Treetop Yoga Student Sharon Billings explores her long-term relationship with YOGA.
I first started dabbling in yoga 17 years ago. I know this, because my now 17-year-old daughter was an infant. I took a class at a local gym one night to get out of the house. What followed was the BEST night’s sleep I had had in months. I mean really restful, deep, glorious sleep. What was this magic? Any new parent can appreciate this, but to a single mom, this was GINORMOUS!! More please! So…I started taking classes here and there. Self-care was pretty low on the to-do list in those days, but curiosity and interest grew.
A few years later, an amazing friend asked if I’d like to join her for a yoga class that her friend was teaching Thursday mornings in her home. Ooooh yes please! Each week, my mat and I hid in the back corner, so happy to be there, but feeling insecure. Still, I showed up, I practiced and… I breathed. Ahhhhhh. Guided by the MOST generous, loving and skillful teacher (lucky to now call her one of my dearest friends) and surrounded by a warm, welcoming community of remarkable women, over the years I grew stronger, more confident and more passionate about practicing. That one invitation changed my life in countless beautiful ways.
Officially in love, yoga became a regular part of my life. I started taking additional studio classes a few times a week. Through relationships, jobs, injuries, loss, adventures and so much joy, yoga has been my “go to” companion for self-care, my reliable anchor. Today… I’m in the throws of major life transformation. I teeter between unsettled anxiety and irrepressible optimism and excitement for what’s to come. So what do I do? YOGA! At least 5x a week. On my mat I feel sweet release, I feel strong, I feel grounded, but most importantly, I FEEL whatever needs to be felt. Acknowledging and honoring that feeling (no matter what it is) always makes me better after class than I was before. Yoga brings me closer to creating my next wild and wonderful chapter. And that truly is a gift. Practice and All is Coming. I believe!!