Unattached

Giving all I had toward the art of parenting led me to yoga, to finding that hidden piece of myself, cultivating it, and watching it grow. Yoga continues to supply me with enough calm and confidence to press on. As my love of yoga increased, so did my need to know more about it. I learned that one important component in the yogic path was the idea of non-attachment. I said to myself, “I will have to take a pass on that one”. Attachment is a buzzword in our household. You see, we adopted our youngest child as a toddler, and his little life has been plagued by complications due to his disturbed attachment, moving from his foster family to us during a critical developmental stage. The idea of attachment is always in my consciousness, as most of my efforts for the past seven years have been directed toward educating myself and others about attachment. I have worked arduously on increasing the bonds between myself and my son, while attempting to soothe the affects of his early trauma. During yoga teacher training, I was faced again with the idea of non-attachment. Instead of rationalizing how it didn’t apply to me, I began to think about what attachments would be healthy for me to loosen. I committed myself to letting go of my need to have things turn out the way I planned, or the way I thought they should look. I am working to become less attached to the outcome, and more invested in the experience (for better or worse). I never know if an outing will need to be cut short, if a celebration will result in sadness, or if unexpected joy will rise up from something absolutely mundane. Taking things as they come has become my life’s work. Step onto the mat trusting that things will be the way they are meant to be. Breathe into this pose with no expectation, no final image to achieve. Lean into the struggle and live it as fully as you live the joyful moments. Notice the small changes that happen, and delight in your improved skills of awareness. Join me in deliberately sending powerful energy into the beauty of the process instead of attaching to an outcome.