The most popular concept of yoga is someone, usually a thin, white female, contorting her body in an unnatural position inaccessible to 99.9% of the population. Some might believe it’s a religion so they eschew it without the slightest bit of inquiry. If you look back at some of the ancient texts that informed the varieties of yoga practices, you’ll understand that it’s less about what’s on the outside and more about what’s on the inside. Yoga, therefore, cannot be conveyed in an Instagram image.

We often hear Christians cite John 14:6 as a means of excluding those who don’t believe. But what does Jesus mean when He says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life?” It means living a life of compassion, truth, forgiveness, and service of others. It’s about putting others’ interests before our own, especially if they are in need. Gandhi said, “Your Christians aren’t very Christ-like” because he himself recognized what Jesus meant by “the way...”

Relationships can become toxic when one person controls the decisions. Our attachments to approval, being right, or being loved can seize control of us, preventing us from being free. Once we recognize how our attachments influence our decisions, we make choices that benefit not only us, but also others. Freedom happens when we respect ourselves and others.

When we begin a relationship, we become mesmerized by the great “high.” However, once the honeymoon is over, that’s where the work begins. We deepen our relationship in a continual process of growth and renewal. However, it’s easy to get stuck in the sensory experience and believe THAT is the relationship. So it is with our relationship with God. Our “born again” conversion experience might be great, but we don’t remain there. As Alan Jones writes, we must walk the Via Dolorosa, experiencing the growing pains of a relationship that deepens and solidifies over time. Jones asks, “Do I worship God, or do I worship my experience of God?”

Early church leaders recognize acedia as one of the vices that plague humankind. It strikes during the midpoint of a journey, where the beginning and end seem nowhere in sight. Evagrius (I keep pronouncing his name wrong, including here) called it the “Noonday Demon” that makes the day seem too long to endure. Rather than escape, he tells us to recognize it as a temptation to abandon our journey. Once recognized, it loosens its grip on us so we can continue our journey.

I’m reading a beautiful letter from a man who is a great role model of humility. The letter is rather long, but it is a careful, thoughtful appeal for all people to come together and care for one another. He calls for a new culture of dialogue, mutual cooperation, and reciprocal understanding. Can we drop our sense of righteous indignation and heal our communal suffering?

This is the one-year anniversary of Brad4d Savasana. In this year, I’ve learned that expectations can easily limit and frustrate. When we give away what comes freely without any expectation of anything in return, we can find that the well is always abundant. This podcast has become my audio rough draft of my written work, which you can find at https://medium.com/@mbbrad4d

On this Feast of St. Francis, we recognize that we are stewards of all living things on Mother Earth. St. Francis honors the elements of the earth as sisters and brothers in his Canticle of the Sun. Why not treat our natural family with care and love?

Hermann Hesse contemplates the autumn of his life, questioning how distant goals can steal the joy of each moment. We recognize that each moment is a season in itself, birthing something new, ripening what is sown, or harvesting our fruit. Sometimes the beauty of the moment is letting go.