Fall is definitely here, with the Vata season of wind, dryness, cold and lots of movement. You might feel that your mind is racing with ideas, you want to do ten different things at once, but still the best best best is to curl up with a good book and some tea on your sofa and wedge out while the wind blows the colorful leaves outside your window...
Fall is my favorite season because it allows us to turn our focus inward. The days are getting shorter the weather colder but I find that the heart.. on the contrary... gets warmer. It is maybe the huge amount of soup and tea and other hot concoctions I tend to eat and drink during Fall and well into Winter :) but I feel warm and fuzzy inside. The lights are magical and the trees around our home are staging their annual magic color play. Walking outside I feel like I am part of this play. That I got a role in the script, the Overlooker... But then I realize that it is not about just observing... It is a lot about truly parttaking. As Jolene quoted in one of her classes: "Nature is not a place to visit, it is home" (Gary Snyder). We tend to forget that we are part of nature, the seasons, the food chain, the whole circle. During the Fall I feel it the most.
We live in cities with all the conveniences, comfort, civilized utilities that make our lives easier but they also make us forget how the stars shine, how it is time to go to sleep when it gets dark and that it should be OK to sleep more... With our busy lives it is impossible to follow the natural clock all the time. But how about trying to become more aware of it? Maybe this season do something each day that brings you closer to nature and the cycle of things. Maybe it is sleeping in (hmmm... I can see a reoccuring pattern for me there :)), go for a walk in Rock Creek Park, eat yummy, harvesty soups or anything else that helps you connect. If you can connect to the world around you, it is easier to connect with the precious world inside of you... Take AmyDara's Vinyasa/Restorative classes to rest and relax after moving on your mat... Or of course Gracy's restorative is always a fabulous option.. Or one of the 6.30AM classes to start your day full of inspiration and energy... Or bring some more leaves to the studio and tape them to the wall... :)
Whatever you do, try to do it from the heart. The best place in this world. Mainly now as it is all warm, and fuzzy...
Happy Yoga!
Namaste,
Rita
