This is a Guest Muse by Gina LaCerba.
It feels like a lifetime ago that I was first introduced to yoga. At that point in my life I took the classes (with Brooks) and really enjoyed them, but I didn't really take much away from it spiritually. I did however love the fact that I had found something physically challenging that I was actually good at. (At least that's what I told myself.) You see, growing up, I was more of a spectator than an athlete. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed sports, I was just really uncoordinated. So. . . I loved that yoga was something that I could do and could modify for my body. I also loved that yoga helped me with some back pain that I often experienced.
It wasn't until recently that I began reaping the spiritual and emotional benefits of yoga. I had fallen off the yoga bandwagon. I quit my job and was looking for my life's passion, so yoga was not high on my priority list. Then I reconnected with Brooks and my yoga craving started to creep back. It took me a while to decide to go to one of her classes at Yogaview-Division, but I am so glad that I did. My life this past year has been incredibly trying. I many times wondered why these horrible things kept happening. While yoga by no means put an end to the craziness in my life, it certainly provided me with the opportunity to deal with it all on a spiritual level. My yoga time is my "me time." For those few hours - starting when I step on to that "el" platform to make my way to class to the time I step back off the "el" platform after class and resume the reality that is my life - I am focused on me. During my yoga practice I was able to discover many things about myself. I have discovered strength in me that I didn't realize existed. I have found that I am more peaceful about my life's circumstances when I finish. I know now that I cannot change my circumstances, but I am able to think about things more clearly and will persevere no matter what life throws at me.
"For those wounded by civilization, yoga is the most healing salve."
-T. Guillemets
Gina's blog:
http://glacerba.blogspot.com/
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
3 comments:
Nice to meet another friend of Brooks'. I also got into yoga for a little while, found physical benefits but didn't get the rest, then quit for a longer while before getting back into it far more seriously, and gaining a deeper (and deeper...and deeper...) understanding. I think maybe for people who were unathletic growing up (though I'd gotten into biking and hiking as an adult, I'd never done any stretching, or much at all involving the upper body) the physical aspect is so challenging at first that it's really difficult to get beyond that...
yeah for chicago yoga!
Gina it's always wonderful to hear about someone's yoga journey and how it is a healthy anchor in their life. Yoga has given me stability and harmony for many years, in so many different ways.
gentle steps on your journey,
Laura
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