The truth in ourselves and others

Hey, guys, well, I am just trying these shannanigans out for the first time, so bear with me! In my profile picture, yes, I am strapped into a car seat in Dallas, which, aside from looking funny, can remind us of the journey that we are embarking on together!

But first, here I am with my best friend from college, Danny (the one pictured to my left, not the one trying out his best Leonardo DiCaprio "King of the World" impression from Titanic). We were just reunited in Dallas after (5?) years of not seeing each other, and nearly that of being out of touch - and we used to be inseparable. What a miracle and healing experience it has been to see her again. Danny, you are light itself, thank you for being part of my life, you are a blessing and a gift to me.

As are you all. I am so blessed for all the friends I have been reunited with over the last few months. I thank you for the love and support you have shown me in your own ways. I am not taking this journey alone, you are coming with me! You are always with me in spirit and in my heart. When you look at the stars, we are connected because the same stars look down on me as look on you.

Thank you all for the good vibrations and positive energy you have sent me since my email in January. I may go many places on this Earth, but home is where the heart is. This blog is one way in which I make a commitment to you - there will be a way to update it in Senegal!

I leave Monday, March 10th, for Atlanta, for three days of training. March 12th we fly in the evening to Senegal and arrive the morning of the 13th, to begin 8 weeks of in-country training, including a homestay and language (French) emersion. At the end of this time, we are assessed on four characteristics: language, cross-cultural, safety, and technical (pertaining to environmental education - our job!).

Senegal has had a 40 year drought and has problems with erosion and over-foresting. Of course. Culturally, it is 90% Islamic, and is French speaking, but we will learn a local language, too (maybe Wolof!). We will then be moving, probably to a village somewhere, maybe without running water and electricity, and probably living in our own hut in a family compound. There may be other volunteers nearby, maybe not. The rest is TBD! :)

OK, about my blogsite....My Senegal blogsite has a yoga title because Yoga means Unity. We are all one. The many emails, phone calls, thoughts, and positive energy I have received has been evidence of this. But we all need to practice this feeling of one-ness, because, let's be honest, it's not easy!

The next time you are pi**ed off with someone, or hurt or annoyed, remember that this person IS you, and that thing that ticks you off is inside you, too; or haven't you also hurt someone, too, at some stage? You may not have meant to, but we've all gone through stages where our judgment and vision were not the clearest, and we may have made mistakes or hurt ourselves and others unintentionally.

And just like we may not have meant to hurt others, maybe we have been hurt out of others' unconsciousness or ignorance, too. We can start to view others' actions from a place of empathy rather than from a point of incredulity, sadness, self pity, anger, or misunderstanding. After all, what goes around comes around - this is the karmic law - so where someone else is, we may have been before, will be later, or have been or will be in another life.

Sages say that the things that we recognize in others are a reflection of what is in ourselves, for good or for bad, so there is no "higher ground." We all have the saint and the sinner inside of us, and yoga ("yoking" - "unity") is just an acknowledgment of that.

To quote Seane Corn (vinyasa yoga teacher), yoga is not all "butterflies and unicorns," because WE are not just these things; yoga just seems to bring out our true nature in greater clarity. It doesn't whitewash who we are, but it makes us aware of what we are dealing with, as the issues are able to rise to the surface rather than staying festering underneath. We each have a shadow side, so recognizing this in ourselves, and then feeling empathy towards others when when we see it in them, marks a huge step towards peace and liberation.

We discussed this in our book club yesterday (thanks, Becky!), regarding Paramansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi (highly recommended!) - many of us have experienced the dissolution of barriers between self and other at some point, be it physically, psychically or emotionally. This can be a truly heart and mind opening experience - and we can choose to have it more often, if we are just conscious of dispelling the judgments and barriers against others as they arise.

Let's be conscious of when we erect barriers and let them divide us from others; and conversely, when we can break these barriers down. Then we can make steps to dissolve divisions and see the unity that is really there. Let's strive to rid ourselves of the blinders that separate us, and witness the miracles that are possible when we realize that everything is one thing, one Nature, one Being, one Creation - this is the essence of life and this is why yoga, "unity," is life! Namaste, everyone, the light in me meets the light in you! May love and light be with you and follow your holy steps everywhere.