Happy Spring / (old-world) New Year!

Happy Spring / (old-world) New Year, everyone! 🌸 I know it’s a couple of days late, but here is a picture of the cherry blossom tree in my garden, in full bloom to make up for it. The other trees in the background aren't quite out of hibernation yet but we're getting there, and personally, I can feel it. 🍃

Spring is in the air. It's officially here according to the Gregorian calendar, and life is starting to spring. Accompanying the picture this morning, were the sounds of birds. Two magpies nesting in one of the taller trees next-door. Pigeons periodically chomping cherry blossom flower, and a bunch of other birds of different sizes, shapes, and colours doing their thing all day long - setting up for a new season and a wealth of untamed possibilities.

The sky is calm. There's a chill in the air still, but the sun is low on the horizon and it's that time of day not long after sunrise, where the colours remain slightly orange and pink in places and everything carries a bit of a glow.

It's fresh. It's new. It’s a new dawn and it’s a new day. The birds know it, and so do the other early birds. Not just nature I hear in the vicinity - no. I hear shutters on buildings, distant voices, and delivery vans. There's a dog barking and I just heard the sound of a bottle top clinking to the floor in one of the streets nearby. A child's voice - a part of the school run. Early doors breakfast clubs. Sounds of commuters. A car. Theres a chill on my skin as I sit here in just a t-shirt and a jumper, flip flops, leggings, and some trainer socks. My fingers are cold as I rub them together. Icy cold fingerprints asking for the warmth of an inviting coffee mug, and hands that are ready for things to do and ‘not enough hours in the day’.

Yet my nostrils appreciate the full breath in, of fresh cool morning air that has not yet been polluted too much, having had a chance to circulate newness into the air overnight.

My morning this morning has been a mindful one, yet it also reflective as I tap away at my phone here, writing this 'journal'. A stark contrast between times and traditions, as I use technology to write this. Using mindfulness techniques and a sense of presence to do so, I also hear two teen girls using their 21st-century phones and chatting. And so, I further sit here mindfully yet electronically-engrossed, pondering on how one - neither tradition nor modernism - need be the death of the other.

Old does not have to suppress the new. And similarly, new is not required to push out the old. Both are better off respected in their own right and kind of moulded together. At least in my own opinion.

Like, I never understood how people could ever claim to know something wholeheartedly as an authority on whatever subject matter, when only having researched or tried out only one subject area or practice (or era).

Personally, I appreciate a fair few things in life, and so I also naturally kind of gravitate towards being curious about a lot of different life areas. I seek to understand and so I like being present, and I also enjoy research and learning via technology.

As a yoga teacher, I like to bring this Old vs New - East Meets West philosophy and respect into my yoga practice. Oftentimes, sticking kind of religiously to traditional sequences like Pawanmuktasana, based on what I'd learned in Nepal as a result of what had been passed down from elders. But at the same time, I've also learned lots of useful yoga, breathwork, and meditation techniques over here in the UK and online - so to me -it made sense to sort of fuse different styles and philosophies together.

Aside from teaching private one-to-one and group classes, I have also had the pleasure of teaching ‘Yoga for Carers’ classes each week, along with Breathing & Meditation, for more than two years via a corporate contract. And so far - the feedback from regulars who have been with me since day one - along with newbies who pop along, has been fantastic! The best part about it though, is having had the chance to help and teach a vast variety of age ranges and abilities. Allowing mindful awareness of the challenges faced by often overlooked and disadvantaged pillars of the community.

Through teaching a variety of people, I have had the opportunity to tailor each class and many of the poses, to suit a range of minds and bodies, and for that I am grateful.

✨️ Which leads me to this place right now - a place of wanting to share this practice further.

Afterall, yoga has been a bit of a life saver for me, personally. Maybe not literally, but in terms of mental and emotional health, yes. A way to take care of, and in a way - control my mind and emotions - was one of the main reasons I got into yoga in the first place. Or at least, it's what led me to breathing exercises and meditation, because that's how I started the whole process of learning, circa 2012-16 - as a way to manage a tricky period in life. Which then later led to the completion of my first yoga teaching qualification, in 2017.

Yoga for me, has provided a way in which to temper and calm - balance and ground - my mind, body, and emotions. It's brought out my spirit, a passion for life, and a sense of real purpose. On top of that, it seems to have broughT me some much needed creative insight, focus, and motivation - all things that did not come easy to me in the past.

Yes, there have been other things in my life that have helped improve my sense of ease over time too, but one practice which has stayed the most consistent in my life since I started, has been yoga. It's stayed with me, and I'll stay with it.

Yoga for me, brings me back to life. Literally - how it feels, to BE alive. As simple and as insignificant as it sounds, it’s not. It’s quite the opposite, and I love that. I appreciate that now, I can truly experience nature and my own nature. I like that now I can listen to the birds and soak in the smells of spring in its early stages - noticing minute and subtle details that otherwise, I’d have overlooked, distracted.

If yoga is about bringing things back to simplicity - to nature - to life, then I'm all about that.

Yoga is cool, nature is cool, and the two together create a sense of warmth ☀️ to what can sometimes - otherwise - seem like a pretty harsh and unyielding human existence.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this little snippet of ‘Spring in Fleeting Picture and Longform Writing’, topped with a shameless dose of 'about me'. If you made it this far, thank you and welcome.

And, a HUGE thank you to my students, subscribers, followers, and friends - now and in the future. Every single one of you is appreciated, and I do hope to include a little something on the Meta Mind Muse website / social media for everyone, over time.

If you'd like a personalised Yoga / Breathwork/ Meditation session with me - either live or on-demand - feel free to check out the website to browse the services on offer.

In the meantime - take care and be well 😊

Catherine 🐈‍⬛️ @MetaMindMuse