What Yoga Has Taught Me

Photos by Cara Brostrom,

Four years ago, I met yoga. I came to my mat weary, afraid, exhausted. I showed up hoping that what I knew as yoga -- the asana practice -- could heal me.

I began trying the postures, learning the breathing, quieting the mind.

Soon, the practice deepened. I began to find myself calmer, more focused, more open and accepting of life's circumstances. My anxiety decreased, but more than just that was happening. Eventually I became receptive to the spiritual depth behind yoga, the way it transforms a life both on and off the mat.

Yoga has helped me learn to accept myself the way I am. To embrace that I'm not perfect, I never was, and I don't have to convince myself that I should be.

Yoga has shown me the beauty of living fully present instead of obsessing over the past or the future. 

Yoga has taught me strength, patience, endurance, courage. The practice has taught me to live without attachment to outcome. To give more openly, to write more freely, to love more fully.

Yoga humbles me before great teachers and mentors. Yoga reminds me that health is wealth. That the goodness and light in me also shines in those around me.

Thank you, yoga, for all that you give.

Practice and all is coming...