LETTING GO

Recently I read again the story of how to catch a monkey told by Ram Dass. You put a bunch of nuts in a jar with a small opening. The monkey reaches inside and grab a handful of nuts. He finds out that he cannot get his hand out through the small opening. If only he would just let go of the nuts, he could escape. But he won't. I love the graphic image of this story. If only we could let go of what is holding us down in life, be it anger, disappointment, expectation, judgment, and a slew of negative feelings. Attachment to these feelings make us unhappy.



Last week my dog Coco passed away. I was devastated. For some reason I thought she was going to live on and on with me, even though she was already over 19 year old and had gone blind and deaf. I was aware of her impending demise, I just could not let go. Fortunately I finally realized the futility of attaching to the impossible. Letting Coco go frees me from being paralyzed by the loss. I am able to detach.



Detachment does not mean to wantonly discard all feelings. It just means that we don't allow those feelings control our lives.
We are no longer enslaved by low self image, resentment, and harsh judgment and worry.

Letting go of the preconceived idea of what your yoga practice should be like can release you of worry and judgment. It lets you relax without expectation. Your body will respond positively as you become free of the bondage of tight muscles. Letting go of the handful of nuts will allow you to escape from being imprisoned in the the jar of attachments.

Be free and relax...
Namaste,
Clarie

Dear Yogis & Yoginis,
Are you a worrier? More specifically, do you worry about everything or just a few things? Some people seem to worry more, others less. Taking the issue into a narrower focus, many of us worry about not being a good yogi or yogini.

I am basically not a big worrier, although as an "organizer" type, I do have to be concerned about things I am responsible for, and that covers a lot.

What saves me from becoming an obsessive worrier is the practice of yoga. Yoga is all about focusing on what we do from moment to moment. Each time we step on the mat, we shed the heavy burden of expectation. We surrender to what we are able to do each moment. We must accept the fact that we are not the same person as we were the day before, nor the same person as we will be the next day. Or more precisely, we are a different person every second of the day. What we can do yesterday, or a moment ago, may not be what we can do now. Our natural tendency is to hang on to the good times and reject the bad times. So when we are able to get into a pose beautifully we want to be able to repeat that "performance" again and again. We cling to that beautiful image and rebuke ourselves when the same experience may not return.

Some days I can lift into a tree pose (Vrishasana) easily and steadily, yet some times I sway, my feet and ankle feel weak, or eye unfocused. If I worry that I have lost it then my focus will become even more impossible. So I just tell myself "today I am not grounded and steady" and accept the results of lack of sleep or general lethargy. Some days I can forward bend all the way, other days that same pose is a real challenge. If I worry that others may think less of me and my skills, and if I cling to my good day image and force myself to bend all the way down, a sure injury is waiting to happen.

So step on your yoga mat with an open mind of acceptance. Enjoy progress if it happens, if not, just relax and welcome the opportunity to stretch your body, open your heart and get to know yourself better and better.

Namaste,
Clarie

Welcome to GoldieYoga

Dear Yogis & Yoginis,

Welcome to my blog! Thank you for signing in your email address when you come to the Saturday yoga class at Gold's Gym. It allows me to set up an address list to contact you.

Every so often I have an urge to share with you my thoughts or ideas, and the best way nowadays is to enter it into a blog. I am not very active in using Facebook partly because I don't really know how to use it quickly and effectively, partly because my messages tend to be longer sometimes and probably won't reach all of you, unless all of you are on Facebook. In any case, I am sticking with the blog...

I am thrilled that you have joined me on the yoga journey. Some of you have been on the journey for a few years; some of you started on the journey several years ago and took a few side trips and now returned on the journey path; some of you are new to this journey; all of us are on a journey of self discovery. After more than ten years of practice, I still feel each practice as a whole new experience because each day I am different. There are no two practices identical to each other. I hope you will stay on this wonderful path with all the other yogis and yoginis.

When you step on your mat, let your body be the guide to what you can do. No expectations. No judgment. No pride. No recriminations. Just be yourself.

Namaste,
Clarie