The trick is to keep breathing...

Wednesday is yoga day. My teacher, Laura, just got engaged this weekend so we spent a few minutes before class chatting and examining the ring (read: Rock Of Gibralter) and talking about how her fiance proposed. It was a nice opportunity to get to know her a little better, and also to start to redirect my mind from the day's irritations to the calming practice that is yoga.

We did a lot of balancing poses again today, spending time in the tree position, the eagle position (similar to the tree but more like a pretzel), and a couple of triangle positions where we were balanced between both feet and a hand, or one foot and one hand. While we were in these poses, she reminded us to keep breathing.

One of the things I've noticed about myself is the tendency to hold my breath when I'm thinking about something or focusing intently. I've had several people, at many times throughout my life, ask me what the sigh was for when all I had done was realize that I was holding my breath and breathed deeply to get everything restarted again.

In fact, I just realized I'm doing it right now, as I'm thinking about what I'm going to type. It seems odd to need to be reminded to breathe, but for whatever reason I seem to need that reminder.

What do I get, I wonder, out of not breathing? Is it anticipation? Is it that I'm truly so eager to see what's going to happen next? Or is it a symptom of a lack of body-consciousness? Maybe something else entirely?

Breathe, Erin. Breathe.