Feet.

Keep the earth below my feet.

For all my sweat, my blood runs weak.

Let me learn from where I have been.

Keep my eyes to serve, and my hands to learn.

Our little piggies that go to the market. They go to work. They go shopping and eat roast beef. They cry wee wee wee all  the way home. We never give much attention to all the work our feet do, until they hurt. 

I challenge you to take an honest look at your feet. I look at them all day long. I see clean and dirty feet. Beautiful and ugly. Painted and yellowing at the edges....YUCK!  But for real, look at them! Check out why your feet look the way they do. Check out your shoes. Why are they worn down in the back, the front, the sides? I challenge you to question your feet, how you stand and hold the weight of your body. What do you do with your feet? 

I want to speak not only from the viewpoint of a teacher but from someone who has done tremendous damage to my ankles, toes and arches over the years. I had to stand on my feet, on one foot at a time until they were sore. I would crunch my toes in a towel, the sand and grass until they could not move any more then I would rub and ice them at night. Our bodies remember trauma, stress, and disease. They start to change, form new shapes. We walk differently, stand up less and hunch more. We get down on life and our feet take the pressure of the slouching in our walk. When you stood up straight there was less pressure on the joint causing us to walk with a little pep in our step.  Foot problems are huge and the only way to help prevent further damage is to be aware of how you walk, how you stand and how you place weight in your body. Yoga is the only form of exercise that helps to correct this over time.

Our feet not only want to be taken care of they want to breathe. They love being naked. They loved being touched just like you do. They want to stretch wide and long. They want to point and flex and move in all directions. Next time you get on the mat, look down at your feet. Pay attention to your feet in every pose, with every breath. Just become aware of your feet. Make them sore the next day! Then do it again,
and again,
and again.