Last Tuesday I found myself embarking on a new fad. Anti gravity yoga. For those of you untouched by this latest celebrity craze, it involves swinging from an oversize hammock, whilst contorting yourself into positions largely favoured by the chimp genus.
First up, the backwards bend diamond shaped handstand. “what?, there’s no way in hell…” Could be heard from the back row (I like to keep my lack of co-ordination to myself). After failed several attempts, accompanied feelings of irritation, frustration and self consciousness pulsating through me, i managed to control my flailing limbs and haul myself in an almost vertical upside down position. Poise and athletic grace aside… hey I had kind of done it.
Now I am not going to recount each and every one of the 26 other (impossibly agile) positions, but what I do want to share is the overarching message that the teacher kept reminding us of when we were going through the practice:
Stay connected, present and focused.
If you’re anything like 99% of non yogis out there, frankly this is a challenge in its self. It’s often easy to get bogged down with the sheer size of the task at hand, the daunting to-do list, that nagging feeling of terror that has been keeping you awake at night.
The trick (and I say this at the the beginning of my quest for enlightenment) is to break down the sum of the parts and stay focused and connected to one task at a time. It is only then can you become aligned to accomplish the overall goal.
Graceful?
