Art and Fear

Last quarter I engaged in a regular yoga practice twice a week, along with also blogging about it twice a week.  This quarter, it's not as simple to find my physical practice.  The two technique classes really aren't meant as "physical practice" in the traditional mode of practicing the same concepts each day - as in sun salutation or tendues at the barre.  The modern classes I take vary from day to day - which I like - however I see the need for consistency in order to anchor myself.  After registration completed, I have 20 credit hours.  This is insane.  The busiest classes for me aren't actually classes - they're independent studies that only account for 1 credit each.  I have five independent studies and I'm happy about them all.  Nevertheless...

After pondering on this little dilemma, I think I came up with an idea.  I need to get my mat out every morning and work on some core issues for myself.  I'll pick one topic each week and build on them.  And, as I enjoyed Michael Morris's approach of taking literary inspiration and applying to my own life, I will also pick a quote or passage and share that in my blog.  The passages I draw from won't necessarily be yoga-centered, but will most likely draw from books I read for my other classes.  In other words, I will relate certain issues to my own physical practice as another way of embodying what I'm learning here.

So I will start now.  It's a quote from a book I'm reading for the Dynamics and Phrasing class, "Art and Fear" by David Bayles and Ted Orland.

"What separates artists from ex-artists is that those who challenge their fears, continue; those who don't, quit."

I don't want to quit.  Today I was completely discouraged by the status of my knee.  I'm a bit angry that I can't seem to get my body into the shape I want.  Plus, I have a final draft due for my Dynamics and Phrasing class which means I need to perform Tuesday.  Perhaps this is another detour, a challenge to get past my fear that my body can't keep up, and a chance to let go of things that are holding me back.  Perhaps I can see this as a certain kind of restriction that actually frees me to focus on other things and find creative solutions that I might not have seen before.

Tomorrow I plan on continuing my morning ritual of stretches in bed before rising, foot exercises once out of bed, and then going through a pilates mat session that will take the weight off my legs.  I'll take the dog for a short walk to test out the knee and then head to the studio to see how I'm going to do this.

So here it goes...