our-yoga

We take it for granted that we can realise our dreams. We take it for granted that we can choose who we will marry or spend our lives with. Choose our careers. Pursue an education.

Millions of girls around the world can't.  (I dare you to watch this video without tearing up!)



October 11th was the first-ever International Day of the Girl, a day to celebrate how girls make communities stronger and richer.  Feel moved to get involved? Find out more here.

Stuck for inspiration? How about setting up a donation bucket in your yoga studio, donating the proceeds of your next yoga class, organising a fundraising or awareness raising event, or donating your time to a local cause?

It's your yoga. Live it.

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Hello, remember me?

In case you have been wondering where I have been, the title of this post might give it away...  With my new job comes travel, including some of that most-dreaded type: the long-haul flight.

As I have gotten older (can you hear my bones creaking?) I have begun to like flying less and less.  Especially long haul.  The sheer exhaustion of going through airports, hauling luggage, the over-stimulation of the commercialised limbo that lies between the security check and the gate, and of course all of that only to find yourself packed like a sardine into a flying bus.

And is it just me, but have economy seats gotten smaller and closer together over the years? Meaning less leg room, arm room, and room in general!

Now there is really no way that sitting in a cramped chair with limited room to move for say 10, 11 or 14 (!!!!!!) hours is going to make your body happy.  Couple that with the time difference, dehydration and odd meal times/intervals, and no wonder you get to the other end feeling like you've survived a train wreck or just woken up from a coma.  And the back pain from my scoliosis doesn't help in the least.

Not to mention, of course, the psychological drama of spending 14 hours knowing that you're 33-thousand-feet up in THIN AIR.  I mean, why do they even TELL you that stuff?

As my physical and anxious discomfort over flying have grown over the years, so, it seems, has my need to travel.  In fact, in the first 6 months of 2011 I will fly long-haul at least 4 times, med-haul about 6, and do a few short hops as well, just for fun.  Bleurgh (which is not a word, but it should be).

So how does all this relate to yoga?  Well it doesn't I suppose, but I do.  As many other travellers have testified, I have found yoga to be super helpful in dealing with both the physical and mental discomforts of long journeys - whether by plane, train or automobile!  Here are a few things that I have found helpful:

• Practice before you go: Doing yoga the day before or the day of a long trip makes a huge difference to how my body feels.  If I go into the trip well stretched, I seem to come out of it a lot better off.
• Drink a lot: The air in airplanes is really dry and dehydrating.  Bring an empty water bottle through security and fill it up, or buy one once inside, and make sure you keep drinking regularly through the flight.  Avoid too much alcohol or coffee because these dehydrate you even more.  And if you, like me, process your water quickly and often - do the decent thing and get an aisle seat!
• Pranayama: In case of anxiety, close your eyes and spend 5 minutes or so with your favourite pranayama.  Alternate nostril breathing is a good one.  Alternately, chant a mantra (even if just in your head).  I know, it sounds silly, but it's really very soothing.  A few om's go a long way at 33 thousand feet.  

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I know it's been a while since my last post, and to all those who commented and kept on visiting, I really appreciate it!

Not in Kansas anymore!

So, I have landed in Oxford England, far from my tropical home.  Just about as far as you could get in terms of weather, culture and development! I am here to work for Oxfam, so through that I will at least still be in touch with my beloved tropics and life in what some people might call "the majority world" - that is, the parts of the Earth where the majority of the population of our planet live.

Perhaps you have seen this before:

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Being sick recently with dengue fever has meant that for the last month my asana practice has been completely modified. Stepping to my mat on Day 10 after getting the fever (2 days after leaving bed for the first time!) I couldn't believe how weakened my body was from the illness. So it has been short, gentle practices for me, focusing on stretching out the muscles that were cramped up by the fever. In addition, mornings have been tough now that I'm back at work, so I have been putting in play my 10-minute sequences!
 

1. Flirtation: You first meet, and you feel a spark. For a while, you keep your distance – doing a bit of reconnaissance, and research. You attend a few classes, the spark nurtures a flame and your attraction grows...
2. Dating and Romance: Before you know it, you are dating. In fact, you are more than dating – you can't get enough! Your friends notice a change in you... You are giddy and all you can talk about is yoga this, and yoga that, and how great yoga is and how much you looooove yoga...
3. Obsession/compulsion: And sure enough, it's not long until you barely even see said friends anymore, because all you ever do is yoga! You eat, breathe and sleep yoga, you check all the yoga books out of the library, you spend hours locked in your room trying impossible yoga poses. Your wobbly knee in Warrior II can reduce you to tears, and the last time you had to take child's pose you held it against yourself for a week. At the same time, you can feel deep shifts happening within, in places you'd rather not go, in realms that are dark and scary...
4. The breakup: And so, you decide you need to take a break. After all, haven't you always wanted to take up long-distance running? Why not start now! At first you enjoy the free time. You reconnect with your friends and have a few drinks and laugh about how you are so over that yoga thing. But after a while, you start to miss it. You see someone on the street with a yoga mat, and your heart leaps while your tummy lurches.
5. The make-up: And so eventually you steel yourself, you swallow your pride, and you humbly go back and offer yourself up to the practice. It feels so right, it feels so good! And here, you may take one of two roads... Maybe you will head straight back to Step 3 and repeat Steps 3, 4 and 5 over and over again... But just maybe you will pass go and progress to...
6. Going steady: Yep, you and yoga are here to stay, and you have all the characteristics of a good relationship. Yoga complements you without dominating your life. You recognize that you will have good days and bad days, and you don't judge the relationship based on that. You acknowledge that you need to have other hobbies and social time for the other relationships in your life. Instead of brining out the worst in you, yoga brings out your best side, and opens up a place for you to grow and confront your fears. You don't feel judged, criticized or insecure – you feel just fine where you are, thanks, and you are enjoying the journey.

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Some of you I connect with on a daily basis and yet, we know so little about each other.  So I came up with this little quiz to get to know you all better!  I'll start - by leaving my own answers in the comments section.


Please join in! Just copy, paste, and fill in the blanks.

-------------------------

Hello, my name is ________________.  People call me _________________.

I am a _______________ and a _________________ .

My favourite meal of the day is ________________, for which I like to eat _______________________ .

After that, I enjoy _________________ or __________________.

My favourite colour/s is/are: ________________, and you can tell because _____________________!

When I'm not doing yoga, I like to ________________________________.

One dream or goal I would like to accomplish is _________________________.

One dream or goal I have already accomplished is ________________________.

I looooooove _________________ , but I'm not really a fan of __________ .

Something that drives me crazy is ___________________.

My body is ________________, my mind is _______________ and my soul is _________________.

Oh, and one more thing: ____________________________.

Please to meet you!!

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The smell of rain.
Brushing my cat.
Being a good friend.
Getting lost in a moment of underwater magic, watching the life of fish.

Flowing through a vinyasa.
Getting a better understanding of a pose.
Balancing.
Falling.
Adjusting a student and seeing the pieces fall into place.

Vocal harmony,
Massage.
Stroking the skin of person I love.
Spending time with friends & family.

Sailing - the rush of waves, the power of the wind, the ocean all around, pulsing.

Kirtan.
Mantras.
Sunrise.
Sunset.

This is my yoga.  What is yours?

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Living a green life is not always easy. In my case, it's made more complicated by living in a third world country! On the one hand, my 'footprint' is probably lower than it would be if I were living in a western city - I don't ever have to drive very far, there are no malls or shopping plazas with air-conditioning that I can go to, no pre-packaged sandwiches I can throw away the wrapper to, no junk mail (actually there is no mail delivery system at all...), no Chinese takeout!

But on the other hand, there are no recycling facilities in this country (sigh), so all my trash goes straight to a landfill, even glass and paper. There are no public transportation options, and cycling around town as a white woman can be dangerous and certainly not something I risk my laptop for! With limited choices (only 3 supermarkets) I don't always have the option to buy organic or fresh - I certainly can't just pop down to the local health food store and press my own peanut-butter like I used to do when I was studying in Montreal! And of course, environmental consciousness is just NOT a part of people's mentality here - we're still talking throwing plastic bottles out of car windows, and trash bags into rivers, people. *Sigh*

Will this be a regular feature? Maybe, maybe not. But for today, here are 7 every-day things that I do to help save our Earth.

1. I use my reusable shopping bags every time I shop, and carry one around in my purse so I never have to take home a plastic bag!
2. I take water in my own bottle to work every day, and refill it at lunch, so I never have to buy a plastic water bottle!
3. I consciously try to avoid buying products with too much packaging, especially plastic or styrofoam.
4. I turn off the shower when I don't need the water e.g. when shaving.
5. I turn off all the lights and appliances in my house whenever I am not using them or am not in the room.
6. I car-pool whenever possible, and my car is pretty fuel efficient.
7. I compost all my organic waste and use it to fertilise my garden.

My footprint is still a lot larger than I'd like it to be - but for today I'm celebrating these small steps and all the improvements I've made in recent months.

What about you? What every-day Earth-friendly things do you do?

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For this yogini, a fundamental part of practising ahimsa is non-harming to the environment. Thus, one of my major life resolutions this year has been to cut down on my trash - especially plastic bags and plastic bottles. I'm proud to say that since January I have only brought home about 3 plastic shopping bags (although some of my trash still goes out in plastic garbage bags), and have consistently rejected things with too much packaging involving plastic or styrofoam. This is no easy feat in Asia, where environmental consciousness is still in its infancy (actually, more like fetal stage!) and the general rule of thumb seems to be the more plastic the better.

A few months ago when traveling in New Zealand, I came across this little gem of a product - Envirosax!! Envirosax are reusable shopping bags that roll down into a tight little packet and are easy to slip into your pocket or purse, so you never forget to have a carry bag with you!

I bought one and am so in love with it, I carry it around everywhere! And every time I roll it out in the supermarket I get "ooohs" and "aaaahs" from those nearby. No more of those bulky, ugly and hard to carry shopping bags for me! These bags come in an astounding array of beautiful patterns and colours - they are so stylish and striking that on occasion I just use them as a purse and have even used mine as an airline carry-on bag.

The other thing that makes these bags stand out for me is that they have wide shoulder straps, so you can carry a heavy load over your shoulder and the straps never dig in. Finally, they roll down into a teensy little packet that can easily be slipped into your purse so you never forget your shopping bag. You can even get a little pouch of 5, all rolled up and packed tightly together. What a cool gift for yourself or a loved one!

Most of the bags are made out of lightweight polyester (yes, this is a plastic, but the company argues that this makes them affordable, durable and even recyclable) but they also have an organic series with lovely bags made out of cotton, linen, bamboo and even hemp.

I'm not generally one for product placement, but this one I just had to share! Check out their website here... and enjoy!

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On Fridays I teach a gentle flow class. It's my favourite class of the week - calm music, breath-focused flow - it even leaves me, the teacher, feeling refreshed!

This evening we had a bit of a 'special' class. First of all, we practice in a small conference room annexed to the back of a local NGO. For the past few weeks the air conditioners haven't been working properly and it has been HOT. Like, hot-yoga-hot, but the heat and humidity are 100% natural and you can't just turn them down or open a window! Said NGO office is adjacent to a local football (soccer) field, and today just before yoga class the inevitable happened: yes, you got it, ball through the window. Glass everywhere, chaos, and, yep, gaping hole for noise, mosquitoes and yet more humidity to come in through.

As we started our practice, the game next door continued, seeming louder than ever through the broken window. When the game finished, the guys decided to string up a net between the field and the NGO building. Great idea! Also, loud, chaotic and complicated idea which meant that we had 15 young guys standing on the wall in between the NGO and the field, shouting to each other, holding a net, trucking ladders back and forth, and yes, staring in at whatever-on-earth-the-wacky-foreigners-are-up-to-now: our Yoga class.

So there we are in our 100% humidity, mats sliding on tiled floor, mozzies buzzing, footballs flying, ladders clanging, boys shouting, and I am turning up the music and practically shouting
"stay with your breath"... And somehow, we manage to stick with it, somehow, we manage to stay in the flow. As we hit Savasana night falls, I turn off the lights, turn up the music, and finally find that teeny bit of stillness.

And then, after the class, one of the students comes up to me and says: "I think that was the best yoga class I've ever been to in my 60 plus years."

So this post is dedicated to my students. As I said to them tonight, they never cease to amaze and inspire me. There we are in our far-from-perfect conditions, and yet they keep coming, week in and week out, to practice Yoga. Here they are, far from home and family, from country and loved ones, living in the crazy uncertainty of this chaotic town and yet, they practice. They practice through sticky heat, power-outages, mosquito bites, broken glass, football games, and shouting youth. They come to practice through the dust and the heat, or wade through the muddy, flooded parking lot in torrential rain. Despite all the obstacles this place can throw at them, they practice. And THAT, I was reminded tonight, and reminded them, is Yoga.

Because life is unexpected. You never know what it's going to throw your way. It's not a smooth, easy road - it's a 4x4 obstacle course and the ride is going to be bumpy! Yoga is about self-discovery, and it is in facing adversity that we really learn about ourselves, it is how we deal with the challenges and the potholes that teaches us who we are and helps us to grow. And if we can keep a soft breath and a steady gaze amidst all the chaos - then truly, what can we not do?

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I can't remember where I read the term "tiny yogas" (or else I would credit it), but I love the phrase. These refer to the many ways we can apply what we learn in Yoga to our everyday lives.

The physical applications of this are obvious and you can be as creative as you want! Practice tadasana while waiting in line at the bank. Try your triangle pose (utthita trikonasana) when you get home from work and you feel a bit stiff. Use parsvottanasa (standing nose-to-knee stretch) to stretch out your hamstrings before a hike or a walk. My personal favourite (as my housemate will testify) would be Warrior III while brushing my teeth!

But the asanas are only the beginning. So I want to refer back to my last post about balancing energy, and bring the theory off the mat. We don't only benefit from having balanced energy when we practice our physical Yoga, but being aware of your energy and balancing it in your everyday life can have a positive impact on ordinary situations.

As an example, let's imagine Yogi Jane, who is facing a difficult situation at work. Her boss calls her into a meeting and lays on her a huge task, that will require immense time and resources, that has to be done yesterday, that will require her to drop what she is doing and work around the clock to get it done. Even though she privately thinks that what he is asking is unreasonable (it makes her stomach churn!), she acquiesces. As she drives home that day, she thinks about the task ahead and her stress level rises. When she gets home, her housemate Sarah asks her how her day was, and Yogi Jane explodes into a long tirade against her boss and this task he has set her. No matter how Sarah tries to comfort her, Jane's stress levels don't abate. Finally, Sarah's patience is exhausted and she heads to bed. Jane is left feeling unsatisfied and negative, and her stress keeps her from sleeping well.

Sound familiar? Now let's look at the situation from an energy perspective. When Jane acquiesces to her boss despite her reservations, she is using only softening energy - bending or complying to the situation. The 'hard' or muscular energy in the situation isn't dissipated - and it turns into stress, which then overflows into stress, and impacts other situations in her life (her relationship with Sarah). The imbalance between Jane's softening and muscular energy causes her to experience the situation negatively, and she ends up the worse off for it both professionally and personally.

So, what could Yogi Jane have done differently? Imagine that when her boss comes to her with his demands, Jane takes a deep breath and activates her muscular energy - her willpower. She actively resists the instinct to give into her boss' demands. This has an instant physical effect - making her posture stronger and more self-confident. Instead of agreeing immediately, tells her boss that she thinks his proposal is unreasonable. Then, she balances this resistance (her muscular energy) with some soft energy, and proposes some alternative scenarios that could achieve the objective within the time and resources available to her and her team. Together the two of them come to a compromise that meets both of their needs. Coming home to her housemate Sarah, she shares the story of her problem and how she resolved it and then the two relax into a nice quiet evening.

Perhaps this is oversimplified, but the concept remains. Just like in each and every Yoga pose there are areas that need muscular energy and areas that need softening, the same can be applied to situations we confront. Different contexts require different balances - but learning to apply the right mix of 'hard' and 'soft' energy to the situations in our lives can help us bring the mindful, calming influence of Yoga off the mat.

Practicing 'tiny yogas' - applying the principles of Yoga to an action or an activity in your day, is a rewarding way to begin exploring the path of Karma Yoga - Yoga by action, if you will. In the next post, I'll explore this concept more fully and also touch on the fundamental precepts of the 'Yogi code of ethics' - the guidelines (do's and don'ts!) that Yoga lays out for how to live a fulfilling life.

~Namaste~

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