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What do you have time for?

What do you have time for?

This is my yoga space. When I moved into my boyfriend’s home I said that I wanted a yoga space that was all mine. And I love it. As you can see, it’s not much. There’s my yoga mat, an exercise ball, extra yoga mats, my journal, and various writing utensils in that basket, inside the cabinet are straps and blocks (and my crafting stuff, but that’s another day). On top of the cabinet are things that make me happy. A saying. Pictures. Candles. A lamp. And various knick-knacks that bring back good memories, or simply center me. Sadly, I don’t have as much time to spend in my space as I’d like.

I work a full time job, commute an hour each way to said job, work out minimum four days a week at the gym for an hour, sleep, and somehow try to have a life outside of that (see friends, relax, eat). It’s just a busy life. It seems like everyone’s life is like that any more. But the time I spend in my space is all mine. I don’t bring my phone down there. I relax and let the world go on without me during that time.

The second I see my space my shoulders relax, my breath deepens, my brain becomes less active. I don’t actually have to do yoga postures to feel the affects of yoga. I just need to know that I’m allowing myself to be for a few moments. And sometimes I just have a couple minutes to let go. Sometimes I have all day and let my body direct my practice.

Yoga is the melding of mindbodyspirit. One being. Oftentimes we don’t connect. We live life, commuting, working, exercising, eating, cleaning, being in constant movement… or possibly being a couch potato. There’s nothing wrong with any of that. It simply just is. How do we connect? How do we listen to our body when it needs to relax? Often, we wait until we are sick and can’t get out of bed. Allow yourself to start listening. What does your body need right now? Personally, my legs are needing to be stretched. So that’s what I did.

I am a blunt person. I tend to not think before speaking. And have learned over time that this is not necessarily a good thing. I have learned to think before I speak (or at least try). I have also learned to listen to my body before I speak. Does my stomach have knots? If so, why? Am I tense? Will my comment hurt myself or others? This habit has made me realize that my mind really does affect my body. If I’m going to say something or do something that will result in hurt feelings I get a sense of dread, I get cold, and other somatic reactions occur. What does your mind tell you? Do you notice the mindbody connection?

Now onto spirit… this is much harder because it makes many people uncomfortable. Spirit oftentimes brings up the idea of religion, or a higher power, which anymore brings up politics, and so on and so on. But take what you believe about spirit and go to the beginning. Heart. Intuition. Emotions. What drives you on a simple level? This, I believe, is your soul, your spirit, your guide. The sense of dread when I told someone their dream was unrealistic… that dread was likely my heart (intuition) telling my mind to tell my body that I’m an idiot. And I was. My ego led me to the point of saying that. Had I listened to my body, to my mind, to my soul, I would have never said what I said. I believe in the heart of everyone lies goodness, truth, a purity that can’t be touched, but we often don’t allow ourselves to find it.

How do you find it? I find it by going into my yoga space. Where I allow myself to let go. Let go of stress, tension, bitterness, resentment, and allow myself to accept. Accept goodness, kindness, peace. And let go of that and send it out into the world around me. That is where I find my contentment. Some of us don’t have a space. Maybe you don’t have a physical space and that’s fine. You don’t need a mat to find this connection. You just need a few minutes to be with yourself to listen to body, to listen to mind, and to listen to spirit. Or just sit and breathe and allow yourself to let go of anything you’re holding onto and simply release it. Allowing for peace to enter.

Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti

Om Peace, Peace, Peace

May each being find peace

May each being find happiness

Namaste

Robyn Boettner

Robyn is the resident yoga instructor on this site. I have been practicing yoga since 2000 and became a Certified Integrative Yoga Teacher in 2005. I became a teacher to learn more about yoga and integrate it more into my lifestyle. I then realized that I wanted to make yoga accessible to everyone. I have taught at Y's (YMCA & YWCA), community centers, community colleges, and various other locations throughout the decade. I hope that through this blog we can explore yoga together.

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