Christmas is coming… are you filled with joy, excitement, or maybe a mixture of many feelings. Christmas means different things to different people, and this can lead to very different expectations. It can be a day for families to come together and yet for some it can make them feel even more alone. Whatever your perspective or situation it is important not to place too high an expectation on this one day of many but instead to live each day as fully as you can. It can be a day of giving, of sharing or feeling like you’ll never have enough or of feeling like you have too much. It is a day of excesses. Everything is heightened and yet it is just a day….and like every other day, for all our hopes and dreams about it, we do not have complete control over it or the people we share it with.
People are often amazed that I practice yoga even on Christmas day. For me I feel I need yoga on this day of all days to ground me to help me see each moment for what it is. To help me to see what other people may be asking of me. To help me to be not in my idea of how this day should be but in the actual moment as it unravels. I get many benefits from my yoga practice but the most important one for me is to train my mind to be more present. I practice this awareness on the yoga mat but I also bring it off the yoga mat into every aspect of my life. Yoga helps me immensely to embody each moment. Sure I have days where I get on the mat and my mind is totally distracted. I have days where my mind is so distracted that my yoga mat is the last place I want to be but those days of overstimulation are when I need yoga the most. I just take it one breath at a time.
Practicing yoga at Christmas time can seem selfish – how you can find the time
When your around your friends and your family it can seem strange or selfish to disappear for an hour or so to practice yoga. Is it really though? I feel I can be of much more use to others if I have practiced yoga. I am fortunate in that my friends and family understand that I practice yoga daily, that it is part of who I am. That said, if I feel like it is conflicting with their day I will discuss it with them. I can be flexible (pun intended) about when I practice. If you feel your friends and family do not want you to practice yoga talk to them about it. Tell them why it is important for you to find this time to practice yoga and the benefits you get from it. Be flexible, make your practice shorter, find somewhere out of other people’s way or practice at another time of day when others are busy or before they get up. Who knows they may even want to join you…
As the day unravels keep an open mind if you feel disappointed is it because you are comparing reality to your expectation of what you think reality should be. If you are dissagreeing with someone else are you taking the time to understand where they are coming from? If you are having a conversation with someone are you really listening? Of course with all the yoga in the world conflict can still arise life can be as challenging as it can be delightful. Yoga can give you some tools and some space to experience each moment more fully.
I hope you have a wonderful Christmas. Please share below how yoga helps you through the festive season.
