Down in the valley
the lights shimmer with heat waves
as the last day ends.

Welp, this is my last poolside afternoon here at Pura Vida and I’m experiencing the predictable range of emotions: sadness that this week is coming to an end, excitement about being home, and sheer unadulterated irritation at having to spend the night at the Miami airport for an awkwardly timed stopover.

IF YOU ARE A…

Endlessly branching possibilities, made manifest in the form of a tree

1. Gardener, nature maniac, inveterate scenery connoisseur: The gardenias have started coming out at night. What I thought was a misplaced arbutus turned out to be what’s called a “rainbow eucalyptus”. I keep searching for a feather to bring back home to Evvie and Velcro but so far no dice, although the avian population here is varied and multitudinous. It seems completely bizarre to look up at a tree and actually see bananas or coconuts or those hard little green fruits that look like alien brains inside, it’s like they’ve been duct-taped on after the fact.

2. Asana athlete: Had a practice with the inimitable BJ Galvan on our day off and that one was *iNtEnSe*. Molto handstands, dropbacks, goofy Pincha, doing about everything you can imagine using blocks, and somewhere out there are pictures of me doing my first Mandalasana from headstand, which was easily one of the most insane-feeling things I’ve ever done, and felt like all of my internal organs changed places. I got better, though.

3. Yoga philosophy junkie: The last couple of days have been focussed on sri which is not hard to contemplate when you’re in this environment, but I think I have a deeper appreciation for a word that so often gets hackneyed and used as a fancy abbreviation for “stuff I like” or “pretty things”. And the doshic contemplations we’ve been having have had the bottom drop out of them since my bodywork that I’ve had done since I got here; to be honest, it’s definitely the highlight of the trip so far. I had an Ayurvedic treatment called udvartina and I’m pretty sure it’s made Sjanz’ Top Ten Life Experiences. Now, I know it’s not optimal to do a years’ worth of self-care in one week but if I can be so bold as to lob a little sumthin sumthin out at y’all, it would be TAKE CARE OF YOURSELVES. And ask somebody to help you take care of yourself. Even consider PAYING somebody to take care of you; it makes you take it more seriously. You gotta think about how to create balance…by calming and soothing your tendencies to go it alone, to suffer through what plagues you in stony silence. Sri is about a deep ease, and it can’t be controlled, it can only percolate through the conditions we create for it. So get into the tub or ask for a footrub or something. If there is a deathbed award for “Never Asked For A Footrub”, quite frankly I don’t want it. Is that philosophical? You bet your sweet inner spiral it’s philosophical…you are worthy of that care.

A single orange hangs
fruit of potentiality.
Here we are ripe, healed.

2 Comments »

March 21st, 2009 Natasha Says:

The udvartina sounds incredible. Though I could never be accused of not asking for a foot rub, inspired by this post, I am going to go run a hot bath.

March 22nd, 2009 Leanne Says:

Ok. This has never been an issue for me. I am a pure hedonist…I mean have you ever looked at my toes during practice? Hell I had them painted green just to do your St.Paddy’s day subbage!
You sound…hmm..dare I say it….happy?(I am wincing this as I type, please don’t smack me when you get home) I would like you to know something. You DESERVE that feeling- embrace it and nuture it even in the Vancouver rain.
L. xo

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