25
april 2019yogajournal.com.auREACH HIGHER. IT WILL
STEADY YOU.
One day in class, many of us were
struggling with Vrksasana (Tree Pose)
and falling out of it. A teacher said to
simply reach higher. Of course, she
meant to simply push a little further and
harder than was immediately accessible,
and it would make the rest of the pose
work. She was right. Now, whenever I’m
struggling with work or having a
particularly bad week, I remind myself to
reach higher and further than what’s
immediately in front of me. And
inevitably, little things start to line up.
OPEN UP YOUR PALMS IF
YOU WANT ANSWERS FROM
THE UNIVERSE. OPEN YOUR
PALMS FACE DOWN IF YOU
WANT ANSWERS FROM
WITHIN YOURSELF.This is something a teacher said when
I was seated in Sukhasana (Easy Pose)
at the end of a class. It felt incredibly
profound to be able to choose—and
recognising that there is a distinction
between these two choices changed the
way I approach problems. Her words
made me realise that sometimes I don’t
have all the answers; that I can let the
universe show me and let life unravel a
little.NOTICE WHEN YOU ARE
BEING SELFISH. REPLACE
IT WITH GRATITUDE.Sometimes, when I’m having a
stressful morning (I’ve forgotten my
laptop at home and have to turn around
and go back, or a story I’m writing isn’t
working out the way I want it to), I’ll
think it’s the worst thing that’s ever
happened—to anyone. So, when my
teacher suggested this gratitude practice,
it reminded me that obsessing over tiny
inconveniences is not only foolish, but
selfish—and can lead to unhappiness.
It’s better (and healthier!) to be less
self-obsessed and to try to focus on
gratitude instead: I have a working
laptop; I get to write for a living.