Monday, not Moon Day

Well, to anyone who thinks today is a Moon Day (because of bad info I provided in yesterday's entry): sorry. I had that written in my calendar--whether I had a bad source, or whether I just transcribed the info incorrectly, I have no idea.

So it was back to practice this morning. I got up and got through standing, at which point My Gift was ready to begin. I had this crazy idea that I would talk her through the suryas and standing as I did the seated poses. Yeah, um, no. Not gonna happen. Try it sometime: do your seated poses, while explaining and counting inhales and exhales for someone doing suryas and standing. It's pretty daunting. And I mean daunting as in impossible.

So I hopped up and did the suryas with her, and bits and pieces of standing, to remind her where she was. Tomorrow, we will both start at the same time and then when we finish standing poses, I'll go on with the rest of my practice. I can just be a little late getting to work. Luckily, I can set my own schedule there. And "I was doing yoga" is, for some reason, a perfectly acceptable explanation for my boss.

Ashtanga with My Gift is a very strong experience for me. I know I've written that the hardest thing for me to contemplate, when I do "the zen thing" (as my Mom would characterize it ;-) is to confront the fleeting nature of those I love. Over the past year, we've dealt with My Gift's lupus diagnosis and resulting health challenges, and been faced, intensely, with the fact that we don't know what the future will bring. To practice with her feels like a great...well, gift. Especially since in just a few months she'll be moving out and going to college. Off to her own life, where I can't monitor her health every day. Scary. But also necessary. I guess all of this is totally normal Mom stuff. But it feels more intense, as we practice together.

Here's a picture from yesterday. First visitors to the new bird feeder. Sorry about the washed out color: I had to take it through the window, because they were shy. Happy Monday.