The snow has come, the arctic cold has gone, and I am back at yoga class.  A deep soul-cleansing sigh was heard around the world.

It’s been a little more than a month since I last was at a yoga class.  I did a class online, and lots of stretching and other exercise in between, but there is something to be said for an in person class with like minded folks.  The oms are just so much better!

This session we are focusing on the five steps that Kripalu yoga teaches as a way to deepen your practice.  Kripalu is a non profit organization dedicated to helping people through yoga in Stockbridge Ma.  I would love to go to one of their R&R retreats sometime; but until then, I will learn a bit right here at home.  Here they are, the steps toward a deeper practice.

Step one: Breathe.

Step two: Relax.

Step three: Feel.

Step four: Watch.

Step five: Allow.

So, don’t these look like 5 steps toward a more peaceful life?  A more robust life?  A more you are here life?   To me, they look like a mantra I can use in difficult or stressful situations to remind myself that I am here to be and to have all the feelings, but not to let them take control.  I can watch them come, and I can allow them to go.

We also heard this today:  “The breath is always now.”  Come back to your breath.  Don’t linger in the past.  Don’t worry about the future.  Breath.  The breath is always now.