Unpredictability, Nature’s Yoga Teacher

There’s nothing like a fierce hailstorm to bring you back to the present moment.  After writing last night’s post, I went downstairs to make dinner. While the kale was steaming on the stove, I stepped outside to enjoy the almost-summer breeze.

The air felt electric, and the sky was a shade of yellow-ish gray that lets you know a serious storm is brewing. Then, I glanced down, and about 6 inches from where I stood, a rabbit was leisurely enjoying some clover.   What an awesome display of living in the moment.  He wasn’t worried about what was headed our way or catastrophizing,  he was just observing while getting a full belly before hopping off to take cover.

Then, as if someone pulled a lever to release bouncy balls at a child’s birthday party, the sky opened up and melon-ball sized hail pounded everything in sight for 20 minutes.  Suddenly, the thoughts in my head about tomorrow’s classes and next week’s meetings dissolved and I snapped back to the present.

Every once in a while, mother nature reminds us just how small we are in the grand scheme of things, and that despite our best planning, things can change outside of our control in an instant.

As I was having a mild panic attack watching the hail turn the plants, trees, and shrubs in my yard into nothing but a pile of sticks; and praying my car didn’t get destroyed, I thought of yoga bunny and his stillness.  I started to see the dichotomy of the rabbit and the powerful storm as messages.

The rabbit is a symbol of new beginnings, procreation, abundance, comfort, and vulnerability.  Rabbits teach us about how to handle fear.  If you’ve ever surprised a rabbit, they tend to remain still and assess the situation.  They quite literally, look before they leap.

Conversely, storms often show up in tales as symbols of chaos, confusion, fear, destruction and –most appropriately– change.

The storm eventually passed, and everything was OK, but the symbolism wasn’t lost on me.  I’ve been laboring over some decisions that would result in life altering changes; changes for the better, but a leap into the unknown nonetheless.

I’ve been playing the role of observant, yoga bunny for quite sometime now.  So, perhaps now’s the time to be willing to weather the storm of change and take a hop of faith.

Namaste.

– Your Charmed Yogi