REMEMBERING NOT TO FALL

 Are you like me?  Do you get to the airport and see that escalator to ticketing and check-in,  thinking, "Well, I should probably take the elevator.  I've got two rolling suitcases and a heavy backpack and I'm a little off balance with my load, but where the heck is that elevator anyway?  I'm sure I'll be fine on the escalator…" Then comes that tense no-turning-back moment when indeed, you have two rolling suitcases suddenly deciding to roll in different directions!  But you've committed to this, so forward is the only option.  I've usually been successful.

But last year on our annual trip to Hawaii I met my match with an escalator that was out to get me.  We stay at a place that has an unusually long escalator to the lobby below street level. On the day we checked out to come home, we had all our bags corralled for the shuttle to the airport and headed for the escalator.  At the bottom, looking up, I hesitated, knowing this would be a challenge.  But my husband was already about half-way up and the people behind me were hot on my heels, so readied to step aboard.  I decided to push my suitcase on first and I followed.  Just as I did, my overloaded and unbalanced backpack slipped from my shoulders knocking into my suitcase which did a little 180 spin and tumbled down a step into my legs, which buckled ever so slightly as my suitcase began to tumble toward my feet.  In a flash I saw all of this happening and somehow kept my balance, made a little leap over the suitcase onto the next moving stair, grabbed the suitcase handle, righted the bag and proceeded up the escalator, unscathed.

I have no rational explanation for this.  I am not overly graceful, agile, or athletic.  In fact, in the midst of it all I was absolutely convinced serious injury awaited me at the bottom of the moving stairway where I was sure to end up in heap of limbs askew and baggage atop me, strangers rushing to my aid. There might even be blood.  But that didn't happen.  When I realized I was upright, and still in possession of my suitcase and backpack, and headed up the escalator, it felt like I'd just had some sort of out-of-body experience.  Only the shocked looked on my husband's face confirmed I'd nearly wiped out big time.  (He heard the commotion and turned to see the spectacle.)

I decided to immediately attribute my aversion of disaster to yoga.  I am convinced some muscle memory of balance and strength, maybe even an asana akin to tumbling down a stairway?, saved the day.  Can it be that the poses we assume with concentrated attention eventually become so ingrained that they are transferrable to everyday circumstances and come to our rescue without thought?

Yes!  "When you move, you activate sensors (called proprioceptors) in  your muscles, tendons, and joints that constantly give feedback to your central venous system about where your body is in space, so it knows what muscles to fire next, " says Adam Knight, Ph.D., an assistant professor of biomechanics at Mississippi State University.  It's a continuous feedback loop from your brain to your muscles and back.  "Your brain creates pathways through your central nervous system, and movements become automatic," adds Wayne Westcott, Ph.D., fitness research director at Quincy College in Massachusetts.  ("The Secret to Being Fit for Life: Muscle Memory", Women's Health, November 9, 2010).

This must be it!  My body has learned to right itself when off balance and which muscles to fire when strength is needed.  How else to explain the unexplainable outcome of a klutz who didn't wipe out when she most certainly could have!?!  I won't be regularly challenging my body to save me every time I make a questionable decision, but I am happy to know I've got this "yoga bonus" as back-up when I need it. ©

Namaste...donnajurene

UNCONDITIONAL FRIENDLINESS

Happy Thanksgiving!  Tomorrow is the "official" day of giving thanks…the day we slow down and get intentional about counting our blessings.  At my house this year I'm reviving an old tradition from when my now grown sons were children -- I cut out construction paper shapes of autumn maple leaves and attach a string to them.  Each person will take as many leaves as they want and write a word or phrase of something they are thankful for and then we will hang them from the bare branches of this little "Thanksgiving Tree".  I hope my 5 year old granddaughter will enjoy this tradition as much as her daddy and her uncle did at her age.

But really, everyday is a day of thankfulness, isn't it?  And a day for remembering those we love and maybe even appreciating those we don't know so well, but who come into our lives in various ways.

This Thanksgiving Day I plan to make my morning meditation one of Loving-Kindness.  Do you know about the practice of Loving-Kindness Meditation?  This practice is a common one in many traditions.  Joel & Michelle Levey describe it in their book, Luminous Mind.  In Sanskrit "lovingkindness" is called maitri -- "unconditional friendliness".  Isn't that great?!?

Here's how it goes:  Get into a meditative state of mind and body.  You know, sit quietly and comfortably with a straight spine, close your eyes, breathe deeply and regularly.  When you are ready you can begin the Loving-Kindness meditation words directed at yourself (I say these silently, but hey, out loud works too.)  Take your time…don't rush.  Really focus on the words and the meaning and your heartfelt desire to send (and receive) this blessing.

May I be happy and peaceful.
May I be free from fear and pain.
May I live with love and compassion.
May I fully awaken and be free.

Isn't that a lovely little blessing to yourself?

Now change it up a bit to direct it to those you love, those who really make your heart happy, usually family and close friends.  Hold images or thoughts of these people in your mind as you repeat and direct your Loving-Kindness to them:

May you be happy and peaceful.
May you be free from fear and pain.
May you live with love and compassion.
May you fully awaken and be free.

Doesn't that just feel great?  You are sending a blessing to those you cherish!

Next let your mind find a group of people or acquaintances about whom you feel neutral; they are out there, but you don't really know them -- the clerk at the grocery store, a neighbor you recognize but don't really know, maybe a co-worker you know but feel neutral about.   Let your heart find a feeling of kindness toward these people as you repeat the words of Loving-Kindness.

May you be happy and peaceful.
May you be free from fear and pain.
May you live with love and compassion.
May you fully awaken and be free.

Now the tricky one.  Let your mind turn towards someone you really don't like.  Someone who has caused you pain or resentment.  Someone you hope not to have to see or interact with again.  Can you find it in your heart to offer them this Loving-Kindness meditation?  Can you see that their healing can be a blessing to all in their sphere of influence -- even you?

Try it.  Let your mind focus on someone you really have problems with.  Let your heart open, even just a bit, to their humanity as you repeat:

May you be happy and peaceful.
May you be free from fear and pain.
May you live with love and compassion.
May you fully awaken and be free.

That one takes some practice -- maybe "fake it 'til you make it" -- but eventually you will find your own peace in this blessing.

I have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.  I will take a handful of construction paper leaves from the pile tomorrow and write out my gratitudes.  At least one will say: Yoga.  At least one will say: Yoga Circle Studio.  At least one will say: YOU, offered with Loving-Kindness. ©

Namaste...donnajurene

THROWING ME A CURVE

"Scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine that occurs most often during the growth spurt just before puberty."  (Mayo Clinic website)

Yep, that's about right.  That's about when I vaguely recall standing in a doctor's office with my mom staring at x-rays hanging in front of the lightbox, the doctor explaining to my mother why my right hip was so much more pronounced than my left.  He didn't explain to me why my body was this way, or what could be done about it.  I just remember feeling like there was something weird and wrong with me -- pretty much how adolescents feel about everything, I suppose.  I do recall being a little frightened by this structural anomaly.

I am lucky.  My scoliosis did not worsen and it has not caused me chronic pain or obvious deformity.  My guess is most people can't tell by looking at me.  And I've learned to live with it and compensate for it.  My mother was a crackerjack seamstress and she would sew most of the skirts and pants to add the extra inch or two on the right side to make the hem hang evenly.   When buying clothes I choose those that aren't too obviously "crooked" on my body.  I notice that when I think I'm standing up (or even sitting up) perfectly straight, a glance in the mirror tells me that what feels "straight" to me is actually a tilt to the left, my right shoulder raised and right hip jutting out a bit.  I straighten my stance and feel like I'm tipping over.

Since practicing Yoga I notice my scoliosis every time I step on the mat.  I practice in Staff Pose and Mountain Pose what it feels like to really stand up straight -- to lower that right shoulder and level both hips.  I notice that the left side of my body is so much more flexible than my right -- I can bend and twist with a far greater range of motion on the left.  Even balance poses are different from one side to there other.  I will admit this frustrates me at times -- a person who loves symmetry.

Maybe this awareness causes me to be ever-conscious of wanting to be in proper alignment.   I can't see my own body when in asana, so I'm not sure, relying on our teachers at Yoga Circle to help me with alignment.  For me, it's not just wanting to get the pose "right" (I can let go of that kind of perfectionism), but wanting my body to learn what it feels like to be "straight", to know my skeleton is doing all it can to support me to the best of its ability, given that crazy curve I've lived with since I was twelve years old, wondering what this thing called "scoliosis" would mean for me.

It has meant, all these many, many, many years later that my body has humbled me, but not really betrayed me after all.   Practicing Yoga has allowed me to be aware of my imperfection in a way that brings acceptance (grudgingly at times) to the asymmetrical aspects of my practice.  There will always be poses that challenge me because of this condition; differences that show up on the mat from one side of my body to the other.

As always, Yoga is there to teach that no matter what we live with, we can use calm focused attention and slight, effective adjustments to bring awareness to our reality.  Instead of being angry and sad and deciding "I can't", most days I try to practice saying to my curvy spine, "Hello, old friend….let's just do the best we can today, OK?"  And I remember to be grateful for the gift of awareness, strength, and healing that is Yoga. ©

Namaste...donnajurene

Photo Credit: http://clipart-library.com/clipart/202843.htm

RANDOM POINTS TO PONDER….Breathe, Listen, Clean, Get a Groovy Name

My brain is flitting about like the hummer at the window feeder this morning.   Random thoughts:

1.  When our teacher, Karen, says "hold for three more breaths" or "hold for six more breaths", does it also seem to you that the harder the asana pose the longer those three or six breaths seem to last?   Or is my counting off?  (I guess a panting breath in plank is faster than a slow deep breath in Hero's Pose, but still…. all together now… one, two, three!)

2.  This one confused me, but I took it in stride since I'm married to a health care provider and strange body topics are sort of normal at my house:  Folded into Child's Pose I heard Karen say, "Listen to your bowel sounds."  Well, OK, weird, but I'll listen since my ears are now very close to that area of my body.  Then she went on to say, "ooohhh, aaaahhhh, eeeee" and I got it!  VOWEL sounds!  HAHAHA!

3.  I've been on a clutter-busting and organizing binge at my house.  It feels good but I have trouble motivating myself to keep up with regular cleaning.   Yet, when I think of it in terms of one of the Eight Limbs of Yoga, housework becomes a part of my Yoga practice and I feel all spiritual about it!  Yay! Rolf Gates discusses the Niyamas in his Meditations from the Mat book explaining the Niyama Sauca, which speaks to the experience of purity and cleansing.  This is both an internal and external practice.  Just as we let go of thoughts and practices that no longer serve our well-being, we must also ensure that we create and maintain a healthy physical environment that is conducive to peace and growth as well.  Look around; how are your surroundings affecting you?   For me clutter is visual noise -- distracting, overwhelming, oppressive.  I'm trying to attend to my Niyama practice in this area.   Anything to get the vacuuming done so my floor isn't so crunchy.

4.  I'm sometimes jealous of people with cool spiritual names.  How do they come by those, I wonder? I see these northern European descent, rather pedestrian-looking folks who have really Enlightened- sounding names.  Does Penelope just decide one day to be "Devi" or does John become "Anastu" with a snap of the fingers?  I assumed these cool names are bestowed by a guru, so then I became sort of jealous of people who had actual Indian gurus.  Where could I get one of those who would then give me a cool name?  Donna is so….1950's; so…..Midwest; so…..not exotic.  

One problem is my skepticism about gurus.  I think there are wise people around, but often the trick is how to tell the difference between the real deal and a pretender who has been elevated in status by our  longing for a saint to deliver us from our own confusion.

One guy I have met and hung out with a bit is Jai Uttal, well-known Kirtan artist.  His name, Jai, was actually given to him by a real, genuine guru, Neem Karoli Baba at his ashram in Vrindravan, India back in the late '60's.  This is the ashram and the guru who also found devotees in Ram Das (of Be Here Now fame) and Krishna Das, probably the best known Kirtan artist in the world.

So, I asked Jai how to get a groovy name like all the cool kids have.  He just laughed and said, "I'll give you one…Donna Nirvana!"  We both laughed; so silly!  But, actually, I secretly like it and secretly believe this little confection of a spiritual name may have just as much relevance and import as some others I've heard.  So there! ©

Namaste....donna-nirvana-jurene

Photo credit: louliabolchakova@123RF