Tuesday, July 29, 2008

it's all...yoga


Growing up somewhat rural & somewhat isolated, gave me both a huge appreciation for wide open space... and an ancillary hunger for connection, which led me to study ecology, which led to cycling, which led to writing & publishing, both leading me to yoga, which led me to music, which led to studying Buddhism and now has found me working in online media. Sometimes, I have a hard time linking up these seemingly disparate chapters and interests; however, they are all, when everything is said and done, about connection.
If the first part of my life was about rural living; the latest chapter has been about learning to embrace urbanism. I don't race bikes anymore but I still own my 10+ year old race bike. Likewise, my yoga practice of late has morphed into a complement rather than a compass for my days. But I've been channeling both my old bike racer and my somewhat lapsed Ashtangi by riding with the rag-tag packs of urban cyclists to work in the morning. Drafting, staving off buses and creating loose commuter groups with other cyclists riding down Market St. is yoga I realized this morning. Just like playing music is yoga when it's going well, or working is yoga, when everyone is focused and grooving on a project. Yes, I know, the simplest things are the hardest to really get.
I am miles away from the little kid who sat at the edge of the driveway with my brother, waiting for the periodic logging truck to pass so we could pantomime pulling on a horn to make the driver honk at us and give us our link to the world beyond our road. But I still live for those moments — musical, professional, athletic or otherwise — when I see separation for what it is: a myth.

2 comments:

Karen said...

Some great insights here. Congrats!

Sally said...

I agree with T.B.