Every other Wednesday I connect, via Zoom, with a friend in Japan. She is a yoga instructor who I met whilst doing online training in 2020. We share about our practice, how our classes (that we teach and that we take) are going, and a bit about our families and work life. It is beautiful to have that connection and to be able to share in this way about a particular area of my life that another can directly relate to.

Today I also connected with friends of my mother, to remember her and to spend time together. “Why did you want to meet this way?”, I was asked. I do not have an answer beyond the fact that it felt important, a subtle urging to meet up with these women. I learn so much just from being in their presence.

I am reflecting on community, those we grow up in, those we create, and those we help to shape. It is necessary for us to have uplifting spaces where we can express ourselves, be supported by others, become aware of the similarities of our lived experiences and learn through listening and sharing our truth.

It is important for us to gather in satsaṅga, to be in the company of truth. As I reflect I give thanks for the opportunities I have had, through my upbringing and my choices, to learn about and to be in these spaces.

I hope that my classes, my events and retreats provide this sense of community that is needed.

peace,

Renee Arundhati