"The more things change, the more they stay the same"
Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr 1849
March marks the beginning of Spring, and the constant fluctuations that come along with this monumental shift. This shift can be felt physically in the form of heat and light, but also mentally in the form of venturing out and starting new things. The season of Spring is itself a transitional period, which means there is a bit of unpredictability that comes along with it. Sometimes, our practice can reflect these changes in an attempt to help us navigate through to the other side. This month, I would like to try the opposite. What happens if we instead bring our focus to what stays true throughout this shift?
When a caterpillar is going through the biggest change of its life, what does it do? It curls up in a cocoon and rides those waves of change in solitude until it is ready once again to venture out into the world a changed individual. As much as I would love to wait out this transitional period in a cocoon, it is just not possible. What IS possible is creating both the mental and physical space to reconnect with ourselves throughout this transitional period. A place where we can check in and allow ourselves to notice what is changing not only all around us, but within us as well. So this month, instead of focusing on creating change within ourselves, I challenge you to focus on what stays true. What are the constants in your life? Change may actually be a constant (mind blown), but it serves us to recognize that in and of itself. Yoga teaches us to ride the waves of emotion and sensation. What is transition but a big group of waves that takes us somewhere new. At our core, we remain the same individuals grounded in the present.
Join me in any of my classes this month for a grounding Kripalu practice as we reconnect with the constants in our life that help us navigate transition.