Plugging Holes

Sometimes my practice feels like I'm chasing after holes with only a small set of pegs. I plug one hole in one place, and another one pops up somewhere else. I feel really confident at a set of postures for a while only to feel wobbly at them from time to time.

It was not easy to hit the mat at 7:15 PM last night, Tuesday, in my living room, and was tempted several times to just go to closing and give it up. Practicing solo at home is just plain hard. I greatly admire people with daily solo home practices.

I just kept telling myself to take it one asana at a time, and low and behold, before too long I found myself knocking on the door of the closing sequence. Ahhhhh, what a sweet feeling. It reminds me of runners' high from my long-distance running days, but with a more relaxed and grounded sensation. This stuff is truly amazing.

I tried to hold my Supta Kurmasana for a few breaths longer and it helped a bit, but still needs a lot of work. Hey, what the heck, I've got the rest of my life to work on it, I guess. Whatever little improvement I realize here and there translates itself to much needed motivation over time.

Some of my favorite true and tested postures felt a bit out of place last night, which is a reminder for me not to take any posture for granted and to always go back to the basics, technique-wise. On a positive note, the breath and the bandhas were not too shabby, which tells me that I have very little, if any, to complain about.