Bracing for Round Two
I'm actually not talking about the election. This is a time of great transition for my family and me.
January 1 will be the first New Year's Day in seven years that I do not lead a yoga workshop, carrying on my mother's longtime annual tradition with Your Community Yoga Center in Connecticut. Since my mom's death in 2018, the studio has been a lifeline keeping me connected to her friends and students. The New Year's and Mother's Day classes I've taught there (and simultaneously over Zoom) mean more to me than I can say, and I am forever grateful to owner Jennifer Brosious for giving me a yoga home when I felt lost in grief.
I hope to resurrect these special classes in the future.
When I say round one, I'm talking about the span I was a new mom caring for my own mom as she was dying, and then brought my grandmother to live in my building for her final chapter coinciding with the onset of the pandemic. (This is the period covered in my memoir in progress.)
And now:
I haven't written much in this newsletter about my sister, but she is my best friend and an absolutely extraordinary aunt to my boys. (Paxton wears his "My Aunt Is Awesome" T-shirt whenever it comes back from the wash, at least once a week.) My sister and brother-in-law are expecting a baby in early January. I hope to be present for my nephew's birth, to give even a fraction of the assistance our mom would have offered, and to reciprocate the incredible support that Heather gives me.
Nor have I written much about my dad, but he is a rock in our family, unwavering in his devotion to his children and grandchildren. He is my sons' only living grandparent, and how Maceo and Paxton love their Grampy. We recently learned that my dad's long-contained prostate cancer has spread into his abdominal lining, and he is preparing to begin treatment, likely chemotherapy combined with hormones. Again, I will do everything in my power to support him, just as he is always there for us.
On top of all that, there’s the usual: One of my kids and then the other just had walking pneumonia, my house didn't have hot water for five days, and my car's side mirror broke. Life. It's a circle. It's a cycle. It's a lot.
Sometimes kind of a lot. Sometimes a lot a lot. I think currently it's a lot a lot for many people.
In listening to my mom's meditations to find one to share with you this month, I discovered a 15-minute recording that I instantly sent to my dad suggesting that he listen to it during chemo. I'm calling it MEDITATION Trustful Surrender, and you can find it in the collection I share with my free newsletter subscribers. (Get access here.) It involves slow breathing with prolonged exhales to calm the nervous system, tuning into all five senses as gatekeepers, and visualizing a ball of white healing light. My heart skipped a beat when I heard my mom use the words "trustful surrender" to describe the act of exhaling. Trust and surrender are precisely the qualities I struggle to cultivate and the ones I most need in my current whirlwind of life. I hope this practice serves you as well.
While I won't have a class on January 1, I will send out an email that day including the journaling prompts I would have used. The journaling is often participants' favorite part of the class, and I love the ritual of taking stock of life: what's going well, what can be released, what we want to create. In spite of my numerous personal responsibilities, I am determined to keep plugging away at my writing, to continue and even expand on this newsletter and my healing offerings on social media.
Sanity comes through connection, and I'm thankful that you are out there. Wishing you peace through the holiday season and beyond.
Love,
Sara
A little help getting by
Here are some videos I made in November with exercises for stress management:
- 6 easy stress release techniques
- a soothing position for the nervous system
- rocking and rolling for tension relief
- a simple grounding technique
- 2 quick exercises for a sore or tight low back
- butterfly taps for calming
You can repeat the phrases in this graphic like a mantra. And I compiled a list of more stress relievers here.