A slow unravelling of the year that was 2020 is unfolding from our minds and bodies, a process that is surely required considering the immense challenge and constant uncertainty we have had to learn to endureā¦
The long, tough road out of Melbourne Lockdown 2.0 that seemed never-ending is now moving farther into the past as we take these small but significant steps forward, making it more palatable and possible to process what we have been through, individually and as a collective.
What have been your greatest learnings this year? What were the beacons of light that you can now see were a gift in disguise?
I have pondered over a few important learnings I noticed in my journey through the process of emerging out of lockdown and wanted to share them with youā¦
1. Gratitude ā the power not to sweat the small stuff.
I think itās safe to say weāve all felt it this year in one way or another: a newfound gratitude for the once taken for granted: breath of fresh air, hugging a friend, visiting family, driving on the open road, and smiling to a stranger. Along this crazy ride of a year, we have been forced to become used to that which was āunprecedentedā, but on the flip side many of us have also been feeling more and more into what we are most grateful for...
Gratitude is the energy that shifts us away from thinking about what we donāt have, and towards appreciation for what we do have. This year if nothing else has provided space and opportunity for many of us to make the shift towards a gratitude mindset, and placing less importance on what we might feel is āmissingā from our lives.
The great Yogi Bhajan said: āAn attitude of gratitude is the highest Yoga.ā
Letās hope that this one stays with us as a new way of being, to no longer sweat the small stuff, and instead relish in the everyday gifts that we wonāt again take for grantedā¦
2. Time is precious ā it is our most valuable āassetāā¦
Being forced to stay at home had the unlikely effect of gifting most of us more time. What we chose (or perhaps had little choice) to do with that time, has perhaps given us some deeper insight into how we might choose to spend our time most wisely and carefully as we emerge out of restrictions and back into life out in the world again.
Have you become more aware about how you spend your time?
Maybe you had the luxury of gaining time due to the removal of commuting to and from work, school, activities and hobbies, as well as the lack of opportunities for social occasions and going out? Perhaps instead you were home-schooling kids, or care-giving smaller children, whilst trying to work from home and keep on top of even more housework and thus were starting earlier and finishing laterā¦Either way you look at it, time was gained in some way, filled in others, and upon reflection, likely some realisations were made in regards to how you would hope to spend your most precious and limited assetā¦
Despite the obvious challenges of working from home, 24/7 care-giving to my bundle-of-joy 3-y-o, and spending 23hrs per day inside, as family we were so grateful for more time to spend together in these precious times. This lead to re-evaluating our priorities, work-life balance, and gave insight into what our most mandatory daily activities were: yoga/meditation/exercise, time together as a family + time in outdoors in nature ā all now are non-negotiable!
Our opportunity now as we re-emerge is to remember that we donāt have to fall back into our old habits, that those findings you made are precious, and that balance is always the key. Weāre cherishing our family time together more now, remembering our priorities in the context of the bigger picture, and making sure we also all take care of ourselves on the daily.
3. Working from home isnāt for everyone ;)
In seeming contrast to point 2 above, my finding as my boys started to head back into their lives (daycare, school + essential work) whilst I was still forced to āwork from homeā, was that I found myself lacking motivation, craving connections, and just barely making it through those final weeks.
Hindsight also helps, as I didnāt actually realise the extent of it, until news came in that we could reopen the studio and I burst into tears in the street from sheer relief (and so much gratitude)! šš½
We are resilient creatures, with a huge capacity for adaptability and change, but often we are so good at it that we donāt realise what we have adapted to, and whether in fact it is something we would choose, if another option was made availableā¦
The energy of the space we are in seeps into everything that we do, and vice-versa. As such, when we blend our worlds of work, home, family + our wellbeing routines all into the one space, no doubt it is difficult to remain focussed.
We find ourselves thinking of work when we are trying to practice our at-home Yoga class, getting distracted by our house-hold tasks whilst trying to sit through a work meeting, and sending emails well into the night instead of switching off as we usually do better when we leave the office for the day. Boundaries are very challenging to create when there arenāt any physical or locational boundaries to help us do so.
There will certainly be those who have loved the freedom of WFH and others who are desperate to get back in connection with their workplace, and perhaps most who would like a balance of the two. The question to ask ourselves is are we choosing what is best for us right now, or have we fallen into a habit/pattern/rut due to the lack of contrast?
Our Yoga practice helps us to realise where we are stuck, brings us into presence with what is right in front of us, and allows us to flip our perspective when that might be useful too. When we are more connected with our inner world, we see better and more clearly the world in which we live, and as such begin to make decisions and choices that serve the highest good.
4. We need each other, not stuff.
Did anyone else experience an increase in online browsing (+ perhaps actual shopping!) during lockdown? A happy distraction, that helps to take us into a fantasy land of colours and delight that is far away from the reality of our day to day existence, right?
But this cycle lacks completeness. As we add more āstuffā into our lives, items we think will make us happy, they can in fact create an even deeper cavity in our hearts. We eventually come to the realisation that what we are craving cannot be filled my material goods, as it is the craving of connection, to ourselves and with each other that is really what we are seeking.
Yoga says that this is one and the same ā connection with Self is connection with others, as we are all āOneā. And hasnāt this year of social distancing, isolation, quarantining and separation allowed us the opportunity to become fully aware of how important the relationships that we have in our lives truly are?
The stuff that we buy to make us feel happy is fleeting: fashions change, technology advances, shiny things will dim over time, but the connections we have with each other and with ourselves, with nurturing and love poured into them will only become richer, more valuable and more nourishing with time.
Who did you find yourself missing spending time with this year? Did you try to fill the void with something tangible or material? Itās not a time to judge, but merely to reflect, that is the practice working itās magic āØ
5. Yoga at Home ā Despite appearances, it is not an individual pursuitā¦
My final learning as I came back into teaching and practicing with the community at Yoga Corner in the studio, was that although the practice of Yoga might seem like it is an individual practice, an individual path, it too lacks potency without being in the context of community and each other.
A very wise and valued member of our community stopped me after a class in our second week back at the studio and shared with me his own finding: āMy practice at home had become āselfishā, without even realising that had happened.ā
Coming back into the studio and practicing in community with others had reminded Robert of the incredible gift of the energy of community, and how our practice shifts into being not only about ourselves and our own progress on the spiritual path, but that being in the presence of Satsang (like-minded community), our practice transcends anything it could have been in isolation, as we realise we are all one, and we are all in this together.
I have cherished the gift of being able to teach classes, workshops and Teacher Training online over the total almost 8 months of the studio being closed this year, and am so very grateful for the opportunity to have been able to stay connected with our community (as well as reaching farther and wider than ever before!). I too practice at home myself a lot and have done for many years, and the gift that going online has afforded us and our community is immeasurable and will become a valuable asset into the future - so thank goodness for technologyā¦!
The point I have come to understand however, is that we need each other. We all have an impact on each other, no matter how close or far apart we are, there is no denying that connecting is not an option, but a firm requirement of this human life. We are hard-wired to seek connection, and with it we are much stronger.
And so, the next time you practice in person in the studio, notice how you feel, notice the energy in the room, notice how the opportunity to be in proximity with others as you move through your practice makes you feel, and let me know if you can bottle that and create the same thing on your own at homeā¦ ;)
Having a home practice is amazing and another gift of these times, there is such a great and important place for that in our lives, and for those of you who gave it a try, please keep it up, it will progress your practice in leaps and bounds (the discipline it takes is enormous!). But whether it is for yoga, work, or socialising, also make sure that you make some room for nourishing the human connections in your life now that we can again. If this year has taught us anything it is that we are all most certainly in this together.
Although we continuously strive to convince ourselves that we can do anything on our own, when it comes down to it, the realisation is that the only thing we really have in this life, is our connection with each other.
Happy practicing ā¤ļø xx
Director + Founder - Yoga Corner Melbourne
