Wednesday, January 21, 2015

The Shift - Reflections on #7 on the 40/40 list

About three weeks before my 40/40 list was scheduled to start, I was talking to one of my beloved yoga teachers, Sarah, about #7 on the list: Four Sun Salutations a Day. She was very encouraging when I expressed some reluctance about four a day for 365 days. My hesitation came from the fact that until that appointed time, I had not been doing ANY regular yoga at home.

She talked to me about how four was a really good, doable number with which to start. And she talked about The Shift. Sarah told me that there would come a point when a shift happened and things would just fall into place. I could feel the excitement of such a nebulous wonderful future event. I really wanted some things to fall into place in various areas of my life.

I have been doing four sun salutations for 18 days. During yesterday morning's practice as Cadence whined about being tired and not wanting to do them (even though she continued) I kept breathing and moving during her fuss. Depending on when we wake up, some mornings' practices are a bit rushed, but yesterday I didn't want to stop at four. If time had allowed I could feel my body, heart, and mind craving more.

Over the weekend with our schedule disrupted, we did our salutations in the evening twice. And there was something delicious about stretching and reaching right before bed. When we returned home to our regular routine, I considered switching our salutations to the evening. I heard myself say, “But I'd miss it in the morning then.”

Last night after the rest of the household was settled in for the night, I went back to my mat and did three more sun salutations. My legs felt sore, but they were straighter than they've been lately. My chatarangas are strong (I couldn't have imagined that possibility two years ago), and my breathing was calming.

I love how quickly this daily practice has become something that I not only look forward to but actually crave. I love that my mat will be my constant companion wherever I go in all of 2015. Chances are good that this practice will evolve into a life-long one.

I couldn't imagine when Sarah talked about The Shift what that would look and feel like for me, but in just three weeks time, I know it's taking effect.

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