Sunday mornings are precious in my house as they are leisurely, slow and unstructured. On sunny mornings my yellow walls and oak table turn my kitchen into a sanctuary. Usually there is nothing on my calendar allowing for a leisurely breakfast with my beloved, a savored cup of java (one of my adored vises I will be taking a break from during my upcoming spring detox) and to peruse the Sunday paper. Most of the time my optimistic outlook is unphased by the headlines but today my mindset took a turn toward despair with headlines such as ‘Death toll at 50 in mosque attacks in New Zealand’, “Do-or-Die decision for the Chesapeake Bay’ and ‘Depression rising for the young’. Where has our concern for ourselves and our planet gone, my entire life efforts dedicated to healing, does it make a difference?

‘When despair for the world grows in me’ as Wendell Berry so elegantly describes in his poem ‘The Peace of Wild Things’, a simple stroll to my favorite spot in nature usually does the trick. Most likely a nature connection moment will happen later, but for now off to a yoga class I go. Sometimes the call to be with other like minded souls is stronger then the pull of nature. The soothing sound of the teacher’s voice, the soft music in the background and the slow cadence of our collective breathing allows me to ‘come in the peace of wild things’ and ‘come into the presence of still water’. Even after seventeen years of practicing this ancient art of self care, savasana still allows me to experience ‘For a time to rest in the grace of the world, and am free’. That is what yoga did for me today. What has yoga done for you lately.