The light in me sees and honors the light in you

Sometimes I think the whole world should take an outdoor yoga class like I did last night.

Imagine if the light in each of us saw and honored the light in everyone else. What a crazy, beautiful empathetic world that would be.

As always, I set gratitude as my intention last night as I practiced yoga with Sunny Side Up Yoga instructor Lisa Kramer. Primarily, I was grateful to have a full hour to spend by myself with an excellent instructor on a gorgeous summer evening. It had been 10 months since I had practiced yoga outside and I could not believe how good the fresh air smelled.

But, I was deeply thankful for other things as well.

I was happy to confirm that it is still possible to take breaths in community while maintaining an effective social distance because I believe we all uplift and support each other when breathe together and I really missed that when I tried to practice yoga alone in my family room.

I appreciated the perfect summer evening and the gentle breeze it sent through the trees overhead. Very few people appreciate good weather as much as we long-suffering Wisconsinites and last night was about as perfect as it gets around here.

I loved the cheerful summer cacophony of chirping birds and laughing children that underscored the class.

I knew I had timed my evening exactly right so I could enjoy my class while my husband and daughter cooked dinner. As I had hoped, I came home to a delicious meal. I don’t expect this every time I go to an evening yoga class. But, it sure was nice last night.

I sent my creaky old body a message of gratitude too, because it moved through those poses pretty well given my haphazard practice in the past few months.

Maybe you don’t love yoga as much as I do. Maybe you have other forms of relaxation and challenge.

But, I still encourage you to try an outdoor yoga class at least once in your life. Breathe in the support an exhale all the day’s worries.

Namaste.