Awake

Every morning I write down five things I'm grateful for. I've noticed when I reread my gratifications that my yoga practice comes up regularly on the pages; not a coincidence.

At the start of quarantine, my best friend and I decided to do virtual yoga together with Adriene Mishler on YouTube. Her YouTube channel is Yoga with Adrienne. This isn't sponsored, but we love her practice so much because not only do you move your body, but she encourages you to honor and acknowledge your mental health and take care of it, as well.

I take her classes by myself during the week, in addition to our virtual "zoom" classes, and in my last class she left me with this idea in savasana:

Imagine yourself awake, what does that look like for you? What does it mean to be alive?

I thought about it, then took one last breath, brought my palms together, lifted them to my third eye, and bowed my head.

Later on, while I was journaling, I thought about what Adriene said, and this is what I wrote:

Is there a right answer? I feel like whatever I write will be wrong. I think of a great deep inhale. Cold, crisp air and my exhale visible as I breathe out slowly.

Living. Immense gratitude and comfort.

Birds chirping and maybe a moment of solitude. Living and nature.

Hearing life itself. Smelling fresh grass or dinner cooking.

A puppy cuddled on my chest or a dog sleeping along my side.

Breathing. Smiling. Laughing.

Joy and love filling up my chest. Bursting.

I'm awake. I'm living.

Enlightened. Open and free.