Are You Breathing? REALLY breathing?

I painted this sign outside of a hostel in Mexico two and a half years ago. It was the first time someone asked me to instruct yoga classes.

If I was a cell phone, my energetic battery would be at the thin red line just before it shuts itself down. 

My inspiration battery would be at least 100% though. Possibly ready to recharge other batteries!

I have never ever been so inspired and so exhausted simultaneously. I am feeling like I can barely walk around without feeling totally tired. Which is why I'm curled up in a plush chair in the tea lounge. It's our final evening of the yoga teacher training. The emotions are big and there is an air of sadness because we are all parting ways tomorrow. My mind is also so expanded that I feel like I am dreaming.

2017 Himalayan Institute 200-hour YTT class. Photo by HI staff- thank you!!!

Today we each took a turn instructing the entire class. It was deeply moving to witness the massive transformations that have taken place for all of us. I had to get a pile of Kleenex to make it through the morning. A good cry can be so nurturing and helps to release deeply held emotions. (Except it often messes with my nasal breathing when my sinuses get all puffy.) 

My ability to breathe has never been so amazing. I had the realization during this course that I have not been breathing correctly for nearly 35 years! Shocking, right?! Tell me about it. We have been practicing breath training daily. One tool that is a miracle worker (if you're open to practicing) is called a breath pillow. It's a cloth sand-filled bag shaped like a crescent moon, between 7-10 lbs. It's weight, when placed on the abdomen just below the rib cage, for only a few minutes each day, allows one to feel the diaphragm pressing into the abdomen to expand the chest cavity, therefore supplying the body with the maximum amount of nourishing breath and strengthening the diaphragm. I was definitely not doing this my WHOLE life. It was a very tricky process to convince my unconscious memory and my cellular memory to allow my diaphragm to release its decades-long grip. When it finally happened, it was like coming up for air after being held just beneath the surface of the water for far too long. I was lying in bed ready to sleep when I felt it (after just a week!) On my back, I took the deepest breath I have ever taken. I got so excited. I said to Tanner "I feel like I have whale lungs!!!" I have been sleeping so much better, too.

Now, the trick is to continue maintaining this openness and continuing to strengthen that mysterious muscle called the diaphragm that helps to keep us alive and thriving. 

There she is. The beautiful diaphragm. 

I had a day two weeks ago where I traced my whole life backwards. I had asked myself how it is that I am here right now. As I traced back all of people and events that lead me here to finally become a certified yoga teacher, my heart swelled with heaps of gratitude. I have been blessed with so many supportive friends and acquaintances. I have been walking (fairly) steadily down a path of deepening spiritual realms. It continues to deepen with each leap of faith and each excavation and examination of my own inner world. 

May we all consider exploring deep within ourselves to shift our collective experience as humanity. As the peace of our inner worlds expands, our outer worlds become filled with more love and joy. Who doesn't long for that? 

The next steps for us are a) completing our required teaching hours and b) completing our 30-day meditation journals. Then our certifications will be official. We hope to be sharing the magic of yoga with the world before very long. Where? That part remains unclear, but time reveals all. 

A nourishing nature break from yoga school by a babbling Pennsylvania brook. Ahhhhhh....

The Cocoon Phase

Images from Sugarboo Designs. 150 Love Notes booklet.  So lovely!

I just looked at my last blog post and it's been one month since I have had the inspiration to write. Whoa! That is the longest that I have gone without a post since I started this blog, just over a year ago. Hmmmmm...red flag?

This actually confirms something huge for me: that I was feeling uninspired which means that I was living a relatively uninspired period of my life. How sad is that? Can anyone out there relate to that feeling?  Yeah, pretty much everyone? Which brings me to the topic of this post... Why aren't we all living and speaking our passions and feeling alive and inspired every single day of this short gift called life? You can try to make up a million and one excuses, but do yourself a favor and don't bother. I will have a comeback ready for all of them. There is no good excuse...just our own fears getting in the way of our happiness.

I recently realized that the job that I was  working for only four short months was not getting me any closer to living my passions. Like most "jobs", it was a great way to meet new people, make a wage and keep myself busy- because that's what we all seem to think we are supposed to do. Don't get me wrong. I loved all of the people that I worked with and the connections with customers and sharing laughs and teaching and learning. And helping people. Helping people to love and empower themselves. That's what I really love to do. This may not come as a surprise to you.

The pieces of the puzzle have been showing up for me for several years but it has taken me until now to realize what they all mean.  I feel like I should have realized this a year ago when I began blogging to help myself and others to live a more authentic life. Or maybe I could have clued in when I opened a used clothing store and everyday, for several years, dozens of people came in to talk, not to shop. Well it's never too late to start living your passions. 

So. This is me announcing that I will be embarking on a journey to help others to love and empower themselves and live their passions. I know this has already been happening to some degree. Now I am making it my main focus. It's what I love to do. It makes me happy to see others improving their lives and giving themselves the love that we all deserve. I'm still not totally clear on how this will all come together, but I know for certain that it's happening piece by piece. 

I have been working with a book called The Passion Test. It has really helped me to differentiate my passions from my hobbies and goals. I now have a clear list of my top passions as of today. Passions change. Life is full of change. So make sure you aren't stuck in that life that you wanted 10 years ago, but that isn't suiting you today. It happens too often. 

The last month has been part of my cocoon phase. I have had at least 3 or 4 other cocoon phases in my life so far. It's what happens when something big happens in life that forces me to stop and look at the bigger picture.

 I stop doing the things that aren't moving me closer to peace and happiness. I sift out the people who aren't enriching my life. I make more time to do the things that I love. The things that make me ME. All of these things combined creates a cocoon-like state where I can be and know myself. Unadulterated. Uninfluenced. Unwaivered. Each time, I have emerged as a brighter and happier version of myself. A butterfly. Try it. I dare you.

PS. PLEASE contact me if you are seeking some soul guidance. Even if you are across the globe, I will be happy to help you to live your soul's passions. 

Alongthehearttrail@gmail.com