Jessi Mendez

It's easy to react because it doesn't require thought, or intention. Fear of not being good enough, fear of failing, fear of seeming foolish, fear of losing what we hold dear, and the list persists. Don't gloss over, don't apologize, don't resist, don't stay on the surface of the feelings. They will rise again in this spiral of life, but as we expand our hearts the time between the same lessons becomes greater, and the feelings that come up won't have the same stronghold as they once did if we accept the warrior's journey.

When I embarked on this yoga journey I didn't quite know what to expect. I had a few ideas, especially since chatting with my sister who recently graduated from her yoga teacher training. I graduated from my 200 hour yoga teacher training today, but what I received was beyond a certificate of completion. It is this love that I will take with me, and when I forget because some days will suck, I know I will find my way back because there are so many in my circle to light the way.

This wasn't my first time on the mat, I had been to many classes over the past 15 years, but this particular studio, and this particular yoga teacher connected with me on another level which I had never felt before. Certain times I did resort to medication, usually when I couldn't stop sneezing, but they didn't do anything for my nose. But yoga did something else, it made me want to change, it made me take responsibility for my health, it made go to the doctor's again, it made me hope that just maybe, something could be done. All this to say, at the age of 41, I will be taking a Yoga Teacher Training this Summer, and will be teaching at my favorite yoga studio.