I love March, when during the Slice of Life Challenge, I commit to writing on a daily basis. It's fun during 31 days of posts to watch the ebb and flow of my writing. Some days I'll be incredibly pleased with how a post turned out; other days I'll just be glad I posted anything at all. A huge thanks to the gang at Two Writing Teachers for hosting, organizing, and commenting on this ginormous event each year. I appreciate the community of writers you encourage the entire month of March, and all the Tuesdays the rest of the year. Thank you, thank you.
**This March, I plan to connect as many posts as possible to my #OLW for the year - SAVOR.**
Author's note: I read somewhere (I think in Georgia Heard's brilliant book, The Revision Toolbox) that a great revision strategy is to pull a line or two from something you've already written, and begin a new piece with those lines. I thought I would give it a shot - I have pulled two lines from yesterday's post to begin today's slice of life.
In and out
In and out
My yoga instructor's voice was a constant reminder
telling us all to breathe during our time together this morning.
Breathe all the way in, and at the top...
sip in just a little bit more air.
Switching from noticing our breathing to deepening each breath.
Settling into a zone of breathing and being aware of body positions.
Stay for the exhale.
A gentle reminder to not shortchange this cycle of breathing.
Listen to your body.
Make it feel good and juicy.
Clarifying the need to practice yoga at your level;
don't be concerned about what others can or cannot do.
Root to rise.
The importance of keeping our feet firmly on the ground,
rooted to the earth as we flow through our postures.
Let outside thoughts go and
Still your mind
Staying in the present, thinking only of the breath and the postures and the flow.
Namaste
Ending our time together by appreciating the spirit in each other.
......
As I reflect back on our class, the yoga instructor's words continue to guide my thinking and actions. I think there are many wise life lessons in those words for me to contemplate.
I often think that yoga is an excellent model for what we do as writers, thinkers, teachers. Inhale, exhale. Widen -- open -- then narrow -- focus. The creative process in a nutshell. Plus in yoga, no matter what level you are, there's something that each person can experience and gain from. Jut like in any good classroom. Have you seen I AM YOGA by Susan Verde and Peter Reynolds?
ReplyDeleteJames Preller
This is a post I'll be returning to... there's a lot to think about here. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI love the root to rise portion. I feel as if I could write a lot about this.
ReplyDeleteI have never done yoga- but it sounds like you are enjoying it. Some day I might give it a try -- but right now running is what I need. I like the idea about taking a line or two... I will give that a go. Thanks
ReplyDeleteClare
Yoga is great to de-stress and calm you down! I do pilates which incorporates some yoga techniques. I also like the idea of using some lines from another post, and making the story something new!
ReplyDelete(from hannanabanana, hannahshappenings.net)
I so enjoyed reading this piece knowing you picked out lines from another piece and took them in a different direction.
ReplyDelete