Balance In Bali yoga retreaters (I have to thank Mandy again for the picture)!
For those wondering ”what on earth is a sangha?” and how do you support such a thing, remember back during my two attempts at Living My Moksha, or as it’s now called, Grow Your Yoga, sangha means community. The network of supporters around you, the groups you associate with, or better yet forcefully submersed yourself into and wouldn’t go away… Whatever the case maybe (or how you came to be apart of your network of people) in someway, shape, or form you yourself give back to these groups. As a member of a club or society or gang, you’re a piece of that puzzle.
Communities can fulfill us, empower us, give us peace (and sometimes stress us the hell out), but, for the most part, they keep us busy and happy. Supporting our sangha(s) in return seems only fair. This summer I had many sanghas I was apart of. I know what you’re thinking the summer and all the things that happened, including the running and the marathon, are all this girl ever talks about! And yes, I completely agree. But you know what they say, write to what you know. Apparently yoga, running, and work are the only things I know. That really isn’t all that surprising.
When it came time to figure out what I was going to do for this project, it really got me thinking. With all that happened I still had a pretty grand summer. I was pretty happy and I had amazing people all around me, my friends, my sisters, mentors, people I genuinely loved – so why wasn’t I fixated on the good stuff? I was living and breathing, biking everywhere I wanted to go, I provided myself with all that I needed to survive, such as good food and good company. It took me all this time to realize – that and leaving home and all these people behind – how lucky I was. It seems so silly now the way I acted. If only in the moments when we’re experiencing true happiness could we just appreciate it and not think of anything else. Because that would be too easy.
Thinking about my sanghas made me realize sometimes life is hard. And when life does get you down it’s okay to need support. It doesn’t make us weak or needy, it means we’re human with feelings and emotions. At some point or another we all need a little help getting back on track. I used this project as a way to thank all those people in my life who helped me out this summer, whether they knew they did or not. You all know who you are! But if you don’t, trust me you will 🙂
A sangha is a powerful thing. I am grateful to have more than one.
So what communities are you apart of? How would you give support to your sangha? Think about it, maybe give it a try. Because acts of kindness are so underrated.