Yoga is Easy Compared to Life.

In Yoga, Astanga anyway, Practice is easy. It is the same series of poses repeated over and over until you can perform them effortlessly. There are no variables in the series. The only variable is the practitioner, and what they bring to the practice with them. Life, by contrast can be difficult. It is never the same. It is dynamic and ever evolving. I think the trick is to strive to be effortlessly calm in the face of the constant and unpredictable variability of life.

It was a busy ending to last week. Thursday, I taught in the morning, attended the 3hr Anasura practice with Rock Climber. We both enjoyed it very much. I taught that evening. Friday morning was Mysore and Astanga Yoga Journey with Volleyball Guy. I was a little sore after all the Thursday Yoga. Taught later that morning, and then worked with the Flower lady doing wedding flowers until 6pm. It was a nice night, so the wife and I cruised the convertible out to dinner at a local Indian Resturant. The food was good, but the resturant was not tht crowded. That is a bad sign for the resturant when they are not busy on a Friday evening. Saturday morning found me up early to teach my 10am class. Many of the regulars were away, so it turned into a private lesson with a very interesting woman who is a well known Career/Life Coach. We talked our way through the practice, and time flew by as we moved from pose to pose..
I raced out of class to meet the Flower Lady to help her deliver 2 weddings. Everything went off without a hitch. Saturday evening we took the girls out to dinner at the Vegetarian House. It is our favorite resturant in the valley.

Sunday, we met some friends of ours and drove up to Sedona for some hiking. We took our convertable, and they took their Jeep. It was a beautiful day. We ended up hiking the Devils Bridge Trail. There is a natural stone bridge (see pic). I had to hike out onto it. We brought a picnic lunch with us. Food always tastes better outside for some reason. Even if it is only peanut butter and jelly. Sedona is a breathtaking area. It is Red Rock country, and the rock formations are really other worldly. Our hike was wonderful, and the scenery was beautiful. See Pics. That is me and the younger daughter in malasana under a hugh overhaging rock formation. We lost our friends somewhere along the hike, and they ended up going 4 wheeling.







We took the long way home through the town of Jerome. Jerome is a cool town up in the Mingus mountains that used to be a copper mining town, then a ghost town, and is now an artist community dominated by Bikers.... A very cool place. That road from there is noted for its 158 sharp mountain curves in only 12 miles. A favorite with bikers. We stopped there, and got the girls some food before returning back to the valley through Prescott. We arrived home at 8pm. It was a full day, to say the least.

This morning it was up at 5am and out to mysore practice with the Older Daughter. The girls have off of school all week for fall break. Mysore practice was focussed and steady as a result of good ujjayi breathing and drishti. I practiced next to donutszenmom, who has not been at mysore practice in a week or so. I did not focus on anyone elses practice other than my own this morning, and think that I am going to keep it that way for a while. The Older daughter and I stayed for Volleyball guys astanga journey seminar. We were out of there by 9am. Sankrit scholar called me yesterday and asked if I would like to sub a basics class at 10:30am this morning. I deeply appreciate the way that she and Volleyball Guy are always assisting me in any way they can. They refer me classes to sub, and Yoga jobs when they can. I feel fortunate to be thought of highly by them, and to be able to practice with and learn from them. So, I dropped the girls home, and then back to the SOYS to teach a Basics class. I taught a "basic" class. I tried to instill good fundamentals while at the same time sneaking in some philosophy and good Yoga pointers. I was teaching some good Yoga. Now I have to take the girls shopping for their Holloween Party, and then later, I teach a deep Stretch class at 6pm......
More soon.