Reflections: The winds of change

The winds of change swept in loud and strong on Sunday 10 March, 2019 - Chi Kri Yoga Gold Standard Graduation day. As we sat with our teachers, anticipating our exam results, daylight began to wane and the winds were booming loud as if to make their presence known,  it was quite eerie. I remember our Grand Master Neil pointing out that these were the winds of change, and that thought has remained me with as I continue down the path towards teaching my first public adult's yoga class on Saturday mornings in Hayes. 

The winds of change appeared metaphorically for me yesterday as I attended my last Saturday Chi Kri Yoga class with my amazing teacher Mehul. I felt a sense of sadness and loss over what has been an important fixture in my life these last two years. Most people might cringe at the thought of getting up to go to a yoga class that starts at 7.30am, but for me this has been one of the many yoga gifts that I allude to in my writing. 

I can't recommend an early morning yoga practise enough! It can do wonders for you! For me, there has been something sublime, energising and reinvigorating about practising yoga so early on a Saturday morning. The stillness and pure energy that we can all tap into at that time of morning is pure, precious and in abundance for us all. It has always been the perfect start to my weekend. No matter how grumpy or reluctant to practise, (I sometimes may have felt!) when walking into class, I have walked out at the end of class feeling so high and uplifted - ready to tackle my weekend!

Intertwined with my Saturday class has been my Breakfast Club with my fellow yoginis Shefali and Rina, and yogi Sats. Over the past couple of years, we have spent many a morning together enjoying a delicious breakfast made with love by the great team at Eastcote Gardens Cafe. I confess to becoming quite enamored by their egg and bacon butties, they are soooo good! And yes, that is right, I am a yogini who eats meat. I have to keep it real, I am who I am, whilst I am not proud of the fact that I eat meat, I am on the path to becoming a vegetarian one day.

Can you see a theme appearing? One of attachment? Attachment to even wonderful things like yoga, and less good things like bacon butties?

The one thing we can be sure of in life is change. Constant change. We need to be fluid and open to change. We need to be able to move as effortlessly as we can through the currents of life. Routine can be great and at times is necessary, but it can get comfortable and in my experience nothing can grow to it's full potential in such a space. Change can be uncomfortable, but just because we don't like it, it doesn't mean it's not working for our higher good.

Upon reflection, the long term cancellation of my Chi Kri Yoga class with Mehul on Saturday mornings has meant I can turn from student to teacher and enjoy the luxury of continuing to design and follow my own nurturing and expansive morning practise with plenty of prep time for my beautiful students.

I also get to change the gears from a high energy Saturday morning class to Mehul's class on a Sunday morning, so I can get that 'easy like Sunday morning' feeling in a beautifully lit studio with some other awesome souls. And well Breakfast Club can be replaced with new opportunities to connect with these radiant souls, and healthier options for my thighs!

You may wonder how we can navigate the winds of change? And I am biased, but for myself, yoga is the solution. Yoga philosophy, pranayama (breathing exercises), and meditation in particular keep me grounded. And there is of course my favourite asana (physical pose) of the spiritual warrior that helps me face to challenges and summon up courage, determination and resilience.

What routines do you have in your life? Are they bringing out the best in you? What changes might you be resisting? Be fluid like water my friend, the winds of change may well be serving your higher self.

With love

Rupy