I Belong

I'm exhausted, and maybe I shouldn't be writing on my blog in this state, but here I am anyway...

I'm in the home stretch of yoga teacher's training, or at least the 200 hr. training, and it seems that my emotions run high on these weekends. I'm passionate about yoga, and how it has helped me to heal. This is not even a fraction of what I still have to learn about yoga, and yet I have been lucky enough to have someone believe in me enough to give me the chance to begin my teaching journey. There are people in my yoga community who don't think I should be teaching, and I didn't realize the competitiveness of this business. I have been hurt recently by people who I believed were my friends, and it makes me sad and uncomfortable. I realize that I have only been practicing yoga for three years, but I am determined, dedicated, and I do believe I have something to offer. Ever since I found my way onto the yoga mat I have made an effort to focus inward, to find peace and solace in the sound of my own breath, and not to let my gaze wander over to the mat next to me. Theodore Roosevelt said, "Comparison is the thief of joy," and I believe that is true. When I teach yoga, I see the varying shapes of the poses in different bodies, and each version is unique and beautiful. For me, yoga has nothing to do with the physicality of the body, and everything to do with what is happening on the inside. I feel my way through each breath, each movement, and there is grief, and joy, sorrow, and playfulness. I'm not sure where I am going, but I belong exactly where I am.