of the moment, and at the same time, enable us to be aware of our relationship to it. We can find clues to our state of mind, to our mood or the level of relaxation or agitation of our nervous system. Sounds can also help us notice the silence that is always around us that we overlook as we travel through our day. Pockets of quiet, here and there, constantly coming and going. Noticing the silence is just as valuable as noticing the sounds. Noticing the gaps between sounds, the gaps between our thoughts. We overlook the silence and gravitate towards the noise. We fill the gaps with more sound in case it feels uncomfortable. But being aware of these silent moments can be a useful practice, and can help us find a more grounded space within. Beneath our reactivity and before being taken over by our thoughts and memories, there remains an ever-present, quiet stillness that we can get connected to. The practices of yoga help with this. We might glimpse it from time to time at first. Feel a sense of ease and openness, a quietening of reactions and mental noise, getting used to quiet moments, even though at first they are outside of our comfort zone. The art of yoga is to keep re-connecting to your own, internal quiet space. At first in a controlled environment, like our lovely quiet yoga studio. But eventually we can connect to this quiet space, no matter what sounds are arising and no matter where we are. Cultivate your own stable, quiet harbour deep within, even when life gets noisy. |
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Princes Place, Bishopston Just off Gloucester Road Bristol BS7 8NP |
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