Taking Time In

Holidays are often a temporary fix. They provide us with a short period of relief, an escape from our problems and our busy, mundane or unsatisfied lives. But then we come home, everything goes back to the way it was and we start counting down the days until the next holiday or getaway! 

Unless... we take the time to reflect and make conscious choices to change our lives in some way. And that's what I love about practicing yoga and going on retreat - it's not about running away FROM yourself but instead running INTO yourself!

At the start of this pandemic, we may have treated it a bit like a holiday. Sure it was unwanted and unplanned, but it was something temporary that would soon be over, so life could return to 'normal'.

We threw zoom parties, did online trivia, became bakers and gardeners, bought puppies, kept busy, distracted ourselves and mostly stayed hopeful for a return to our familiar way of life.

But almost 6 months on, we have not gone back to 'normal' and  it's beginning to look like it could be a long time before we get to enjoy all the freedoms we once did...

When we went back into lockdown recently, I immediately saw it as a second chance. I even posted on social media: 

Back in lockdown - a second chance; to beat this virus, to be in less of a rush to move on, to do things differently; better... and to be here, at home with ourselves...

And so, our 'holiday' has become more of a retreat. Especially here in Melbourne! But instead of taking 'time out' from our lives, we've had to take time in. Instead of running away or finding distractions, we have become more deeply immersed in ourselves.

It's not easy though, and for some these past months have been uncomfortable and confronting.

I've always enjoyed self development and reflection, and believe we should always be learning and growing - personally and professionally. That's why I am drawn to Iyengar yoga which is just as much about self discovery and awareness as physical strength and flexibility.

Last week I heard ex-PM Julia Gillard give a talk. Now the Chair of Beyond Blue, she said some people will emerge from the pandemic with a kind of post traumatic stress, while others will come into a period of post traumatic growth - having taken the opportunity to examine themselves and their lives. 

How do you think you'll come out of this pandemic? Are you making the most of this time in? 

So the wise soul
watches with the inner
not the outward eye,
letting that go,
keeping this.

- Lao Tzu