Celebrating Yourself and Holidayasana!

In order to give to others you also need to give to yourself. In order to be a good friend, family member, or partner you have to be good to yourself first. You have to love yourself. In Anusara® yoga we begin with the premise of self-embrace. This is not any sort of narcissism. Rather, it is a reverence for nature, of which we are a part. It's also a show of appreciation for our family members, teachers, and friends who have helped form us.

A close friend who spoke English as a second language once said to me, “I am so conceited!” When I explained to him that conceited was probably not the word that he was searching for, he explained, “What I mean is that I love myself…I mean, I’m the only me there is. If I don’t love me, who will?” And then he said, “Don’t you love yourself?” I never had anyone ask me this before, so I briefly outlined a few of my faults, and then a few strengths. He laughed at me and said, “No, that’s not what I mean. I mean, don’t you love you?” It took me a minute, but I finally said, “ …I guess so. I mean…yes!”

The exchange took place just a few years ago, and in retrospect, it is one of the best gifts anyone has given me. He helped to give me the gift of myself. The more I embrace myself, the more I am able to offer love to the people around me. I am better equipped to be a friend, a teacher, and a family member. So this December, in the midst of my gift buying and finishing up of 2010 commitments and goals, I also plan to take fabulous care of myself. Because I love me. It is in this spirit that I happily agreed to be the general cheerleader for SocialWorkout’s Holidayasana challenge.

Holidayasana is a playful and completely free challenge inviting us for the month of December to...

  • practice yoga 20 times
  • eat 25 healthy meals
  • volunteer 60 minutes for someone in need
  • avoid using disposable plastic bags.

You can practice anywhere you want, and join individually, or in conjunction with one of the 14 NYC yoga studios who are involved. You can log your practice and connect with other yogis, celebrate our community, and, most importantly, celebrate yourself!

Come join us!

Holidayasana!



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