"Whenever you are in doubt, it is best to pause.
Few things are so pressing that
they cannot wait for a moment of breath."
~from Yoga of Heart by Mark Whitwell
I have just embarked upon a new path in my life, a new branch off of the main tree, a new storyline, and I truly have no idea where it will lead me, but I am hopeful of this new beginning. I have just finished 6 years of teaching Elementary school and am about to head back to school AGAIN. What am I thinking?! I know, I know ... it's a bit crazy, but also very exciting!
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| A photo from my trip to Florida this past Spring Break |
I was going to jump full speed ahead and take a course this summer. Then, about a week before the course was supposed to start, I received the syllabus from the instructor. Panic Attack. Here's what went through my head almost immediately after reviewing the syllabus: "What was I thinking when I decided to take a class this summer? I'm not ready to work in groups with people I don't know. I'm not ready to write papers or do projects. I can't go straight from teaching to jumping right into school. This is insane. I can't do this."
Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. That's what yoga has taught me to do in these situations.
I looked up from my computer and read the quotation on my printer: "Whenever you are in doubt, it is best to pause..." Yes, pause. What would that be like? How would that be different than barreling ahead, as I have always done in the past, without any regard for my feelings or intuition?
Well, as I sat there pondering what to do, I was fairly certain I had seen one of these outcomes before, and it didn't look anything as fun and relaxing as this...
I was pretty sure that barreling ahead would end up with me looking a lot like this instead:
That wasn't exactly the outcome I was hoping for as I began my new journey, so I decided to drop the class and allow myself time to relax and recuperate. What a concept! Seriously though, this is a HUGE step for me!
Instead of stressing about summer school, I am embracing my opportunities to teach yoga this summer! If you are interested in coming to a yoga class and live in the area, I am teaching Fridays from 4:15-5:30pm until mid-September. I am also teaching Monday mornings from 10:30-11:45am, temporarily until July 22nd. Please check out the Heart of Yoga School's website for more information (http://heartofyogaschool.com/). If you click on "Teachers" at the top, you can read my bio, and if you click on "Schedule," you can see all of the amazing classes that are offered!
I am still learning how to embrace my opportunities to pause and take a breath, but I am thankful to have realized this time that I needed to listen to what my intuition was telling me.
Stop. Pause. Take a breath. Slow down.
Listen. Wait. Enjoy this moment. Smell the flowers. Be present. There is no need to barrel ahead.
