Beginning again, beginning again, beginning again.

Newsletter sent by Sylva to students on 16th January 2022.

In mindfulness we have this ongoing invitation to begin again, each new moment a brand new fresh opportunity. Often this is taught with breath-awareness practices. The mind wanders off in our practice, this is not a mistake. It’s just what minds do. When we notice we simply come back to the breath. We begin again. 

Your yoga mat, as your refuge, offers you this same generosity. Your yoga mat is that kind, forgiving friend, always welcoming. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been gone, it’s always possible to pick right back up where you left off, entering this space of allowing, allowing you to land just as you are. 

This week I began teaching my first MBSR course to an amazing group of curious, committed yogis. As our homework for this week we do a guided body scan daily, as well as some small mindfulness practices peppered in the day, and we record what we notice in a journal. Our journey is a shared learning journey, as the guide I am by no means the expert, I simply present the teachings, supported by the expertise I have acquired through study and practice, and off we go together to explore, and experience, and awaken. Another invitation in life to begin again, how exciting! 

For those of you interested in learning more about mindfulness and MBSR I have a colleague starting an 8-week course in February with a limited amount of spaces. Please let me know if I can pass your details on to Catriona for further discussion with her if this course might suit you at this time. After my graduation I intend running an MBSR course, maybe you park this thought for the future.

In our online classes we are beginning a new 4-week block this week. We are sequentially making our way through the foundational attitudes of mindful living, qualities we can cultivate on and off the yoga mat to encourage a rich, full, meaningful life. This week we explore patience. 

Patience… anyone else sense a little resistance to this straight away? There's so much to do, there's so little time, rushing is just what I do!! How will we respond to the invitation to move slowly at times, to pause, to feel what is there? Let's see!

I’ll weave the same theme and poses into all of our classes this week so those of you joining me on the mat have the choice and the freedom to attend class from home with the live online class recording. It’s never a problem if you have to isolate at home for whatever reason, your place in class will be there for you when you are ready to return. 

Morning classes in Ballyroan are beginning new courses this coming week, Tuesdays at 10.45am and Thursdays at 9.30am. I have very limited space in both, if you are new to these classes please check with me before booking a space, regulars please go ahead and book in as usual.

Monday night’s 8.15pm class in The Park Community Centre is on pause for now, your places are all secure and it’s looking very likely we’ll be back on the mat soon, thanks to all of you coming on Thursdays and joining us online in the meantime. Thursday night’s 7pm class has a limited number of free spaces, please check with me as we have a waiting list for evening classes. Regulars please book as usual.

I’m really excited to be back in Mutton Lane Yoga Studio tonight for our Full Moon Meditation. We are outdoors in nature wearing our coats and shoes and wooly layers for the start of this practice unless it’s lashing rain. Then we make our way into the cosy fire-lit studio to get quiet. Typically we explore moving meditation outdoors, a quieter moving meditation indoors and a meditation in stillness, lying or seated. The practice is designed to be interesting, explorative, calming and grounding. 

The coming weeks and months we have events in Mutton Lane and Orlagh House with some free spaces. My emphasis is getting us out into the beautiful nature that surrounds these venues as much as we can, breathing in our gorgeous, fresh, green, sea-scented Irish air and immersing our senses in present-moment awareness. I’m here to help your notice your nervous system quietening, your breath slowing, the small knots of tension releasing, and any and all sensations, the whole big bundle of all of you is always welcomed! You always have an opportunity to come exactly as you are and simply begin again. 

I’m closing this email today with a little story below about patience and progress. It might prompt a little sadness. Maybe just hold whatever comes up for you in a spacious body as you let the story land. Maybe a bit of patience is required for this. Maybe a bit of courage. Maybe not today, and that’s ok too. We always have choices, we always have the choice to begin again. 

Really looking forward to seeing you on the mat soon, 

Kindest regards, 

Sylvia. 

The Butterfly 

A man found the cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and could go no further. 

So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small shrivelled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shrivelled wings. It never was able to fly. 

What the main in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were nature’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon. Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were allowed to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as we could have been. And we could never fly. So have a nice day and struggle a little. 

Author Unknown