On Yoga and Gratitude

By Lois Gudeon Sloan
March 2006

It was the Thanksgiving season, November 2005, and Chaya and Betsy were speaking about gratitude, of finding something to be grateful for even in the midst of an improbable, difficult situation.

Later that week my children and their families traveled with me to Florida to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with my elderly mom. My husband had recently entered an Assisted Living center and it was a somewhat bittersweet Thanksgiving, despite the pleasure of spending time with my six grandchildren.

The day after we arrived I took my grandchildren for a walk to see my favorite tree, a particularly beautiful, graceful, expansive old tree that I always admired and looked for when visiting my mom. But when we turned the corner and came upon the tree, it was no longer standing. It was crumpled on its side, its huge root ball pulled from the earth, its broad branches spread along the ground, a victim of the recent, devastating hurricane. It was a terrible sight, and I was so sad.

A few days later, on Thanksgiving Day, I woke early and went for a walk by myself. I meandered along the path, my mind wandering, and when I came around the corner I absent-mindedly looked up but could not believe my eyes. The tree was standing! It was being supported by large wooden braces surrounding its trunk. The local workmen, who had been carting away so many fallen trees, had decided to try to save this big, lovely tree.

And so it stood. Its bark was wounded. Many of its branches were broken. It’s leaves were spare. And yet, it stood.

And my thoughts went back to Chaya and Betsy and my yoga classes, and I found myself filled with gratitude…..for the unanticipated feelings of hope and resilience embodied in this proud, struggling, upright tree.

Though I would have been deeply moved even without my yoga practice, the inspiring words of Chaya and Betsy surely opened me up to grace.

For that I will always be grateful.

Student Stories:

Michelle Mandelman		Bea Cronin		Mickey Schwartz		Donna Miele
Buddha		Lois Gudeon Sloan		Herb Benkel		Eugenia Katsnelson

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