July/August 2007

Dear Friends,

Before I write anything else, I want to tell you about a very wonderful event that we just added to our studio calendar. On Monday, July 16 7:30 pm, we will be hosting the Wild Lotus Band for a Kirtan/concert. This band is really amazing. I heard them play a few months ago, and they combine the sounds of Indian music with New Orleans saxophone, plus guitar and drums. We hope to fill Studio 1 with their music and of all of you and make this a celebration of our community. Feel free to bring friends and kids! The fee is a sliding scale; no one will be turned away (but don’t forget that we need to be able to pay the band), and you can register online (www.circleyoga.com) or call the studio to reserve a space (202-686-1104).

What has been up for me over the last few week has been learning to let go. My oldest daughter graduated from high school last week, and she heads off for college on August 8, and my other children are each going away for most of the summer. Letting them go has been a struggle for me. There’s a part of me that wants to grab their ankles and drag them back home… and of course, there’s a part of me that wants them to experience all of the adventures that await them outside of our home.

I’m guessing that many of you have been through this process before, and that many others of you have been through much more difficult situations, where you needed to let go of someone dear to you in some way. Music is often very healing for me, and often random songs pop into my head when needed. During the last few weeks, I have been playing the song “For Good” from Wicked a lot. The lyrics that keep reaching out to me are:

So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You’ll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart

I believe that every person I know becomes a handprint on my heart. I start to suffer when I want more than that. When I want to keep the whole person with me, when I’m not content with the handprint on my heart.

So my practice, of late, has been to try to be content with the handprint. A teacher of mine once said that to love each other the way we love a cool breeze on a hot summer day is the most generous way we can love. So I am trying. There’s still a lot of grief, and a little gripping, but I know that we all inter-are, and that I will continue to be with each of my children as they head off into the world this summer. And they will continue to be with me. The same goes for each one of us. I am grateful for each of your handprints.

Here with you,

Annie