Newness. Beginnings. Start. Present. Journey. Time. Change. Starting afresh with a new term/season/schedule/home/city/job/studies/life has that sweet stench of excitement, but can also be a period of great shifts, discomfort and pressure. I know I tend to get whipped up into a frenzy of excitement about the way I think something might be, generally some kind of custard pudding affair, and then, as if on cue, the universe slaps me upside the head and offers me a plate of cold vegetarian sausages. Which is all well and good but just you know, unexpected. There are great lessons there, and I still attempt to learn from them.

Attempting to be present. It´s an ongoing practice.

See, the thing with getting fresh (in terms of a new start) is that it can easily tie itself up into expectation, assumption and attachment. I love a good fantasy me. But why can we not revel in the mystery and embrace change as it happens? I find the attachments to the sorts of ´custard pudding ideas´are nice and all, but sometimes they can cloud over what is on the menu right now. It´s clear on the mat when I´m crumpled and stiff from a nights sleep and i attempt to launch into Vasisthasana, i´m guaranteed to fall flat on my face. In fact, this is likely to happen at any moment of the day without paying attention to the present moment, setting up my posture with breath, stability and complete focus. Hell, those things might all be in check and i still might fall, but the key is to keep abreast of the current pie situation.

Yoga calls us to the present moment. It asks us to surrender all memory and attachment to the past and projections about the future. If emphasis in the practice is laden with pretzel shaped ideas about how we ´did a posture´last time or how good we are going to look when we do it this time then it will suck as the attention is on the more superficial goals. Forcing your body into your minds idea to achieve fast posture-driven results will lead a sad route to injury and defeat the purpose. The key is to allow the body to grow, evolve and change over the days, months and years of your life. Set yourself free from expectations and release any need to get anywhere today, tomorrow or within any timeframe. Make space for transformation and tuck into a plethora of rewards!

Here´s a playlist to chew on. Click here for Spotify link!

Yo La Tengo – Green Arrow
Little Dragon – A New
Teebs – While You Doooo
Zero 7 – Swing
Metronomy – Everything Goes My Way
Noah And The Whale – Beating
Pearl Jam – Just Breathe
Aaliyah – At Your Best (You Are Love)
Mountain Man – Animal Tracks
Jose Gonzalez – Cycling Trivialities
Submotion Orchestra – All Yours – Acoustic Mix
Yann Tiersen – Atlantique Nord
The Whitest Boy Alive – All Ears
El Perro Del Mar – Inner Island
Empire Of The Sun – Etude