#35: TYL Spring ‘25

Feeling the nature of transition

Dear Reader,

I start this letter with an admission:

I wasn't sure whether I was going to post this piece.

I considered pushing this first issue of the year back to the summer, but I decided against it.

Yes, this may be coming out a few days later than I expected (to understand my reasons, please see The Glimmering Tide), and while I don’t have my ideas for this season’s content cohesively arranged, you know what - does it really matter?

Perfectionism tells us that things ought to be a certain way or not at all, but I’ve been around long enough to know that’s pointless nonsense.

So, here I am, working things out as I go along and sharing them with you.

Is this a yogic attitude?

I don’t know. You tell me.

I can list a whole bunch of reasons why it could be, but we’re really here for you, not me. So…

Here we go...

Spring!

Photo by Arno Smit on Unsplash

Can you feel the change in the air?

And no, I don’t just mean the seasonal shift, but also the geopolitical one as well.

I know that in some yoga circles, cultural awareness can be dismissed as a sort of distraction or ‘attachment’, but I beg to differ.

After all, I am in this world. I am not a hermit on my own little planet (although sometimes I think that could be wonderful).

I am a mother and play various roles to others, and so what goes on in this world matters.

It matters because it affects people’s lives—humans and countless other beings, great and small—and everything about the meaning of being alive, right?

Anyway, I’m not here to discuss politics or the rights and wrongs, but first of all:

How are you handling all of these surreal happenings?

Are you okay?

To be honest, I’m not sure how I am.

I balance terrifying fears with sky-high hopes all day, every day.

I’m always ‘bringing myself back to the here and now’ and focusing on the ‘freedom of the moment,’ ‘breathing deeply and with gratitude,’ - all of the things - but it’s hard right now to do so without feeling a bit of denial.

That’s the illusion of our culture in the West, isn’t it?

We can just get lost in something—not that it’s necessarily bad; ‘business as usual.’

I come to this line of questioning a lot in my practice:

At what point does turning inward and blocking out dark realities become, at best, protective denial and, at worst, pure privilege—an abject irresponsibility to engage with the privilege of choice (or, in simpler terms: being selfish)?

Is that yogic?

I don’t have concrete answers (sorry).

We each have our own ruler for these matters and our own morals to answer to.

But this question significantly influences my practice, and there’s a good chance you’re having a similar experience.

So, what’s the solution?

I’m not sure, but I had a hard day recently—I’m okay; we all get them—and what really helped was turning to art, in particular, music, specifically a song.

This song, a combination of yogic poetry and melody, simply soothed me.

Just like that.

It brought me back, but not in a denialist way.

Instead, it helped me think straight, so I could attempt to navigate through my feelings, working with what I have in terms of time, energy, and resources (which will differ for each of us).

Does that make sense?

In that moment, the song became a coping mechanism, preventing me from spiraling into despair.

It reminded me, through its lyrics and meaning, of what is most important, so I could draw strength from it.

Not for peace of mind and selfishness, but so I can function optimally and be of service (especially as a mother), and in my view, that includes engaging with geopolitics and the ecological crisis.

It involves reminding myself of my plan (not that it won’t be subject to change), guided by my principles and focusing on what is most important and achievable.

Are you still with me?

Maybe, for you, there’s an art form (or many art forms) that soothes you when things become overwhelming.

I guess it’s a form of engaged escapism.

That’s the kind of soothing I believe we practitioners should embrace.

And it is how we can and will improve things. I firmly believe that!

So, for this season of transition—amid the mix of energies we all feel right now and will continue to see in our world—I urge you to find that form of engaged escapism, one that allows you to remain present and be part of a world that desperately needs you now more than ever.

I promise, we've got this!

As per the TYL tradition, please find below this issue’s playlist, and I encourage you to grab your journal, and free write on this issue, perhaps starting with the prompt:

Spring is coming, and I feel… .

May these words be of use to you and those who rely on you and may they be of use to our world.

With kindness,

Louisa x