Saturday, July 9, 2011

What do I need to do....

People ask me all the time "what do I need to do to take a class at your yoga studio?" (http://www.sanctuarypoweryoga.com/). 

And my response is simple "Just show up".

Sure, it helps if you wear comfortable clothes & bring a yoga mat, towel & water - but that's the easy stuff.

It's the showing up part that's challenging.

You can "show up" for anything...for work, a concert, dinner, a wedding, a recital, a date.  We say it alot "sure, I'll be there - I'll show up for that".

Physically showing up is the first step - that's what most of us are referring to when we say it.  And that piece alone can be pretty challenging, depending on what else you have going on in your life.

When I talk about showing up, I mean really showing up.  That's a huge piece of what this yoga practice is about.  Showing up.  Being present.

You know what it's like...you're talking with someone, there standing right in front of you, looking at you.  But they're not there.  Their mind, energy, attention is with someone or something else.  Physically, they showed up.  But that's as far as they got.  And it doesn't feel so great to be on the receiving end of that.

It happens to all of us.  We live busy lives.  There's alot going on & plenty to think about, plan for, worry about.

Like I said - just physically showing up can be really challenging. Especially for your first yoga class. Especially for your 1001st class.   Especially for dinner.  Especially for work.  Especially for....

But when you physically show up & then practice being present, when you really SHOW UP - it's powerful.  It's a shift.  It's a transformation that happens within us & around us.  It is noticeable.

On your mat, in the studio, is a great place to practice showing up because it's a supportive space that cultivates the art of being present.

But like any piece of this practice, you can practice showing up & being present any time, anywhere.

Like right now.

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