Thirty hours of diving deep into the study and practice of yoga and I know this is just the beginning of a long journey. It is a journey into myself and a journey into guiding others through this powerful practice.

I will certainly be sharing more about yin with you in the future, and there is so much I want to share – just ask my husband, I talked his ear off about it Sunday night. For now, I will say this.

One of the elements I love about yin is that it is a practice in learning to trust yourself. By listening to your body, you empower yourself to take the shapes that you, and only you, know will get you where you need to travel on this journey of your life.

Learning to trust yourself also means learning to find your voice and speak up with questions as they arise. None of us are on this journey alone. We could not possibly make it through all by ourselves and so we learn in yin, as my teacher teaches and I intend to teach, that questions are welcome, encouraged, and an integral part of the experience.

I know in my life when I cannot find my voice and speak up to ask the burning questions, I turn to a very negative story about myself. I tell myself I must be doing it wrong or I must not understand or I must be all alone in feeling whatever I am experiencing and those stories beget feelings of frustration, shame, and guilt. They feel like fire in me and build up until tears fill my eyes.

And in one moment, in the moment of lifting my voice to ask one simple clarifying question – where am I aiming to feel this? – the feelings dissipate and I can sink in even deeper as I continue the search for what waits for me beneath the layers. The layers of decades of stories, beliefs, judgments and expectations. I know whatever is hiding underneath is beautiful because I have caught glimpses. Yin allows me to sink deeper, to surrender, and to take this journey within.

With Love,