The Healing Power of Work

Have you ever heard the saying :"when I got busy, I got better"? I don't mean to be a buzz kill; I am a big advocate of work being fun. Unlike many,  I have never had a 9-5 desk job, nor do I believe I would be able to rise to that task, should it present itself. My life has handed me a series of chapters. There have been multiple times in my life where all would shift and change, and I would be forced reinvent myself. My journey  has offered me both projects that require 15 hour days for months on end that finally complete and 15 years of daily consistent classes that required my daily presence. Today I have found a balance and live a combination of these two extremes. I have learned through experience that having a free floating, open ended schedule does not leave me feeling free, but lost and unanchored. Daily commitments and tasks that I once shunned as dull and boring, have become the foundational cornerstones for my exciting life and for my enduring passions.

With the ups and downs of a highly emotional heart, I find that I need consistency to keep me grounded. I now find great joy and satisfaction in committing myself to a daily work schedule. Once my book was published and I hit the home runs of great promotion and  my satisfying book tour, I allowed myself some emptiness. Today, as I reconnect with my purpose and get my footing, work is where I find containment. It keeps me on the track.

Back to my daily schedule of clients. Back to my own yoga practice and mindful diet. Back to setting  aside time to self care with meditation, writing, cooking, grocery shopping, errands, tasks and time to create. Recommit to my responsibility towards others with daily connection to social media, weekly blogging and monthly news. These commitments are as much for me as they are for those I feel responsible toward. At some point, in my late 20's, I realized that for me to truly have freedom and flourish, I need to feel connected and be responsible to others on a daily basis. This is why yoga teaches us to show up for a daily practice. It is through this daily commitment that we hold the space for new levels of evolution to emerge. I do not wake up daily and feel compelled to practice, but I have set aside the resistant thoughts that keep me unbalanced and simply do the routine as I would shower or brush my teeth. It is no longer a question of what I prefer. I show up, as is and do my daily work.

As I show up to my daily work, I find that there is a subtle and deep healing that rises up from within me. "Chop wood, carry water" eventually elevates me to the highest freedom which is an experience of responsibility for my own life. Enjoy your work today.