Day 148

Difficult day. Blech.

It started out okay - I rose early to do my practice before heading down to the soup kitchen. Early morning practice is almost always tough. I'm never as flexible in the morning as I am in the afternoon/evening, especially in my forward bends and back bends. But it's so, so nice to go about my day with the memory of my practice on the edge of my brain, knowing that I've already done it and don't need to worry about making time for it.

I was particuarly stiff this morning. I did my best in all the poses, skipping nothing, and stayed with my breath for the duration of the practice.

Then, surprise: In Bhujapindasana, I was able to swing my feet through my arms and put my head on the floor (kathunk). I've never been able to do that before and I'm not sure what inspired me to try it this morning. Wonder if I'll be able to repeat it tomorrow?

Frequently, it's these very questions that motivate me to the mat. ;-)

Afternoon: I had something on my mind. I decided to go for a long walk to think it through. The park was like a big sheet of ice. I slipped on the ice and landed in the biggest, foulest pile of dog shit in the vicinity. I'm totally not making this up.

There I was, laying on the ground, covered in shit. So I checked in with myself and for the first time in hours, I was totally present in the moment: the ice, the cold, the bruise on my hip, the stench of wet dog poo, my own deep sadness and frustration. And I started crying... No, actually I started *bawling*.

I managed to half-walk, half-crawl to a sidewalk and I cried all the way home. Dog poo is therapeutic.

My slippery fall into that dog shit is an apt metaphor for my entire day, actually.

Suffice to say, my Flickr account is now 'friends only' and I spent most of the evening sorting through the consequences of that change (many of the photos on this site are housed on Flickr and the links were broken during the transition - if you notice anything wonky on the site, let me know).

And if any of you are on Flickr and want to be on my 'friend list', drop me a line.