Using my body is not exactly my strong suit, I think it’s safe to say. Sure, I can type, text, and turn the pages of a book… but when we get into the non-finger parts of me, it’s anybody’s guess what might happen. Up until recently, at best I’ve just stubbed my toe as I clumsily amble through space and time. At worst, I’ve recoiled in horror as I ponder my youthful rejections in gym class and the general heckling that came with my attempts at “running” the mile.
Naturally, for a geek this is not a unique experience. Many of us turned our horror at initial physical attempts to join in with classmates into not-so-slight scorn as they turned into adults who played or cheered on “sportsball” games.
Of course, to geeks who can also play sports: more power to you, but the vehement grit needed to follow that ball down the field just isn’t my thing. Odds are it might not be yours either.
But what can be a “thing” for all of us is using our bodies, effectively and well. We’re stuck in ours after all, with all of its eccentricities and peculiarities. It’s our personal Enterprise flying through the space of being. Why not learn the controls and explore all the decks, not just the bridge?
Enter yoga, where you aren’t competing with anyone but yourself and you can start at the very most basic levels and still enjoy yourself. Literally.
Under the careful guidance of a good yoga teacher, you’ll find safe ways to move even those parts of you that you’ve deemed “bad”… ankles, knees, back, perhaps the whole thing south of the neck. And then you can do a bit more, and then a bit more. And it feels… good. Like a massage from the inside out. And suddenly moving around and challenging your body is happily divorced from all the baggage of teams and balls and cleats and trophies.
Like me, you might carry some baggage of a different sort around your stomach, legs, arms, etc. That’s ok. We bend and twist a little less, maybe, but guess what? Nobody cares!
And in time, when you feel more comfortable moving around, your body may just respond and reshape itself to fit what you are trying to do. Amazingly, this body that you’ve just put up with for so long can bend more, twist more, hold a pose longer. Your warp drive might upgrade, your saucer section detach and do that cool thing where the phaser light wraps around the perimeter… your holodeck might not malfunction all the time and leave you stranded in a noir detective story. Maybe.
But for now, love that Enterprise of yours, no bloody A, B, C, or D. You have a really cool ship as is, and it can do all sorts of amazing things. Boldly go out there and use it.
Thoughts...?!