We had an early taste of Autumn over the past week in New York City. A coolness in the air. Jackets came out. While the Labor Day weekend is an artificial transition into Autumn, we felt the shift.
While there is still another week or so of official summer, the leisure of the summer months is over, and we find ourselves navigating new schedules for school, back to five-day weeks at work, and the anticipation of the rush up to the end of the year. Within that transition, we can begin to feel unsettled, ungrounded and unstable.
In the thick of it, we tend to create lists and jump from task to task without even pausing to get a sense of completion. We don’t seem to allow even the smallest notion of completion to enter the picture of our daily lives. We’re just onto the next thing.
At the end of my day, I always sit quietly and acknowledge my experience from that day. Oftentimes, that experience doesn’t necessarily match the picture in my mind of how I think things should have been. Nonetheless, I acknowledge my efforts with a hearty “great job” or “Dennis, you did that best you could.” This acknowledgment is important in creating a sense of completeness. A moment to pause and see all I’ve accomplished. In that process, I quiet the noise of the inner critic. I begin to clear some of the clutter that’s no longer of use. I get rid of what no longer serves me.
It’s through our practice we find this. Our practice offers us a toolkit we can use as we journey along our path. Our Dharma is our truth and being awake in every moment along our journey. It is the foundation for a meaningful life. When we live according to these principles we find the peace and joy that is always within us. We find compassion and awareness that’s always there. We release what no longer serves us.
I have the great honor of leading a weekend retreat in conjunction with the beloved NY Loves Yoga community in a beautiful house in the Pocono Mountains. Join me November 9 – 11 for a powerful weekend when we’ll take a moment to pause to reflect on all that we’ve accomplished over the past year. We’ll explore together how the teachings of our practice can keep us grounded and awakened on our way to clearing a lot of the clutter and the noise in the mind. You’ll leave with tools to navigate the challenges of life in the immediate and throughout your life. Click here for more details.
Be well.
yogidennis 