om monday: why do i want that?

morning, mavens.  i hope you're enjoying this fabulously looooong weekend.  i wanted to share with you something from my yoga class yesterday.

often yoga teachings can seem at odds with wants and desires.  i know, for me at least, i sort of felt like i wasn't fully embracing the yoga mindset until a resigned myself to a life of little possessions and quiet meditation.  but, my teacher, amy, in yesterday's class enlightened us to the true yogic take on wants and desires.

she said that it's ok to want things - like a fulfilling job, money to support your family or even (in her case) red cowboy boots.  but, she explained that it's also important to ask "why do i want the things i want?".

this take on it completely resounds with me.  with this philosophy in mind, any earthly desire can be seen as a conduit for discovering something deeper and more meaningful about yourself.  very cool.

credit {here}

so, let's take this idea out for a spin...why do i desire cosmos?  what are they offering me?  and what am i truly looking for when i order my fabulous $6 drink at happy hour?  well, they offer me (and craig) a night out to connect, enjoy one another's company and talk.  they offer me a "treat" after a long week or long day and provide a subtle means of letting go.  of enjoying something for enjoyment's sake.  so, when i order my cosmo, i'm actually ordering a little mini vaca from our day-to-day lives.  a moment to take a breath and connect with the guy i'm crazy about.

now, that i know what i'm truly looking for, perhaps i can find it in other places as well.  (like in a pomegranate martini....just kidding....)

.

wild fires

when craig and i went down to north carolina last week, we flew over wild fires.  at 10:30pm at night, as we were beginning our descent into wilmington, we gazed out the window and were confused by what we saw.  patches of fiery orange amongst the trees.  we speculated about what it might be.  craig suggested wild fires.

credit {here}

when we landed, we found out that a few hours north, there were indeed wild fires, and the smoke was being blown down the coast to where we were staying on oak island.

while meditating at the end of yoga class today, i remembered the wild fires and a thought struck me.  from that great distance above, they were not threatening or ferocious or hot.  they were mystifying...almost beautiful.

had we been on the ground anywhere near them, it would have been all-consuming.  heat and fear.  terrifying.  yet, from above, they looked rather small, contained & manageable.  not that scary at all.

credit {here}

it made me consider other "wild fires" in my life.  problems, events or thoughts that appear all-consuming and terrifying, yet, given a new perspective, diminish into a small patch of glowing orange. 

what wild fires can you rise above today?.