Lately, I’ve felt a sense of “stuckness” all around, as if everyone’s energy, including my own, has caught on something we can’t quite name. It’s that time of year when the air is cooler, days are shorter, and we’re drawn inward. The season asks us to slow down, but somehow, that slowing can make us feel heavy and tethered.
This feeling came up in my practice recently, and I was fortunate to meet with my wonderful teacher, Rachel. She led me through a flow that seemed to understand every bit of resistance in me, melting it with each breath and movement. We centered our practice around a mantra: pain in, pain out, joy in, joy out, love in, love out, suffering in, suffering out. The mantra reminded me that we’re here for the whole human experience. We’re here to hold it all, to let each feeling arise and release—none of it permanent, yet all of it so precious.
Coming home, I looked over at my puppies curled up with my new kitten, each one nestled into the other. I felt a swell of love so strong it brought me to tears. It’s incredible to think that in the times I felt I couldn’t go on, something inside kept pushing me forward. And now, here I am, witness to these little lives that have come together in our home, teaching me daily about joy and impermanence. Moments like this don’t last forever—the kitten will stir, the dogs will bark, and the spell will break. Yet, in each of these fleeting moments, I am learning to let go of trying to hold on, to recreate. Instead, I allow myself to just be in the love while it’s here.
Training these little ones, teaching them, making mistakes, and learning alongside them has been an unexpected teacher. I’m working on forgiving myself when I don’t get it right on the first try (or the fifth). They teach me to keep moving, to start fresh, to accept each lesson as it comes.
This season, I invite us all to welcome the whole range of experience, both in our practice and in our lives. Let’s breathe in love and hold each moment with a gentle openness, knowing it is here for us to feel, even if only for a little while.