"Practice the Pause"

I stay so much of the time in a cerebral space. I think that is why yoga and cooking are such freedom for me. I am able to disengage from the intensity of a constant flow of ideas and take in at face value the sensations of senses and emotions.

One thing my yoga teacher said this week is that in yoga we "practice the pause" a lot. We take the time to hold a posture a little longer to find release. We stop to just breathe in-between poses to experience the cleansing gasps that still our minds and open up every part of our bodies.

Many people practice asanas (yoga poses) to prepare their bodies for meditation. I actually find that for me, in the process of that which is more body action as opposed to mind action, I am in a state of meditation. The mind is getting a break from thinking and a beautiful boost from the endorphin release of physical movement.

In the mornings before I get out of bed, I stretch and I pray. Sometimes when I'm fully cognizant, I can't quite remember my prayer. But this half asleep, half awake moving and sleepy words to Jesus have a magical feel to them. They set my entire day with a sense of awakening to the invisible. The light of the sun and the light of the Son become the morning greeting that ignites my day.

Illustration by Gyo Fujikawa