i come from a province known for people who have themselves crucified on wooden crosses as in what is told to have happened to jesus christ. i went when i was 12 and almost twenty years hence i still remember one man's face as he was hanging up there with his palms pierced and bleeding. he looked up and was uttering something. i saw peace in his eyes. he put himself up there voluntarily. years later i saw the same man in tv being featured for an easter theme episode. he said that his daughter was sick once and he prayed really hard. he made a promise to god that he would do the crucifixion every year if his daughters recovers. lo and behold, his daughter made it and he's been fulfilling his promise every year.
sometimes we find faith in one activity. at least once in our lives we find something that makes us devoted and one way or another we always make room for it despite our busy schedule. that activity for me is YOGA.
i went through the most difficult 2 years of my life and yoga helped me a lot to move on. it didnt come to me as a fad. some people are just enticed by the thought of being able to lose weight in a non intense way that's why they sign up at yoga centers then lose interest one or two months later. i see yoga as a retreat for my hectic life. three to five hours of my week are spent doing meditation, stretching my dull body and somewhat satisfying my competitive nature. there is always a new posture to do and it's always nice to learn and advance to a higher level. the good thing is you only have yourself to make it or break it. there are no outside forces to blame and no luck to depend on. you do it because you can. you dont do it because you cannot yet. after regular practice you get the hang of it and you feel happy about yourself because you could do it afterall.
so i went again to the HK yogathon this year. it's still organized by the HK breast cancer foundation. do you know that there are 8 women diagnosed every day in HK, and that one person die from it everyday? that's one scary statistics!
this time i am determined to finish 8 hours again. i did it last year, there's no reason i cannot do it now. needless to say i made it and im so proud of myself for the achievement. this year there were more people who stayed eight hours and i am very happy that more and more people are appreciating the benefits of yoga. dont think of it as a way to lose weight. you cannot be seriously expecting to lose weight when you do twistings for 10 seconds every time, can you? think of it as a retreat and as an opportunity to meditate. it's different when you just sit and do nothing. i always think of something whenever i do something. i may be crossing the road but i am thinking of what to have for dinner. i may be brushing my teeth but im thinking if i responded to all my work queries for the day. even when i sleep i still dream about my orders at work.
but whenever i go yoga, everything is erased. i feel bitterness when i remember i didnt have a nice pencil case when i was eight. i feel sad that i didnt make it to one field trip when i was in college. there are some shallow bits of sadness that just pop out of nowhere and when i meditate i forget them after the 1 hour session. i always feel refreshed after shavasana even if im sweating all over. i may be exhausted during the 8 hour yogathon, but it's the most peaceful 8 continuous hours that i had had after more than a year. and to top it all off, i did it for breast cancer patients.
i will keep doing yogathon until im here in HK! i will keep doing yoga until my bones are brittle. that's the cross i'd gladly bear!
stole this from the hk yogathon facebook page. find me!
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