Ode to Yoga

I went to yoga this morning and I feel awesome; I always do after yoga.  I have practiced long enough to believe that yoga truly helps to make you aware of what’s going on with your body and it helps you find balance.  Yoga isn’t just about stretching and breathing.  It’s about quieting your mind, tuning out the noise and listening to what your body is trying to tell you.  If you listen, when you’re “off”, you can feel it and you can find a remedy.  Our bodies are smarter than we are, and if we can learn to listen, we’ll be healthier.

Balance is probably the most important thing to master in life, also one of the most difficult.  Without balance, you are neglecting an area or overdoing another.  Americans have a hard time doing anything in moderation and that is probably at the root of most of our problems.  We overdo everything.  If we could all learn to balance the things that are necessary for us to function physically and mentally, we’d all be happier and healthier.  Instead, this is what Americans do:

We hear:

“Fat Free”—OH, goody!  I can eat more!

(Or you could eat the real thing in moderation.  At least it’s made from real food rather than ingredients that end in the word “acid” and “phosphate”.)

 “Red wine is good for you”—Alright!  I’ll bet a bottle a night is even better!

(Come on, now.  And just because they say red wine doesn’t mean that other types of alcohol are also great for you.)

“Dark chocolate is good for you”—Wooooohooooooo!

(I think that they mean a piece or two and I’m almost certain that they aren’t talking about Almond Joy.)

“Red meat is bad for you.”—I’ll become a vegetarian and then eventually be anemic.

(I’m making fun of myself.  I saw “Food, Inc.” and I went a little psycho for a while.  I basically couldn’t eat anything for three months because it freaked me out so much.  See it, you'll understand.  The food industry is white collar mafia, as far as I am concerned.)

One of the things that I like about myself at this age is that I understand the importance of exercise, a good breakfast, quality of food, digestion, sleep, God, having a positive attitude, family, organization.....the list goes on and on.  When I was a younger mom I used to complain about not being able to balance everything.  I used to tell my mom that if I had a clean house, I forgot to eat.  If I did all of the laundry, I didn’t exercise.  (You get the point.)  It seemed that I would improve in one area and then another would suffer, especially when I was in school or worked.  I know that one of the only reasons that I am better at taking care of myself is because I am blessed to be able to stay at home.  I can take care of everyone in a way that I am proud of because I have the time to take care of myself.  If you don’t love yourself and take care of yourself, you have nothing to give anyone else.

When someone gets sick or someone has surgery, I try to stay in my routine, but often I fail miserably and I feel it emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually.  When I get sick, it takes me days to catch up and it’s the most frustrating feeling because I can feel how unbalanced I am.  I work every day to balance my life and there are certain things that I know that I have to have to be happy, other than the obvious, my family.  I have to have God, I have to write, I have to eat well, and I have to exercise.  I have really become a stickler and if I do not do these things, I feel it and my energy is different.  I’ve always been the type of person who wakes up happy, has a positive attitude, and loves people and staying busy.  Now I can tell that I am not the best version of myself if I don’t take care of me.  And it’s like a domino effect.  If I don’t work out, I’m not hungry, therefore I don’t take my vitamins, therefore I don’t have energy and get sick.  When I feel bad, I am cranky, therefore I am unhappy.  Make sense?  It’s unbalance and it’s unhealthy.  My New Year's resolution is to not completely freak out when I am out of my routine and cut myself some slack.

The reason that I am writing about all of this is that I know that many people are going to be hitting the gym in January and making a lot of unattainable New Year’s resolutions so that they can participate in a lot of self-loathing in mid-March.  Don’t do that.  Don’t be an American and over-do the good and then burn out and get discouraged because you failed.  If you set up ridiculous goals, of course you’ll fail.  Balance is about giving a little to all of the important places in your life.  Love yourself and do things that make you a happier person.  Don’t set yourself up to fail by going a thousand miles an hour for a couple of months in one area.  Make a lifestyle change, don’t do the fad thing.  Figure out what areas you’re neglecting and dedicate a little time to it without forgetting about the others.  Keep in mind though that a lot of things do go hand-in-hand.  If you decide to exercise, it’s a given that you need to take vitamins and eat well.  If you don’t, you’ll fail at the gym.  This is just an example. 

I used to think that yoga was weird, or just crazy new-age stuff.  It makes so much sense to me since I have done it for so long and I recommend it to everyone.  The more that I learn about the universe and energy, the more that I think that we are all balls of energy and that some people have bright lights and some little dim flames.  Some have horrible and evil energy.  Some people can light a room up and make everyone happy.  Some people can drag everyone down.  When you take care of yourself and go to yoga, you can learn to shut out the negative ones.   If you find the right instructor, like me, it clicks and you no longer think it’s all a bunch of silly mumbo-jumbo.  My favorite yoga instructor, Deborah, is a very enlightened person and she lives a very healthy life.  If you believe that we are all spirits in a bunch of bodies, chances are that you have the ability to feel and read others’ energy.  She just has a great, loving spirit.  Find someone that believes in yoga and you’ll become a firm believer in the practice.

The last thing that I will say about yoga is that it’s helped me to quiet my mind, listen to myself, and listen to God.   Don’t knock yoga until you try it.  And please, consider what I said about New Year’s resolutions and balance.   Don’t set yourself up to fail, but figure out what you’re going to do for the three areas in your life: mind, body, spirit—and then do your best and take it day by day.

I hope that everyone is remembering what Christmas is really about......Jesus was born.  It doesn't matter how many presents you get or what kind of meal you eat.  Christmas is a time to remember how blessed we all are.  My grandma in Indiana....Hello, Mamaw.......fell and hurt her leg and had to have stitches.  She can't walk because when she fell, she hurt the leg that wasn't cut.  In other words, both of her legs are injured.  When I talked to her a couple of days ago, she was upset that she couldn't fix Christmas dinner for everyone.  I told her that first of all, someone else can lift their finger.  She's 80.  Secondly, I told her that it really didn't matter if everyone ate a traditional dinner or pizza.  Christmas is about something else entirely.  I told her about our Christmas stump and she giggled and said that I was right.  I love my grandma.

Namaste.

Here’s the Word of the Day:

swaddle \SWOD-l\, verb:

1. To bind an infant with long, narrow strips of cloth to prevent free movement.
2. To wrap (anything) round with bandages.

noun:
1. A long, narrow strip of cloth used for swaddling or bandaging.