October is a such a busy month

I haven't blogged lately because I've been too busy with everything. Everything includes school, yoga and travel.

The yoga part has been the best part. Travel was good too, but tiring. I almost decided to dwell on the not-best-parts, but in the spirit of focusing only on the positive, I will write today about the yoga part.

Two weeks ago, I had the great honor of attending a workshop led by John Friend in San Francisco. I started studying Anusara yoga a couple of years ago, when I arrived in San Francisco from the East coast. I had previously practiced Ashtanga yoga, along with a bunch of other schools of asana. But Anusara (true to its fashion) spoke to my heart. And although I've taken some time away from an Anusara practice, in the last few months I've rekindled the connection. I am so glad I did.

I was thrilled to be accepted into John Friend's workshop: I was one of 250 "mixed-level" students who got in. I had no idea what to expect, and never would have predicted what did happen, for the effects of the weekend are still reverberating in my life. I met new "yoga friends" and no longer feel alone at the studio. I got to see who this amazing teacher was, whom my teachers had been raving about. I got to realize that I am still learning and growing as a practitioner. I still have so much to learn, but even more important, I want to learn so much.

The fourth thing that happened to me is less egoistic and more subtle: I felt my practice become lighter. And every time I have practiced since the workshop has been full of joy and full of presence. I'm not just struggling to move into a difficult pose. My whole being is involved in that pose, even the poses I feel least confident about (bakasana, I'm talking to you). And despite a struggle with handstand (one that has been going on for nigh on 10 years), I am beginning to see that pose with lightness and ease. I know that spending 8 hours of one weekend doing yoga has not made me a perfect yogini. I do feel a sense of greater comfort an ease in my body. Maybe my heart melted just the right way at the workshop; maybe I am just happier now that I have a core of new acquaintances. But I'm looking forward to my next day of practice. Maybe that will be the day I kick up into handstand and float there, strong and open.