Yoga Journey #33

A while back this blog had a category that included stories of my family. Stories of my Dad and Mom’s passing and the birth of my grandson were in there. I deleted that category as I thought I was getting too personal and it was not really relevant to my yoga or MS journeys.

I have included this story as it represents how yoga has changed the way I think about life and what surrounds me. At least that’s how I view it – what do you think…

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My son left on his motorcycle yesterday morning. It was sad for me as I think it will be a long time before I see him again. He is driving to Montreal through the Rockies, the Prairies , Northern Ontario and then into Quebec. He told me if the weather holds up he may continue on to Prince Edward Island our most eastern province and then back to Montreal. It’s a long ride to make and a rather late time of year to do it.

It’s something he’s always wanted to do and a combination of events provided this opportunity. Rising prices for renters, astronomical here in Victoria. A job that was unchallenging, and a spirit that is looking for nourishment.

He’s a giant of a man with a kind and gentle soul.

We all have our own ideas about what freedom means and I can remember a conversation I was part of with Eddie Stern(1). After living in India for a while he came back to New York and realized all the rules he had to follow living in New York versus India. Such rules as simple as a stop sign. That struck me in a way I hadn’t thought about freedom before. I’m not an anarchist far from it. But this thought process opened my eyes.

I grew up in a time when roles were mostly defined. You get a job, get married, have kids, buy a house etc. etc. I never really stopped to think about where my life was going – I was in automatic mode.

That got me to thinking about how freedom represents itself to me. And I determined I’m not really free at all. I have actually spent my entire life becoming unfree.

That is a strange thing for me to say because I’m free to have an opinion and safely proclaim it. I’m free to vote for whomever is running. I’m free to fall in love with whom ever I do.

My son is free to do this trip. Every thing he owns is on his bike with him. He sold, gave, or trashed everything he had accumulated. He got a tent and will camp all the way to Montreal. He loves to camp – something we did together when he was a kid. He has friends in Edmonton, a sister in Winnipeg, and an uncle in Toronto where he can stay if he wants to along the way. I admire his ambition to finally do this trip – albeit a bit worrisome for me to leave this late in the season. They don’t call Canada the Great White North for nothing.

I love my son no mater what but I love him all the more because of how he represents himself. Kind, gentle, caring, and his ability to describe his freedom in a way that makes him happy. It took me a while to understand that. It has always been my understanding that he represents freedom and kindness but I used to be worried about that. But I’ve come to understand, that is his gift.

Take care

(1) Eddie Stern is a Certified Ashtanga Yoga teacher whom has written books about yoga. A group of my friends and I talked with him on zoom for quite a while about his book One Simple Thing. It was an awesome conversation that has stayed with me.