Today marks the 8th week from my last day of work and the beginning of staying at home. It is interesting to see how the time has just flown by and how my daily routine has changed since it all started.
Initially there was a lot of anxiety about not working but also relief from the fear of who I might come into contact with at work. I am still a little anxious when we go out to do the weekly errands that need to be done, but much less fearful due to the fact that we have a routine in terms of sanitizing our hands, clothes, shoes and packages.
I am enjoying the daily routines: morning time and things to do around the house, afternoon lunch with Dan, breaking off during the day for schoolwork or house chores and meditation, chanting or yoga. Later in the evening, happy hour and some Scrabble outside (now that the weather is nice), dinner and a little television time. There is a flow and rhythm to the days that is predictable, not stressful and really lovely.
I understand that this will not be a permanent condition and yet I don’t know when it will end. I am being with the present moment and just fully enjoying it. My emotional and mental states have some ups and downs depending on whether I watch the news or if I think about the past or the future. There certainly is uncertainty about returning to work, how long till that happens, will unemployment insurance continue for long enough to help us through this pandemic, but I try not to focus on those things because they aren’t now and I have no control over any of those things. My meditation and spiritual practices help me to stay centered and grounded and focus on the here and now, which is all there is.
Last weekend I took an online gentle chair yoga weekend class through Yogaville Ashram in Virginia, which was really fantastic. It reminded me as all of my yoga practices do about the importance of relaxation for healing the body and how connected the breath and movement are in getting prana (vital life force) to move through us.
Many people have the misconception that they can’t do yoga which isn’t true. There are practices for everyone, young or old, weak or strong, flexible or tight, sedentary or active. Finding a practice that fits you and your current situation is so easy, especially now that there are classes online from anywhere! This class was so great because it was designed to be gentle, which means that pretty much anyone can do it, even my 84 year old mother who is totally sedentary. It was great because the teacher made the asanas so accessible, easily done in 5 minutes just to give the body a break from all the passive sitting that many of us are doing right now.
She led us, after the asanas, in a number of very easily accessible guided relaxations and meditations that connect one with the breath and the body. From the perspective of simplicity, it couldn’t have been easier, and also, I found it very effective in getting my prana moving and allowing my body to enter a state of self healing, which is the place we are trying to get to when doing yoga practice. In my humble opinion, while the asanas (active yoga postures) are important and each have specific benefits, the place we are trying to access is the place of No Mind, where the mind is still and the Wisdom of the Body/ Mind/ Soul can do its job to heal the body. Prana knows what we need, it is our job to move the body, let the prana get released during the process, and just relax in savasana and let the magic happen.
So my days continue to be filled with: either learning how to be a better teacher and healer or as a practitioner of these healing arts. I have been trying to understand the bigger picture of what we are going through globally, as a nation and individually, which are many layers to consider.
It feels funny to write this and say this but it needs to come out. I feel like my role right now is to help to bring light and higher vibration to the planet at a time when so many people are suffering, dying and struggling. I have been using all the resources I have studied over the past 25 or so years to help to create peace in myself and to bring peace to the world. I have been participating in intentional communities that bring peaceful vibrations through global group chanting to uplift the planet. To be part of the solution is better than being part of the problem, and that has been my choice on how I am spending my time lately. Some days are better than others and occasionally I fly off the handle and let my “crazy mind” take over. It doesn’t take long for me to realize what is going on and know that I need to do my practice. I feel like having a regular daily spiritual practice is like anything else that needs to be done daily; when it hasn’t been completed, you just don’t feel right and things just feel off. The body and mind need rest from the work of life, even when the work doesn’t feel hard or stressful. They just need to go to timeout, to take a break and the reward is amazing. The way one feels afterwards is totally worth every minute of the discipline of the practice.
So the lesson for the day is:
Make time each day to stretch, breathe and relax consciously. It doesn’t have to take a long time, it should be enjoyable and feel good. You and your body are worth it and you will feel better for having taken a break. Once you start doing this daily, you won’t want to stop.