Our Attention is Our Connection

I am trying to listen to my eldest daughter’s recital of  Twinkle, Twinkle on the recorder, whilst bathing my youngest daughter, whilst trying to explain how to work out the sum of 3 and 1/2 subtract 1 and 3/4 to my middle daughter and call a friend at the same time to wish her a Happy Birthday before she goes to work.
It’s a typical evening in our house and all in the name of being a mum.

Like most women I am renowned for multi-tasking, something I do quite naturally and I am becoming more skilled at.
As I rush from one thing to the next, my head is racing as I focus entirely on my destination, getting the tasks done. It’s moments like these; when I find myself juggling too many things at once, trying to cram too much into an already congested schedule, that I feel the most disconnected.

It is through my Yoga Practice that I am learning to slow down, to be attentive to the finer details and to enjoy my journey.

Each day as I step on the Yoga mat and begin to let go of the physical form of the asanas, I notice the intimate and finer subtlies of the pose, ..’What happens to my inner thighs as I ground down through the outer edges of my feet in the Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Dog)?  If I simply scoop my tailbone and integrate my shoulders in Vasisthasana (side plank) can I open my heart and get more extension?
It is at these moments when I am fully attentive to the present moment I am connected.

The biggest challenge for me is to take these lessons with me off the Yoga Mat as I continue to juggle family life. To me that is the beauty of Yoga and keeps me returning to the Yoga mat. No matter how many times I create a Downward Dogs, there is always a new subtly I discover, and no matter how many times I bathe my daughter or listen to the recital of Twinkle, Twinkle it is always a new experience if only I pay attention and stay connected to the present moment.