i was driving back from vacation in upstate new york last night and i thought it was a joke. i’d been on 15 north most of the time; it’s a road that takes you through neighborhoods, strip malls, and, the other half of the time, a pseudo-highway. i quite like it, because most of the time it feels homey.
it was late, around 11 pm, by the time i hit I-270. all of a sudden, as though a switch had been turned on, every car on the road was hurtling past me at 20 miles over the speed limit. i was already speeding — my self-justified, cop-friendly, nine-miles-an-hour-in-excess — so i, too, was one of these speeders. but as perhaps is the underlying debate on drunk yoga, it seemed a matter of degrees. we were all still going very fast, and as we all know high speeds in any car at any time are dangerous, but the shock of being passed by court-worthy speeders was an interesting experience.
at 11 pm at night, our bodies are designed to rest. having spent a week away from this city, to then be introduced to it at a time when the sun had been down for a good six hours, was a jolt.
it got me thinking: just how out of balance are we? when there is that much movement, so unremitting and close to you, how closed can you be from it? at this particular moment, i noticed my heart beat increase, my palms sweaty, and my brow slightly furrowed. perhaps because i practice yoga, perhaps because i’d been away, or perhaps because you just can if you want to because it’s really not that hard, i slowed everything down: my mind, my heart, my car.
it was in the moment i felt tremendous gratitude for the ability to recognize how i felt, and for the tools to get down off the ledge — one that shows up as though you’re in a video game — out of nowhere.
one of my intentions for the new year is to slow down and, in doing so, notice if i can actually be present in my body more often. i plan to do this because i think it is healthier, and though i’m not sure how long i will live, i want to do so well.
filed under: the boundless perspective, women and yoga, the community of yoga, outside-mind yoga, inside-mind yoga
This entry was posted on Friday, December 29th, 2006 at 10:34 am and is filed under the boundless perspective, women and yoga, the community of yoga, outside-mind yoga, inside-mind yoga. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.