On a recent adventure I had what one might call a misadventure.
It is easy to get hooked up into labeling it as such and I find myself
struggling more and more as each day passes to make lemonade out of the
lemons.
I slipped on the boat deck and broke my ankle after a
most amazing dive in the Bahamas. Initially the pain was over the top,
but having practice yoga with a strong emphasis on pranayama I was able
to practice a technique for pain control that I had until then, only
read about. I took my focus into the pain and then breathed thru it.
The mind effects the breath but the breath can also have a profound
effect on the mind. By slowing down my breath and focusing my attention
into my ankle as well as staying fully present in my body and my
surroundings I was able to bring my pain into a tolerable range and
remain calm. I briefly felt my body attempt to go into shock as it
wanted to pass out, vomit and react with all sorts of emotions
and weakness. I was fortunate in that my travel buddy and the rest of
the divers respected my space which allowed me the opportunity to draw
my senses inward, a practice in yoga called dharana. I truly was in a
meditative state.
I have been studying Iyengar's book called "The
Tree of Yoga". He talks about the difference between concentration and
meditation. Often in our practice we are given a point which to direct
our attention and concentrate on. However the object of this point is
not so much to concentrate on it but to focus on it and the body.
Iyengar describes focusing on one point as concentration while focusing
on all points at the same time as meditating.
When you are only
able to focus on one point, ie the pain in my ankle, the strength in
the rest of the body is easily lost. I was able to maintain strength in
the rest of my mind and body.
Not only do I credit my yoga
practice for maintaining my calm but I also must thank my travel Guru
Beth at Myjournyofalifetime.com for teaching me be to be a
confident traveler. She also taught me to pack light, darn I never do
get that one right!
The boat we were traveling on essentially
left us stranded in a foreign country, at the hospital. They gave my
travel buddy, 30 minutes to pack up both of our luggage, (mind you we
were on day 4 of a 21 day trip) took her to immigrations. O, they did
call a cab and sent her on her way to the hospital. We were dismissed
from the hospital homeless and with more luggage then anyone should ever
travel with!
The Bohemian people are every bit as nice as Thai
people, they just charge a lot more for their services! Our cab driver
helped us locate a hotel at an internet cafe using expedia.com and we
were off to the beach for an unexpected detour in our holiday.
My
travel Buddy has been amazing and positive and Travel Insurance is a
must. Access America has been very helpful in making arrangements for
us to get home.
This is going to give me alot more opportunity to
blog, study and just be then a vacation ever would have, I am just
going to have to keep adding more stevia into the lemonade daily!
See You on the mat
