How to surrender [birthday thoughts]
Let go, she says.
Let me fill you with breath + honey.
How many of us hold onto life with a clenched fist? Demanding it go a certain way? Trying to control for a certain outcome[s]? How many of us forget that we’re not alone here? That there’s an interconnectedness in all beings? In the seen and unseen? How many of us forget that we don’t need to worry so much? Plan so much?
Raises hand.
This is perhaps my greatest lesson over the past decade as a yoga professional and forever student…how to surrender. How to let go. And, as I write to you on the eve of my birthday (my actual birthday will likely be the day I send this letter to you), I’m realizing only NOW that I’m starting to get it.
How to surrender. Although, surrender will likely be a lifelong process. Just when you think you understand it, you’re asked to surrender some more. Into the unknown. Into the safety of the unknown.
And, yet…as I’m slowed down into the depths, shallows, and heights at seven months postpartum, I’m allowing myself to realize that my mind has limitations. That what I can dream of is only a fraction of the possibility of what’s there, of what’s in store for me, and for us (that’s you, too).
That life is a co-creation, a dance of learning to soften and flow, while standing fiercely and boldly for that which is a truth.
It’s learning to trust in what outwardly looks like a contraction period of months and years, but inwardly is a massive expansion. It’s disrupting harmful generational patterns with a presence, with self-care, with community care, with slowing down, with saying no, with waiting, with not planning…with trust.
How do we surrender?
Every piece of yogic practice points to this:
Ishvara Pranidhana. Surrendering to the Divine.
Savasana. Corpse pose. Surrendering to the death of ego.
Meditation. Surrendering to the death of mind.
We practice. It’s a continuous, consistent practice. We show up for ourselves patiently and reverently with movement, nourishment, stillness, mantra, mudra, meditation. It all points to surrender. To co-create with the Divine - whatever that means for you. To recognize the Shakti is ever-present and to allow her to play with you by unraveling your clenched fists.
Yes?
This poem above came to me post-practice recently.
The truth is, I miss you. I miss writing every week and teaching more regularly. I want so badly to open enrollment for Afterglow like right now. But, I need time. My family needs time. I’m trusting that. Because when we give from our overflow and less from the rush, the Shakti is greater. When we give from depletion, we exacerbate this constant cycle of extraction and productivity that our world seems to demand from us.
On this birthday, I commit to surrendering.
I’m letting myself be filled with breath and honey. And when that vessel is filled, when the time is ripe, you and I will make magic together and apart.
Jai Ma.
With love,
Leanne
P.S. I would love to share some exciting things that I’m a part of now. Recently, I became a faculty member for the Inner Peace School of Yoga Therapy and am mentoring students in Perinatal Yoga Therapy. A dream coming true. This season marks a period of teaching, lecturing, and mentoring students interested in supporting clients with fertility, pregnancy, and postpartum.
I’m also continuing to see a very small number of private yoga therapy clients, and am working behind the scenes on some new resources and offerings before opening the Afterglow Mentorship again.
I’m pulling together an Early Bird List for those who might be interested in going on a journey over a few weeks. It’s called: Cultivating a Practice - a 21 Day Journey filled with movement and meditation to establish, refresh, and deepen your personal practice (i.e. Sadhana). You’ll have the offering for life. Personal Sadhana is the antidote to so much of life’s wobbles, and is the missing link for many. If you’re ready to really commit to yourself and come on in, please send me a reply and I’ll put you on the Early Bird List. Early Birds will receive a discounted rate. Please note: This list is not a set in stone commitment and the dates are TBD. Please also note: You can express interest in something without knowing all the details. ;)
And finally, the social media pause continues…and I’m really happy with it. With that, the way that my work continues is by word of mouth. Please share this letter with a friend who would appreciate reading the words or who might be interested in the Cultivating a Practice Journey. Readers will hear about it first. Those who join this newsletter community receive the free Health Checklist rooted in the Kosha model yoga therapy framework.
Thank you for being here! For reading, commenting, sharing, joining me in the work I share. For being you.
