We are the Robbinses: If you can't say something nice....

...then don't say anything. My mom has been telling me this forever, and I think there is some truth to this.

This weekend, along with 174 other people, I attended a yoga class in a monastery taught by the founders of Jivamukti Yoga. I had never practiced this style of yoga, but in a nutshell, the whole message is just to be nice. Think nice things, do nice things, and treat every person and every being you encounter with kindness. The ways we think and behave make physical impressions on our "inner selves", so thinking mean or petty thoughts can truly damage us. We, as people, are a manifestation of all of our thoughts and actions (called karma), and as such, we become ugly people if we let ourselves be ruled by negativity. ...so why bother, especially if it's going to hurt? Forgive people if they've hurt you, and most importantly, do not view anything as exploitable. Simply put, be nice.

While it did verge on being a little too spiritual and preachy for me, especially when they said we shouldn't eat animal products because "that's not treating the animals with compassion", I am trying to block out all those stupid, worthless thoughts that cross my mind. (For example, instead of thinking "eww, I am utterly disgusted, annoyed, and bothered by {unnamed subject's} grunting and burping right next to me", I instead try to think, "I'm just so happy to finally have a job"....yeah, I've got some work to do.)

Anyway, I had fun and pushed myself. I did this twice for 5 minutes each time....woo hoo!

[image from here]

In the spirit of forgiveness, we did this pose 5 times, each for at least 12 breaths, and on the last two, we were supposed to repeat in our heads the name of someone who has hurt us in the past....