Practicing Warrior

“The art of being a warrior is to balance the wonder and the terror of being alive.”

Carlos Castaneda

I love Warrior I--it is a place of finding balance and comfort--of CLAIMING my own strength.  I like how my hips and chest are open and facing forward...shining a path in front of me.  I enjoy the feeling of tilting my gaze upward to celebrate the infinite expanse of sky and stars and all my ancestors and angels.  

I also like moving back and forth between Warrior I and Pyramid--not just for the intensity and ease, but because doing this reminds me of the need, in life, to bend and sink, lengthen and reach.  Every day.  

While in these poses, I wonder:

"Can I push through a situation by turning my gaze outwardly?" 

or 

"Do I feel like taking a risk and exposing my heart or would it be easier to fold down and breathe into the situation?"  

Yoga is filled with practical insights that relate to many situations in my life and help me cope with them as well.  Yoga teaches me over and over to breathe and notice...to respectfully and mindfully balance on the edge of comfort and intensity...of wonder and terror. 

I inhale and lift--I am strong.  

I exhale and bend--I am resilient.  

I flow back and forth--I am ALIVE.