“You Have a Thigh…”
Sep 19, 08- (by JunkysWife)
- 9 responses
- Sober Salon
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“You have a thigh, but you are not your thigh,” our yoga teacher explained. She was coaxing us deeper into our Warrior stances. My thigh was talking to me. It was telling me not to push further. I told it to be quiet…that it was going to get stronger if I kept pushing. I have a thigh, but I am not my thigh.
Often in yoga class, I find tools that translate well to the rest of my life. The teacher was encouraging us to push our limits with our bodies, but that phrase she used…You have a thigh, but you are not your thigh…has been useful to me in several other situations since that class.
I have a husband, for instance, but I am not my husband. We are separate. He can have a bad day, and I can continue with my day as if it’s not happening. I have an unhappy husband, but I am not unhappy.
I have a job, but I am not my job. I have a family, but I am not my family. I have friends, but I am not my friends. I enjoy writing, but I am not my writing. I have some strengths, but I am not my strengths. I have some character defects, but I am not my character defects.
I have a past, but I am not my past. I will have a future, but I am not my future. I have feelings, but I am not my feelings.
I continue to be surprised by the serendipitous intersections between my yoga wisdom and my recovery. The two serve each other so well; I find the tools that I learn in recovery help me push myself forward in yoga, and the tools I learn in yoga help me pursue my recovery with increased passion.
I thought I’d pass along that tool…
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[...] Random Feed wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerpt“You have a thigh, but you are not your thigh,” our yoga teacher explained. She was coaxing us deeper into our Warrior stances. My thigh was talking to me. It was telling me not to push further. I told it to be quiet…that it was going to get stronger if I kept pushing. I have a thigh, but I am not my thigh. Often in yoga class, I find tools that translate well to the rest of my life. The teacher was encouraging us to push our limits with our bodies, but that phrase she used…You have a thigh, [...]
Oo, I like that one.
And I have to say, I’ve always liked the Warrior II stance, because my yoga teacher described it as “One arm stretching into the past, one arm stretching into the future and you perfectly balanced in the now.”
I love this post–what a great perspective! Thanks for sharing. In my limited experience with yoga, I’ve always loved the warrior pose. I also like what MPJ said about the past, present and future.
Funny, I use a similar tool, but I learned it in therapy. Mine is “this is my knee.” When I see myself getting enmeshed in my relationship, “this is my knee” is the mantra I use to detach and ground myself.
Methinks it’s time for a return to yoga…thank you so much for this.
I like this one too - it’s like my ‘I don’t know’ that I keep saying, because I am not what I know.
I’m glad you are not your thigh.
“I have feelings but I’m not my feelings”
I need to remember that, over and over again. Thanks.
I have a disease, but I am not my disease.
Thanks
THANK YOU