Reflections from Retreat

Written by Susan Burns

If you’ve read my last post or follow me on Twitter then you know I’ve been on Retreat in Mexico. Before I dive back into writing about getting to the heart of talent and business I wanted to share a few pictures (you can find more on my Facebook page), some thoughts on  acclimating back to the daily flow of life – electricity, news and chaos, and today’s excerpt from one of my favorite teachers.

Yes, that’s right – electricity.  The Retreat space I was at had no electricity, except in the main kitchen.  Oddly it never felt like an inconvenience and the simplicity of it was quite refreshing.  No electricity also mean no news.  Although, there was one place we could stand on the property to pick up a cell signal and heard a few bits here and there.  But certainly not the persistent deluge of gloom and doom that has become too regular a part of our lives.  So, to go away someplace warm, with reliable daily sunshine (keep in mind its winter and I live in Portland so the sun is a rarity), and spend time doing something I love with great people was a true gift.

Each time I step onto my “mat” to practice yoga it feels like a homecoming.  There is something very grounding about it and very powerful as the mind, breath and body come together for a singular purpose – to move with intention.  I always return from a yoga retreat feeling a bit lighter (physically and mentally) and ready to take on more, but also ready to let some things go.  This Retreat and subsequent immersion back into “reality” has left me thinking more and more about how we set our intention and, when we do it successfully, what it brings us in return.  I’ll be writing more about this and how it relates to business and the unique relationship with talent, but for now let me just say that if we allow the bad news to seep in too deeply and dictate our destiny we are certain to feel the weight of the world more significantly and miss opportunities to to think differently and focus on the where we want to be in the future.  That’s not to minimize by any means the impact and significance of today’s times – many friends and colleagues from my Macy’s Inc. days are feeling the full effect of this now and I feel for them deeply.  However, we are resilient beings and thrive on survival – which translates to being future-focused and oriented to innovate, create and re-imagine what could be….and then act on it.  Our world is undergoing a tremendous transformation, which brings both excitement and uncertainty.  Having something that keeps us grounded, comforts us, reminds us what home base feels like and nurtures the body and the mind, nourishes the imagination to help us reimagine the future.

I’d like to close this post with an entry from one of my favorite books, Meditations From the Mat, by Rolf Gates.  Rolf is one of my  yoga teachers and his book offers daily reflections on the practice of yoga but also provides an opportunity for deeper reflection on the daily flow of life.  This entry was about coming home and the hero within each of us.  After all, we only know what we can truly accomplish if we allow ourselves to imagine it, believe it and act on it.

“On these sands and in the clefts of the rocks, in the depths of
the sea, in the creaking of the pines, you’ll spy secret footprints
and catch far-off voices from the homecoming celebration.
This land still longs for Odysseus.
Homer

I am struck by the pervasive desire for homecoming in this passage, an ancient, secret longing.  Here is a sadness and an emptiness so profound that it is felt by rocks and trees.  It is in the air – a sadness that is bittersweet because it is a reminder of better days, an innocence lost.  Before yoga, each of us is like the land that longs for the return of its hero.  We can feel this longing in our

muscle, in our bones, in the movements that were once fluid and natural but that have become prematurely stiff and unreliable.  There is a presence, a life force, that is conspicuous in its absence.  But over time, this sense of loss becomes just another aspect of the subtly shifting backdrop of our lives.  Yes, we were once possessed of a youthful vitality, but many of us forget we ever had such vigor and energy long before we came to our first yoga class.  And then the moment of homecoming arrives.  Unbidden, unsought – we hear the familiar footsteps on the porch.  For me it occurred ad the end of one of my first classes.  I was in a knee-down twist moments before shavasana.  I don’t remember the rest of the class, but I do remember a sudden opening and sense of suppleness in my spine that I’d never expected to experience again.  I felt well in a way that I had let go of ever wanting to feel again.

There is a wisdom within us that is more powerful than our despair.  There is a movement toward health that our intellect can merely glimpse, once in a while.  It is the same impulse that causes plants to face the sun, animals to take care of their young, people who say, “I never sweat,” to try a hot yoga class.  This life force has provided us with the priceless, miraculous opportunity of our yoga practice.  All we need to do is cultivate an open heart, to express our gratitude both on and off the mat, and to celebrate the return of the hero.”

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