my word for 2023 ______
“If you think you're enlightened,
go spend a week with your family.”
– Ram Dass
Family. If I had one word for 2023. It’s family. Blood family. New Family. Blended Family. Chosen family. Yoga Family. Covenant Family. Spiritual Family. Like an accordion file, each tab, each title, is packed with discoveries. That I never saw coming.
There was a moment, the day after the wedding, I was sitting inside at the kitchen table watching family on the outside deck. My sister erupted into her big bold laugh. My brother gave his wry smile. The kids were running wild.
It was beautiful. And simple. And profound. And I thought to myself, how have I never seen this?
A family friend was sitting next to me, the magnificent Mary Ingle. It was like she could hear my thoughts, feel the tears brimming in my eyes. “Funny" she said, "that you’ve been running from this your whole life.” The comment might have stung if it wasn’t so true. Instead, the raw honesty was touching. Her insight honored the journey.
Because I did run. For about 20 years. Much of it was running towards - self-discovery, transformation, adventure - and… there was always a bit of running from. Over the years, my personal healing has tracked with relational healing. It's made me a believer in Krisnamurti’s perspective that "the war outside is the war inside".
Now, I’m not saying that all relationships can (or should!) be repaired or revived. Sometimes healing is strong boundaries and steep walls. I’m also not saying that all relationships are a reflection of you or have anything to do with you. But I am saying, watch how your practice ripples out into the world around you. Especially as your practice matures, it becomes more subtle, and breakthroughs are less physical, more energetic.
Classes, courses, and curriculum at Kanda are based in physical practice and we’re looking for more: the cultivation of awareness, the sharpening of discernment, freedom from old patterns and conditioning. Through body and breath, we transform being. This is how posture practice becomes a healing art.
February 2-7, I’ll be teaching in-person at Padma Studio in Fairfax. Classes and the workshop will be based on the principles of practice as a healing art. The schedule is below. Head over to the Padma website for registration.
May your practice create ripples of healing,
Alison
PS: For images of family and highlights of 2023, head over to Instagram.
