This has been a week of letting go and holding on. Seems like a reverse sequence of events, but it makes sense. In canceling my UK trip I had an unexpected feeling of "letting go". The past was suddenly in the past instead of so closely tied to the present. I took notice and realized I was feeling more settled into California and the US when I let go of my trip. My apartment became more welcoming and my my eagerness to do what is right for me became more of a drive. I had been floating down the river, still lightly tethered to the past.
Then today, in our Saturday morning yoga class with Nancy Leigh-Smith at Alameda Yoga Station, I experienced healthy holding-on. The yogis in this class are a welcoming pool of support, providing an anchor for me whenever I am lost at sea. We practiced a stretch where we held hands with a fellow classmate and stretched as far back as we could while holding our joined hands in front of us and our other (deliberately not calling it free) hand behind us. Nancy asked me to demo it with her in front of the class and I instantly felt like we were figure skating partners. It was so much fun. She kept saying, I think you can go back further, you can pull harder.
Next I practiced the stretch with a partner and while I reached my hand back, another partner team, Jeff and Andy, were right there. Jeff and I instantly clasped hands and it became a four person stretch halfway across the room. It made us laugh and smile. We looked to see if we could include more classmates but we were too far away. However, we were all connected through our grasp of California.
