Just Be vs. Just Do It

I'm one of those people who is really into efficiency. I like to be on time (OK, confession - I arrive on the early side. There are those people who are always late, well, you can count on me to always be early). I'm a planner and it makes me happy when things flow smoothly.

So somehow, my planning and efficiency and being early land me at Jivamukti London with half an hour or more to spare before class starts. At first I viewed this as, you guessed it, inefficient. But then, this "stolen" time turned into a luxury...I plop down on my mat, do some restorative yoga, and mostly just lie there. Closer to class time, I let the rush of incoming students swirl around me. I'm already in a different place. I've had the luxury of letting go of everything it takes to get me there (5 year old school drop off, 2 rush hour tube rides with a stop off at Starbuck's in between, one bus ride), of just being able to roll around on my mat and clear my head. By the time class starts, I feel like a clean slate. I realized today that this may be one of my favorite London memories in the making.

This happened to me by accident, because I can almost guarantee that if I had planned the down time, it wouldn't have worked out quite as brilliantly. It's as if the universe decided to address my type-A tendencies. It's reminded me that we don't always need to be doing, and how important and self-nurturing it is to spend some time just being. What do you do to just be? I'd love to know...Namaste.

One word: Stonehenge

When husband brought up the London thing last fall, one of the first thoughts to float into my head was one evocative word: Stonehenge. The opportunity for all the stuff I've read and shows I've seen to culminate in my own personal visit to this mysterious, magical place. I've been looking forward to it since we got here; we went this past weekend, with special inner circle access tickets for an early morning visit. (You can no longer walk amongst the stones without these tickets.)

It's one thing to see ancient artifacts in a museum, and quite another to visit a place such as Stonehenge, where the actual history has happened. You are standing in that spot. If only those stones could speak. There's visitor graffiti carved on many of the stones (now you are not allowed to even touch them!), and my favorite was the Neolithic dagger and axe (move away from the screen and you'll see them more clearly in the photo).

Why? When? Who?

So many questions left unanswered at this place. Which is part of its appeal. We also visited nearby Avebury, yet another ancient stone circle and the largest of its kind in Europe. I did a very special handstand there.

Friday Faves

Today's Friday faves, on a beautiful springy day in London, include: bright yellow daffodils and sunshine, these elephant cookies from the Borough Market, me fulfilling my need to strike a warrior pose by the Tower of London (just seemed appropriate), and the studio at Jivamukti London. I spend most of my time in a spot by the altar, which means I am looking at Sharon Gannon's lovely arm bind (upside down) quite a bit. Happy Friday.

A Montana Minute

And now, back to Montana...wanted to share these gorgeous photos that Janice, our head Cowgirl Yoga wrangler, has been sending me here in London. I miss Montana, but am also savoring the lessons of life in London and enjoying the present moment. I'll return to my mountain home with a fresh perspective on many things, and a heart full of meaningful memories too.

Love seeing my horse running free, wishing I could untangle his mane, and missing all the snow...sort of.

Keep Calm & Carry OM

Fellow blogger Babs (check out her fun blog babsbabble - yoga ramblings) sent me this after seeing my Keep Calm & Carry On post. It's the yoga version. Love it. Live it. Namaste.

Emotional Excavating with Yoga

My yoga practice is getting into some uncomfortable places, deep nooks and crannies of my being. Sort of like an emotional excavation. Today at class, I had an experience that left me in tears a few times, dizzy and nauseated. But - and this is going to sound strange - not in bad ways. I knew I wasn't sick, in the clinical sense. I went into class feeling somewhat emotionally shaken. The last few days have brought some bad news, on both a global and personal level: the Japan disaster, my (younger) brother hospitalized on his birthday for the ongoing heart condition he struggles with. News of a tragic murder in the DC area yoga community, where many people I love are. A friend and retreat alumna recently diagnosed with breast cancer.

We had a guest teacher from Germany today, and the asana wasn't as intense as usual. In fact, I don't think we did a single warrior pose. On another day, I might struggle with this and not like that we didn't move as much as I (thought I ) wanted to. Today I did not. We did some pretty intense pranayama and massage work on our lymphatic system. I felt tears prick a few times during class, seemingly out of nowhere, but I didn't let them come because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to stop. I fled home after class, although I was supposed to be having lunch with a friend. The moment I walked in the door, I cried for a good 10 minutes. Whew. All that from a yoga class!

I feel lighter, cleansed. The heaviness and sadness in my heart that accompanied me to class this morning has been lifted. I marvel at the many ways in which yoga allows me to serve (family, friends, my students), and serves me. I am overwhelmed with gratitude for its gifts. Namaste.

My London loves

Time for more Friday faves. This round: London. I've been here long enough now to know what I like. It's been an incredible experience on many levels, and I'm looking forward to getting as much as I can out of my remaining time here.

Yoga, yoga and more yoga. Firstly, let me dispel a myth; just because I am a yoga teacher doesn't mean I practice every day. Practice time is precious, and I've been very fortunate that during my stay in London, my morning commute is to yoga. It's been a rare opportunity to have an extended period of time like this to dedicate to my personal practice. I am enjoying taking class 5 days a week at Jivamukti London, learning from many new teachers, and being part of this wonderful yoga community.

Eastern Eats. Back in Bozeman, we don't have Indian or Middle Eastern restaurants. London is as good as the real deal in both, and I've been enjoying them so much that we haven't even eaten at a pub yet. Moroccan, Persian, Lebanese, various regions of India; I'm going to miss these flavors so much that I will have to seriously amp up my cooking skills when I return to Montana. Good thing I'm signing up for cooking lessons on our April trip to Morocco.

Flowers. There's a lot of grey weather here, but you'll find flowers everywhere. Tube station and street flower vendors are bursting with color. It makes such a difference to have fresh flowers in the flat, and I've established a little ritual of changing them weekly.

The Tower of London. There are obviously many sights to see in London, but nothing beats the Tower. History, intrigue, drama, ravens, ancient secrets and ceremonies, Yeoman Warders, the Crown Jewels. We recently attended the Ceremony of the Keys, the traditional locking of the Tower that has taken place every night for the last 700 years. Now if that doesn't make you feel like you're witnessing history, not sure what will.

London public transport. Is it weird that I never tire of studying the Tube map? I've put in some time on the Paris Metro and the NYC subway, but the best people watching is hands down on the Tube. I also love the big red double decker buses; a good bus ride has an oddly meditative quality to it, especially since most people are very quiet on public transport. And the views from the top of the bus are spectacular.

Happy Friday from an American Cowgirl Yogini in London!

My fave yoga pose (for now)

It's tough to answer the question, what is your favorite yoga pose? It's impossible to narrow it down to one, plus it's a moving target. What you love today may not serve you tomorrow. I find it kind of amusing that a basic paschimottanasana is my recent nemesis, given my low back sensitivity, but that tittibhasana now comes with ease. Huh.

If I had to really choose just one pose, it would probably be pigeon (which I've mused on before here). But a close second is a pose that isn't quite so pretty or fancy - in fact, it may be the plain Jane of yoga poses, and a bit cheeky too: it's often referred to as wind-relieving pose. But that is only one of its benefits (if you choose to look at it that way)...it's just about the best darn low back release evah. I am always, always doing this pose, every day, multiple times a day. All you have to do is get down on the floor and hug your knees into your chest, and voilá - knees-to-chest pose. Lovely. Sometimes I feel like I could stay here for hours.

There are many things you can do with apanasana: you can hug both knees in together, or one at a time; you can roll around and massage your low back, or rock forward and back to massage your spine; you can take a gentle supine twist to either side; you can transition into happy baby. Give it a try and soothe your spine and your mind. Namaste.

Yoga = Keep Calm & Carry On

Being in London, I've seen the "Keep Calm and Carry On" image on just about everything: mugs, tees, cards, etc. I like the effortless simplicity of expressing a very powerful idea to make everyone's day a bit better. The history is interesting: the colorful, modern-looking posters were created by the British government at the onset of WWII, to raise morale. It wasn't much used for a variety of reasons, but was re-discovered in 2000 and found new life, once again for a variety of reasons. It's a fairly timeless message (and a modern marketer's dream, I might add).

It reminds me of the second Yoga Sutra, yogas-citta-vrtti-nirodhah: yoga is the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind. I think this Sutra is the essence of why we do yoga - to get all those voices inside our head to, forgive me, shut the hell up. That little slice of silence that happens when we forget about all our internal dialogues - the citta, the ongoing chatter - is what brings us back to the mat again and again. Our yoga practice then provides us with many tools to take off the mat, so that we can keep calm and carry on in our daily lives.

Apparently, no one knows who came up with Keep Calm and Carry On...I wonder if he/she did yoga.

Horse History

The horse can take you back to a place where you work with, and trust, your instincts. These days, humans know more and more, but they feel less and less. The horse was here on earth a long time before us. You can tell that he knows, he's much older than us. So the horse is, for me, a philosopher. They are far wiser than humans.

- Bartabas

I just read an article about this man, who is performing here in London with his horses.

I don't ride much in the winter, but I still had a hard time with the idea of not seeing the horses for so long when we left for London. Now, we are exactly halfway through this London gig...I'm looking forward to enjoying the next three months here, but my heart does beat a bit faster when I think of seeing the Cowgirl Yoga herd again, including my sweet Dude Boy.

But, horses have turned up in ways I didn't expect over here. OK, so not the living breathing ones so much, but the historical horse. It's made me ponder the timelessness of the horse-human connection, and what an ancient relationship we engage in when we spend time with horses. This dance has been done many times before. And after making horses such a big part of my life when we moved to Montana, I notice things I didn't before. It's not just another horse statue or painting (yawn); it's a part of the past that I can truly relate to. Just as my relationship with horses has awakened so many emotions, it has heightened my appreciation of horses in history. Husband had to practically drag me away from these bronze horses in Venice. They date back to the second or third century AD, and were installed on San Marco's facade in the late 13th, where they remained until the late 80's when they were restored, put inside, and replaced with bronze replicas. I could understand why 5 year old wanted to sit down in front of George Stubb's 18th century painting Whistlejacket at the London National Gallery, and draw it herself. And this past weekend at the Tower of London, husband once again had to nudge me forward as I imagined the horses of English monarchs, while checking out the Line of Kings: 17th century painted wooden horses that once held their suits-of-armor.

I'm adding this one to the book pile: Horse - How the Horse has Shaped Civilizations.

Yeehaw and Namaste.