Downward Dog

One of my "absolutely won't miss" activities here in the Trenches is yoga class.  Not only is it great for staving off arthritis, but it is a fabulous stress reducer.  No matter how much stress there is here in the Trenches, yoga class makes me feel so much better and calmer.  In fact, without yoga, I'm not sure I could   continue what I do and how I do it.  Sure, as you all know,  I run and swim on a regular basis, but without yoga.....  All of this stress concerns someone else's life (not that I don't have plenty of it in my personal life, but that's not the subject of this blog), but what about when it is your life?  When you're stressed, you feel tired, and when you feel tired, you don't want to go and do the things that reduce your stress because they require energy.  Sometimes I feel that way about yoga, but I know that it is especially when I feel that way that I need to take care of myself and do the things that make me feel better.  I don't mean drinking to excess or abusing drugs.  I mean doing the things that you enjoy when you're not stressed.  Maybe that's reading a book, sitting in front of a fire, watching a really dumb movie, quilting, running,....or doing yoga.  The important thing is to do something.  Life in the Trenches, especially when it's your life with which we're dealing here in the Trenches, is massively stressful.  It can affect your health and your sanity.  From our point of view, it affects your ability to think clearly and to make the important decisions that are necessary in order to have a successful life after you leave us.  That's right, for us in the Tenches, making sure you take care of yourself is important for two reasons:  first, because we care about you; and second, because you're no good to us if you're too stressed to assess options and make decisions.  Take care of yourself so we can take care of you. Namaste.