May8

Be Playful

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be playful

I can’t believe the first week of May has gone?!  Where does time go?  I do wonder if it’s true that time flies by the older you get?

Anyway, I digress.  For the past two months, I’ve proposed a theme for the month, for yoga practice on the mat, as well as off the mat.  In March, we were brave and in April, we were strong.  This month, it’s be playful.

With the longer days and the warmer weather, there is a spring in our step and a lightness in our hearts.  Isn’t it interesting how the sunshine can bring a smile to our hearts?  That the shadows that we carry in our souls dissipate when we start to cast some light on ourselves?  Whilst for some, the darkness and heaviness still prevails, by being brave and strong, we can draw on those two qualities and bring some lighthearted playfulness to our days.

Young children fall and hurt themselves.  They cry when they’re hurt and soon enough, they seem to easily move on and the next thing you know, they’re giggling infectiously at something insignificant.  Why is it they seem to move on so quickly?  Is it because they’re quick to forget, or perhaps it’s because they’re more adept at living in the present than adults are?  You may not agree with me but I reckon misery is self-inflicted.  We decide to hold on to the past or we create visions of the future that may or may not come true.  Surely if we can learn to live in the present, then we are able to find peace of heart and contentment?  If we can be playful in the present moment, then we can experience a lightness of heart and happiness.

With my yoga class this week, we “played” with certain poses by working with a partner.  We wobbled doing balances with our eyes closed.  We rocked and we rolled; we smiled and we laughed.  If we can do that in an hour’s yoga class, then perhaps we can do that somewhere in the rest of our day too.  So I encourage you to do something different today, to seize the moment and do something silly, to be a child and to be playful.  It will change your state and hence change how your feel.

Let me know how you get on!

Hugs … Ann-See x

Apr29

Letting Go

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It’s been an interesting month, both for myself as well as for some close friends of mine.  Life can be hard hitting at times.  Loss can be brutally painful for all of us; whether that’s loss of a relationship, a job, or because we can’t seem to get our lives going in the direction we want, an abusive background, etc.

However, whatever you’re coming out of, you have a choice. You have the choice to ask for help if you need it.  I know some of us prefer to go through the process on our own and yet there are times when the next step towards healing is confrontational and painful.  It can be lonely and confusing, and having someone to hold your hand, offer a shoulder to cry on can make the difference.  Sometimes, we need someone to hold up a mirror for you and to help you see clearly.  Yes, mourn and grieve for what was and what could have been, but at some point, realise that you need to move on.  In order to do that, you need to let go; let go of the pain, the stuff that’s happened and step forwards with courage.  Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars; letting go in order to move forwards.

“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.”  Socrates

Holding on burns your hands and stops you reaching our for love.  Whatever has happened in your past, you have the choice to carry on living in fear, bitter and full or rage, or let go and do the brave thing.  To make yourself vulnerable in that space between one rung and the other.  You’ve got to use all your strength, hope and courage to propel yourself forward and reach out with your open hand and heart for that bar in front of you that’s full of promise and something new. It is possible that you might do all that and slip off the bar and land on your face. In that case, get back up again and start over. Keep reaching, keep trying and eventually the way will become clear.

The bars become rather fun.

Keep swinging!

Ann-See x

Apr10

A Thousand Years

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I have died everyday waiting for you
Darling don’t be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I’ll love you for a thousand more

And all along I believed I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I’ll love you for a thousand more

The past 9 months or could be considered one of the best and also the worse times of my life.  Yet, that is life and it’s about how we face what’s been presented to us and whether we choose to rock up.  This song is in the current LESMILLS BODYBALANCE™ release, BODYBALANCE™ 60 and it seems to have struck a nerve with many of my friends who are going through a relationship break up.

Whilst I have no answers, I can only say keep breathing and get stuck into a routine.  Whilst your heart is breaking, allow yourself to be fully in the emotion, realise that all our experiences through life make us who we are and who we will be, and one morning, when you open your eyes, the pain will soften.  One day, the walls surrounding your heart will soften enough for your heart to blossom again.

I am a romantic and in my previous post, I wrote about true love.  If you truly have loved and lost, then have faith that if that person is your true love, then you’ve undoubtedly loved them for a thousand years and will continue to love them a thousand years more.

Keep breathing.  Keep dreaming.  Keep believing.

Hugs …

Apr7

I Believe in True Love

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local marketing call tracking love

Do you believe that love can last beyond this lifetime?  Well, I do.  Some things in life fade away in our lifetime but not true love.  You may choose to disagree with me but I believe that true love lasts through this life and beyond.

I feel that many people love and are in love.  I feel that there many succumb to what is comfortable and easy.  It could be that people fall into the habit of being in a relationship with someone, and habits can be hard to break.  I believe that many people don’t really realise true happiness that comes with true love, and for the few who awaken to that realisation, there is the battle between head and heart that leaves us disoriented and aching with thoughts of “what ifs” and “should haves”.

When you’re are lucky enough to have discovered your soul mate, bow down and surrender; surrender with no expectations. When you lose your true love, let go and surrender. When it comes down to it, we have no control.  Choice lies with us and yet we have no idea what’s coming.  Often we get hooked in to the situation and the outcome we desire, and that can only bring us to a space where we feel a squeezing of the heart.

Be in the moment.  Embrace the unknown despite the fact that it can shatter your heart and leaving you wondering, crying and falling to pieces in the aftermath.  The more our heart cracks, the more light there will be in the end.

Be brave.

Surrender.

Stay open.

Keep dreaming.

Keep believing.

Allow the emotions to envelope your being.

Know that this too shall pass.

Whilst we don’t know how things will turn out, keep your beautiful heart open.  Keep breathing.

This life is precious and is woven with bittersweet moments.  Live life with an open heart. Remain in a state of graceful peace.  Let the grand tapestry of life weave its wonders about you.

Life may not be forever but I truly believe that true love is.

I keep faith in that thought.  Do you?

Apr5

Falling to Pieces

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Falling to Pieces

Do you ever get those days where you feel that you’re falling to pieces?

Well, I do, and when you get those days, all you want to do is crawl under the duvet and hide.  Yet, you know it’s part of the ebb and flow of life and where there is darkness, there will be light.  We just need to surf the emotional tide with grace. Here are some things that help me through such periods in my life:

  1. Remember that this too shall pass and there is always tomorrow.
  2. Haul my butt out of the house and be with other people.  Being around other people do tend to lift your mood.  Luckily, having to go off to teach or deliver a training workshop means I have to in order to generate some income and ensure that the bills are paid.
  3. Whip out my yoga mat and do a yoga practice.  I can leave my sh#t off the mat and drop into my body and my breath.
  4. Slap myself into realising that I need to lighten up and laugh at myself.  I do tend to be oversensitive and over think stuff, which means I tend to spiral into the vortex of self-pity, so why not cry from laughter rather than sadness?
  5. Surrender to grace.  As much as we try to take control of our life, who knows what the future really holds for each of us?  The universe has bigger plans for each and every one of us so have faith and trust.

So whilst we’re all given these times in life to dwell on, we can see them as opportunities to get to know ourselves better, to experience the yin and yang of life, and hence to learn and grow.

Be brave and be strong.  Keep your chin up and keep breathing …

x