The Budding Optimist

TAPAS The Heat The third  niyama  of yogic philosophy is  tāpas , or self-discipline. I don't think it really means self-discipline as we know it. It means something more like friction, aggravation, unease, and the heat of discomfort. It is what we feel when Life rubs up against us in ways that are unwanted. The concept asks us, "Can I persist through the pain of this terrible thing that is happening?" Or perhaps more accurately, it is the practice of preparing for those times. Of all the  yamas  and  niyamas  in yoga's ethical code,  tapas  is probably the one that I intuitively understand best. It is also the one I like least. They say that the pose you like the least is the one you need the most (Dolphin -  barf ). It is the one that creates the most friction and chafing in your mind and will and discomfort in your body and breath. Your very desire to avoid this pose is the reason you should do it: it is necessary and important work t...

    We are officially more than halfway through yoga teacher training (YTT). In case you cannot tell, it takes me longer than everyone else to adequately process all the teachings. Ergo, after everyone else writes a 5-minute reflection, I sit in my backyard or classroom and pound out blog posts for 90 minutes. This past week, we explored the niyama of  santosha , or contentment. I have been struggling with contentment. I recently finished reading Sapiens, which was phenomenal.  Harari takes us all the way from the Cognitive Revolution — when homo sapiens developed myths, legends, and ideas that they collectively agreed to live by — through the Agricultural Revolution, and up through the Scientific Revolution   Not  many books genuinely combine physics, chemistry, biology, anthropology, sociology, history, and psychology.  One part I particularly liked was the explanation of biochemistry and happiness in chapter 19. Here’s an excerpt: “On a scale ...

   We bring you this brief break from yoga to interject the annual teaching reflection. Reflection at the End of the 15th Year What a year. I know that this is in the news  literally  every year, but this year,  teachers really are leaving the profession in droves. Seriously. I talked to teachers in 2 different districts who told me, "There are 7 teachers in my building who have quit so far this year. Like, just walked out on the profession." That's not normal, blog world. Suffice to say, there's a teacher shortage. I think it's everywhere, but  Missouri's last-place ranking for starting teacher salary ($25,000) does not help. And yet, this spring, I applied for 20 positions, executed 11 interviews, and ultimately secured 0 jobs. But instead of dwelling on that for this reflection, I would rather just mention the most salient parts of the academic year. Here are some of the things that happened: *********************************************** Something I'm...