We often go through our days with our eyes shut. We walk around not fully absorbing our lives. I do this, literally, in my yoga practice, My time on my mat is very spiritual and I often use it as a time for introspection.

As I focus on the word Expansion for the month of October (I’ll be talking more about this as we move through the month), I decided to stretch myself and keep my eyes open during my most recent practice. I discovered so much and I’d like to share some of it with you.

I discovered that my default is eyes closed, and I found myself back there many times. I let go of judgment and took it as an opportunity to reopen my eyes and look with a fresh view.

I discovered that I remain more present with my eyes open. I tend to ‘disappear’ in my yoga practice, flowing with my movement but not always being fully present to what I’m doing and where I am. Staying present today allowed me to have more gratitude for the space I was in and for how I was taking care of myself.

I discovered that the deep stuff comes up more quickly when I can see. In pigeon pose, with my eyes open, I learned exactly what I hold in each of my hips, and now I know what I can release. That felt amazing and very important in contrast to my usual sinking into the pose and turning my mind off completely.

I discovered that expansion is all about exploration and experimentation. In being open to a new experience, in this case that of literally keeping my eyes open, I gave myself the opportunity to see what this would feel like, and what I might learn from it. For that, I am grateful.

For so long, I’ve allowed my yoga practice to be a place where I can build strength and subconsciously invite myself to grow. By keeping my eyes open, by bringing more conscious awareness to my practice, not only did I welcome more growth, but I encouraged expansion.

I titled this post Expansion Experiment #1 because I can feel that there are more to come. I challenge you to play along.

Let’s start together today – in what ways can you begin to live your life with your eyes more open – either figuratively or literally? Share with us in the comments below.

Peace, Love, and Wellness,