It's getting hot in here.....

In the past few years, I have gotten really into my yoga practice. Not just any yoga. Hot yoga. Standing in a heated room up to 110 degrees while doing questionable poses. I mean, the kind where you feel like you might keel over and die in the middle of it. 

Why do I do it, you ask? 

I really don't know. 

I mean, every time I get there on the mat, I think.....oh man, not again! It's practically torture in some of these poses. The breathing is awkward, my shoulders hurt, and someone is talking at me the entire time! 

Complaints left and right fill my head. 

But then, I get it. Some sort of yogic light bulb illuminates inside of me. DING!

Maybe the uncomfortable sensations that I feel are supposed to be the worst for a reason. If I settle in to the most awful situation for that moment and breathe through it, it's a beautiful thing. 

Sometimes I cry during yoga. (I don't know if I should admit that haha) However, it is not because I am crying about anything specific. I cry because I am letting go. I go so deep in these positions that are ridiculously scary, and in doing that, I let go of my fear. I let go of all the tension holding me back. I let go with all of my might.

It's all so deliciously symbolic. In life, we struggle through the most uncomfortable situations. From every end of the spectrum; every day annoyances to utter heartbreak. And in those moments, if we can train our bodies, minds and souls to breathe through them, we can conquer anything. We don't have to be afraid anymore. We just have to breathe.