Perspective

Perspective with my hands.
Perspective with my body.

As I work through my down dogs
upward
into
Warrior 1,
I find cactus arms
into straight arms up high
extending forward
placement between eyes

And I think,
it's all perspective.

Sometimes we can see plainly what is in front of us...
other times we are looking around what is right before us,
while other times we are looking too closely in the present.

It all shifts.
Our perspective.
Upside down.
Rightside up.

Finding the moments to be in that change,
loving what is.

Slowing down

Sitting in the sunshine, with a cup of coffee this early morning, I had a flash of meditation vs. the work week.



Often times meditation comes at the end of asana.
Our body has worked with our mind through all these poses, sometimes surging memories with present issues or simple joy.  And by the end of our practice, most people can sit.
Simply sit.
Much easier.

So, as I sat this morning, I thought about how joyous the simple act of sitting is--after a week filled with loving obligations, laughing and tears of exhaustion.
It is a gift.
Sitting.
Meditation.
Slowing down in the presense.
Putting the highest first.

Open heart, Open spine, Open words

I began slow
creaking morning body on the mat

listening to green tara
protector
remover of lions and greed
in balasana
arms overhead
fingers interlaced

onto my back for biking the agni path
rolling my spine
so divine
warming for the sunny salutes

head back
fingers interlaced
heart reaching towards the sun

Warrior 1: What is story?  What is your stance on Issues 1, 2, 3?

Lunge into peacefulness
dropping your sacrum
bending your knee to twist
your heart to the other side of the world
to the twisty parvokonasana
unwind
bind and travel again
Child
your hero
called your camel to finish
your heart

resting your legs up the wall

to begin the day

Family, svaha!

Often times
I recall
family

Often times
I wonder
about similarities
differences
joy

Often times
I inhale
exhale
svaha
woohoo
hail!
love

for
family

Morning practice

My morning practice was slow and undecided.
I am trying to incorporate more standing poses into my practice...for two, of probably many, reasons:
1)Students tend to love them..I suppose it's where they feel grounded in the practice; knowing whatever I may offer to them before or after, they are able to stand in their place for the moment.  I practice what I teach.  Often obsessively--just to make sure it's safe and playful.
2)I need to ground myself more often.  I am airy. Creative. I love vinyasa movements, linking my moves as if I'm dancing through my practice--how I most often approach life...but sometimes I need to stand still. Stand up. Be planted in my views and know it's ok to feel the way I do, even if it's only a present moment.  Placement. 


Once I got moving, feeling the space--I found some fluid movements...working through spinal rolls, twists, incorporated backbends and side stretches into goddess.
I enjoy creating what seems to be new approaches to me to the simple movements I've done for 15 years...it adds that spark to my moment..to the beginning of my day.


Om

Expectations create separation

Expectations create separation...we expect from ourselves and loved ones in so much of our daily lives. Learning to let see the space between expecting and non-expecting, brings us closer to living consciously with those around us.


Lots of lunges, thigh stretches and standing poses...what I don't do alot of.
They scare me.
Strength.
Posture.
Moving forward I suppose.


What I am moving towards in my home practice.
Without expectation.

morning practice

Lots of spinal work:

head rolls,
front to back

into cat & cow

shifting hands out forward
knees back
wider cat and cow

into down dog

fly throughs

back to beginning

sun salutations

chair
twist chair
triangle
bound triangle
parvatonnasana
bound parvatonnasana

chair again
bakrasana

floor to fish variations

shoulderstand variations

supta baddha konnasana

get ready for savasana

om