Played: 309 | Download | Duration: 01:30:56

live recording of last intermediate class at down dog yoga

why is saying good-bye so difficult?

it is an inevitable piece of life.  

chapters close.  waves complete.  for a new road to be taken, we must turn off the one we are on.

new chapters cannot open until the former is closed.  new waves form after the old ones complete.  and new roads bring along new opportunities, new experiences, and new territory. 

in our yoga practice, the sequence is designed so that the preceding asana leads and prepares us for the next.  it is intelligently designed to get us ready to move on.  in ashtanga yoga, when we come to a posture where we still struggle – we stay.  there is work to be done and openings to create. 

but once our work is complete in that stage – it is time to move forward as the next stage is about to unfold. 

 

odd how my work on my mat often mirrors my life.

 

i am at a new stage in my yoga.  i recently was added a new posture.  at first, i resisted.  i didn’t want to even practice it … i wanted to stay where i was, comfy and cozy.  so stay i did.  screw pasasana. i can’t do it anyway … its too hard.

but pasasana is the gateway to all those second series postures that bring in backbending … a bit of uncharted territory for me.  and i can't get there without it.

so then i had a new mindset.  i was going to take it on.  wrestle, conquer, and move on quickly.  not really interested in spending time in this transitioning stage and more willing to skip it entirely, actually, in order to move to the next.

 

damn that pasasana.  

a posture that represents one series concluding and the next one beginning.

 

so here i am. truth is, i’m ready to face this next phase.  but i have to make peace with the place i'm in now – which is allowing one era to conclude as the next unfolds.  it cannot be rushed … or skipped.

my daughter is getting ready to leave for college.  one chapter has closed and another exciting one is about to begin … soon - but not just yet. 

my friend is getting ready to move across the world.  she’s getting ready to journey on, but before, we will enjoy our final few moments of company.

they are both ready. everything they’ve each experienced in their lives up until this moment has prepared them for their next journey.  and i'm honored to be a part of that past.  but the next wave is forming in the distance – even as they ride this final one out.  we each can see it taking shape, but first  we must ride this one to its conclusion ... enjoy these final moments before swimming out to meet the one we are meant to ride next.

 my life also, is shifting in a new direction.

so you see, the battle i have formed on and off the mat, is all for naught.  fast forwarding to the next place or stalling the inevitable conclusion will do nothing except needlessly expend myenergy.  i will neither slow the change nor stop it.  because its not up to me.

yep - while i am wrestling with pasasana, the transformation to the next will occur around me – despite me.  i will have done nothing to stop it or speed it or change it.

better for me to take the time now to celebrate what has been and know that each of us has been prepared well for the uncharted journey that lies ahead. 

 

and no matter how hard that is - our good-byes transition us to our next place.

so we can choose to make it a struggle by wrestling or avoiding - 

or we can be in this glorious moment.

remembering what fun we had and relishing in the excitement of what's to come.

don't cry because it's over.  smile because it happened.  (dr. seuss)