This past week I added a snack bar to the lobby of the studio so that my beloved students could continue to feel how much they are loved. I decided some almonds would be perfect and picked 2 of my favorites. A salt and vinegar almond and my all time favorite...Lemonchello almonds. Every morning when I come into the studio these sweet little canary almonds call my name. I start my day by grabbing 2 lemonchello almonds. As I move through my day I find myself going back to the almond jar again and again and again. Two becomes a handful, the handful becomes more than I can count.
By the time the afternoon rolls around I have gone from just a tiny little treat into almond overload. Before I knew it I crushed the entire jar single handedly before I even got the word out to my students about the new snacks. It wasn't until a few days in to my almond coma that I realized these almonds are a reminder of an ethic from the yogic path.
We learn of Bramacharya in Philosophy, it is an ethic meant to guide us through our choices off the mat. It basically translates into self restraint or think of it as a suggestion of all things in moderation. These lemonchello delights are now a reminder that all aspects of our lives, even the delicious things that bring us joy, are best enjoyed in moderation. From our yoga practice, to lemonchello almonds we have to ask ourselves, how many almonds is enough?
Think of it this way, how many almonds nourish you? Is it 2, a handful, or the restraint to say no and simply pass. As the week progressed I started to delight in the beauty of the way life and yoga always seem to merge together in my life.
I am grateful everyday that the ancient teachings from this path of yoga that I love so much always pop up just when I need them. Now I see these delicious almonds as a reminder of the tools of the yogic path, always there to help guide us to make choices in our lives that nourish us!
