Still Ticking

"Love is fed by the imagination, by which we become wiser than we know, better than we feel, nobler than we are; by which we can see life as a whole: by which and which alone, we can understand others in their real as in their ideal relations."     - Oscar Wilde

Lately I've been barely able to keep my head on straight while dealing with a bout of fatigue. When the weather changes it seems to hit me. Though, thankfully I haven't fallen ill. I'll take a dose of tiredness any day. It's all about balance.  I've continued on with my Swedish language studies, but if I were to be completely honest, I'm a little disappointed with the SFI program. I tend to be a stickler for organization and there seems to be none. Like, where's the curriculum? So, I'm learning to go with the flow and not be overly concerned with what could be better. Riiiiight. It just pisses me off at the same time because I have to devote four hours a day, five days a week, to it. With that being said, comes frustration. Along with the dissatisfaction comes a really bad attitude. Haha, it interesting to observe myself in these situations. Nobody's perfect. I'm still learning, but very slowly. Yeah. Some government programs sound great in theory, but how they are implemented is where the meat of the matter is. It can only be as good as the people who run them.

Jag har fått nog! Det gör inget!

I do speak a bit of Swedish, and when I do I have the added benefit of sounding cute. You see, an American accent, when speaking Swedish is something like when we in America enjoy hearing British accents, we like it. We like the sound of it. There is something endearing about it. Well, I guess the same goes for Americans speaking Swedish. So I guess I lucked out on this one.

Along the way I've learned how to identify languages quite well. Living in Stockholm, not only do I hear Swedish, and often English, but a litany of other languages. This is most certainly a international city.  When on the train, out in the street, I hear it all - a mosaic of various languages. I also find it amusing how just by the looks of other Europeans you can tell what country they are from. My boyfriend especially has an eye for this. Without a second thought he'll be like those are Germans, French, Danish, whatever. Interesting how with any given country there is a collective identity that comes with the territory.

Practice, Practice, Practice!

Practice continues to develop. It's always about constant internal refinement. I just finished a weekend with Certified Ashtanga Yoga teacher R. Alex Medin. From Norway, he brings with him a vast current of experiential knowledge when it comes to the practice of yoga and philosophy. Deeply rooted in pranayama, he really pushed us to our edge. Something I found highly challenging, and at the same time, appreciative to be guided into new pathways of my awareness. When it came to Mysore practice Alex balanced the use of physical adjustments with many subtle adjustments, seamlessly. It takes a keen eye to observe where students need to grow when it comes to the subtitles of the practice. There were times when he told me to take my dristhie even further in various postures, even verbally telling me to root my feet firmly down toward the earth, grounding, as I raise my hands over head for the first movement in Surya Namaskara A. I was pleasantly surprised how much of a difference it made. There is more to the practice than the physically challenging stuff, obviously the paradox that comes with a Ashtanga yoga practice. He stressed the importance of settling into the postures, and relaxing into the energy of effortlessness. Yes, sounds easier said than done, but really there is no reason to use the practice as another thing to beat ourselves up over. Cultivating a space for centered movement is what it's all about, and how it is expressed physically is something of second importance.

Thank you, Alex! See you in Mysore!

 After a very sweaty practice!