Today I am celebrating. October 15th is my niece Brave’s birthday. She is 7 years old. She truly embodies her name and what it truly is to be “brave”. She has the most courageous heart, and possesses the ability to see the light in every situation. She is a constant reminder to keep your heart open, to fearlessly allow in love and to embrace life, even in the most challenging moments.
This weekend Brave had a slumber party to celebrate her birthday with a few of her friends. I watched as her friends arrived, and she greeted each one with a warm hug. To one of her friends she said “ I heard that you are a little afraid of the dark, so I got you a little flash light so that you don’t have to be scared.” I was so moved to see her help her friend literally see the light through the dark, and help her overcome her fear and be able to laugh and enjoy the celebration with her friends.
My niece’s reminder to be Brave really impacted me in such an amazing way. One year and five months ago I injured my low back pretty badly. Before I hurt my back, I was practicing yoga every day and teaching yoga classes a few days per week. Yoga is one of the biggest loves of my life. After my injury, my asana practice came to a halt, and took a break from teaching while allowing myself to heal. I was no longer going to or teaching classes at Yoga Union- the yoga studio that I consider to be my second home. While I have been grateful for all of the lessons and personal growth that I have gained from my injury, I also became stuck in a rut of believing that I can’t do yoga, and fearing I would never be able to again. I let the fear of all that I perceive I can’t do to stand in my way of allowing me to step back onto my mat and embrace and celebrate all that I can.
There was something very special about seeing Brave help her friend overcome her fear and belief that she can’t be in the dark. Later that night after I left Brave’s party, I lay in bed and I thought of my injury, and how all I could see was the darkness of what I felt I can not do. Like the tiny flash light of courage Brave gave to her friend, I made a decision to see the light of all that I can do.
This morning, on the Brave's birthday, I got up, put on my yoga clothes, grabbed my yoga mat, and went to an open practice at Yoga Union. For an hour and a half, I practiced asana for the first time since my injury. I did pranayama (breath work). I did mountain pose. I used blocks to help me do variations of gentle poses. I did modified sun salutations and allowed the light and warm of what I can do to shine in. I have never felt so much gratitude for a simple sun salutation in my life.
Thank you Brave, for helping me to stand up, to walk onto my mat and to overcome my fears. Your strength, courage and open heart is an inspiration to me and everyone around you. I feel so blessed to be celebrating life on this very special day.
