Great, great, great! It feels so good to be back on a regular basis, that is, a 3-days-a-week practice. I would love to practice EVERYDAY, you know, make it routine like taking a shower and brushing your teeth, but unfortunately, the way my life is right now, I can only manage 3 days and depending on how my work schedule is laid out, 4 days tops. I would love to raise my hand whenever our teacher asks who among us is doing the 30 or 60 Day Challenge. Fellow yogis have been asking me if I am doing the challenge. Well, I am aiming for April and making it an annual April 30 Day Challenge. The significance of April is that I did it in April of last year, and that my Mom passed away on Day 29. I missed Day 30, but I somehow, miraculously, managed to practice on May 1st. It was surreal. I was in tears for the most part, but I pulled through. I thought of making it my personal tribute to her, as she is very special to me. No, she was not a yogi, but she lived her life with honesty, integrity, and grace...virtues that I hope I will emulate and impress upon my daughter one day.
How has my practice been? Well, I am happy to report that it has "kickstarted" into gear after being on hiatus during the Christmas holidays. Instead of feeling reluctant to get up and go, I now couldn't wait to get back to the hot room again. I have been called "crazy" by some friends, crazy for loving this yoga, crazy for spending 90 minutes in the heat and humidity (well, I do have the advantage of being born and raised in a hot and humid country, though), crazy for not minding the body odours, crazy for not minding being sometimes hit by sweat beads flung by other yogis, the list goes on. Oh yeah, and crazy for not drinking water for 90 minutes. Oh my friends, you have not discovered the power of being able to master your monkey minds. I was reading Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class book and he pointed out the saying, "The mind is willing, but the body is weak" as not true. Rather, it is the body that is willing, and the mind is weak. I do agree with him. During conversation with a fellow yogi after class, she wondered how I could "survive" not taking water during class, and eyes got even wider when I told her that it has been 11 months of doing so. All I said was, pointing to my temple, "It's all in the mind. Personally, it is a distraction." I will say it again. Anything is possible, if you just put your mind to it.
Good night, Mommy. I love you.
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