Actually, a LOT of effort is required

I looked back to my New Year resolution for 2007--to be Aware. That was a good one. I think I tried it, off and on. But sometimes it takes frogs falling out of the sky to really wake up. And nothing close to that happened until late summer, early fall. But, a process has begun.

This year I didn't write here about my New Year's resolution. Ironically, without this public assertion, I've been more successful at keeping it in mind. Sounds simple, but it's actually been quite difficult:


DO the things that are good for me, are fulfilling and make me happy.
DON'T do things that are bad for me, leave me feeling wasted, and make me unhappy.

This has involved a great deal of tugging and pulling against my tendency to keep my head in the sand about some things. It's involved great efforts to identify, acknowledge and most importantly act on my own understanding of what those things are. It's meant expanding my awareness that some things make me happy (and I should DO them -- or NOT FOREGO them, or not sacrifice them) and add to my life and some things don't (and DON'T do them!).

My yoga practice has contributed to my ability to keep this intention in mind. I'm about six months into yoga teacher training; I've increased my practice schedule back up to where it used to be; and I've enrolled in another immersion with yoga teacher Mary Keator.

The central focus of our meditation and practice for this immersion is discernment, jnana yoga--wisdom. It's been an amazng experience--challenging, confrontational, self-affirming and liberating. Somehow she is able to put the theoretical teachings into the asana practice, making them real. I do need to meditate on it, more, though. I'll use this space to do that.

Mary said: Until you are rooted, you can't grow.

That is what I'm working on.