I've come to realize that I'll look back on my initial working decade and know that this is a time of insecurity and uncertainty. When I first began blogging it felt like the Green revolution was on an upswing, jobs weren't that difficult to find and I could justify weekly yoga classes.
All that has changed and I finally understand the challenge of 'eco-fatigue'.
I would add 'yoga-fatigue' as well. Perhaps it's yoga-cynicism, or world cynicism.
It's just so easy to get caught up in being and focusing on the negative (especially when society is doused in a general feeling of malaise and anxiety).
In order to move forward, Beltane; a celebration of growth, life and Light, is the perfect time to let go of the Dark, to shed that dry husk and make like the trees- leafing forth!
What I'm letting go in Yoga:
- Coffee and Yoga. For a variety of truly disappointing and very negative (so I won't indulge them here) reasons, Coffee and Yoga was no longer making me happy. Every month I felt like a C&Y failure, it just wasn't living up to my expectations. So... I'm letting it go. This will leave a whole lot of emotional room for new practices that will make me happy.
What I'm letting go in 'Eco':
- As counterintuitive as this sounds, I'm letting go of worrying about our Planet. Don't get me wrong, I'm not letting go of 'caring' for our planet- there's a difference. This overall, pressing anxiety like the coming doom (which I actually do believe is unfortunately happening) isn't actually helping anything. Instead, it's creating an ever increasing sense of guilt (that I'm not doing enough), shame (over our terrible conservative government) and overwhelming sense of impending catastrophe- the kind where you should be stocking up and rocking hysterically in a corner (ok, maybe I'm exaggerating, but you green bloggers- you know what I mean!).
I need to let that go. I am doing fantastic Green work. I will continue to do fantastic Green work. Hopefully be spreading my experiences on this blog it will help others make some small and large changes. That will have to be enough for now.
As Beltane, like Samhain, is a night perfect for magical doings- let's see what the Tarot has to say about this:
Basically that although I originally was quite passionate about Coffee and Yoga, the fire has burnt away leaving a more cautious and reserved person (Empress reversed). The Page of Pentacles at the top implies that leaving C&Y will allow more room for new and exciting endeavours though- which is exactly as I'd like it. :)
Have you experienced eco or yoga fatigue?
What can you let go in your eco-yoga life to keep the Fires for Life and creativity burning brightly?
Happy Beltane!
article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com
Amen Sista! I don't think that "worrying" does any good for anybody, anything. Caring is what matters starting with yourself! What a weight lifts when we decide to see the positive instead of the negative/cynical. Happy May!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment on my little big man, he's the reason my blogging has been so scarce!
I hear you! I have literally made myself ill with stress, and while I can't let everything go there are worries that are just toxic. I continue to practice asana when I can, and do what I can for the planet. However, stressing over the polar bears is something that I needed to let go of--or I wouldn't be well enough to do any caring for the planet or anything else.
ReplyDeleteLetting go is difficult, and doesn't always feel good. But I can always go back to things when I'm in a better space.
I agree with you 100%!! I too am no longer worrying if I'm not doing enough for the environment...i'm doing what I can and letting go of this NEED to control everything! The Earth will always take care of herself! But I must also take care of myself! I also have been having "issues" with yoga as well! I've decided to let it go as well! I love yoga...but I really do not like much of what I hear or see with it any more! :( So I've decided that if I do yoga, I'll do it! :) Thanks for you post and Happy May!!
ReplyDeleteWell, it's been a good year & a half since I've read and commented, but this was the post to hook me :) I took a writing hiatus in the fall of 2010, and whether or no I realized it at the time- eco-fatigue was part of the combined package that led me to needing a break. Looking back, I can see that most of my 20's were spent absorbing, pursuing, and defining truth for my perception of life and the planet ... and while very insightful, I needed a break. When I moved back to the States that fall, I was reorganizing my life in a big way, and that really required me to step out of the (very) constricted box I had been building for myself regarding how I "should" be living. My life now- different. But more so in perception rather than in action. How delightful that it is your Beltane post that burned me out of the woodwork :) Thank you and many blessings!
ReplyDeleteWay to go! I think one of the hardest things is to let go of something we put so much work into because it no longer feels right. There's almost a sense of failure about it, even if there's no failure involved. It's like when I shut down A Green Spell. That was my baby. I loved it. But there were dozens of reasons why I felt it was time to let it go (even after only two years of blogging) and I did, and I'm glad.
ReplyDeleteI'm also trying to work on letting go of the green worry, too. I try to let myself get pumped up if needed - if I see a story that makes me angry, for instance - and use that energy to DO something. And then I try to let it go. We all just do the best we can and what more can we ask?
Happy Beltane!
Green fatigue is something that happens to me a lot. I find it quite frustrating when I try so hard to be good to our planet and then I see people litter or put plastic bottles in the trash instead of the recycling. I feel this overwhelming disappointment, like how can I really make a difference if no one else is doing anything? If you haven't already seen it I suggest watching The Lorax. This movie was amazing and I really really enjoyed the message it put out there.
ReplyDeleteAs for yoga fatigue I feel like I've hit a plateau. Although I love the teachers I have had over the past year at Moksha, I find I'm at a place in my practice where I am no longer progressing or challenging myself. I feel like I've formed a comfort bubble. Hopefully starting mysore at The Shala will help that though.
Just remember to keep your head up and "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot,
nothing is going to get better. It's not."
Happy Beltane!
I have the same deck! Isn't it wonderful?
ReplyDeleteLetting go is important - after all, how else can we make room for new things? :)