That rug really tied the room together…

You know what, I'm fucking pissed. Last week I left a damp, sweaty hand towel with my yoga mat and the dye bled out leaving two blue stains right between where I put my hands. It's provided another distraction for me to try and work around during my practice, and one I'd prefer not to have.

Of course distractions are everywhere, and an element of our practice is learning to notice the distractions, and be ok with them. Not let them take up more space than they need to. Those distractions could be ruminating on work stuff, noise from the room next door, or physical tension in the body. But what about drishti, or focus point when practicing asana. Is there a fine line between focus and distraction? Are we not distracting our mind through concentrating on a posture? Focussing on the breath is in itself helping distract us from the distractions. This might sound like stoner chat, but it goes someway to explaining that distractions are constant, but it's the balance that counts.

The same is often said of music in class. Many OG teachers will insist on silence in the room when practicing. But sometimes music can help relax us, distract us from discomfort, and even help guide the breath. But it's not one size fits all unfortunately, and my mat still has Smurfy looking skid-marks on it. And I've just got to be ok with it.