Relationships are some of the most profound ways we enter into our heart and into the deepest relationship with ourselves.

by Madleen Yoga (Move with Madleen)

Each one of us carries a story that was passed down through the wombs that carried us. The pain, habits, beliefs, and love passed down into us are also opportunities to shift through understanding and feeling. Those who came before us planted us into this earth- our parents, their parents, and generations before them. Each of us carries wounds that influence the way we behave, react, and see the world. But staying in victimization only continues the separation.

Since the beginning of human existence, almost every spiritual tradition has spoken about the light and the dark. Some people are born into what many of us would consider the darkest experiences imaginable.. war, violence, loss, and suffering. Others are born into safety and stability. To believe that all 8.3 billion people would experience life the same way is, in my opinion, unrealistic. We each see the world through the lens of our own experiences.

From my own experience and understanding, I believe every single one of us carries both a light and a dark side.

It can be incredibly difficult to have compassion for the parts of ourselves we reject. And when we can't hold compassion for ourselves, it becomes even harder to hold it for someone else.

I believe this is one of the greatest opportunities we have right now (learning how to hold space for the complexity of being human).

America is home to people from over 100 different cultures and countries. It's like hundreds of different tribes learning how to coexist. Throughout history, tribes have come together through survival, conflict, protection, refuge, trade, and curiosity. We still see many of those patterns today.

But the most beautiful thing I see is that people genuinely want to understand one another.

At the same time, I see how easily we create identities that convince us we could never be like the person we perceive as our enemy. To one person, we are the enemy. To another, we are the savior.

The truth is, we are both.

My yoga practice, both philosophically and through asana has taught me how to meet both my light and my darkness. What I once judged as darkness, I now understand as parts of myself asking to be felt.

The anger, grief, sadness and  fear.

They expressed themselves through clenched fists, tension in my jaw, yelling, crying, punching my bed, and waves of tears.

But beneath all of it was something much softer.

The longing to be held. The courage to hold myself.The desire for the safety and love that every child deserves, yet not every child receives.

Expression is one of the greatest gifts we have, yet so often we're taught to suppress it. 

If you know me, you know how deeply I encourage expression, even when it feels uncomfortable or painful. And I continue learning this practice every single day myself. I deeply feel we are meant to embrace the heart of a child again while taking the discernment we have learned as adults. 

I would love to learn together.

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I'm publicly reopening my 1:1 yoga sessions.

It's been a few years since I've offered them, and they continue to be one of the most profound ways I've experienced healing both as a student and as a teacher.

Some of the greatest yoga classes I've ever experienced were the ones where I was the only student. At first, it felt intimidating, but those intimate sessions with my teachers became some of the most transformative experiences of my practice.

In a 1:1 session, there's space to slow down, listen to your body, explore your patterns, move, breathe, and reconnect with yourself. I get to support you while also learning from you as you step into your own journey.

And if private sessions aren't your thing, I'd love to welcome you into our intimate Morning Momentum community. We meet Monday through Thursday at 7:00 AM CST on Zoom.

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