All we need is love

I felt so full of love Saturday!

So full that I'm still feeling it, oozing out of my pores.

What created this feeling? Our sangha, our yoga community, held an open house and fundraiser for the Teen Yoga Outreach Program....a program that provides free yoga for our teens in Jefferson City.

Saturday was an amazing day for me, for all of us. We bonded through movement, through the intention to challenge our bodies and minds by completing as many Sun-Salutes as possible. Some of our community actually did 108! and that's ALOT of sun-salutes.... And yes we are all sore....but a sore that summons a satisfied feeling. We set a goal, we opened our hearts and minds, and we stepped out on the path together.

We are so blessed to have each other. I see so many folks that are alone, that have no community, no family. I see the empty eyes, the aching, angry heart, the flailing to connect to something, anything. In particular, a teen with no support needed my help this week, and because of my own tether to all of you, I was strong enough to help her. It hurts to see the emptiness, yet it reminds me of the blessings I have with our sangha. And it reminds me to practice gratitude.

We Have Each Other.

On the mat, we can learn to be fully ourselves and yet fully supportive of humanity! We can learn how strong, and how vulnerable, we all truly are! And we can own it, and reach out to those who need support. We learn to walk the path together. We remember that no man is an island, that we are spiritual beings having a physical experience! Pithy as these sayings are, they indeed echo a truth.

I heard shouts of encouragement this Saturday to yogis who felt like caving in. I watched teachers work from their hearts, alleviating the physical strain with bouts of gut-busting humor, and deep much-needed rest. I watched teenagers rally around their own sangha, looking deeply into each other's eyes, to keep connection during a very difficult demonstration. I watched everyone hug and kiss. I met Pete, the man behind the bulk of our teen-outreach financing, and was witness to a soul so caring and humble that I bowed in reverence. I felt loved, and I loved. I felt validated. I felt CONNECTED. Isn't this what every fellow human craves?

Have no doubt we are blessed. And with this love for our community, we have blessed our planet.

God (Buddha, Krishna, whatever name you subscribe to, because it's ALL good!) Bless You All. And thank you for, yet again, reaffirming my faith in the power of this practice. In the power of connection. In the power of that flicker behind lighted eyes. I bow in reverence to what WE ALL have created. A community that reaches inward, and thusly, outward, to accept all fellow humans. A community that has changed so many lives. A community that IS changing our world.

In little ol' Jefferson City, Missouri.... *Be the change you wish to see*.

Ghandi would be proud.
Om Mane Padme Hum.

Megan Sappington

PS To see photographs of 108 Sun Salutations visit our website's Photo Gallery.