Behind the words

I've been writing some thank yous this past week. Offering a few words to my TT teachers. Better late than never maybe, since TT was some weeks ago. But honestly I can't begin to capture what they offered and the new avenues they variously opened up for me. I certainly can't express the gratitude I have for their efforts... Continue Reading →

September 18, 2016 0

Feedback along the way

In Sanskrit class I'm noticing less feedback from my teacher. He used to be quick to correct mistakes or offer help. Now he gives me longer to figure it out myself, and he no longer offers any encouraging noises while I'm puzzling through the words in a sentence out loud. I'm to assume that silence is good.... Continue Reading →

May 6, 2016 3

Books vs body

Prof Mark Williams -- the proponent of mindfulness meditation for depression and other chronic illnesses (a kind of British Jon Kabat-Zinn if I may) -- really spoke to me when he said that he once thought he could learn everything about Mindfulness by reading about it. And then he realised that it's a practice. And... Continue Reading →

March 23, 2016 2

Elephants, god, and sex: lost in translation

I've been learning Sanskrit for a few slow months now. Progress is not as fast as I'd like. But then when is it? But actually I high-fived my rather staid class-mate yesterday -- we'd read a page together reasonably fluently during that lesson. OK, it's really simple stuff: stories my teacher has written with really basic grammatical constructions (strictly... Continue Reading →

January 20, 2016 5

What’s your story?

"What's your story?" is a question I seem to get asked a lot these days. I guess that's exciting -- it means I'm talking to new people who want or need to know more about me quickly. Asking an open question can be very revealing -- it's a tactic that I love to use in my professional... Continue Reading →

December 13, 2015 2

Aquaphobic yogini

I'm a bit scared of water, I'll admit it. And I'm very scared of deep water. I guess it's a rational enough fear, though I also intellectually know that if I give myself up to the water it will hold me up. The likelihood of drowning only becomes a real problem if I tense up and... Continue Reading →

November 23, 2015 1

Trust me! Trust me?

Hubby asked me the other day if I'd help him work on his Cobra (Bhujaṅgāsana). We've yet to do this, but even the request has blown me away. He has a couple nerve issues at the moment and triggers pain really easily. For this reason I'm always wary of helping him with his practice and... Continue Reading →

November 22, 2015 2

Compassion for the skeletons in the closet

Compassion is a topic I keep coming across in blogs at the moment (picking up the idea of serendipity from my own blog recently!). Yogis often talk about cultivating compassion towards others, but receiving compassion is also an art that's worth practicing. I read a great post recently about handling compassion, how to confront one's vulnerability and... Continue Reading →

August 24, 2015 6

Philosophy and Prosecco — the bookends of my week

It’s been a bit of a week of gritty conversations. Not bad conversations necessarily. Just some big ideas, some open questions, and maybe there’s a radical solution kicking about somewhere. In all cases only time will be the judge. These conversations have had a philosophical, even existential, quality: - what is the relationship between meditation... Continue Reading →