Who Am I? -

Last month, I was asked to work with a sweet 9-year-old girl who was visiting the US with her family. She has a sensory condition resulting in motor skill challenges which made it difficult for her to keep up with her classmates. Sadly, she got teased by some of them. Her family and her occupational therapist thought my yoga therapy work would be beneficial for her.

We started with gentle therapeutic movements, exploring balance with props, restorative poses with sandbags, and gong meditation. After a few sessions, she was able to tell me what poses felt good or not so good in her body. She felt more connection to her senses. Also, she was able to shift her sense of who she was at the surface to complete awareness.

Sometimes, we feel inadequate due of our own identity or stories. Perhaps she made up a story that she was not a cool kid at school. What is your identity? A business owner, an IT person, a job seeker, a mother, father, daughter, son, a retired person…etc. What about your nationality? Gender? Race? Certain education? Disorder? Injuries? What is your identification? Is your identification influenced by your current situation or mindset? What disempowering thoughts are you harboring? Who are you? Yes, perhaps we are our difficulties, flaws, bodies and minds. In yoga tradition, who we are is an infinite spirit who cannot easily be identified. We are not our identities. We are free to be.

It brings me great joy to know that the sweet 9-year-old girl is more comfortable and confident about herself as she returns back to her homeland. I hope you feel more connected to your true essence each time you practice yoga. The core of being who you really are is absolute perfection.

 

Namaste,

Shigeko ???