Balance and transitions.

Zainab taught a really great class last Tuesday. Apart from the fact that her anusara/ vinyasa flow was well coordinated and challenging, as usual, she said something that I really jibed with in the beginning of class. She spoke about how the students coming back to class and how the town was in a state of transition, and how we would all need to find a new balance in our lives to account for this shift.

For me, this statement about transition and balance is especially significant, because for the first year since I was six, I will not be going back to school. For me, the incoming students are new and fresh and lively, but I feel oddly disconnected from them. I can’t complain about boring lectures or feel satisfied about a good grade anymore. That stage of my life is over, at least for now.

This transition is a significant one, and it’s strange and sad and a little scary, but at the same time, it’s oddly satisfying. There are new joys to discover and new challenges to overcome. I get to plan my next steps. I’m leveling up.

In the end, life is all about transitions. Ithaca goes from a sleepy summer to a bustling fall. People graduate, drop out, get jobs, quit them, get married and divorced, move away, have children. The key, much like in warrior three, is to find balance by shifting something, whether it’s timing, energy, or focus. To balance on one foot in a yoga class, you must look forward, focus your energy and weight downwards, and use your breath to keep your balance, or you’ll fall over. When change happens, you must change with it, or fall behind.