Relationship as a Practice
For most of my life, I carried a sentence with me like a flag: Relationships require hard work. I grew up with this idea, and I took it seriously. It accompanied every relationship I was involved in. Not just romantic relationships, but friendships, work relationships, family relationships. I stayed when things were tough. I didn't run away from crises or awkward moments. I had the difficult conversations. I apologised, asked for apologies, tried to understand, tried to repair. I believed that if a relationship was...
Why I changed my practice
I’ve been a passionate Ashtanga yoga practitioner for the past 20 years.Over the past four years, my practice has changed. It started, in part, with a move to a new country. A change in life’s rhythm, a new environment, and what some might describe as a very different vibe. I’d probably describe it as a different energetic field. [Don’t run away ;) It’s a very grounded post.] Slowly, I started moving away from the way I had practiced before, both in terms...
What Pain Made Me Forget
There is something very strange about pain. Whether it is physical or emotional, after a while it slowly becomes the centre of our world. It colours everything. How we think. How we move. How we meet other people. Sometimes we don't even realise how much it has taken over until it finally eases. Looking back over the past couple of months, I realise something I couldn't see while I was in it. It wasn't the pain that taught me the most. It was what...
Choosing Reflection Over Resolutions
Peeling back layers: thoughts on honesty, fear, and staying open to life I’ve never been a person who writes a list of resolutions, neither at the end of the year nor on birthdays or other milestones. Something about it stresses me out. I slip too easily into self-judgement, into comparing what I did or didn’t do, what I gained or lost, where I succeeded and where I failed. You might say this is me sticking my head in the sand like an ostrich....
Meeting Groundlessness
“Sticking with that uncertainty, getting the knack of relaxing in the midst of chaos… this is the spiritual path.” Pema Chödrön I’ve been exploring the theme of groundlessness for many years, though I didn’t always call it that. My understanding of it has shifted over time, both conceptually and in the way it lives in my body and emotions. But even as the language evolved, the essence was always there. When the Ground Starts to Shake It usually surfaces during periods of change,...
Refine and Trust Your Listening
When life throws us back How often do we feel thrown back by life, surprised by a reaction or a situation we did not see coming? And when we look back, were we truly present in that moment? Were we connected to ourselves and to the person or situation in front of us? Or were we running after our own thoughts, slightly out of sync with what was unfolding? "Presence is often the difference between being surprised by life and being in...
On Sensitivity, Meditation, and Learning to Stay Open
The other day, a friend was talking about how being oversensitive can make it really hard to deal with life, especially in social interactions or when exposed to intense situations and news. I told them that, first of all, I prefer not to think of anyone as “oversensitive.” That word carries a sense of being too much or not normal. Instead, I like to think of it as being highly sensitive. The Gift of Sensitivity To me, being highly sensitive is like having...
When Spontaneity Gets in the Way
I used to be afraid of thinking long term.When my boss asked for my 5-year plan, I froze.When I tried to imagine my romantic partner, I got restless.When I needed to plan a retreat or a course a year in advance, I panicked. At the time, I didn’t even think it was a problem. I told myself: “Why plan so far ahead? Anything and everything can change.” Life is fleeting, temporary, unpredictable. So why commit to something a year or five years in...