My gorgeous boyfriend Jesse is doing his end-of-year taxes. One For All Hot Yoga has been a registered business for a whole year now, and we haven’t taught a single class! I understand the frustrated place he is in, aware that for an extended period of time he has been held back from starting the business that he knows will bring him happiness.
Having been with him for the duration of this period, we recognize many things to be thankful for. Firstly, the hold-up has allowed us to experience the Yoga community as students first. We can therefore share our knowledge with a great appreciation of the existing studios and teachers and with a rich appreciation of their offerings.
Each hold-up has reminded us to invariably be present with what is. We have learnt that another bothersome setback cannot supersede our goals and objectives, as big achievements like starting a business take time to manifest into existence. Delays have made us, unintentionally, more Yogic in our mindset, forcing us to become less preoccupied with getting things done and enabling us to be more purposeful in our actions.
I do not associate myself with being patient but I do associate myself with being aware. I am now more aware of my impatient tendencies, more aware of my adverse thinking patterns, and more aware that the time in which I want things to be done and the time in which reality exists is not always the same thing. Experience coupled with awareness enables knowledge to expand and understanding to increase.
Jesse said to me today “As soon as we get that phone call that the fit out is going ahead, you know everything is going to change, right? “ by ‘change’ I know he means the quiet lifestyle we have right now will suddenly become insanely busy as we begin planning and preparing in earnest, opening the metaphorical floodgates to becoming studio owners, and all this seeming idleness will be a distant luxurious memory as we morph into our future selves.
The result? We keep going. I remember this time last year when we were living on opposite sides of the planet and how slowly it felt time was moving. Although week to week my life didn’t change much, I knew each week was bringing me closer to the time when I would relocate to the UK and everything would change massively. But it was the awareness of my perception of time that allowed me to remain present and enjoy the experiences I was having while they lasted. I also noticed that as time moved on it seemed to speed up to the point that I then wanted it to slow down again, a true practice of present moment awareness over the course of a year.
When we come up against situations that we want to be different, whether we want time to pass faster or slower, we have to learn to be present, to accept what is now and receive opportunities as they arise, to become more knowing, to rebuild our focus and also to recognize and look out for the thought pattern of ‘I’ll be happy when…’ because happiness abides only here and now.
We are not our future goals. We are not our setbacks. We are journeyers traveling the path of life, the path of now. We are at once the students and the teachers on this path. Not the achievements or the mistakes.
Together, Jesse and I are creating our present, enhancing our essential nature by enjoying life’s day-to-day experiences. And in that I know we will discover a ‘now’ that means more than any future objective. I know in time we will meet our goals with appreciation, momentum, inspiration and an essential mindful awareness.
- Take some time to accept your distress and then switch gear, see the goodness in what’s happened and identify the next step.
- Go over your options.
- Avoid your ‘habitual response’ and adopt a fresh perspective, even if it’s just this once.
- Cautiously examine ways in which you might be able to deal with the obstacle, whether it’s by sitting tight or collaborating with someone.
- Take comfort in the current circumstances even if that means backing off or waiting longer, you’ll be amazed how situations can change without your active involvement.
- Pay attention to your aims and objectives, but remain open to other opportunities – it may be that you need to change direction along the way.
What obstacles have you faced, work-related or personal that made you rethink or redo something? Did you see the opportunity in it?
Namaste to you.
Breathe. Tune in. Enjoy being alive. Lx