Am I ever living, with true awareness, the process of finding my ground. Having a healing ankle has only reinforced to me how much harder the body has to work when it is unbalanced and when the foundation is not strong.
I am reminded again and again, the importance of connecting to the earth, I have been spending as much time outside, in nature as I can, this lifts my spirits and helps me feel more connected and a bit more grounded, The sun and the wind rejuvenate me and lift my spirits. I am now so grateful to just be able to walk. Just walk. The simple act and art of walking, with both feet firmly planted onto the earth, slowly and mindfully. Grounded and connected as I rebuild my strength from the ground up.
Gratefulness can totally shift your perspective. It is in our aversions to and our desires for that we find dis-ease. I have been approaching my time on my mat with such a great sense of gratefulness for my body and its ability to self heal. I have found that as I focus on the process, grateful for my ability that day as opposed to a desire to achieve, my body has opened up in so many ways. I am pleasantly in awe at times as I move into an asana with less effort only to find greater ease and opening.
The weakness in my ankle is stronger everyday as is my ability to stay connected tot he earth. I now only have awareness from pain in my ankle about 45% of the day, which is wonderful.
What started off as a horrible inconvenience and a very painful ordeal as opened my eyes to so many lessons and opportunities. I simply needed to shift my perspective and be open to receive the lessons. I have a tendency to take on to many projects and direct my attention in many different ways. I am now more focused and balanced in my practice as well as in my life. I am finding more balanced time for my family and friends, my home and my business not to mention myself.
Areas that need our attention often go overlooked and yet they have a tendency to drain our energy with out us even knowing it. Restoring that balance is not only healing but empowering. I had a friend say to me "do you realize how graceful you have moved thru this injury?" For me the only other option was suffering and trust me, the break and sprain hurt enough without me adding any self inflicted pain.
Gratefulness is the key to a happy life that we hold in our hands, because if we are not grateful, then no matter how much we have we will not be happy -- because we will always want to have something else or something more.
- David Steindl-Rast