Monday, October 21, 2013

Life Lessons of Yoga


As I finish up my final blog post for my certification I wanted to focus on gratitude. Gratitude for this entire process, for what I have learned not only from the curriculum, but what I have learned from my students, from my mat, and from myself. Yoga has and will continue to teach me more about life than I could have ever initially imagined. I am grateful for the emotional and tedious process this journey has been.

Through the process, I have learned to surrender to the greatest teacher there is: my mat. There is an art to surrendering in yoga. To be willing to listen to your body and what it needs and to be able to step onto your mat and figure that out as you move through poses and postures. Through my own personal practice I have been able to gain confidence in all aspects of life, including teaching yoga.

I have learned to honor and learn from each one of my students. Each individual in my classes brought new energy. Learning to honor each one of them in their own unique way was a challenge at first but something that I have learned to cherish as a teacher. I am grateful for them and their willingness to be part of this journey with me. Learning to be more aware and in tune with others and their needs has helped me on and off the mat.

I have learned to step outside of my comfort zone. I almost felt as if I was being “called” to this role as teacher. It was something that in the long run, I knew I would love doing, but scared to death initially. The feelings that I felt before I taught my first class were that of fear and doubt. Since then, I have found a new profound respect for myself and what I am capable of.

I have learned to embrace and honor the emotions that are released during yoga. I have learned to surrender to these feelings, acknowledge them, and then let the ones that no longer serve me go and move forward. It has most definitely been one of the most healing journeys of my life.

And most importantly, I have learned the valuable life lesson of when to push your self and when to surrender. Yoga, just like life, is all about finding that balance; that balance between the yin and the yang (these seemingly opposite and powerful forces of life). There are times in yoga where you feel the energy to power through difficult poses, to push yourself to your limits. At other times you are impressed to release and yield, relax, and let go. There were times over the last year and a half where I had so much motivation to finish this certification. I was accomplishing so much and was determined to be finished in a matter of months. Then, to my surprise I found out that I was pregnant with my second child. During the pregnancy, and after the pregnancy, I had to learn to step back and focus on other things. I had to surrender to the role of a mother of two babies under the age of two.  Eventually, when it was a more appropriate time in my life, the certification process found its place and I began to push through it again. Through yoga, I have found balance in all aspects of my life, on and off the mat and have learned to honor the life energy within myself.


Thank you all for following me on my journey.



Namaste

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