Hi…wow…so I’m catching up from my family having been in town for over a week. It was really good to see them. I’m grateful for all the time we got to spend together and the time I got to spend with my nieces and nephews, too. They are really awesome. They are 12, 13 and 15 and live in Columbus, OH. I hadn’t seen them in a year. It was really powerful for me to realize they are a connection to my father, also. It’s almost like I had forgotten he had made such an impact on their lives, as well, until I saw them this last week. I felt like my father’s spirit was with us and very much alive in my connection with them. I felt like my dad lives on in their hearts and minds simply through their rememberance of him. They are the children of my sister who is my half-sister through our mother. So, while they are not related to my father in blood, I realized this doesn’t matter, at all. They are completely related to him in Spirit.
This was something my father reminded me of before he passed away. We were having a discussion one day about raising children and what my life might look like. I talked about the possibility of having a child versus adopting a child and he said to me that whether you adopt a child or have a child, the child becomes your own either way. It’s not the blood that connects us, ultimately. It’s the spirit. It’s the spirit that unites us whether that’s in our families, our friends, our country or our world. And, technically, if we trace it back far enough, we are all connected and related one way or another, I’m sure, I believe that’s true.
I feel like I have a lot of stuff to share with you, but let’s start here. Besides the book I’ll most likely be writing…yea…(which will be published in Spring 2011) I’ll also be adding the membership section to the True Yoga Blog and website soon. (And it will be really affordable…probably like $5/month.) With the membership section you’ll have access to online Yoga videos with me, and, eventually, other inspiring instructors, as well, plus so much other awesome information, too. I’m looking forward to bringing you an online store with awesome and inspiring products I love, plus, recipes, wellness coaching and more. I hope you will find the True Yoga blog and website a community that supports and inspires you in growing well in body, mind, heart and spirit and being the best you can be in every way…physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
I mentioned I’ll be participating in a Yoga competition. I didn’t ever think I would be involved in such a thing, but, I am going to participate in a way that’s healthy and balanced, rather than obsessive. Sometimes I have the tendency to obsess about things, as I’m sure we all do. When I decided to participate in the competition, I started thinking that meant I should practice Yoga everyday. So, of course this week I was all inspired to get off the ground running with my Yoga regimen. But, I realized that’s not healthy. What’s healthy is to listen to my body and what it wants. The attainment of perfection is an illusion. None of us are perfect, that is why we are here. To learn and grow and to understand how we can be healthier and better. It’s an illusion to think we can reach some perfect destination. I was reminded of this quote today while I was teaching Yoga class. Although, I only knew the first part of this quote. I didn’t realize there was more to it. Apparently there is also a book called “Be Happy Without Being Perfect” by someone named Alice E. Domar. That might be one to check out. Anyhow, here is all of the quote:
“Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people. It will keep you cramped and insane your whole life, and it is the main obstacle between you and a shitty first draft. I think perfectionism is based on the obsessive belief that if you run carefully enough, hitting each stepping-stone just right, you won’t have to die. The truth is that you will die anyway and that a lot of people who aren’t even looking at their feet are going to do a whole lot better than you, and have a lot more fun while they’re doing it.”
— Anne Lamott (Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life)
In Yoga the intention and direction of one’s practice is to move inward into communion with our Self and Highest Self/the Atman, which means the spirit within. In fact, Self-Realization Fellowship just wrote about this in their newsletter… Read the rest…












