I have freedived to 60m on a single breath of air and wrap both my legs around my head in a yoga pose. I have traveled the globe and had the a few weird but fun jobs and I have wound up in a few scary situations where I wondered how I would get out of them… but the hardest job I have ever had is being a mom. I told a friend just last week I felt under-qualified for the job STILL.
It’s the scariest job but by far the best job and most rewarding job on the planet.
As far as yoga goes, I am an Ashtangi and I practice the Ashtanga series. There are 6 series to work through and each increase in insanity and challenge as they work systematically through the entire body and there are very few who have made it to the 4th series.
And then, there is the lesser known, advanced yoga called THE 7th SERIES.
Interestingly, the final “seventh series” is not about physical poses, but rather refers to the practice of family life.
Becoming a mom and a house-holder has been the most growth accelerating time of my life.
These little people we get to nurture encourage and develop have been my biggest teachers and remain so.
I have learnt that balance doesn’t mean I hold tree pose for hours these days.
Balance nowadays entails juggling kids and working and house-holding and trying to snatch a moment on the mat for ourselves. Some days the mat time doesn’t happen. Learning to not judge myself for failing to find the time to practice on some days, has been an incredible lesson for me in forgiveness and allowing myself to treat myself with kindness and compassion.
I have learnt patience and trust in the process, even when things are not looking like they are going to end up the way I imagined, starting in the labour ward and extending to breastfeeding adventures and eventually choosing schools and activities for our kids, we have so many premeditated ideas that we really have to LET GO of in order to let them grow
Like life, our practice is always changing, to accept this is to create peace of mind and body, and acceptance will help us nurture harmonious relationships throughout all phases of life. Guruji’s advice regarding practice was simple and true:
“Do what you can! Practice is hard when you have young children.” So, do what you can… a little bit every day goes a long way.
Before being married with kids and dogs… I would indulge in hours of yoga… followed by stunning, thoughtful walks on the promenade (earbuds in and tunes playing 😉) and the indulgence to be where and what I wanted to be at my own leisure.
Now my walks consist of those lovely earbuds and tunes left behind in my drawer so that I can encourage, direct and urge my brood to “step it up” (that’s usually directed to Stieg😉) or keep ever alert for sounds of the monkeys in the trees that will set Nugget my Bull Terrier into a frenzy of joy that will take her bounding over fields (and I mean FIELDS) of sugarcane to get them… to bark and harass until I can get to her (dragging the lagging Stieg)
Things change.
Life gives and it takes and it gives and it takes and it bends you so that you are no longer looking at the same view.
So that yoga these days is usually with one or more of my dogs or my kids trying to creep into my space is now my new normal.
Flexibility.
It’s helps us to love and appreciate our new view
