​ Dear Friend of Yoga,
 
On a normal night of a normal day, I mentally check my calendar, and then physically recheck it, as I begin my mental, physical, and spiritual preparation for the next day. But this is not a normal time, so when I habitually move to check and recheck my calendar, I am quickly reminded of the cessation of my need to check the calendar right now. There is nothing there tomorrow that I have to do, and it appears as though there won’t be anything there for the next series of indefinite days. With this realization, I find my breath almost being sucked out of me by the thought that I not only don’t have anything to do tomorrow, but I can’t have anything to do tomorrow because I have been told to “stay at home!” 
 
I suspect that most people who have been tethered to a work-schedule or a retirement-routine are, like me, more than a bit thrown off by this “forced seclusion.” Ironically, most of us have also long-desired an extra day in our week, or savor that one extra hour each “fall-back” time change we get in late autumn; but this “blessing” of extra time just seems overwhelming! (Of course, the loss of income is no small concern either!) When it first fell upon us, I truly viewed it as an amazing opportunity: the Great Mystery/the Divine/God/the Universe (yes, whom or whatever!) was offering human beings an opportunity to step away from the mean-spirited, self-centered, market-focused mentality that has rippled across the globe, and to rediscover the kindness, the compassion, and the connectivity that could unite us all. While countries, especially our own, were adopting a more isolationist approach, a virus comes along that says, “Oh, so you want ‘isolation’? Try this on for size!” And in this time, yes, are we not seeing (okay, alongside some hoarding hysteria) new “heroes” and servants of kindness stepping up from all walks of life? But underneath the generosity and sacrifice of volunteerism, there is the more challenging opportunity “to face one’s self,” and one’s very existence. 
   
There are so many neglected projects about my home that I could likely spend a whole year busying myself over things that I have long said that I want to do but never have the time for. So here it is – that time – but to just “busy myself” seems to squander an important part of this “blessing” we have unwantingly received. Yes, there is extraordinary goodness in stepping up and being of service to the needs of others, but as this virus has moved us toward isolation, perhaps we should also better realize the opportunity for self-care, at the deepest and most important spiritual level. And here is where so many of us trip and fall into the oblivion of this indefinite period of quietude.
 
Our present reality reminds me of the throes of starting a practice of meditation. At its deepest level, meditation is the slowing down of thoughts, the emptying of the mind that allows the soft voice of the Self (yep, our connection within to that Great Mystery) to be heard. But such cessation of mental activity, much like the forced cessation of physical activity that we know right now, takes time, and lots of discipline! So, one can begin with “mindfulness” where, instead of emptying the mind, one simply, calmly, and even graciously acknowledges and accepts the feelings, thoughts, and sensations that course through the mind and body incessantly. In this state of mindfulness, however, one might also reach a plateau of awareness from which the observation of these feelings, thoughts, and sensations, leads one to the realization that all of this “busyness” is not as important as one once thought it to be; and so begins the more difficult challenge of letting go of the busyness, setting it aside so that we “hear, feel, and experience” what is truly important.
 
In a way, perhaps, your practice of yoga has given you the start-up tools for this deeper settling in that has fallen upon us. The practice of yoga invites you, automatically, to take that step of “letting go of the busyness” and to just be present to the movement and the sensations of your practice. But that is the “mindfulness” of our period of isolation. After your practice of yoga, beginning even with your period of Savasana, try to just be still and empty enough – no judgments, no “looking for” – so that as the noise of busyness peels away, perhaps that soft voice, like a subtle incense, will waft up from within, offering you the rhythm of a melody from which you can live more truly.  You and I have probably spent the better part of our lives filling our calendars with doing; right now, we have an opportunity to return to our Self, to close the planner and sit still, and to be a human, being.
 
Namaste-
Kevin
 

My St. Patrick’s Day celebration yesterday registered a pretty quiet blip.  Although I had been raised with an awareness of my Irish heritage, and later received the genealogical findings of my ancestors, I never felt any strong cultural and familial affinity until I was almost thirty years old. I can almost envision the exact moment that it hit me; I was sitting on the curb with my two oldest children, who were then but a wee lad and lassie, watching the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Columbus, Ohio. It’s not much of a parade as far as fanfare goes, but I recall thinking how cool it was that on this day, every year, people of Irish descent, and so many others celebrating the culture and spirit of Ireland, could and would shut down central streets in major cities, just to join together and to celebrate “who they are.” I have never just “watched” a St. Patrick’s Day parade ever since.   

“Being Irish” is certainly not “who I am,” and while I do not feel that it, or any legacy ought to give anyone some sense of superiority, knowing some things about my heritage is both intriguing and comforting. I am always fascinated when imagining the struggles and decisions that my ancestors must have made; and the simple, but fundamental, awareness of my “belonging” provides me quiet support. As I have come to a deeper appreciation of the genetic influences of my Irish heritage, I have also experienced, more importantly, the significance of my physical and metaphysical grounding. 

We want and need balance in our lives - in all of its aspects – and good balance needs good grounding. The grounding, of course, doesn’t have to start with one’s heritage, but it is a deep and rich place to begin if it is accessible. But grounding can be, and hopefully is experienced by all in a variety of large and small communities, as well as in the more private encounters with our deepest Self. Of course, yoga helps to foster all of these. Standing on my mat in Tadasana, Mountain pose, lifting my toes up to draw more deeply into the earth of my mat with the balls of my feet and my heels, I can discover a physical manifestation of “being grounded.” This is where and how I stand. But, where do I stand? And for what?  And why?
The ensuing movements and poses of my practice, the challenges and the successes, the fire and the flaw – all of these can sometimes draw me toward the answers to those important questions. 

Knowing something about your roots can provide you self-understanding and self-compassion; and knowing where and how and why you “stand” can be the grounding of your stability and courage. Keep standing in your practice of yoga, and notice how it will move you toward firmer ground. 

For those of you of (any!) Irish descent, a belated happy St. Patrick’s Day to you! And for all of us, may our individual practice of yoga support us with the grounding of stability, and may we as a community of yogis support one another by being the stable grounding that each of us likely needs in such a challenging time.
Namaste.



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Unknowingly, but not actually surprisingly, I held my last yoga class at LA Fitness for an indefinite period of time last Sunday. Before class began, there was some discussion about the “what ifs” and the “where will we” when the next hammer from this unprecedented experience of the Coronavirus comes down upon us all. I talked then - just two days ago! – with hope about, perhaps, finding some space for those who need and want to continue their yoga practice together. Today, that tone of hope is considerably less confident. Yea, I have probably done a rebellious thing or two in my lifetime, but right now, with all due respects to the “situation at hand,” I find myself bowing to the mandates of “those in charge.”

As I have often said before or during a class, what we do, in this case, yoga, can be done on your own; it is not like some game or competition that needs a team, and certainly not an audience! But what is gained in “sharing a practice with another or others” is not unsubstantial. While it is not unique to yoga alone, there is a rare confluence of energy that emerges from a shared yoga practice. One’s effort in a practice is always personal, but when that practice is shared with or alongside others, that effort creates and becomes part of a larger stream of energy upon which each individual can glide, ride, or surf. Imagine the flow of a strong, energetic river that is fed by innumerable streams that both empty into as well as weave in and out of that river’s surge. The stream of one’s individual practice can flow with clarity and grace (or, amble over rocks and fallen limbs), but alongside others, the energy often swells, and not only buoys one’s physical effort, but also uplifts one’s emotional and/or spiritual well-being, so that when our stream cuts away from the larger flow at the end of class, the momentum carries us further and deeper into our experience of Life. Contributing to and sharing in that outpouring of energy is what many of us will miss most about a suspended “shared practice,” no matter where it might be.

For me, leading a yoga class is far more than simply guiding people through a series of poses and movements. Perhaps more importantly, I try to create and hold a space where that shared energy can more easily come together and be experienced. The practice of yoga gets us “out of our heads” and more into our bodies, and when the play of movement and breath supersede the distraction of negative thoughts and the noise, confusion, and concerns of the outside world, again, that exercise feeds not only our bodies, but our “hearts” as well. So, since we are not allowed to get together, I thought that I might try to encourage you from afar during this interim of cessation by sending out some reflections that might be of help to you or others in getting out of our head, and more into our body and spirit. If you would prefer I not do that, just let me know, and I will simply remove you from this email list I have assembled and/or received – no judgments; of course, you can simply hit the delete button on my emails as well! 

So, for now, I encourage you, at least for awhile, to turn off all of the alarming information streaming toward you every and all day, roll out your mat in some “special place” in your home, and step or sit or lay down on it. Then, remembering the variety of folks with whom you have shared the practice of yoga, keep breathing in and out, slowly, deeply, and fully. Breathe in the goodness of all that Life truly is, and breathe out the best of your own Light and Goodness to all of those yoga friends on whose collective energy you have sometimes been lifted. I promise you, I will continue to do that for you!

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