My Body Is A Playground For Rinpoche

My little angel has finally joined us in our new home and, at first, I was very heart-broken because I was worried he would never adjust. He was so skittish, never wanted to come out from under the bed, and barely presented the opportunity to hold him. But now he's getting out more (even though we have to lock in out of the bedroom to make sure that he puts an attempt at being social) and is even getting involved with my morning yoga!
Upon peeking around the corner, out to the living room where I was doing my morning practice, sweet Rinpoche raced to me to rub his fuzzy wittle self on my face while in down-dog (a-choo). Apparently, my body is a playground for him and my practice is all the better for it. Instead of stepping up to forward fold from my down-dog, I decided to do another vinyasa with consideration to the little bundle of love laying on my mat just below my stomach. Excellent form. My limbs were strong and unshaken, knowing that I would squish the poor thing if I was at all lazy. With no care for my perfectly safe movements above him, Rinpoche moved off the mat in search for another way to be adorably distracting.
Oh, little Rinpoche. <3

Energy

The energy we use, the energy we create, the energy we release during practice is not for ourselves.
We use, create, and let go of things for others-- to be compassionate.
We welcome positive energy within us when we're on the mat
and release the negative, breathing in the balance that permits harmony.
The harmony of inhale and exhale that makes life not only possible, but magical.

Drop the Bags

From YogaLouStudios' Pinterest

My yoga practice has been doing well. It's the first thing I do when I wake up-- second, actually, to feeding Mr. Turtle and watering my plants. I've started attending a yoga class again and I'm happy to say I found another wonderful instructor. Kristen's class at the USF Rec Center is mostly driven by the requests of students but the compilation works almost seamlessly. If you know me personally, you probably know that the physical aspect of yoga isn't enough. For me, it goes into one's self and helps you breathe in the life around you.
Each yoga instructor has their own philosophy about what yoga does for the body and mind and it becomes more clear each time you attend their class. You can tell by the words they choose and the sorts of encouragement they provide. Kristen's phrase is one that really solidified my liking for her style; whenever we exhale, she says "Let anything go that does not serve you."  She tells us to be in the moment and enjoy it knowing that there is no where else but on our mat that we need to be. Letting go is difficult for many people, but when numerous things pile up that provide nothing but negative feelings, I'm the first to drop it and breathe. Why hold onto something if it causes you nothing but stress? In the practice, you have to let go of all that baggage because it shows through the practice; it holds you back. It may not hold you back physically, you could very well be doing strong hand stands, but you will feel shaky inside if you are thinking about financial troubles on your mat.
I've found it improves my own practice to just let it all go, if only for a little while. That's one thing about baggage-- it's always waiting right where you left it.