Good morning, to all my yogi and yogini friends!

This weekend I’ve been getting really excited about going on vacation this coming week (don’t worry, even though I won’t be there to cheer you on, you will still have regularly scheduled yoga classes!). As I was preparing for the trip, anticipating all the fun I’m going to have with Tigger, my best doggie-friend, I thought about how great if would be if I could start approaching my life the way I approach my vacation. When I’m on vacation, I’m not just biding my time until it’s over; I don’t look at the fun vacation activities as chores to be crossed off some to-do list. Even just looking forward to all the activities is exciting, and then I have a blast actually doing them, too.

Somehow, we forget that life is meant to be joyous; that it’s not just about completing a bunch of chores. We tend to get so bogged down with work and all other sorts of responsibilities that it all starts to feel like drudgery, not fun. Think how great and exciting our lives would be if we could decide to change our perspective and approach every day the way we do a vacation. Well, the amazing part is that we can decide to approach our lives this way.

Even our yoga practice can be a reminder to us to enjoy our lives. Sometimes we get so focused on the goal of completing the poses and getting to savasana that we forget to actually enjoy those crazy poses while we’re in them. When we start enjoying the movement, even if it’s a challenging one, we stop muscling our way through our practice, and the practice takes on an effortless, vacation-like quality. We want to use the yoga practice to teach ourselves that even when we’re in poses or situations that feel uncomfortable, it doesn’t have to be a negative or stressful experience. When we stop anticipating when we’ll come out of a challenging pose and just let go, we feel the beauty and the flow that is yoga. The more we can practice this on our yoga mats, the more we can connect to this beauty, grace, and enjoyment in every part of our lives.

Remember that life is not just a series of tasks we have to complete – life is meant to be enjoyed and lived to the fullest. Enjoy the journey, whether it’s a literal journey on a fun vacation, or if it’s a journey through your asana practice. Now go out there and have a fun vacation of a week, even if your vacation is going to work, cleaning your house, or performing another chaturanga pose!

Namaste,
Tiki