Inhale Negativity, Exhale Positivity

Yesterday I had the opportunity to practice yoga with a student of mine, who has become a teacher. She asked the class to set an intention of taking something negative and turning it into a positive. It was exactly what I needed to hear in that moment! It’s so wonderful to see how everything is intricately connected and woven together. Student becomes teacher, teacher becomes student and we all learn from one another day by day.

As an educator, I am constantly advocating the idea that we are NEVER done learning. We need to constantly push ourselves to learn every single day in order to help us grow and continue to help us educate others. We cannot continue to teach if we grow stagnant! The constant ebb and flow, the discussions, workshops, online studying and group chats after any class we take will help us to grow. We can throw ourselves into a million books and collect degrees (of which I am guilty), but the real learning comes from discussion of new ideas. The idea of expanding and growing just by being open to new possibilities within every conversation.

Last week, I had a Rising Star Energy healing with my friend Alicia Matthewson and we started discussing God. I mentioned that over the course of the years, I have seen God in so many forms. It started with the big white guy in the colds, turned to a big, beautiful black women with long dreads and a purple dress and then suddenly became the universe, became Ganesha, and Lakshmi and Tara…. then I saw God in a childs’ breath and a puppies wide eyes and loving heart as well as the sunrise and sunset. I talk to God every day, whoever and wherever she/he/it is and feel grateful to have an ever changing image of who this elusive being is. During our chat, Alicia mentioned that it was a beautiful thing that I saw God in so many forms because I am within each of those images and God is within me.

For a moment, my mind was blown. “I’m not God.” I thought immediately and almost closed off to her discussion, but she continued (thank goodness) and I listened. As Alicia mentioned, we are each God and that is our infinite power but the moment we believe we are God and take that power into ourselves too deeply, we lose that ideal of being God. We need to spread our good intentions and love and wisdom and in doing so we are “one with God.”

I had never thought of it in that way and am so blessed that she opened my eyes to this idea! I am God and yet I am not. I am a temple, a vessel for good but also just a human body.

In other words: Inhale negativity and Exhale positivity.

I know, I know… that doesn’t make much sense. It’s typically the other way around! But hear me out.

If we inhale all the negativity (which we do daily: gossip, information overload with constant connection, miscommunication etc), it is already inside of us. We need to use our power, our God, ourselves to change all of that energy, all of that CRAP into positivity. This way, when we exhale we are exhaling positivity and spreading more love and joy to not only others but more importantly to ourselves.

As Patty said last night, we need to set an intention to turn our negativity into positivity and how better to do that than with the intention of our hearts and our breath.

Today I am going to concentrate on positive ideas. I am going to listen to the wisdom of all of my teachers and continue to grow, learn and breathe. Today, I am going to inhale the negativity (turn all the crap around) and exhale positivity!

What about YOU?? I would love to hear your thoughts on how you are taking your yoga off the mat and into the world today. Leave a comment below on how you’re going to change your negativity into positivity and what your focus will be this week.

Sending you love, light & happiness.
Sat Nam,
Jenny