I have only been in one fight. It was in the third grade. I don't recall what the impetus was but it ended up in a war of words between me and another boy on the basketball court. I remember deciding to hit him but when I went to strike my arm went slack. It was as if my body overrode my minds directive and I was incapable of trying to harm him.

I continually assert that yoga practice encompasses more than physical fitness. As much as I generally try to avoid admitting it, this does implicitly question whether the use of yoga poses for physical fitness alone can even be considered yoga practice. My interpretation of what constitutes a yoga practice aside for now, I am thinking of a specific example where a principle of exercise science is at odds with a holistic perspective.

I have this tendency to be overly provocative, sometimes to a fault. I have managed to temper this but, as discussed last month, changing old patterns requires continued attention. The title of this post is a perfect example. You see, I really wanted to call it "F*** Union with the Divine" but I decided to exercise my better judgement. Indulging in my taste for irreverence is immensely satisfying; however, incendiary language can easily put folks off and the intended sentiments are lost in my fancy for stirring the pot.

My wife and daughter have been away for almost two weeks and I have reverted to the ways of my bachelorhood. This morning, I was forced to do dishes only because there were no more cereal bowls left. Even worse, I only washed one bowl so I could eat and then put it back on the stack when I was done.

Let there be no doubt that life can be severely ironic. Two weeks after I sent out remarks on the sacrifices my wife was making for our family, she got laid off from that soul-sucking job that was providing us health insurance. She worked at the same company for more than six years. They gave her three days notice. Corporate management sure is cruel in its inhumanity. The health insurance racket is even worse.

Does life ever get easier? Short answer: no. I realize that doesn't sound altogether yogic. Not to mention, it was only last month that I waxed poetic on living through the difficulty of winter as the fertile soil of new possibilities. While those ideas hold true and offer some useful perspective, I must admit, they are of little comfort when the rubber meets the road and the tires are running a bit flat.

"Look for the flower to bloom in the silence that follows the storm; not till then. It shall grow, it will shoot up, it will make branches and leaves and form buds, while the storm continues, while the battle lasts.”

Many of you have been privy to the evolution of these posts over the last year. Somewhere along the way, I started thinking of it less as advertising and more an honest inquiry and exchange of thought. My inspiration has been largely fueled by your responses. In particular, two recent correspondences have spurred the sentiments I wish to finish this year with and carry into the new.

My daughter is the best yoga teacher ever. Observing her as she comes into the wonderment of her own body for the first time is the ultimate example. She has learned to bring herself to standing by holding on to the side of her crib and hoisting herself up. Now, whenever she is placed in her crib she must practice. We have difficulty getting her down to sleep because she is so enthralled with her new sense of facility. She looks at me as if to say, "Isn't this amazing?"And I say, "Yes. It is. Isn't it?"

The non-dual interpretation of Yoga that I espouse is often signified by the adage: no steps need to be taken. I have grappled with this adage. Mostly, I wrote it off as a cliche of sorts like "Carpe Diem" or "you could walk outside right now and get hit by a bus." I am intellectually sympathetic to the idea that life is best lived in the present but have found this of little consolation when the strains of life begin to bear down.