Last night I took a great class with Michael Lee – Yoga as Therapy: A Phoenix Rising Yoga and Meditation class, and was joined by my friend Elyse and her partner Nick (who was sporting for his first yoga class on Ompractice.) The class is a little different than most on Ompractice, it’s divided into six phases, that start with movement and move into stillness, with the opportunity to find deeper wisdom at the end.
Our focus this class was on equanimity – “mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper, especially in a difficult situation.” I always approach my mat with an open mind, but was particularly surprised at how much I found myself feeling at the end of class. It was a good one, and I’m focused on maintaining that approach throughout my day and week.
This morning I found myself waking a few hours earlier than normal, ready to start my day. Today I wanted to focus on fall – thinking about the traditions, rituals, and feelings for living in the season. I started by scratching out the things that I wanted to sit with this morning:
Thinking about Fall: movement, connection, smells, food, nature, television, books, decoration, planning, action, savoring.
Questions I’m asking myself in this season:
- How do I harness the energy of the season: crisp, cool, maturity and wisdom?
- What will I create this season?
- Who do I want to re-connect with?
- How do I harvest my bounty, and prepare for the next season?
- How do I bring the colors of fall into my life – those that are most vivid – greens, gold, orange, red, and yellow?
Self Care: I was delighted to see some folks downloading my Fall Self Care Bingo back from the archives.
Food: on the shelf next to my office seat, I have a copy of Nigel Slater’s Greenfeast: Autumn, Winter, that I’ve been thumbing through for inspiration this week. A few years ago I sat down to write about some of my favorite Foods of Fall: lots of squash, apples, cider, chili, persimmons, pumpkin, and of course my favorite Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bundt.
Movement: I really appreciate the cooler weather in the fall. (I say that as I’m avoiding my run tonight because the temperature has dropped several degrees and it’s now windy. Update: bundled up and it was fine!)
Connection: I know that most people are foregoing holiday cards because… 2020, but I’ve resolved to contribute to the USPS, so if you’d like a dog themed holiday card, feel free to send me an email with your address, or reach out on social media in my DMs.
Sending love and hope for ease of sleep tonight.
xo Sam
