A clean white blanket of snow
A clean white blanket of snow covers
A clean white blanket of snow covers everything
A clean white blanket of snow covers everything outside my windows
A clean white blanket of snow covers
A clean white blanket of snow covers everything
A clean white blanket of snow covers everything outside my windows
3 days. 3 days of quiet while the snow fell for 2 days and
the sun came out for one. 3 days of being sequestered inside. In the quiet. Birds
flew and landed on tree branches. Squirrels ran up and down tree trunks. All as
usual. But with no sound. All was quiet, outside my windows.
This was an invitation to go inside myself and be quiet. I
did do some self-reflection, some worry about our world, some anxiety about actually
getting out and driving with my new automatic transmission car in the stuff.
Focus on going inside. Focus on the quiet of the mind. I got
a lot of things solved this past weekend, solved in my head anyway.
It was easy to do some laundry and some reading, some
cooking and some eating. It was easy to relax with the cats purring on top of
me. It was easy to stay warm and watch Netflix and keep up with the outside world
through Facebook.
Beyond those tasks, it was challenging. I almost felt stifled
by the snow, afraid to go out in it, not wanting to shovel, while imagining it would
melt by Sunday and I could easily get my car and self out then. If I had another
person here I would have been more adventurous in going out for a walk or a
tumble or creating a great snow sculpture like I have seen on Facebook.
It all comes to self-discipline and getting myself going.
Yes, we are often bustling and busy, so snow days give us a rest from the
routine. I sure took it off! Hot cocoa, making hot soups, lighting candles, appreciating
electricity. It’s ok to be a slug at times.
To find the balance, that is the key. To work and to play,
to be disciplined and to take time off. What I recently discovered about myself
is that I enjoy the creative energy, the trying to figure things out and get
them going or get them right. My new website is an example. I loved the creative
process of finding a new name for my business, and then creating a logo, which
was a collaborative effort with my web person. I enjoyed the looking at what is
past and deciding where and how to go next, to make things easier for myself and
students. There was the anticipation of when the website would actually be
live, and making new business cards. And then, it’s almost like letting the air
out of a balloon. It’s done, and on to the next thing. Exhale. And move ahead.
So I am excited about my new business concept, of truly getting
back to the roots of teaching yoga and helping others find what works for them.
I’ve been doing that since 1988 when my friend and yoga teacher Katya left town
and passed on her yoga classes to me to teach. It progressed to Piccadilly
Square, my first yoga center space. My business became incorporated and
teachers came and went. Now for a year I have been itinerant again, only me,
well, except when Evie teaches yoga for relaxation. My space has been pretty
much CoLab in Grandin Village, while I maintain teaching at Roanoke College,
Hollins and Elm Park Estates.
What about 108? Why did I choose that name? Well, many many reasons. I think we can come up with 108 reasons for practicing
yoga. In yoga and Hinduism 108 is the number of mala beads. Mala beads are used
similarly to rosary beads, in meditation, as a way to quiet the mind. I see 108
Yoga Works as a path to quiet the mind and dig deeper.
And we come back to the snow and the quiet. I am off to
meditate and practice my own yoga; however it shows up today, as something new
in the moment.
